The Center for Jewish Civilization invites you to Dr. Suzanne Brown-Fleming’s virtual lecture, “’The Church is Not Afraid of History:’ The Opening of the Vatican Archives.” RSVP to the lecture here!

Our virtual lecture with Dr. Brown-Fleming will be accessible to all viewers via Zoom. RSVP required. Only those who register will receive the Zoom link to access the lecture. Zoom invitations will be emailed to all those who RSVP. 

About the Event

The Hal Israel Endowed Lecture in Jewish-Catholic Relations is named in memory of Hal Israel (C’92) and seeks to facilitate dialogue and strengthen ties between Jews and Catholics. It explores the many ways in which members of these two faiths continue to replace ancient prejudices with cooperation and understanding in today’s world.

In March 2019, when Pope Francis opened the archives for the pontificate of Pope Pius XII (1939-1958), His Holiness marked this momentous occasion with the phrase “the Church is not afraid of history.” The archives opened to researchers in March 2020 for only four days before the COVID pandemic required closing them. Since their reopening in June, the international research community has begun their work in one of the most consequential archives for study of the Holocaust in our lifetime. Dr. Brown-Fleming will reflect on key questions about the Holocaust the archives could help answer and the meaning of this research for Jewish-Christian relations going forward.

About the Speaker

Dr. Brown-Fleming is the Director of International Academic Programs at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Dr. Brown-Fleming’s work has been featured in the Catholic News Service (CNS), Catholic News Agency (CNA), and The Catholic Virginian. She has appeared on Cable News Network (CNN), EWTN Global Catholic Television Network, and several documentaries, including Holy Silence (2019).

This event will be recorded. By joining this event you consent to Georgetown University using video and photos of you taken during the event in its social media and promotional materials. For all other accommodation requests, please email bhm29@georgetown.edu by October 31. A good-faith effort will be made to fulfill requests after October 31.