Ambassadors for Christ Sent Forth

August 09, 2011 - 6:49 PDT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA ADVISORY

Over 1200 Attend Defending the Faith Apologetics Conference at Franciscan University of Steubenville

STEUBENVILLE, OH (August 9, 2011) - "All of the ancient enmities collapse in the wake of Mary's being, Mary's innocence," said Dr. Regis Martin, Franciscan University of Steubenville theology professor. "Mary at the deepest level is the Church, ecclesia immaculata." Mary is, he explained, the model ambassador of Christ to the world, and of the world to God.

Martin's talk opened "Ambassadors for Christ," the 21st annual Defending the Faith Conference. Cohosted by conference founder Dr. Alan Schreck and Dr. Scott Hahn, both Franciscan University theology professors, the conference drew over 1200 participants from as far away as Australia, the Cayman Islands, and Portugal for a weekend of eucharistic adoration, daily liturgies, and talks from ambassadors for Christ laboring in the vineyard today.

"What is an ambassador? It's a person who has to learn how to live in two countries, one that is home and one that is not," said Dr. Hahn, author and coauthor of more than 40 books including Reasons to Believe: How to Understand, Defend, and Explain the Catholic Faith. "We have a weekend to discover the fact that we are called to be ambassadors to our own country, to our own state, to our own town, wherever we call home.

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"By the end of the weekend, we're going to be reminding each other that wherever we go home to isn't really our home because we're representatives of a kingdom in heaven. We are ambassadors to those we live with and love on earth. This is a crucial part of who we are and what we do."

Hahn's talk discussed Abba or Allah--God understood as master or as Father. "For the last quarter of a century or so," said Hahn, "I have shared the conviction with a growing number of scholars that Islam really does represent the single greatest force of the third millennium, and also the single greatest challenge and threat to Christianity worldwide. Instead of just allowing that to create in us a defensive and reactionary attitude, I think our response ought to be more thoughtful and more prayerful."

Hahn spoke of a debate he'd had with a Muslim scholar in a diner, and how the man had reacted so vehemently against Hahn's use of familial language to speak of the divine persons that he stormed out.

The scholar's depiction of the relationship between God and humanity was stark, Hahn recalled. "He explained that Allah is an owner, and we are property. He is a master, and we are slaves. And I realized that, as uncomfortable as that might make me feel, he was really doing a very adequate job of expressing his faith with precision and clarity."

Father Mitch Pacwa, SJ, co-creator of the Islam and Christianity CD series, explored some of the challenges facing Christianity from Islam with an overview of inaccuracies in the Qur'anic depiction of Jesus and Mary.

"He [Muhammad] made a number of serious mistakes from the beginning." One key example: Muhammad rendered the name of Jesus in Arabic as 'Isa. "The word for Jesus in Arabic is 'Yasu. Where does the word 'Isa come from? According to Muslim scholars, this was the name given by the Jews of Mecca to Jesus. It is the Arabic version of the word Esau. If that is the way the name came, then it is meant as an insult to Christians" on multiple levels, said Father Pacwa.

"The problem is this: Muhammad accepted it. Where this becomes very problematic is that Muslims believe the Qur'an is the only perfect book in the world. How is it that the prophet Muhammad is able to apply a hated name to Jesus, who is a prophet and the messiah of the Christians?"

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Father Pacwa also discussed reports of missionaries working in Africa and the Middle East.

"Conversion is a one-way street--from Islam to Christianity. That's what's going on in Africa. I never thought I'd live to see the day when so many Muslims are becoming Christians."

Besides talks on the challenge of Islam, participants also attended daily Mass and joined together in Eucharistic adoration. Leading Catholic apologists who spoke at the conference included Dr. Alan Schreck, Steve Ray, Patrick Madrid, Kimberly Hahn, and Marcus Grodi.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl, ordinary for the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., and author of the recently released The Gift of Blessed John Paul II, opened the conference with an exhortation for all to join in the new evangelization.

Cardinal Wuerl told the story of an airport encounter with a man who "was absolutely convinced he knew everything about the Christian faith, and it meant nothing to him. We all know people like that all over this land--generations of them. This is why the Holy Father is saying this is the moment. We must find how to repropose the Gospel to those who are certain they've already heard the Gospel and don't need it."

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Dion DiMucci spoke of his journey from just such lapsed faith to Catholicism.

"Millions of people hate the Catholic Church, but they don't really know what it teaches," said DiMucci, author of Dion: The Wanderer Talks Truth. "I didn't know. I had no idea how beautiful it was. It's so different standing in the center of it, looking out than being on the outside cursing it and kicking at it and yelling at it. I thought I was so smart! I was in this meeting once, and I said, 'I was anti-Catholic,' and this one guy says, 'Ooh! I was never that smart!'

"I walked right into the confessional," DiMucci continued, "and Father Joe was there, and I'm so used to the 12-step way of looking people in the eye that I just walked in. I said, 'Father, do you know, I thought I loved the Lord--I do love the Lord. I've been anti-Catholic and really in rebellion with the Body of Christ,' and he's like, 'Ah, thank God. Stand up kid.' He gives me a hug and says, 'Welcome home!'"

For audio recordings of the conference talks, go to www.franciscan.edu/bookstore and click on the "Conferences" tab at the top of the homepage. For Bible studies, books by presenters, and a wealth of resources on Scripture and theology, visit the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology's Web site at www.salvationhistory.com.

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For more information on Franciscan University's conferences, including the Deep in History Conference with the Coming Home Network on October 21-23, 2011, and a complete list of 2012 conferences for adults and youth, go to www.franciscanconferences.com.

Contact

Franciscan University of Steubenville
http://franciscan.edu/News/2011/Ambassadors_for_Christ_Sent_Forth/
OH, 43952 US
Tom Sofio - Associate Director of Public Relations,

Keywords

franciscan university, steubenville, scott hahn, cardinal wuerl, islam, regis martin, dion dimucci

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