Seventy-four abstract papers were presented at the three-day John Paul II Centennial International Conference Cebu 2020.
Almost 130 abstract papers were submitted from all over the world but only 100 were accepted. However, only 74 confirmed their participation in the big conference. Academicians, researchers, students, and the religious joined the said conference. Some of them came from other countries just to share their researches, and thoughts about the life of John Paul II.
The submissions were centered on the theme “Life and thoughts of John Paul II: The man and saint who transformed the modern world.” The conference aims to commemorate the life and the ideas of the said pope. It also celebrates his innermost contributions in the fields of philosophy, theology, and inter-religious dialogue that influences our social, religious, and cultural affairs that made an impact in world today.
In his opening remarks, Rev. Fr. Francis Paul Escaño, RCJ said it was through the leadership of Pope John Paul II that he felt secure in doctrines and moral teachings of the Christian Church.
“In his time, the Catholic church was untouchable that no foreign ideas can penetrate,” he said.
The organizers hoped for people to learn from the Pope’s life and works especially on how to have faith in the modern world when we have begun to think that it could be the most difficult and most unpopular thing to do.
The conference ran for three days with six plenary sessions. Each session tackled different topics related to the works and life of John Paul II. Simultaneous to the plenary sessions, there were concurrent sessions which took place in the classrooms. In each concurrent session, the accepted abstract papers were presented by its respective researchers.
To highlight the series of activities, the John Paul II Society of the Philippines was launched on January 17.
The event was co-organized by the Societas Ethica Philosophica, Philippine National Philosophical Research Society (PNPRS) and Rogationist College Seminary – Cebu. University of San Jose- Recoletos was the venue host. It was conducted on January 16 to 18.
Written by Marjorie Laborte (LIACOM Intern)
