Brothers & Sisters
Building a Better World
The countdown to the conference has begun! GMU is collaborating with the Institute for Interreligious Dialogue and Islamic Studies (IRDIS) and State Islamic University (UIN) Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta, Indonesia in the "Building Human Solidarity in the Light of Pope Francis' Encyclical Letter, Fratelli Tutti " international interfaith conference. The central hub of the conference will be located at Tangaza University in Nairobi, Kenya, with other hubs in Rome, Indonesia, and California. GMU will be hosting the “Hub of the Americas” in California.

The Hub of the Americas plenaries:
  • Fr. Patrick Ryan, SJ, Laurence J. McGinley Professor of Religion and Society at Fordham University, will speak on Islamophobia and Catholic-Muslim Relations. GMU faculty and doctoral candidates will respond.

  • Fr Michael Agliardo, SJ, Executive Director of United States China Catholic Association, presents on the Climate Crisis, responding to the video of former California Governor Jerry Brown and California Air Resource Board Chair Mary Nichols' presentation for the US China Climate Institute at the University of California Berkeley.

The Hub of the Americas workshops:
  • Addressing Structures of Racism and Building Human Solidarity in the United States with moderator Susan Gunn, Director, Maryknoll Office of Global Concerns, and Simone Grudzen, producer of "Black Voters Matter" films
  • Voices from India and Africa on the Impact of the Coronavirus on the Health, Economy and Politics of the Global Community with Father Augustine Pamplany, Ph.D., Director of the Institute of Science and Religion, Little Flower Seminary, Aluva, Kerala, India, and Managing Editor of the Indian Journal of Science and Religion; and Sterling Harwood, Ph.D. Professor of Philosophy and Ethics, San Jose City College, San Jose, CA
  • “Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor” with moderator, Marita Grudzen, Chair, Roman Catholic Diocese of San Jose, "Stewards of Our Common Home"

GMU is entering into a collaboration with the Journal of Social Encounters, a digital publication based both in Nairobi, Kenya and Collegeville,
Minnesota. One JSE's editors, Doctor Joseph Okumo, has agreed to write an article on the Fratelli Tutti conference which will be published in August. The latest issue of this Journal has several good articles on Fratelli Tutti.

Pope Francis is expected to address the conference, and other religious leaders will share their interpretations of Fratelli Tutti from the perspectives of their own faith traditions.

August 19, 20, 21, 2021

The 3-day conference will be conducted interactively with participants on Zoom but global reports from the "hubs," and recaps, will be live streamed on YouTube and Facebook so that everyone around the world can view the proceedings.

There will be no charge for the event, but donations are welcome.
Community Chaplaincy Program
Click on the image to download the flyer
"GMU’s Community Chaplaincy program is top notch! The instructors are knowledgeable, experienced, and compassionate. I am blown away by the caliber of the guest speakers as well. I’m using things I have learned in this program in my work on a regular basis. And it’s been liberating to bring chaplaincy out into the community." ~ Julie C.

Read more accolades from graduates of this outstanding program here.

The graduation ceremony will take place on June 30. It will be recorded and shared on GMU's YouTube channel.

President Grudzen submitted a proposal for a substantial grant to support the Community Chaplaincy Program in training participants for outreach to homeless populations in and around San Jose CA. Stay tuned for updates on this compassionate new initiative.
Librarian's Corner
WorldCat.org
Here’s a quick tutorial on one way to find and actually read books online.

We’ll explore a resource called WorldCat which leads us to books in libraries and publications worldwide.

Let’s say you’re writing a paper on prison chaplaincy. Start by going to WorldCat.org. You’ll see a search box. If you just type in “prison chaplaincy” there, it looks for everything with those words, in all formats, and you’ll get 745 hits. Too many.

Now click on Advanced Search (this option is in very small print). Type “prison chaplaincy” in the search box as keywords, then limit to language English (and any other languages you’re able to read), and limit to eBook. Now you get 76 results. Much better.

If, for example, Number 10, Prison Ministry: Hope Beyond the Walls looks good, click on the title and read the summary. If the book seems appropriate, click on View Full Text, then view or download in HTML or PDF. You can even create a citation to the book by clicking on the option (over on the right side of the screen) How to Cite Item.

If, instead of searching by subject or keywords, you want to search in WorldCat for a book someone has recommended or that you’ve found in a bibliography, and you know the actual title, just type the title into the title search box.

Have fun exploring!

Questions? Need assistance? Please contact me.

Next month: finding full texts of articles on WorldCat!
~Judy Clarence
What is the role of a celebrant? A celebrant presides at weddings, funerals and other rites of passage. Our Celebrant Training Program is designed to give the celebrant the focus of providing a meaningful ceremony or service that reflects their clients' own beliefs and/or spirituality.
Celebrating the Spirit’s Call to New Life in the Christian Tradition for the 21st Century
Vision
People's Catholic Seminary offers courses to inspire and educate individuals and groups who embrace a vision of spirituality that is inclusive, liberating, empowering and equal.
Be a Light!
Be A Light - Voices of Hope Children's Choir (Virtual Choir)
GMU is committed to interfaith collaberation and cooperation, working together to "build" a better world for all. The upcoming international conference, "Building Human Solidarity in the Light of Pope Francis' Encyclical Letter, Fratelli Tutti," will be provided free of charge to everyone. But it takes a considerable amount of funds and resources to stage such an event, even online. Please consider supporting GMU's mission to help "build transformative models of community development that bridge economic, political, religious and cultural divisions in the world" (Conference Concept Document).

Thank you for your generosity!