What does Catholic "just war" theory teach about the conflict in Israel-Palestine? Do concepts in Catholic social teaching, such as "integral human development" or the "preferential option for the poor," provide any guidance?  In what ways might the Church's historic relationship with the Jewish people or the Pope's statements on war and peace in the Holy Land influence Catholic perspectives?
Join us for a wide-ranging conversation about the events of October 7, 2023, the subsequent war, the tenuous ceasefire, the history of the region, and its future. The event will feature visiting speakers specializing in Catholic-Jewish and Catholic-Muslim relations, as well as the director of Notre Dame Jerusalem, who will convey Christian perspectives from the Holy Land.
Notre Dame IDs will be required for entrance to this event, and backpacks and large bags will be checked.

Featuring:



Jordan Denari Duffner
Theologian and Scholar of Catholic-Muslim Relations; Member, Catholic Advisory Council of Churches for Middle East Peace
Jordan Denari Duffner is a theologian and scholar of Catholic-Muslim relations, interreligious dialogue, and Islamophobia. She is a member of the Catholic Advisory Council of Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) as well the National Catholic-Muslim Dialogue of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. She obtained her Ph.D. in theology and religious studies at Georgetown University, where she now teaches as an adjunct lecturer. A former Fulbright scholar in Amman, Jordan, she is the author of two award-winning books: Finding Jesus among Muslims and Islamophobia: What Christians Should Know (and Do) about Anti-Muslim Discrimination. Duffner was also a co-author of the 2024 Sign-On Letter by U.S. Catholics on Israel-Palestine.






Daniel Schwake
Executive Director, Notre Dame Jerusalem
Daniel Schwake was appointed the executive director for Notre Dame Jerusalem  in April 2019.
Schwake joined Notre Dame after a decade in the consulting industry. He most recently held the position of principal (associate partner) in the strategy consulting firm Oliver Wyman. He provided advice to top executives of large corporations, financial institutions, regulators, and ministries. He has led the execution of high profile engagements across the globe, covering a wide range of topics, incl. enterprise-wide strategy, financial planning, risk and regulation, re-organisation, and restructuring.
He holds a B.Sc. and Diploma (M.Sc.) in business administration from the University of Münster and a doctorate in economics from the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany.






Matthew Tapie
Associate Professor of Theology and Director of the Center for Catholic-Jewish Studies, Saint Leo University
Matthew Tapie is Associate Professor of Theology, and Director of the Center for Catholic-Jewish Studies at Saint Leo University, Saint Leo, Florida. His teaching and research interests are in the thought of Thomas Aquinas, Judaism and Christian theology, and Catholic-Jewish relations. From 2012-2014, Dr. Tapie was a Visiting Assistant Professor of Theology at The Catholic University of America and was appointed a research fellow at CUA's Institute for Interreligious Study and Dialogue. 
Dr. Tapie is the author of Aquinas on Israel and the Church: A Study of the Question of Supersessionism in the Theology of Thomas Aquinas, which was the focus of a special session at the 51st International Congress on Medieval Studies, May 12, 2016.  Tapie is Series Editor of the Judaism and Catholic Theology series with The Catholic University of America Press. He is a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' dialogue with Modern Orthodox Judaism, and with representatives of the Orthodox Union and Rabbinical Council of America.






Moderator: Gabriel Reynolds
Jerome J. Crowley and Rosaleen G. Crowley Professor of Theology, University of Notre Dame
Gabriel Said Reynolds did his doctoral work at Yale University in Islamic Studies. Currently he researches the Qur'ān and Muslim/Christian relations and is Professor of Islamic Studies and Theology in the Department of Theology at Notre Dame. He is the author of The Qur'ān and Its Biblical Subtext and The Emergence of Islam. 
In 2012-13, Reynolds directed, along with Mehdi Azaiez, “The Qurʾān Seminar,” a year-long collaborative project dedicated to encouraging dialogue among scholars of the Qurʾān, the acts of which appeared as The Qurʾān Seminar Commentary. In 2018, he published The Qurʾan and the Bible with Yale University Press and in 2020 Allah: God in the Qur'an, also with YUP. At Notre Dame he teaches courses on theology, Muslim/Christian Relations, and Islamic Origins. He runs a YouTube channel, “Exploring the Qur’an and the Bible,” that features conversations on Scripture with leading scholars.


Originally published at forum2024.nd.edu.