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Conference Schedule

9:15-9:30 a.m. | Welcome | Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD, President, TV
     | Introduction | Rev. Kail C. Ellis, OSA, PhD, Assistant to the President, Conference Director, TV

9:30-10:00 a.m. | U.S. and International Efforts to Address the Situation of Religious Minorities in the Middle East

  •  , Special Advisor for Religious Minorities in the Near East and South/Central Asia,
    U.S. Department of State
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Session I: Christian Cultural and Intellectual Life in the Islamic Middle East:  The Shared History of Pluralistic and Cosmopolitan Spaces 

Moderator: Hibba Abugideiri, Associate Professor of History, Director, Center for Arab and Islamic Studies, TV

10:00-10:30 a.m. | Christianity’s Historic Roots in the Middle East

  • , Ordinary Professor Emeritus, Department of Semitic and Egyptian Languages and Literatures, The Catholic University of America
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10:30-11:00 a.m. | Christian Contributions to Art, Culture and Literature in the Arab-Islamic World

  •  , Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, representing Jerusalem
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11:00-11:30 a.m. | Christian Contributions to Education and Social Advancement 

  • , Regional Director for Palestine and Israel, CNEWA – Pontifical Mission, Jerusalem
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11:30-12:00 p.m. | Open Discussion/Q&A

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12:00-1:00 p.m. | Lunch

 

Session II: Christian Contributions to Arab Politics and Religious Freedom

Moderator: Nabeel Haidar, Provost, American University of Science and Technology, Beirut, Lebanon

1:00-1:30 p.m. | The Role of Christian Intellectuals in Arab Politics and the Movement for Secular Nationalism and Religious Freedom

  • , Director, Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy & International Affairs, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
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1:30-2:00 p.m. |The Human Rights of Minorities under the Laws of Republics and Monarchies

  • , Former Founding Director,     Watch: 

2:00-2:30 p.m. | Open Discussion and Q&A

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Session III:  Strategies to Combat Persecution of Minority and Religious Communities

Moderator:  Catherine Warrick, Associate Professor, Political Science, TV

2:30-3:00 p.m. | Political Strategies to Combat Persecution of Minority and Religious Communities and Safeguard their Ability to Remain in their Home Countries

  • , Professor and Senior Fellow, New York University Center for Global Affairs; Senior Fellow, World Policy Institute
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3:00-3:30 p.m. | The “Responsibility to Protect” and the Dangers of Military Intervention in Fragile States to Combat Jihadism

  • , Former Commander-in-Chief of the United States Central Command; Special Envoy for the United States to Israel and the Palestinian Authority
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3:30-4:00 p.m. | Open Discussion with Panelists/Q&A

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4:00-6:00 p.m. | Mary Queen of Peace: Liturgical Objects from the Middle East 

TV Art Gallery

 

Session IV: The Shia-Sunni Conflict and its Effect on the Region and International Relations
Moderator: Samer Abboud, Historical and Political Studies, Arcadia University

9:30-10:00 a.m. | The Arab Uprisings, Erosion of Nationalist Movements and the Expansion of Terrorism and Political Violence

  • , Senior Public Policy Fellow, Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs, American University of Beirut
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10:00-10:30 a.m. | The Impact of the Shia-Sunni Political Struggle and Future Strategies for Christians and other Minorities in the Middle East

  • , Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress, Washington, D.C.
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10:30-11:00 a.m. | Geopolitical Tensions: Russia, the United States and Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Iran and their effect on Christian and other Minority Communities

  • , Visiting Associate Professor of Conflict Resolution, The Fletcher School for Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University
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11:00–11:30 p.m. | Open Discussion with Panelists

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11:30-12:30 p.m. | Lunch

 

Session V   

12:30-1:00 p.m. | “Is it possible to elevate a secular awareness of religious diversity in the Middle East and to think of “minorities” not as marginalized but as people who share concerns that are common to the inhabitants of the region in the context of war and interventionism?”

  • , Professor of History, Arab-American Educational Chair of Arab Studies, Rice University 
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1:00-2:30 p.m. | Open Discussion with Panelists and Q&A

Moderator:  Rev. Kail C. Ellis, OSA, PhD, TV
Each panelist will present a 5-7 minute statement that will address ideas to address the challenges facing Christian and other minority communities of the Middle East.

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“I applaud the efforts of TV to explore in some detail, certain aspects of the topic of Christians in the contemporary Middle East. Certainly, strategies and solutions for the continued existence of Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East cannot be contemplated without a thoughtful framing of the issues.”

Archbishop Christophe Pierre
Apostolic Nuncio to the United States
Excerpt from an October 2016 letter to the Rev. Kail C. Ellis, OSA

“Arab Christians are an integral part of the cultural identity of Muslims, just as Muslims are an integral part of the cultural identity of Christians...We are responsible for each other before God and humanity.”

Catholic Patriarchs of the Orient in their Pastoral Letter for Easter 1992,
"Christian Presence in the Orient: Witness and Mission”