Lumen Christi Institute’s Seventh Annual Conference

This conference addresses the general topic of the family in the changing economy. It brings together economists, bishops, and scholars in order to draw upon the insights of Catholic Social Thought, economics, and the social sciences to diagnose our current situation and offer possible responses. The conference commences with a public symposium on Thursday addressing the general theme of the family in the changing economy with particular attention to the view from the ground both domestically and internationally through the keynote offered by Bishop Cantù, current chair of the USCCB’s committee on International Justice and Peace. This general theme will be addressed in greater depth through private sessions on Friday, addressing four subthemes: the place of the family in Catholic Social Thought, economic insights into the issue of vulnerable families and their children in the changing economy, the economic analysis of marriage in the modern economy, and an understanding of the role of family in later lives from an economic perspective. Nestled between the two international Synods of Bishops on the Family, this conference brings the question of social justice and the family in light of the analyses of economics and Catholic Social Thought to the forefront of the scholarly conversation on the family.