‘Theology in a Conversation About Hope’ was the title of Dr Cornelius Casey’s lecture to mark the tenth anniversary of the Loyola Institute at Trinity College Dublin.
In his talk, the Director of the Loyola Institute discussed Charles Péguy’s theology of the theological virtue of hope in the poem, ‘The Portal of the Mystery of Hope’.
The lecture was part of ‘A Festival of Theology’ which brought together international scholars to discuss the role of theology in the life of a university and how the academic study of theology differs from other academic approaches to the study of religion.
The two-day conference was sponsored by the Loyola Institute Trust and also marked the retirement of Dr Casey as Founding Director of the Loyola Institute.
The Institute was established in 2012 to engage in critical reflection and scholarly research in theology in the Catholic Christian tradition with the support of eight religious congregations including the Columbans.
Speaking after Dr Casey’s lecture, Fr Tom Layden SJ recalled how when he became Chair of the Loyola Trust, he worked closely with Dr Casey on the matter of how theology in the Catholic tradition could be given a home in a secular university like Trinity College.
“For the first year or two there were moments of possibility and opportunity. But there was the occasional cloud on the horizon. There were all kinds of issues about title of the Institute and how we would go about setting it up,” Fr Layden recalled.
“But I’ll always remember the day when Con and I came in here to meet some of the Trinity officials. We were on campus and with the life of students and faculty around us, Con said straightaway, ‘This is the right place to be. This is where we should be.’”
Referring to Dr Casey’s lecture, Fr Layden described it as a conversation about hope.
“In those early days, many of our conversations were about the hopes for this place, and how we could do to make theology available in a way that would give rise to thought and reflection, and to conversation.”
He cited a quote from Dr Casey’s lecture from Gabriel Marcel: “Hope is a knowing that outstrips the unknown.”
Amongst the Columbans who attended the anniversary lecture was Fr Pat Raleigh. He told Columbans.ie, “Columbans were very happy to support the initiative and establishment of the Loyola Institute of Theology. As a Missionary Society we felt that it was very important to have a space for Catholic Theology within a University setting, a space for dialogue and engagement with contemporary Irish Society.”
He congratulated the Loyola Institute on the tenth anniversary of its foundation.
Fr Donie Hogan is currently the Columban representative on the Loyola Trust. He also attended the celebration in TCD. Speaking to Columbans.ie he recalled, “The project was seen as one way of giving back something to the Irish church whose members had so generously supported us since our foundation in Ireland.”
“Interestingly, at the launch, 10 years ago, the then Provost of Trinity, in warmly welcoming the Loyola Institute, shared how impacted he was by the prophetic and courageous stance of Pope John Paul against the proposed US-led invasion of Iraq – one of the few world leaders to do so.”
“Some may wonder why it is named the Loyola Institute. Originally, the name was to be the Catholic Institute of Theology. However, in a dialogue with the former Archbishop of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin, he explained that if Catholic was in the name, he would be responsible for the Institute. This was neither desirable to him nor to us. In later discussions the congregations unanimously agreed on ‘The Loyola Institute’ as this clearly identified it as a Catholic Institute.”
“In addition to the original endowment fund, Loyola attracted other generous benefactors who offered extra funds for scholarships in theology in the Catholic tradition. Accordingly, Loyola is able to offer opportunities for lay women and men to study theology who otherwise would have been unable to do so.”
“The endowment fund is administered by the Loyola Institute Company which is a registered charity. The directors are regional superiors of the congregations involved or their representatives.” Presently, Donie Hogan is the Columban representative.
For more information see: https://www.tcd.ie/loyola-institute/