2025 Educational Forums & Events

Sisters Nancy Sylvester and Chris Schenk

Today we are witnessing a decline in church attendance as well as an extreme shortage of ordained ministers. Where is the Church heading? These two great Christian scholars will share with us personal reflections on the state of the Church today, and a look into the future.

Sister Nancy Sylvester, ihm
Our Lady of Fatima Church
13500 Oak Park Blvd. Oak Park, MI Tuesday, April 1, 2025, 1:00 pm*

Sr. Nancy Sylvester IHM is the founder and executive director of the Instituter for Communal Contemplation and Dialogue, which strives to realize ‘the shift in consciousness necessary to embrace our evolutionary journey and engage the critical issues facing us in ways that foster dialogue, relationships, compassion and justice.”

Sister Christine Schenk, scj
St. Blase Church 12151 15 Mile Rd
Sterling Heights, MI
Tuesday, May 20, 2025, 1:00 pm*

Sr. Christine Schenk is the co-founder of FutureChurch, whose efforts call the Church to reform and renewal that provides all Catholics the opportunity to participate fully in Church life, especially by expanding its leadership beyond the present requirement of male celibacy.

* A light lunch will be served at noon. Please RSVP Fr. Tom Lumpkin at lumpkinthomas433@gmail.com or at 313 265 7271 if you would like to have lunch. Directions for both Forums may be printed or downloaded by clicking on the link to Google Maps embedded in the underlined portion of the location address, above.

Wednesday, January 8, 2025 1pm
Christopher White: "Report on the October Synod in Rome"

St. Blase Church, 12151 Fifteen Mile Road Sterling Heights, MI

What happened in Rome at the October 2024 Synod? What conclusions/directions were made? How will those impact us here in Detroit going forward? What decisions were delayed? What do we do now?

Christopher White is the Vatican correspondent for NCR. Prior to moving to Rome in August 2021, he served as NCR's national correspondent, where his award-winning reporting included coverage of the Catholic vote during the 2020 campaign and the election of President Joe Biden. He holds a master's degree in ethics and society from Fordham University and a bachelor's degree in politics, philosophy and economics from The King's College. His work has appeared in Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, Forbes, Foreign Policy, New York Daily News, International Business Times, among many other print and online publications. He has regularly appeared on television and radio programs, including CNN, NPR, RTE and BBC and is a Vatican analyst for NBC and MSNBC news.