THE SOCIETY OF CATHOLIC SOCIAL SCIENTISTS
Friday and Saturday, October 26-27, 2007
The St. John’s University School of Law
Dr. Philip Anthony Franco is the Director of Faith Formation for the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Theology at Saint John’s University. Phil holds a Master’s Degree in Dogmatic Theology from Saint Joseph Seminary, Dunwoodie, New York and a Ph.D. in Catechesis and Religious Education from Fordham University. Phil has taught as an adjunct professor of Theology and Religious Studies at Saint John’s University and a Visiting Professor of Pastoral Ministry and Catechesis at Santa Clara University. He has published The Communion Ecclesiology of Joseph Ratzinger: Implications for the Future of the Church in a volume entitled, “Vatican II: Forty Years Later” by Orbis Books. He also authored Educating Toward Communion: The Traditional Italian Festa as a Means of Christian Religious Education in the journal Religious Education. Phil is a native of Brooklyn and lives with his wife, Tara, and their two sons in Middle Village, Queens.
Philip A. Franco, PhD
Director
Office of Faith Formation
Diocese of Brooklyn
OCTOBER CONFERENCE
The Three Talks:
This talk will examine the Italian Festa, specifically the Giglio Feast as it is
manifested in Brooklyn, New York, as a means of evangelization and catechesis. The talk will recount some historical background as well as ethnographic research that examined the various layers of the Giglio feast and its potential as a means of communicating the Catholic faith and incorporating participants, particularly youth, into the community of the Church.
This talk will examine the official teaching of the Catholic Church regarding the meaning, status and veneration of Saints. Beginning with historical background that will provide context, the talk will focus on the Church’s teaching on the veneration of saints as it compares to the popular practice of devotion to saints in different times and cultures. Special consideration will be given to the distinction between saint devotion in general and the veneration of the Virgin Mary, who enjoys a distinct type of veneration, both in official teaching and popular practice.
This talk will examine the different means by which the Church of Brooklyn and
Queens is seeking to reach out the people of the Diocese, offering the Gospel of Jesus
Christ to the unbaptized as well as to those who are baptized but non-practicing. The
talk will begin with a brief overview of the unique urban Diocese of
Brooklyn as well as a Catholic understanding of Evangelization. Following this, the
talk will examine current as well as potential future efforts to the spread the Good
News among the many different ethnic, racial and socio-economic groups within our
ever-changing and ever growing Diocese.