Lecture “Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) on the Eucharist” with Dr. Pristas

Caldwell, N.J.–March 5, 2019- “Cardinal Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) on the Eucharist” will be the topic of a presentation by Lauren Pristas, Ph.D., Professor Emerita of Theologyat Caldwell University, 4:30 p.m., Thursday, March 21, in the Alumni Theater on campus.

In Lent of 1978 Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the future Pope Benedict XVI, gave four talks at St. Michael’s Church in Munich in which he reflected on basic dogmatic and catechetical themes of Catholic Eucharistic faith.  Dr. Pristas’s talk will focus on essential questions that Cardinal Ratzinger addressed in 1978. Some of these are: What is the origin and source of the Eucharist/Mass? What did Jesus mean at the Last Supper when he said “Do this”? How did we get from the Last Supper to the Mass? How is the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist to be understood? When one receives the Eucharist, what exactly does one receive?

Dr. Pristas is the author of “The Collects of the Roman Missal” and numerous scholarly articles on liturgical subjects. She is a member of the Academyof Catholic Theology and a past member of the board of directors of the Society for Catholic Liturgy. She has served on the editorial boards of Antiphon: a Journal for Liturgical Renewalandof Usus Antiquior. In 2003 she held the Pope John Paul II Chair for the Study of Person and Community at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington, D.C., and in 2005 she received a St. Catherine of Siena Society research fellowship in liturgical theology. Dr. Pristas is an alumna of Caldwell.

The lecture is being presented by the Department of Theology and Philosophy as part of its Sister Maura Campbell lecture series. Sister Maura was a Sister of St. Dominic of Caldwell, a theologian, philosopher, professor, researcher and national leader in education whose scholarship and teaching spanned 50 years.

For further information, call 973-618-3931.