Edith Stein Project

I had the privilege of attending the Edith Stein Project over the weekend. It was excellent and thoroughly informative, as always. I came away inspired by the talks and enthusiastic about studying further the issues it presented.

If you've never heard of the Edith Stein Project, you can learn more about its history by reading my Observer article about it or checking out the Project's website. My favorite talk was from Dorothy Cummings McLean, also known as Seraphic Singles, who offered a witty, funny and honest analysis of the modern dating scene. Her lecture was one of the most popular talks of the conference. Other highlights included a musical performance from Danielle Rose, a lecture by Dr. Catherine Pakaluk of Ave Maria University, and a fascinating presentation by well-known Jewish author Wendy Shalit. I left the conference with a wealth of new information and many ideas for further research.

I recently learned that the Edith Stein Project has inspired a similar event at Ave Maria University called the Genuine Feminine Conference. The inaugural conference will take place on March 19 and looks to be very well-organized and interesting. After speaking to two of the conference planners and checking out its website, I am happy to recommend this conference to anyone interested in gender and sexuality within the Catholic tradition.

Tonight at 5 pm I'm attending the second meeting for the Holy Land Pilgrimage class followed by a meeting of the Identity Project of Notre Dame club (I'm not a club member but I'm attending to buy a copy of Wendy Shalit's book). Then it's serious study time for the rest of the night, with a paper and an exam due Thursday and Friday, respectively, and a meeting with my thesis adviser coming up. Wish me luck!