Voices for the Common Good: Catholic Commentators

An expert on War and Peace-Just War, Simone Campbell, an attorney and Sister of Social Service, is the Executive Director of NETWORK, a Catholic leader in the global movement for justice and peace that educates, organizes and lobbies for economic and social transformation.

An expert on The Catholic Church, Father Currie has served as AJCU president since August, 1997. He is responsible for coordinating the work of the Association, and is the liaison between American Jesuit higher education and other civic, academic and religious entities.

An expert on Economics,Environment, Patricia Daly is a Dominican Sister of Caldwell and serves as the Executive Director of the Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment, an organization of 35 Catholic Dioceses and Religious Congregations in the NY metropolitan area. Sr.

An expert in Environment and Catholic Church issues, Franciscan Sister, Spiritual Director and author, Sister Sharon Dillon is a respected leader, administrator and retreat facilitator. As a 15-year master Special Educator and Franciscan Spiritual Director, Dillon is working toward her second M.A. at Washington Theological Union with a focus on the integration of theology and Franciscan spirituality.

An expert on Immigration, Fr. Groody is a member of the Congregation of the Holy Cross and an expert on migration issues.

An expert on Human Rights, Religion and Politics, and The Catholic Church, Fr. Hollenbach teaches Theological Ethics and Christian Social Ethics, with research focus in the areas of the common good, human rights, theory of justice, the role of the religion in social and political life, and humanitarian crises and forced migration. He is the author of several books, including The Global Face of Public Faith: Politics, Human Rights, and Christian Ethics, and The Common Good and Christian Ethics.

An expert on Homelessness-Housing, Rev. Michael P. Jacques, SSE, VF has been the Pastor of St. Peter Claver Catholic Church in New Orleans, LA since 1984. He is also Director of the Council of Deans for the Archdiocese of New Orleans and Chairman of the Board of Directors for Providence CDC, a Catholic Housing Organization.

An expert on Immigration and Religion and Politics, The Rev. Richard Ryscavage, S.J., is professor of sociology and international studies and director of Fairfield University's Center for Faith and Public Life. Fr. Ryscavage served previously as national director of the Jesuit Refugee Service/USA. He set up the first program to provide religious coordinators for immigration detention facilities of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. At the national office for U.S. Jesuits, he was the main advisor for international and domestic social issues. In addition, he chaired the humanitarian section of Interaction, the largest coalition of American agencies working internationally. He has represented

An expert on War and Peace-Just War, Fr. Thelen was ordained in 1980 and early in his clerical career helped to establish the Office of Peace and Justice Ministry for the Diocese of Lansing, MI. From 1988 to 1993 he served as an Associate Maryknoll Missionary in Peru.

An expert on Immigration, The Catholic Church, and The War and Peace-Just War issue, Mary Waskowiak, RSM, was elected President of the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas in July 2005, after having previously served on I

An expert on The Catholic Church and War and Peace-Just War, Lisa Sowle Cahill is the J. Donald Monan Professor of Theology at Boston College, where she has taught since 1976 on the history of Christian Ethics, Catholic Social and Sexual Ethics, Bioethics and the Ethics of War and Peace.

An expert on Immigration and Poverty, Dr. Arturo Chávez, Ph.D. is the Director of Programs for the Mexican American Cultural Center. He has worked for over twenty five years in a variety of ministries - teacher, youth minister, chaplain to incarcerated youth, community organizer and activist, and as a CEO of a social justice, faith-based organization. He was instrumental in establishing and raising funds for various nonprofit organizations and coalitions to address the urgent needs of families who are poor and disenfranchised. These include JOVEN, the Peace Center, Merced Housing, the Center for Public Policy Priorities, and the Peace Initiative.

An expert on Economics, Chuck Collins is director of the Program on Inequality and the Common Good at the Institute for Policy Studies. He is also founder and director of Business for Shared Prosperity, a national network of business leaders supporting “high road” economic policies.

An expert on Economics,War and Peace/Just War, Ms. Dennis is director of the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, and serves as co-president of Pax Christi International and a Pax Christi USA Ambassador of Peace. She holds an M.A. in Moral Theology from Washington Theological Union and is co-author or author of six books on the spirituality of social justice, peace and the integrity of creation.

An expert on The Catholic Church, Miguel H. Díaz is an Associate Professor of Theology in the department of theology at the College of St. Benedict / St. John’s University and the graduate School of Theology at St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN. He received his doctorate in Systematic Theology from the University of Notre Dame.

An expert on The Catholic Church, Richard R. Gaillardetz is the Margaret and Thomas Murray and James J. Bacik Professor of Catholic Studies at the University of Toledo in Toledo, Ohio. He received his Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from the University of Notre Dame. He has published numerous articles and has authored six books including, By What Authority? A Primer on Scripture, the Magisterium and the Sense of the Faithful, A Daring Promise: A Spirituality of Christian Marriage and a forthcoming book on the Second Vatican Council entitled The Church in the Making.

An expert on Religion and Politics and The Catholic Church, David O'Brien is Loyola Professor of Catholic Studies at the College of the Holy Cross. He has written six books on the history of American Catholicism and has served as President of the American Catholic Historical Association.

An expert on Immigration, Mirna Torres is the Director of Legalization for the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC). CLINIC, a subsidiary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), is a public interest legal corporation that represents low-income immigrants and supports a network of 161 charitable legal immigration programs.

An expert on Poverty and War and Peace-Just War, Kathleen Maas Weigert is the Executive Director of the Center for Social Justice Research, Teaching and Service at Georgetown University. She is a Research Professor in the Department of Sociology & Anthropology and the Program on Justice & Peace. At the University of Notre Dame, Weigert was Associate Director for Academic Affairs and Research at the Center for Social Concerns, Concurrent Associate Professor in American Studies, and Fellow in the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies.