F.I.R.E. Speaker Series

Sundays, 10:15AM – 11:45AM in the Parish Center

The Speaker Series is free and open to everyone. Join us for any or all the of the speaker events. Child care is available (children must be potty trained.) no registration required

Last Revised: 1.30.20

The State of Religious Liberty in the World

Presented by: Prof. Jim Sonne

February 9th @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

In Dignitatis Humanae, the Second Vatican Council endorsed the fundamental right to religious liberty. Jim Sonne, law professor and founding director of Stanford’s Religious Liberty Clinic, will speak on the importance of freedom of religion, current threats to it in the world, and how we can support it.

The Healing Power of Reconciliation

Presented by: Fr. Kevin Joyce

February 23rd @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

Despite what people sometimes think, reconciliation is one of the most joyous and comforting sacraments, as it heals our relationship with God and others. Fr. Kevin Joyce, spiritual director at St. Patrick’s Seminary, will guide us through the healing power of this sacrament.

Sunday, March 8th: Reconciliation Celebration

Meals of Deliverance
A Jewish View on Passover and the Last Supper

Presented by: Rabbi Melanie Aron

March 15th @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

Rabbi Melanie Aron of Congregation Shir Hadash will explain how the Passover Seder serves as an active memorialization of the Exodus in which Jews participate in their own deliverance from Egypt and how this understanding underpins Jesus’ reinterpretation in the Last Supper.

The Reality of the Resurrection

Presented by: Dr. Sandra Schneiders

April 19th @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

New Testament scholar Sandra Schneiders uses the thought of Catholic philosopher Jean-Luc Marion centered around the notions of givenness and the gift to bring out the meaning God’s gift to us in Christ’s resurrection.

Care for Body and Soul

Presented by: Dr. Esther Dunn

April 26th @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

As corporeal creatures, we cannot ignore the importance of our bodies in making us who we are. Esther Dunn, Emergency Medicine doctor for Kaiser speaks about the role her Catholic faith plays in caring for people, both body and soul.

Empowering the Poor through Social Entrepreneurship

Presented by: Fr. Bossou Constant, S.J.

May 17th @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

Social entrepreneurship addresses the root problems of poverty through the power of business and innovation. Fr. Bossou Constant will speak about the work of the Miller Center to leverage the entrepreneurial spirit of Silicon Valley to serve the poor and protect the planet.

Learning to be Fully Human, Fully Alive

Presented by: Fr. Robert McKay

May 31st @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

Fr. Robert McKay shows us how to change the quality of our lives through spiritual direction or psychotherapy by understanding how our emotions are directed by the way we view ourselves. By altering irrational and unrealistic thinking, we can become more fully human and more fully alive.

Stewards of the Earth and Priest of Creation

Presented by: Dr. Cory Dixon

June 7th @ 10:15AM in the Parish Center

Christianity has been blamed for sowing the seeds of ecological destruction, but, in fact, Christian theology has a strong history of ecological consciousness. Cory Dixon will describe how humanity’s relationship with God shapes its’ calling to care for creation.