DAVENPORT — The issue of religious freedom versus the role of the State in social affairs is a contemporary one — and one that has been wrestled with for centuries.
On Wednesday, April 4, the St. Ambrose University center for the study of St. Ambrose of Milan will present a keynote about one of the first great Church-versus-State debates as part of a symposium on St. Ambrose.
The symposium, which will also explore the cultural tradition and religious innovation in the works of St. Ambrose, will take place in the John Lewis Boardroom, Ambrose Hall (third floor).
2 p.m. – undergraduate scholars research presentation
5 p.m. – symposium panel (faculty from the fields of history, communication, music, art and theology)
5:30 p.m. – reception with light hors d’oeuvres
6 p.m. – keynote address by Christina Sogno, Fordham University, N.Y.
In her keynote address Sogno will examine the exchange between St. Ambrose of Milan and the pagan senator Symmachus, who debated the restoration of a pagan altar to the Roman Senate against the objections of Christian senators.
