Celebrating 25 Years!

Experience Christian Wisdom

We are a Catholic organization, presenting ecumenical events. We provide Christian Wisdom, the profound depths of Christ’s teaching. Join us to celebrate our 25th anniversary, on July 19th when Archbishop Sheehan will give a talk at 7pm at St. Michael’s High, in the Tipton gym. We begin July 9, at Immaculate Heart of Mary parish hall in Los Alamos. Martinez Hewlett, Ph.D., O.P.L., molecular biologist, will investigate what it means to be human. Our last Saturday talk will also be there at IHM. Most other events are at St. Michael’s High School, in Santa Fe. There, Bro. Brian Dybowski, FSC, Ph.D will do a week on St. Catherine of Siena’s spirituality. Rev. Bob Patterson does a full Saturday on Thomas Merton’s spirituality. Frances Renda, Ph.D. will present a week on St. Therese of Lisieux and her family. See below for dates and details. Please join us for any or all of these events, to experience God’s own wisdom, expressed by people who share in Wisdom Himself. We appreciate payment for events you attend, but do not require it. Donations are gratefully accepted.

Following is a recap of our 25th Anniversary Summer Session:

July 19, Tuesday: 25th Anniversary Celebration
Come celebrate a quarter century of awakening faith through the Spirituality Institute. Join us at 6pm, at the Brothers’ house at St. Michael’s High School for a social, with finger-food and a birthday cake. Please RSVP, so we will have the right amount of food. To complete our joy, Archbishop Michael J. Sheehan, DD will speak at 7pm in St. Mike’s Tipton gym. He will commemorate our 25 years of service. Come rejoice with us.

Please enjoy the following slideshow from our 25th Anniversary celebration. Many thanks to Linda McLellan and Casey Ryan for the photos.

Program Listings:

July 9, Saturday: Martinez Hewlett, Ph.D.: What it Means to be Human
Dr. Hewlett contrasts scientific views of humanity with wisdom-views of philosophers and theologians. He gives reasons for these positions, in 4 lecture-discussions, at Immaculate Heart of Mary parish hall in Los Alamos (3700 Canyon Road). The schedule is: 9:30am: What a Piece of Work is Man: Historical Overview; 10:30 break; 11: The Quintessence of Dust: Biological Anthropology; 12-1:30 lunch; 1:30pm: Infinite Faculties; Philosophical Anthropology; 2:30: break; 3: How Like an Angel, How Like a God: Theological Anthropology. Join us for lively discussions of different ways to know us humans. Suggested donation $10/talk.
Martinez Hewlett is a molecular biologist, enlivened by profound spirituality. He is the author of many published papers, and some books, including one on Evolution which he reviewed for our Spirituality Institute in 2006. He reviews for us his latest book, presently being printed. A Catholic third-order Dominican, he is emeritus professor of Biology at Arizona U, and adjunct professor at Berkeley Graduate Theological Union.

July 10-15: St. Catherine of Siena’s Love-Spirituality
Bro. Brian Dybowski, FSC, Ph.D, sketches St. Catherine’s Spirituality of Christ’s Love. In Siena, and then in Rome, St. Catherine opened her heart so completely to Jesus that she radiated God’s Love. Bro. Brian shows how Divine Love flowed from St. Catherine. See how we can experience God’s love, and how we can grow in that gift. Her most famous written expression of love is “Dialogs”, recording her conversations with God. During 15 talks, Bro. Brian reviews St. Catherine’s Love-message. Come, enjoy some or all.
Sunday night at 7, at St. Michael’s High School, Bro. Brian gives the overview of St. Catherine’s teaching. Presentation and questions last about an hour. Monday through Thursday, the evening sessions continue at 7pm at St. Michael’s High School. Monday through Friday, the first morning discussion is 9:30-10:30am. Then we have a coffee break, and finish the morning with another discussion, 11-12pm. Afternoons are free for you to contemplate St. Catherine’s marvelous expressions of God’s Love poured forth in Jesus.
Bro. Brian earned Ph.D’s in Philosophy and Psychology, and 2 Theology MA’s, one in Scripture and the other in Spirituality. He taught all three disciplines at the late College of Santa Fe, and now teaches Theology and Philosophy at Lewis University’s Albuquerque branch.

July 16, Saturday: Thomas Merton’s Spirituality
Rev. Bob Patterson, MA, presents Merton’s rich spirituality in 4 talks this Saturday at St. Michael’s High School. He reviews Merton’s profound view of Christ’s revelation. Most important, Rev. Bob expresses Merton’s message in modern terms. He connects the main points with daily life, so that we can profit from Merton’s contemplation. In “Seven Story Mountain”, Merton described his pilgrimage from college exploration into more satisfying interaction with God. These experiences moved Merton to pursue God exclusively as a Trappist monk, and priest. The fruit of his contemplation exploded into dozens of books, which nourished millions of people, and will refresh you. The talks are at 9:30am, 11am, 1:30pm and 3pm. Join in this experience.
Rev. Bob Patterson is a graduate of Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington, D.C., and is an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). He is serving as pastor of Bethany Christian Church in El Paso, Texas. His rich ecumenical experience includes earning a MA in Theology from Denver’s St. Thomas Theological Seminary (Roman Catholic). In addition to his pastoral responsibilities, Rev. Bob teaches in the Religious Studies Department at the University of Texas in El Paso. We have enjoyed his dynamic teaching for many years, and we bet that you will also.

July 16-22: Spirituality of St. Therese of Lisieux and Her Family
Fran Renda, Ph.D. reviews the astounding spiritual teaching of St. Therese, who is a Doctor of the Church because of that great message. Come learn from St. Therese’s luminous writings. Fran also explores the lives of St. Therese’s parents, holy people recognized by the Church, which beatified them last October. Fran begins Saturday, July 16 at San Juan Pueblo, after the 5:30 Mass. Sunday, July 17th at 7pm at St. Michael’s High she starts her Santa Fe talks. Monday through Friday Fran does the 2 morning sessions at St. Mike’s: 9:30am, and 11am. In the evenings, Fran will speak at parishes in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. Monday, July 18 6:30p, at St. Theresa in Albuquerque. Wednesday, July 20th for Third Order Carmelites at Holy Innocents in Albuquerque at 6:30pm. Please join us for an enlightening presentation of our most popular modern saint.
Frances Renda, Ph.D. is a clinical Psychologist in New York City. She shares St. Therese with people all over the world. Cardinal O’Connor appointed her to provide St. Therese’s teaching at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, in New York City. She did that with vim and vigor. She arranged for St. Therese’s relics to travel around the world to inspire millions of people. So St. Therese, a cloistered nun, got to be a missionary after her death. Fran contributed to “I Thirst”, which illustrates the influence of the spirituality St. Therese or the Child Jesus on Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Dr. Renda also edited the newly published book on Blessed Louis and Zelie Martin: “A Call to a Deeper Love”. It is the family correspondence of St. Therese’s parents. Fran is now working on the newly-translated biography of St. Therese by Bishop Guy Gaucher. Be with us for genuine inspiration.

July 30, Saturday: Two Views of Creation: A review of Stephen Hawking's book, "The Grand Design"
Tom Farish, Sc.D., a Los Alamos physicist, reviews Steven Hawking's book "The Grand Design", which is a materialist's view of the Universe. Steven Levings adds spice to this commentary. The many churches in Los Alamos show that many scientists have a spiritual view. Tom and Steven will illustrate the differences in these world views, and sketch out the evidence supporting each. His talk starts at 7:30pm at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Los Alamos, located at 3700 Canyon Road. Suggested donation $10 for the talk.
Tom is a physicist and engineer, and has worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory for more than 20 years. He and his wife Mamie lead the RCIA (adult catechetical) program at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Los Alamos. Steven Levings, BA, owner of MECSoft LLC, and student of philosophy, will add the computer science perspective..

Contact information: write, call, or email for details:
Bro. Brian Dybowski, FSC, Ph.D.; 96 Siringo Rd; Santa Fe, NM 87505; 505-470-0377; bdybowski2@gmail.com See our website for details and videos and texts from previous presentations: www.sfis.org Or you can go here to leave an immediate message.