The Seventy-Fifth Annual Meeting of the American Catholic Historical Association

MISCELLANY THE SEVENTY-FIFTH ANNUAL MEETING OF THE AMERICAN CATHOLIC HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION Report of the Chairman of the Committee on Program The seventy-fifth annual meeting of the American Catholic Historical Association took place January 6—8, 1995, at the Chicago Hilton Hotel. There were nine sessions, of which three were jointly sponsored. The Executive Council convened on the evening of January 5, and the Business Meeting of the Association was held on the afternoon ofJanuary 6, followed by a Social Hour. The sessions began on the morning ofJanuary 6 to large audiences. The morning session on January 6 saw two excellent panels on medieval and early modern Europe. The first, "Rethinking the History of Early Modern Catholicism: New Historiographical Directions and Related Research," was chaired by Professor Philip Soergel of the Institute for Advanced Study, and jointly sponsored with the American Historical Association. The session aimed to examine the dramatic changes in historiographical perceptions of early modern religious movements in Europe. Marc Forster of Connecticut College examined confessionalization and Catholicism in Germany, shifting the perspective from the traditional political and institutional emphases of German historiography to an examination of the nuances of Catholic identity and function at the local, and particularly rural village level. William Hudon, of Bloomsburg University, in a paper entitled "Beyond 'Counter' Reformation or 'Catholic' Reformation: Rethinking Early Modern Italian Catholicism," discussed the growing awareness of the role of non-traditional groups in the development of religious identity. In particular, an examination of Italian inquisitions, new religious orders, and writings by religious women create a much more complex picture of the relationships of religious institutions and individuals than previously thought. The final paper was delivered by Allyson Poska, of Mary Washington College, who discussed the reassessment of the power and presence of the Church in early modern Spain. Through the reexamination of the tribunals of the Inquisition, historians have come to the perspective that the Church exerted a much more limited influence over Spanish Catholicism and Inquisition, and that Catholic identity was much more regionally nuanced than traditionally thought. The commentator was the Reverend John W. O'Malley, SJ., of the Weston School of Theology. 226 MISCEUAMY 227 The second session, jointly sponsored with the American Society of Church History, was entitled "The Word Preached and the Word Heard: The Laity and Preaching in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe." The session was chaired by Professor Phyllis Roberts of City University of New York. Professor Darleen Pryds of the University of Wisconsin-Madison spoke on "Jurists and Heretics: Re-examining the Status of Lay Preaching in Late Medieval Europe." The second paper, "Preaching, Lollards, and the Laity," presented by Professor Simon N. Forde of the University of Leeds, focused attention on the religious situation of late medieval England. Professor Benjamin W. Westervelt of Lewis and Clark College spoke on clerical ideals for the laity responding to CounterReformation preaching in the Milan of Cardinal Borromeo. Commentary was provided by Professor Beverly Mayne Kienzle of the Harvard Divinity School. The session on Friday afternoon, "The American Catholic Historical Association Past and Future: Reflections on the Seventy-fifth Anniversary," was a lively and well-attended anniversary session in which four past presidents discussed both the history of the Association and offered reflections on the future. The Reverend James Hennesey, SJ., of Canisius College, Past President in 1986, presided. Perspectives were provided by Professor Philip Gleason of the University of Notre Dame, Past President in 1978, Professor James Brundage , of the University of Kansas, Past President in 1985, and the Reverend Gerald Fogarty, SJ., ofthe University ofVirginia, Past President in 1992. Among the issues discussed were the foundation and history of the Association and its relationship to broader concerns in American Catholic cultural and intellectual history, the broadening of perspective as the Association attempted to go beyond its original focus on American Catholicism and Catholic intellectual life to European, Asian, African, and Latin American issues, and to topics in ancient, medieval, and early modern history, and considerations on new directions for the Association, focusing in particular on the broadening of membership and the greater involvement of women and young scholars, as well as the importance of the fact that the...