The Memory of Wholeness | Vance Lecture with Dr. Rhodora Beaton

• IN PERSON
• ONLINE on ZOOM

Whitley Event Center at Oblate School of Theology
285 Oblate Drive, San Antonio, TX 78216

This event is FREE!

This lecture will explore the role of the Church in a world that often feels increasingly fragmented—socially, culturally, and spiritually. Drawing from ecclesiology, sacramental theology, and theological anthropology, Dr. Beaton will reflect on the image of the Church as the Body of Christ: not merely a metaphor, but a living, sacramental reality.

The Body of Christ will be presented as the Church’s “memory of wholeness”—a communal and embodied remembrance of the unity, reconciliation, and communion to which humanity is called in Christ. In a time marked by division and disconnection, this talk will invite listeners to consider how the Church, through its sacramental life and shared practices, bears witness to a deeper unity that resists fragmentation and sustains hope for the world.

Dr. Rhodora Beaton is a systematic theologian whose work brings theological depth into lively conversation with the life of the Church today. She holds a BA from Middlebury College and both an MDiv and PhD from the University of Notre Dame. Before joining the faculty at Oblate School of Theology in 2020, Dr. Beaton taught for three years at the Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis, Missouri, and for eight years at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Her scholarly work focuses on the rich intersection of ecclesiology and sacramental theology, with particular attention to how the Church embodies and communicates meaning in the world. She is the author of Embodied Words, Spoken Signs: Sacramentality and the Word in Rahner and Chauvet (Fortress Press) and Illuminating Unity: Four Perspectives on Dei Verbum’s “One Table of the Word of God and the Body of Christ” (Liturgical Press), as well as numerous essays and articles.

When she is not teaching or writing, Dr. Beaton enjoys traveling to new places and tending her garden at home in San Antonio.

The Louis G. Vance Lecture in Systematic Theology at Oblate School of Theology is an annual event dedicated to advancing theological scholarship and dialogue. Established to honor Louis G. Vance's contributions to theology, the lecture invites distinguished scholars to address pressing topics in systematic theology, fostering critical reflection and exploration of contemporary issues within the Church and broader society. It serves as a platform to engage students, theologians, and the community in meaningful theological discourse.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Whitley Event Center, 285 Oblate Drive, San Antonio, United States

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