Eighth Annual
THEOLOGY FOR TEACHERS WORKSHOP
October 13, 2023
John Carroll University
KEYNOTE PRESENTATION
BE STILL & KNOW
Dr. Ruben Habito
Perkins School of Theology &
Maria Kannon Zen Center
Although they represent the most unchurched generation to ever fill our schools, research consistently reveals that our students have a curiosity about the sacred, a desire for community, and a hunger for meaning. Do we recognize these tender shoots of the spiritual life? Are there ways we can cultivate spiritual growth within our students? What practices of prayer, meditation, or attentiveness—from within the Christian tradition and beyond—invite students to slow down, be still, and know the love of God.
Ruben L. F. Habito is Professor of World Religions and Spirituality, and serves as Director of Spiritual Formation at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Before coming to SMU, he served as a Jesuit in Japan for nearly 20 years, and taught philosophy and theology at the Jesuit-administered Sophia University in Tokyo from 1976 to 1989. He received spiritual training under Kōun Yamada Rōshi in Kamakura, Japan, who authorized him as Zen Teacher in 1988. He is the author of numerous books and articles in English and Japanese, including Be Still and Know: Zen and the Bible (Orbis 2017), Zen and the Spiritual Exercises (Orbis 2013), Experiencing Buddhism: Ways of Wisdom and Compassion (Orbis 2006), Healing Breath: Zen Spirituality for Christians and Buddhists (Wisdom 2006), and Living Zen, Loving God (Wisdom 2004) among others. He is Guiding Teacher at the Maria Kannon Zen Center, a small and diverse Zen practice community with participants from different religious traditions or from none, based in Dallas, Texas. He is the spouse of Dr. Maria Reis Habito, and together they are blessed with two adult sons, Florian and Benjamin.
Break-out Sessions
Calming the Storm
Teaching Teens Discernment in a World That Needs It
Inspired by the spiritual teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola, educators gain insight into the need for discernment and how the daily practice of discernment can foster interior calm in the midst of an overstimulated world. Providing practical tools to help cultivate discernment with teenagers, this presentation offers hope and peace beyond the interior storms that so many of our students face.
Elizabeth Gengle is a graduate of the Franciscan University of Steubenville with a Bachelor’s degree in Theology with a concentration in Religious Education and a minor in Mental Health and Human Services. She has worked in various parish, Catholic school, youth ministry, and adult faith formation settings for over twenty years. Elizabeth has presented at, facilitated, and organized numerous retreat opportunities. She established Heart of the Interior Life Retreat and Speaking Ministry, dedicated to sharing the spiritual teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. John Paul II. To learn more visit elizabethgengle.com and teachdiscernment.com.
The Risk of (Catholic) Education
Teaching From Our Shared Humanity
Our students no longer share a common Catholic culture, vocabulary, or world view. Thus teaching theology must begin at a more human starting point. This session looks to the Italian educator and Servant of God Fr. Luigi Giussani for insight into ways we can translate the rich Catholic intellectual tradition into a language that responds to the questions young people are asking today.
Drew Courter is the Director for Catholic Identity for the Diocese of Cleveland. He is a Columbus native who earned his M.A. in Theological Studies from the University of Dayton, where he also taught undergraduates. Before coming to Cleveland, he taught moral theology, Catholic social teaching, vocations, and environmental ethics for seven years at Bishop Fenwick High School in Middletown, Ohio. He is married to a living saint, Kelly, and has five children.
Catholic Schools for Peace & Justice
Catholic Schools for Peace & Justice (CSPJ) is a network of students and educators from Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Cleveland that actively seeks to engage all students in the common vocation of working for justice and peace. Learn how you can tap into this resource to invigorate justice initiatives at your school, build relationships with other institutions, and open up opportunities for your students to engage issues that matter to them.
Michele Bernot is Dean of Students at Beaumont School in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, and Co-Chair of Catholic Schools for Peace & Justice.
Round-Table SessionS
Teaching Church, History, Sacraments | Teaching Religions | Campus Ministry
Bring your questions, your challenges, your successes, your lesson plans, your ideas, or just yourself for guided conversation with other teachers who are teaching what you are teaching.
Workshop Schedule
8:00- 8:30 | Mass
8:30- 9:00 | Gathering (coffee and pastry)
9:00-10:30 | Keynote: Dr. Ruben Habito, “Be Still and Know”
10:45-11:45 | Breakout Session 1
12:00- 1:00 | Lunch
1:15- 2:15 | Breakout Session 2
2:30-3:30 | Idea Sharing & Problem Solving
3:30- 4:00 | Reception (beer and wine)
