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Cardinal Peter Turkson will address the June 2022 assembly of the Association of U.S. Catholic Priests in Baltimore. Turkson accepted the invitation to speak, which was extended by AUSCP executive director Father Stephen Newton during a personal visit at the cardinal’s Vatican office. Newton’s report was featured in the AUSCP e-bulletin to members, November 7.
Turkson was recently in the news, telling reporters that President Biden should not be denied Communion. The comments came ahead of the General Assembly of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, which begins November 15. Turkson holds a new position created by Pope Francis in 2017; he is the Prefect of the Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development.
Turkson joins a list of prominent Catholic speakers at the priests’ assembly, which is organized on the theme, Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future.” Priests and friends, AUSCP members and prospective members are invited to attend the assembly, June 20-23. Speakers previously announced include Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv. of Lexington; Franciscan Father Dan Horan, Director of the Center for Spirituality at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Ind; and Mary Novak, executive director of the NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice.
At NETWORK, Novak succeeds Sister Simone Campbell, SSS, who also was a keynote speaker and contemplative guide for the AUSCP. Novak is a lawyer, educator, chaplain and spiritual director, restorative justice practitioner, and activist who has worked in Catholic contexts for decades.
Dan Horan is described on his website as a Franciscan Friar, Author and Speaker. His latest book is A White Catholic’s Guide to Racism and Privilege.
Bishop Stowe, a member of the AUSCP, is known to be in favor of the pending Equality Act, legislation opposed by the USCCB. He was quoted as saying “It is our duty to love and defend” LGBTQ Americans.
Christine Becket, a Sister of Charity of Nazareth, will serve as contemplative guide for participants as they reflect and react to the keynotes. The AUSCP Assembly will begin June20, with a day retreat led by Father Scott Detisch, a priest of the Diocese of Erie. Detisch is the author of From Hero to Servant to Mystic: Navigating the Deeper Waters of Priestly Spirituality.
The assembly will be held at the Maritime Conference Center, in Linthicum, MD, near BWI Airport. Registration details will be available on the AUSCP website, www.auscp.org
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For comments or more information:
Rev. Stephen Newton, CSC, executive director,
auscpexdir@gmail.com
Sister Jackie Doepker, OSF, executive secretary,
office@auscp.org
Paul Leingang, Communications,
auscp.communications@gmail.com
(812)459-1374