Durham: International speaker to open Ushaw Lectures series

Pugin chapel at Ushaw

Durham University’s Centre for Catholic Studies has announced the first set of speakers this academic year in its highly successful series of Ushaw Lectures. Those giving the lectures include the authors of two acclaimed biographies: one on Pope Francis and the other on the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy.

Sr Mary Sullivan, professor and dean emerita of the Rochester Institute of Technology opens the series on 17 October with a talk about Catherine McAuley, the nineteenth century foundress of the pioneering Sisters of Mercy. On 13 November, Michael Fisher, a leading authority on the architecture of the Pugins, will explore the neo-gothic movement, placing Ushaw and its architecture in the wider nineteenth century context. The final lecture of the term will be given by Tablet trustee Paul Vallely on 5 December. Co-sponsored by St Robert of Newminster Catholic School in Washington, this lecture will bring the series up to the present day as he draws on his recent biography to talk about Pope Francis and change in the Catholic Church.

The Ushaw Lectures are designed to raise awareness of the nationally-important holdings at the former seminary, including documents from the period of Catholic persecution and rare first edition books. As such, it features invited guests who speak on aspects of the history of Catholicism in the North of England, as well as in these islands more generally.

Speaking of the upcoming events, Dr James Kelly, St Cuthbert’s Society Fellow at the Centre for Catholic Studies and convenor of the Ushaw Lectures, said: “We are delighted that the first series of Ushaw Lectures proved so popular and we are looking at building on that success this coming academic year. Acknowledging the growing interest that the last series provoked, we are opening it up slightly more widely to consider the history of Catholicism in England more generally but always drawing on the unique sources held at Ushaw.

“The growing reputation of the holdings at Ushaw is underlined by the fact that Sr Mary Sullivan is joining us from the US to open this year’s series. The Sisters of Mercy have played an important role in the life of the North-East, particularly in education and so we see here the joining of the local and the international, demonstrating the wider importance of Ushaw in national history.”

The Ushaw lectures start with refreshments at 5:30pm before the actual talk at 6pm. Each event will be accompanied by a small exhibition of items held at Ushaw relevant to the topic. All lectures are free but you must register to attend by contacting Theresa Phillips at ccs.admin@durham.ac.uk or tel: 0191 334 1656