The Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J. Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture sponsors and supports programming that explores basic human questions of meaning, morality and mutual obligation. Following the principle that faith and learning are partners in liberal education, the McFarland Center's programs foster dialogue that respects differences and provide a forum for intellectual exchange that is interreligious as well as interdisciplinary, intercultural, and international in scope. Most events are free and open to the public.
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Global Catholicism
Through open-access resources like the Catholics & Cultures website and the Journal of Global Catholicism, international conferences, and a growing range of initiatives, the McFarland Center is a worldwide leader in helping scholars, students, and the broader public understand the diversity and context-specificity of Catholic practice today, in a Church whose greatest vitality is increasingly found in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Jewish-Christian Understanding
The McFarland Center is committed to interreligious understanding, in particular Jewish-Christian understanding, through a range of initiatives on campus and through sponsorship of Readings from the Roots, a program that helps Christians in the pews engage Sunday scripture readings in ways that are true to their original contexts and free of anti-Jewish understandings.
Campus Lectures and Conferences
To address the grand challenges of our time and the forces that have shaped the world we live in at the intersections of religion, ethics, and culture, the McFarland Center works alongside Holy Cross faculty to sponsor dozens of on-campus programs annually.