Professor William French
Associate Professor of Theology and Director of Peace Studies, Loyola University of Chicago

In the interview, Professor William French discusses both the affiliation of the two schools and his participation in the Peace Studies committee to create the program at Loyola. In commenting on the affiliation in the early 1990s, he mentions that it was a time of sadness and loss for those connected to Mundelein College. Professor French then goes on to explain what led to the creation of Peace Studies. The Bishops' Pastoral Letter called for courses focused on war and peace issues, as well as to identify with Catholic pacifist heritage, engage just war tradition, and acknowledge the  aggression of holy war. Dean Kathleen McCourt asked Professor French to serve on the Peace Studies committee. When the members identified a list of courses, it revealed an ideological split on what the program should be: Peace and Conflict Studies or Peace Studies. In the end, the committee came to a compromise, keeping elements of both.

Audio - Part 1 and 2

Transcript

Time Log - Part I:

0-5 minutes Kroc Center for International Peace at Notre Dame. Dean Kathleen McCourt.
5-10 minutes 1983 Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Letter. ROTC Program. Political Science Department.  Sister Carol Frances Jegen. Mary Sparks. Prudence Moylan. Paul Messbarger. Peter Schraeder. Tom Carson.
10-15 minutes Gandhi. Martin Luther King. Peace Studies Association. Pax Christi.
15-20 minutes Women’s Studies. Carol Frances Jegen. Michael Walzer’s Spheres of Justice.

Time Log - Part II:

0-5 minutes Peter Schraeder. North Africa. Horn of Africa. Bob Ludwig. DePaul University. Chicago Center for Peace Studies. Father Garanzini. Center for Ethics and Institute for Pastoral Studies. 2007 Peacemaking in an Age of Terror Conference. Arun Gandhi. James Carroll, Boston Globe. Eugene Daricki. Daniel Berrigan. Helen Caldicott. Physicians for Social Responsibility.
Prev Next