China, Christianity, and the

Dialogue of Civilizations

28th International Conference of

the US-China Catholic Association

cosponsored by the Department of Sociology, Santa Clara University

Program Overview

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Friday eve

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Opening keynote

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Reception to follow

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Friday’s events are free and open to the public upon registration (required for planning)

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Saturday

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Keynote - Ian Johnson, Pulitzer-prize winning journalist

Academic Panels

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Keynote - Lü Nan (吕楠) acclaimed photographer.

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Opening Mass

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Award Banquet honoring Brent Fulton and Joann Pittman of ChinaSource

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Sunday

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Keynote - Rachel Zhu (朱晓红), professor of religious studies, Fudan University

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Invited presenter – Chiaretto Yan (甄健湘) Author, International Speaker

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Pastoral & Practical Sessions

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Ian Johnson

Journalist, Author, Professor

Ian Johnson, a Pultizer Prize winning journalist based in Beijing, is a regular contributor to the New York Times and the New York Review of Books. He is the author of Wild Grass: Three Stories of Change in Modern China (Pantheon, 2004) and The Souls of China: The Return of Religion After Mao (Vintage, 2017), among many other publications. An oft sought speaker, he is also a highly esteemed mentor at the Jesuit-run Beijing Center for Chinese Studies, where he regularly teaches undergrad courses. He will address a phenomenon we regularly see in headlines concerning China: how religion, once pushed to the margins of Chinese politics and society during the 20th century, is now back at the center of China's political and social life, as people and the government look for new values and faith.

Dr. Rachel Zhu (朱晓红)

Professor and Catholic public intellectual

Rachel Zhu (朱晓红) is associate professor and a founding member of the Religious Studies Department at Fudan University, Shanghai. She has written on a wide range of topics, including Christian philosophy, Catholic, the contemporary Church in China, and feminist theology. She contributes regularly to the life of the Church and public life in Shanghai, as well as in the worldwide Church community.

Kin Sheung Chiaretto Yan (甄健湘)

Author, International Speaker

Chiaretto Yan lives in Shanghai. He holds a doctorate in Missiology from the Pontifical Gregorian University (Rome). His primary areas of research are interdisciplinary approaches to the religions and cultures of Asia. He is the author of numerous articles and two books relevant to his this conference, Evangelization in China: Challenges and Prospects (Orbis 2014) and Season for Relationships: Youth in China and the Mission of the Church (Claretian Publications 2018). He will speak about the concerns and challenges facing young people in Chinese society today.

Lu Nan (吕楠)

Internationally acclaimed photographer

Lu Nan is one of the most respected photographers in China today. After working for China Pictorial (人民画报) for five years, he worked as an independent photographer to produce three series that made his international reputation. The second of these, which documents the lives of Catholics in rural China, includes pictures taken between 1992 and 1996. Many were have been featured in exhibits around the world and have been published in the volume On the Road (在路上). Unrivaled in his capacity to capture and reveal human dignity and the poignancy of the human condition, Lü Nan will speak about his work and his vision as a photographer.

Ricci Award Banquet

Brent Fulton

ChinaSource

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Joann Pittman

ChinaSource

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This year the USCCA is proud to honor Brent Fulton and Joann Pittman of ChinaSource as co-recipients of the China Association’s Matteo Ricci Award for Service of God and China.

The Matteo Ricci Award Banquet may be booked separately from the conference.