The eighth annual “Saturdays with the Saints” lecture series sponsored by the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame will feature seven saints whose lives give witness to the idea that “the foolishness of God is wiser than men.” (1 Cor. 1:25)
The lectures will be held on Saturdays of home Notre Dame football games combining the university’s rich traditions of Catholic faith and spirited football game days. Notre Dame theology faculty and McGrath Institute staff will deliver dynamic lectures on saints chosen for their uncommon virtue and their willingness to let their faith stand in contradiction to the wisdom of the world.
“The saints are those who stretch our imagination. Through the medium of their lives, they interpret the mystery of the Christian faith,” said John Cavadini, McGrath-Cavadini Director of the McGrath Institute for Church Life. “In the lives of the saints, we see a light that leads us closer to faith, hope, and love and that challenges common fascinations with pride, desperation, violence, and force.”
Saturdays with the Saints has established itself as a popular pregame ritual for members of the Notre Dame community and visitors to campus. The lectures begin at 10:30 a.m. in the Andrews Auditorium on the lower level of Geddes Hall adjacent to Hesburgh Library. The talks are free and open to the public. Attendees are encouraged to arrive early as the events tend to fill to capacity.
“The saints matter to everyone because love matters to everyone. People understand love,” said Tim O’Malley, managing director of the McGrath Institute and director of the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy. “It is love that attracts, that woos, that changes the world. That same love is also what brings us together for Saturdays with the Saints.”
The 2017 Saturdays with the Saints schedule:
September 2: Sts. Francisco & Jacinta Marto, The Child Saints of Fatima
Sr. Ann Astell, Professor of Theology, Notre Dame
September 9: St. Philip Neri, God’s Humorist
Leonard DeLorenzo, Director of Notre Dame Vision, McGrath Institute for Church Life
September 30: St. Rose of Lima, Mother of the Poor
Jessica Keating, Director of Human Dignity and Life Initiatives, McGrath Institute for Church Life
October 21: St. André Bessette & Ven. Solanus Casey, Doorkeepers for God
Fr. Kevin Grove, C.S.C., Assistant Professor of Theology, Notre Dame
October 28: Blessed Miguel Pro, The “Folly” of Martyrdom
Timothy Matovina, Professor of Theology, Notre Dame
November 4: St. Robert Southwell, S.J., A Eucharistic Poet
Timothy P. O’Malley, Director of the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy, McGrath Institute for Church Life
November 18: St. Nicholas, Miracle Worker and Gift Giver
Lawrence S. Cunningham, O’Brien Chair of Theology, Emeritus, Notre Dame
Originally published by at icl.nd.edu on August 09, 2017.