Two hundred and forty-four members of the College Theology Society gathered at Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island, from Thursday, June 1, to Sunday, June 4, 2017, to consider the theme “American Catholicism in the Twenty-First Century: Crossroads, Crisis, or Renewal?” Meeting as usual in conjunction with the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion (NABPR), CTS members presented ninety papers and seven panels in a total of forty-seven sections. In addition, the meeting included three plenary presentations and one plenary panel. The meeting formally began on Thursday evening with the first plenary address, entitled “The Church and Popular Movements: Signs of Renewal,” by the Most Reverend Stephen E. Blaire, DD, bishop of Stockton, California. On Friday, Timothy Matovina of the University of Notre Dame offered the second plenary address, “Catholic History and College Theology in Twenty-First Century América.” Sociologist Sr. Patricia Wittberg, SC, of the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, presented the third plenary address, “The Pentecost Challenge: Proclaiming the Gospel in New Parish Cultures,” on Saturday morning. A fourth plenary session on Saturday afternoon featured Mary Doak, University of San Diego; Anthony J. Godzieba, Villanova University; Katharine Mahon, University of Notre Dame; and Cyril Orji, University of Dayton, in a panel discussion on the topic “Issues and Questions in American Catholic Theology Today.”
The Awards Committee presented awards for best book and article at the banquet on Saturday evening. Of the thirteen books and sixteen articles submitted by members of the society, this year's book award went to Julie Hanlon Rubio's Hope for Common Ground: Mediating the Personal and the Political in a Divided Church (Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016). The award for best article went to Christopher Pramuk's “Theodicy and the Feminine Divine: Thomas Merton's ‘Hagia Sophia’ in Dialogue with Western Theology,” published in Theological Studies 77, no. 1 (March 2016). A graduate student article award was not presented this year. The Monika Hellwig Award for Excellence in Teaching was presented to Anita Houck, Saint Mary's College, Indiana. The banquet ended with the presidential address by outgoing CTS president William Portier, University of Dayton, entitled “Reimagining the ‘America’ in American Catholicism.”
At the Sunday morning business meeting, Vice President William Clark, College of the Holy Cross, reported on the two regional meetings of the College Theology Society that took place in the Philadelphia and Western New York/Niagara regions in October 2016 and March 2017, respectively. Clark also announced the following election results and new appointees to committees: Johann M. Vento as the new vice president, and William Clark and Elizabeth Vasko as new board members. He thanked other CTS members for their willingness to run for office: Chris Denny, George Faithful, and Aline Paris. Clark proposed that Christopher McMahon and Christina Astorga serve one more year, through June 2018, on the Committee on Nominations. He also proposed that two new members of the Committee on Awards, Michael Fagge and Howard Ebert, replace outgoing members Michael Barnes and Jane Linahan. Finally, he proposed that the two outgoing members of the board, Susie Babka and Andrew Getz, serve on the Committee on Resolutions. All proposed committee appointments were unanimously approved by the membership. No resolutions were received for this year's meeting.
William Collinge presented the following changes to the Constitution: (1) amending Article VII, “Committees,” section 3 of the Constitution, adding a new subsection that reads: “e) Committee on Membership: This committee works to attract, welcome, and orient new members to the Society”; (2) amending Article VI, “Officers,” section 5 of the Constitution to add to the list of the Treasurer's duties: “j) make sure that a board member is overseeing the Annual Fund.” Both changes as proposed by the board were approved unanimously by the membership.
Secretary Nicholas Rademacher, Cabrini University (Pennsylvania), gave the following picture of current CTS membership: There are 513 total paid/active members as of May 30, 2017, as compared to 505 in November 2016 and 483 in May 2016. Of the total active members, 342 are full members (340 in November 2016; 329 in May 2016); 14 are joint members (18 in November 2016; 19 in May 2016); 54 are associate members (47 in November 2016; 46 in May 2016); 98 are student members (95 in November 2016; 84 in May 2016); and five are lifetime members (5 in November 2016; 5 in May 2016). He reported that the secretary's term ends in June 2018. Treasurer Stephen Okey, Saint Leo College (Florida), reported that the overall financial situation of CTS is improving, thanks to CTS membership dues, the Gerard Sloyan Annual Fund, and prudent leadership on the part of the board. Revenue from dues for 2017 is strong, at $27,345 to date. The society took a $3,000 loss on the 2016 annual meeting, but with more than 240 registrants for the 2017 meeting, prospects are much better for a modest gain this year. Okey also reported that the Gerard Sloyan Annual Fund has brought in less so far this year than is desirable ($1,000 of the $3,000 goal).
Associate Editor Chris Denny presented the report on Horizons on behalf of Editor Elena Procario-Foley. He reported that the June issue of Horizons is out and on its way to the membership. He invited members to review manuscripts and books for the journal. He announced the reorganization of the editorial board to make it more diverse and ecumenical. He further reported that the acceptance rate of submissions was 40 percent, and noted a need for more submissions from women. He provided an overview of the Horizons website and called the members' attention to the presence of Horizons on Twitter and Wikipedia. Chair and Editor of Research and Publications William Collinge announced the publication of the 2016 Annual Volume, Liturgy and Power, which should have been received by members by the time of the convention. He put out a call for back issues of annual volumes for the CTS archives. Executive Coordinator of Digital Media Dana Dillon reported that the CTS website is stable. She reminded the membership of the CTS Twitter feed @collegetheology, and also added a reminder to follow Horizons on Twitter @HorizonsCTS. She invited the membership to be collegial and welcoming by helping new members to connect on these digital platforms. Executive Director of National Conventions David Gentry-Akin reported that 244 members are attending the 2017 convention. The 2018 meeting will be at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota, with the 2019 meeting scheduled for Mount Saint Vincent College in Riverdale, New York, and the 2020 meeting at the University of San Diego. Outgoing president William Portier officially handed over the gavel to incoming president, Shannon Schrein.
