Media Update: Spotlight on Fordham

Yesterday saw yet another wave of media visit Fordham on campus and off, with Fordham professors weighing in on TV, radio, print, and on the web. CBS's Lou Young visited the campus to interview Joseph Lienhard, S.J., professor of theology. Recording below:


After a full day of analysis that saw his feedback appear in the Daily News to The Wall Street Journal, Terrence Tilley, Ph.D., the Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Chair in Catholic Theology and chair of the department, spent the wee hours chatting with the hosts of the Dallas-based Red Eye Radio. Recording below:



Meanwhile, back in New York City, Maureen Tilley, Ph.D., professor of theology, provided more papal feedback on Fox news. To link to the video click here.



Michael Lee, Ph.D., associate professor of theology, talked to the Huffington Post. "You can tell that this is man who is speaking from experience, not in a lecture," he told the site. "His sermons have talked about proximity to the poor. Benedict continued a strong line in Catholic social teaching in general, but I don't think he had that proximity. Francis does."

Father McShane, Fordham Community, Hail First Jesuit Pope

Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, members of the University's Jesuit community, and Fordham theology faculty have been contributing to the global conversation marking the historic day in the history of the Catholic Church--the naming of the first Jesuit pope, Pope Francis I.

Father McShane appeared on Charlie Rose just hours after the naming of the new pope, where guest host Frank Bruni asked him what advice he'd give the new pontiff.

"You know Holy Week is almost upon us," he said. "On Holy Thursday, do not wash the feet of seminarians or priests, Bring in to St. Peters the poor the forgotten, the lonely, the outcast, the people that the world thinks little of and would turn away from, and on that day, wash their feet."

Bloomberg carried a short clip of the interview (below), but for the full roundtable discussion click here.


After giving live analysis for The Wall Street Journal's website, Terrence Tilley, Ph.D., Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Chair in Catholic Theology and chair of the department, noted that the Conclave had elevated the global recognition of New York's own Archbishop, Cardinal Timothy Dolan. The paper later quoted Tilley as saying the exposure "gives [Dolan] a kind of boost that is quite remarkable...He becomes more of an influential person, a kingmaker in clerical and Vatican circles." That quote was later picked up by NY1's Pat Kiernan for the station's "In the Papers" segment.

In a column published by Fox News Latino, J. Patrick Hornbeck III, Ph.D., assistant professor of theology, noted the new pope's break from tradition from the first greeting of the masses in Rome: "Eschewing the tradition of his recent predecessors, the new pope chose not to wear the elaborate papal mozzetta, or short velvet cape, when he appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica. Instead, Francis I presented himself to the world in a simple white cassock, a sartorial choice that will no doubt have left some traditionalists aghast."

Maureen Tilley, Ph.D., professor of theology, discussed the subtext of Pope Francis' Jesuit vow of poverty. "He's not just there for show," she told PIX 11. 

Charles Camosy, Ph.D., assistant professor of Theology, appeared on AOL.on News
"Taking the name 'Francis' I think is a major signal he is sending to everyone about who he is going to be, and on what side he is going to be--he is going to be on the side of the poor . . . leading a simple life."

Tilley Parses Papal Subtexts

Maureen Tilley, Ph.D., professor of theology, discusses the subtext of Pope Francis' Jesuit vow of poverty. "He's not just there for show," she tells PIX 11.

Tilley Gives Analysis on WSJ.com

Terrence W. Tilley, Ph.D., the Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J. professor of of Catholic theology, offers analysis to The Wall Street Journal following the pope's election.

Camosy Considers Pope's Character at AOL On News

Charles C. Camosy, Ph.D., assistant professor of theology, discusses distinguishing characteristics that set Pope Francis apart.

GSAS Dean Busch Appears on NBC New York

Nancy Busch, Ph.D, dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences weighs in on supply and demand for child care in New York City.

Interfaith Zen Group to Host Discussion on the Benefits of Meditation

The Fordham Interfaith Zen Sitting Group will host a discussion next week about the purpose and benefit of meditation, featuring two experts in the Zen Buddhist tradition.

Theology Roundtable: Meditation
Tuesday, March 19
4:30 p.m.
Blessed Rupert Mayer, S.J., Chapel
Lowenstein Center | Lincoln Center Campus

Leading Tuesday’s discussion will be Robert Kennedy, S.J. an American priest and Zen Roshi, and Khenpo Pema Wandak, a Tibetan Buddhist monk who has taught Westerners for 30 years.

Following his entrance into the Jesuit order in 1951 and his ordination in 1965, Father Kennedy studied in Japan, learning the practices of Zen Buddhism. He became a Zen teacher in the White Plum Asanga lineage in 1991 and became in 1997 Roshi, a title for highly respected teachers in Zen Buddhism. Currently, he is an elder in the Zen Peacemaker Order, teaches theology, and is a practicing psychoanalyst in New York City.

Wangdak is a Tibetan teacher and founder of the Vikramasila Foundation, which runs Palden Sakya Centers in New York City and throughout the Northeast. He is also the founder of various monastic and lay schools for children in India and Nepal. In 2009, he received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor from the National Ethical Coalition of Organizations for his humanitarian work around the world, becoming the first Tibetan to have received the award.

The speakers will also provide introductory meditation instruction at the event.

The roundtable discussion is sponsored by Fordham’s Department of Theology and the Zen Sitting Group, a meditation group sponsored by Campus Ministry and based on the teachings of Father Kennedy.

— Joanna Klimaski

Alan Alda to Receive Common Wealth Award for Dramatic Arts

Alan Alda, FCRH ’56, will be honored for his lifetime achievements in film, television, and theater this month at the 34th Annual Common Wealth Awards of Distinguished Service.

The celebrated actor is set to receive the 2013 Common Wealth Award for the Dramatic Arts on April 20 at the Hotel du Pont in Wilmington, Del., in a ceremony hosted by the PNC Financial Services Group.

A six-time Emmy and Golden Globe award winner who was inducted into Fordham’s Hall of Honor in October, Alda will always be remembered as the beloved and cocky Captain Hawkeye Pierce of M*A*S*H—consistently rated one of the greatest television characters of all time. He went on to star in several lauded films, plays, and television shows, earning an Academy Award nomination for his performance in The Aviator and a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross. He is also the author of two bestselling memoirs.

Some of his earliest acting experiences were during his junior year as a Fordham English major studying in Europe, where he performed on stage in Rome and on Amsterdam television alongside his father, veteran actor Robert Alda.

The Bronx native also indulges his passion for science, having hosted two acclaimed PBS science programs and helped to found the Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University, where he uses improvisation techniques to help scientists communicate. “[T]hey have to be able to explain to their mothers what they do for a living,” he once said.

Alda will be joined by three other cultural luminaries in receiving a 2013 Common Wealth Award. David McCullough, preeminent author and historian, will be recognized for his contributions to literature; Jane Pauley, leading journalist and Today show contributor, will be honored for her work in mass communications; and Martin Sheen, film legend and social activist, will receive the award for public service. Prior winners include Archbishop Desmond Tutu, statesman Henry Kissinger, and authors Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Toni Morrison.

Granted by the Ralph Hayes Common Wealth Foundation, which is administered by PNC, the awards recognize individuals who have enriched society in a range of human endeavors. They were first presented in 1979.

—Nicole LaRosa

Rock and Roll and Religion: Theologian to Present at Music Festival

Tom Beaudoin, Ph.D., associate professor of theology
at the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education

Depending on the faith tradition you belong to, the words “religion” or “spirituality” might lead you to think about music, for instance, hymns.

But if given the word “music,” would as many people think of the spiritual?

According to Tom Beaudoin, Ph.D., the link between music and spirituality is perfectly reasonable—and he’s headed to the biggest musical festival in the South to explain why.

Beaudoin, an associate professor of theology at the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education (GRE), will travel to Austin, Texas next week to take part in the South By Southwest musical festival. The annual gathering features more than 2,000 bands and attracts tens of thousands of fans that gather to hear live music, learn about film and technology, and network with prominent music industry members.

“It’s several days of an alternative universe where the only things that exist are great new music, a few classic older bands, and lots of enjoyment,” Beaudoin said.

Beaudoin will join Monica Miller, Ph.D., visiting assistant professor of religious studies at Lewis & Clark College, and David Nantais, director of University Ministry at the University of Detroit Mercy, on one of the many panels that occur over the weeklong festival.

Their presentation, “Into the Mystic: Secular Music as a Quest for More,” will examine how fans and musicians alike use popular music for their personal and communal spiritual quests.

“In everyday life, music often plays an important piece in people’s spiritual lives, however they define spirituality and whatever their music taste is,” Beaudoin said. “The purpose [of the panel] is to think out loud, ask about this relationship between what we value most in our lives and what we listen to.”

A bassist in two rock and roll bands, Beaudoin is also the head of the Rock and Theology Project, a forum for people with both theological interests and musical zeal to discuss how the two worlds inform one another.

“I think the basic connection between the two is that music helps people explore feelings, commitments, and questions that people might have no other way of accessing—and that are related to people's relationship to ultimate reailty,” he said.

This deep, spiritual experience of music can come in the form of connecting with the lyrics and message of a song, but it also goes deeper, he said. For instance, music can conjure certain feelings or images that help listeners to connect with themselves, others, or even God on a new level.

Which, incidentally, is also an important goal of theology.

“I believe that theology has to speak to the experience of being human as such, which is far bigger than the experience of being in a church. And so I want to try a way of doing theology that can speak to people who find themselves either religious or nonreligious,” Beaudoin said.

“Good theology can do that—can learn to speak in ways that are accessible to religious and nonreligious people. And not only accessible, but informed by church experience and experience from beyond the church—for example, in the larger worlds of the enjoyment of popular or secular music, worlds that cross religions and cultures.”

— Joanna Klimaski

Medievalists Put England in Its Place

The Center for Medieval Studies will be "Putting England in Its Place" for its 33rd Annual Conference on March 9 and 10 at Fordham Lincoln Center. Each conference takes about two years to prepare, making it a cornerstone to the Center's academic year.

With its established track record, the annual Fordham medieval conference usually receives many more proposals for papers from academics hoping to participate than can be fitted in, said Jocelyn Wogan-Browne, Ph.D., Fordham's Thomas F. X. and Teresa Mullarkey Chair of Literature.

This year's conference will focus on 11th to 13th century England, a time when  that region had  a far more international quality than is often portrayed.  Wogan-Browne described a country made up of a variety of cultures and languages and in cotact with a wide variety of other regional cultures.

"We don't want to think about this as a medieval England that was just an earlier version of the later English nation, but as a distinctive set of regional and transregional cultures."

Rather than aerial survey, the conference will concentrate on what was happening on the ground in individual regions,villages and towns. But the focus will remain on England, not the British Isles.

"What often happens is that Wales and Scotland get subsumed into England," she said.  "Instead we have invited specialists on Wales, Ireland and Scotland to tell us what the region of England looks like from their perspective. "

 Wogan-Browne noted that the ever-shifting cultures of medieval England should, in many ways, speak to the changing multilingual and multicultural mix  of today's Anglophone societies. "As societies who have part of their history rooted in medieval England, it is worth understanding that our 'English' past is as complex  and changing as our present culture, and perhaps has some pointers for it."

Indeed, the medievalists are hardly immune to change and development; if you can't make to the event you can follow it on Twitter at #puttingengland.

-Tom Stoelker