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Culture | History | The Church
The Philos Project & CIC’s “Catholics and Antisemitism—Facing the Past, Shaping the Future”
Monday, March 10, 2025
1:15 pm EDT - 6:00 pm EDT
Catholic Information Center
1501 K Street NW
Washington,
DC
20005
United States
Description
Join the CIC and the Philos Project’s Philos Catholic for an important one-day conference, “Catholics and Antisemitism—Facing the Past, Shaping the Future,” at the Catholic Information Center on March 10, 2025 from 1:15-6:00 PM EDT. This program will be offered both in-person and virtually through a YouTube livestream.
We will explore the challenges and responsibilities of Catholics in addressing antisemitism in today’s world. This event invites Catholics to reflect not only on the Church’s history and culture but also on the wider social currents that shape attitudes toward the Jewish people and Israel today.
How should Catholics respond to rising antisemitic ideologies? What role do theology and Church teachings—like supersessionism and replacement theology—play in forming Catholic attitudes toward the Jewish people? In a world where Catholics often hear little from the pulpit about issues like Zionism or the occupation of the West Bank but are saturated with media narratives, how can Catholic leaders offer a faithful, thoughtful response?
This timely program will also explore how shifting demographics—such as a younger and increasingly traditional Catholic population—might influence trends in Catholic-Jewish relations and how these trends could be leveraged to combat antisemitism.
Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with leading voices on a critical issue and to be equipped to infuse the public square with Christ’s beauty, truth, and goodness. Our presenters for the day are Dr. Richard Crane, Mary Eberstadt, Dr. Russ Hittinger, Trent Horn, Kathryn Lopez, Maggie Phillips, Jonathan Silver, and George Weigel offering the keynote address. We will be joined for the day by the Philos Project team: Phil Dolitsky, James O’Reilly, and Simone Rizkallah.
We invite you to join us for the CIC’s noon Mass, take a lunch break, and be back by 1:15 PM EDT for the start of the conference. Coffee and light snacks will be offered to attendees during the conference.
CONFERENCE SCHEDULE:
1:15 PM-1:30 PM:
Welcome and Opening Remarks by The Philos Project’s Simone Rizkallah; Benediction offered by the CIC’s Fr. Charles Trullols.
1:30 PM – 3:00 PM:
Panel 1: Catholics and Antisemitism—Is It Still a Problem?
Exploring the contemporary relevance and presence of antisemitism within Catholic communities.
- Mary Eberstadt, Catholic Information Center and Faith and Reason Institute
- Trent Horn, Catholic Answers
- Jonathan Silver, The Tikvah Fund
- Moderator: Simone Rizkallah, The Philos Project
3:00 PM-4:15 PM:
Panel 2: A Historical Look at Catholics and Antisemitism
Examining the historical roots and evolution of Catholic antisemitism from past to present.
- Dr. Russ Hittinger, Institute for Human Ecology
- Dr. Richard Crane, Benedictine College
- Moderator: Simone Rizkallah, The Philos Project
4:15-4:30 PM: Break
4:30 PM – 5:30 PM:
Panel 3: How to Respond to Rising Rates of Catholic Antisemitism
Discussing practical strategies and tools to address and combat antisemitism within Catholic circles.
- Maggie Phillips, Tablet Magazine
- Kathryn Jean Lopez, National Review Institute
- Phil Dolitsky, The Philos Project
- James O’Reilly, The Philos Project
- Moderator: Simone Rizkallah, The Philos Project
5:30 PM – 6:00 PM:
Closing Keynote Address: A Blessing to One Another: John Paul II and the Jewish People
Reflections on the day’s sessions and a call to action for Catholics to lead in combating antisemitism.
- George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow of Washington’s Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC)
About the Speakers
Trent Horn is a staff apologist for Catholic Answers, where he specializes in teaching Catholics to graciously and persuasively engage those who disagree with them.
Simone Rizkallah is the Director of Philos Catholic at The Philos Project.
Phillip Dolitsky is a Strategic Advisor at The Philos Project.
James O’Reilly is the Associate Director of Philos Catholic.
Dr. Russell Hittinger is the Executive Director of The Institute for Human Ecology at the Catholic University of America.
Dr. Richard F. Crane is a professor of history at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas.
Dr. Jonathan Silver is the Chief Programming Officer of Tikvah, the editor of Mosaic, and the Warren R. Stern Senior Fellow of Jewish Civilization.
George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC), is a Catholic theologian and one of America’s leading public intellectuals. He holds EPPC’s William E. Simon Chair in Catholic Studies.
Mary Eberstadt holds the Panula Chair in Christian Culture at the Catholic Information Center in Washington DC, is Senior Research Fellow at the Faith & Reason Institute, and is an American writer whose contributions to the intellectual landscape traverse several genres.
Fr. Charles Trullols is the Director of the Catholic Information Center, a corporation of the Archdiocese of Washington, DC. He assumed this role in March 2017.
Kathryn Jean Lopez is a senior fellow at the National Review Institute where she directs the Center for Religion, Culture, and Civil Society, and editor-at-large of National Review.
