THE CATHOLIC ETHIC IN THE EARTHLY CITY

Society of Catholic Social Scientists Spring Conference - Saturday, April 9, 2016

Belmont Abbey College
100 Belmont-Mt. Holly Road, Belmont, North Carolina
The entire conference takes place in Grace Auditorium, on the 3rd Floor of St. Leos Hall
8:30 a.m. - Welcoming Remarks: Dr. David Williams, Vice President of Academic Affairs, BAC
(refreshments will be available prior to the start of the conference)
8:45 a.m. - 9:45a.m.
Dr. David Klocek, Director of Assessment and Evaluation, University of Virginia - College at Wise - A
Return to Non-Alignment: Pope Francis Reiteration of a Tradition
Dr. Douglas Meador, Asst. Prof. of Economics, U. of St. Francis (Fort Wayne, IN) - Laudato Si From
an Economists Perspective
Brian Scarnecchia, Assoc. Professor, Ave Maria School of Law - The Public Trust Doctrine and
Constitutional Law
Moderator: Dr. Gary Scott, Chair, Dept. of Business, BAC
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Dr. Steven Brust, Assoc. Prof. of Political Science, Eastern New Mexico University - Religious
Freedom, Civil Law, and the HHS Mandate.
Fr. D. Paul Sullins, Ph.D., Assoc. Professor of Sociology, The Catholic University of America Research on Same-Sex Parenting.
Dr. Clifford Staples, Professor of Sociology, University of North Dakota - The Secular Power Elite
Moderator: Mary Clare Imparato, Ph.D. candidate, Political Science, Rutgers University
11:10 a.m. - 12:10 p.m.
Panel: Catholicism and Democracy
Dr. Joseph Wysocki, Chair, Dept. of Government and Political Philosophy, BAC - Tocqueville
and Religious Forms
Dr. Travis Cook, Asst. Professor, Dept. of Govt. and Political Philosophy, BAC - title to be
determined
Dr. Laurence Reardon, Asst. Professor, Dept. of Govt. and Political Philosophy, BAC - Modern
Family, Church and Society: Familiaris Consortio and the 2015 Synod of Bishops.
Moderator: Dr. Justin Litke, Asst. Professor, Dept. of Govt. and Political Philosophy, BAC
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12:10 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. - Lunch (attendees are on their own for lunch - can go to either New Dining Hall
or Holy Grounds Coffee Shop and Caf on campus)
1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Br. Anselm Cundiff, OSB, Asst. Professor, Dept. of Government and Political Philosophy, BAC Reflecting on the New Jerusalem: Perfecting Mans Political Nature
Dr. Gerald Malsbary, Director of First Year Symposium, Professor of Latin, BAC - The Heavenly Basis
of the Earthly City: Religion and the Economy in Mores Utopia.
Mary Clare Imparato, Ph.D. candidate, Political Science, Rutgers University - Religious Toleration
Contextualized: Understanding Augustines Various Positions during the Donatist Controversy.
Moderator: Br. Ephrem Obermeyer, OSB, Asst. Professor, Dept. of Theology
2:40 p.m. - 3:40 p.m.
Panel: "The Domestic Role of Government: Catholic Social Teaching, the U.S. Bishops, and the
Problems of the Welfare State."
Dr. Stephen M. Krason, Chairman, Dept. of Political Science, Professor of Political Science and
Legal Studies, and Assoc. Director, Veritas Center, Franciscan University of Steubenville
Dr. Kevin Schmiesing, Research Fellow, Acton Institute
Discussant: Dr. Steven Brust, Assoc. Professor of Political Science, Eastern New Mexico
University
Moderator Dr. Stephen Shivone, Asst. Dean of Academic Affairs, BAC
3:50 p.m. - 4:50 p.m.
Panel: Theological Perspectives on Restorative Justice
Dr. Grattan Brown, Chair and Associate Professor of Theology, BAC
Dr. Julia Beeman, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice; Chair, Department of Criminal Justice
and Sociology, BAC
Moderator: Fr. D. Paul Sullins, Ph.D., Assoc. Professor of Sociology, The Catholic University of
America
5:00 p.m. - 8:50 p.m. - SCSS Board of Directors Meeting (in room adjoining the auditorium)
Anticipatory Mass at 9:00 p.m. - location to be announced