{"id":47620,"date":"2026-05-02T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/explorecatholic.nl\/nieuws\/toronto-catholic-conference-to-explore-breakdown-of-the-social-covenant\/"},"modified":"2026-05-02T13:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-02T11:00:00","slug":"toronto-catholic-conference-to-explore-breakdown-of-the-social-covenant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/explorecatholic.nl\/en\/nieuws\/toronto-catholic-conference-to-explore-breakdown-of-the-social-covenant\/","title":{"rendered":"Toronto Catholic conference to explore breakdown of the social covenant"},"content":{"rendered":"

The national organization in Canada Catholic Conscience<\/a> is launching a new annual conference, \u201cBuilding a Culture of Life and Dignity,\u201d with its inaugural 2026 gathering set to tackle one of the deepest problems in contemporary society: the breakdown of our shared social covenant and the erosion of human dignity from conception to natural death.<\/p>\n

The 2026 conference, \u201cRestoring the Covenant: Catholic Social Teaching as Common Social Ground,<\/a>\u201d will take place on Saturday, May 30, at De La Salle Oaklands College in Toronto.<\/p>\n

The gathering is rooted in Catholic social doctrine and inspired by Pope Leo XIII\u2019s Rerum Novarum<\/a>,<\/em> in which he says:\u00a0\u201cSince the end of society is to make people better, the chief good that society can possess is virtue,\u201d said Matthew Marquardt, executive director of Catholic Conscience.<\/p>\n

Open to Catholics and all people of goodwill, the aim is to offer Catholic social teaching<\/a> as a roadmap for renewing public life, Marquardt said.<\/p>\n

The conference is meant to be a place where young professionals, potential volunteers, and benefactors can begin to match their skills and resources to the Church\u2019s most pressing projects.<\/p>\n

The day will combine liturgy and prayer with plenary talks and themed breakout sessions, all framed by Catholic social teaching\u2019s vision of human dignity and the common good.<\/p>\n

Speakers include Bishop Mark Hagemoen of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saskatoon; Peter Copeland of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute; Tucker Sigourney, a John and Daria Barry postdoctoral fellow at Harvard; Moira McQueen, a prominent lawyer and consultant in moral theology who until recently served as executive director of the Canadian Catholic Bioethics Institute; and Kathleen Muggeridge of Young Professional Catholics of Toronto and the Office of Social Action of the Archdiocese of Montreal.<\/p>\n

In an education session, Catholic Register<\/a> publisher Peter Stockland will host a discussion examining the influence of news and media in shaping social values.<\/p>\n

In a world marked by radical individualism, moral relativism, and what organizers describe as \u201ca culture indifferent to the dignity of life,\u201d the conference proposes Catholic social teaching as a unifying framework for rebuilding the bonds that make us a true covenant people.<\/p>\n

For example, Catholic social teaching offers a Catholic lens for evaluating and interpreting governmental wellness indexes, such as the Quality of Life Framework<\/a> recently adopted by the government of Canada.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur social covenant is broken and needs to be restored, said Marquardt, who is also president of Canadian Catholic News<\/a>. \u201cAnd the responsibility for doing that is on every one of us. We belong to one another and each have a role to play in society.\u201d<\/p>\n

The conference grew out of months of discussions about the fragile state of Catholic apostolates in Canada and the surprising appetite among young Catholics for serious engagement, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you go to church in Toronto since the pandemic, attendance is up a lot,\u201d Marquardt said. \u201cThe difference is a lot of young people who are very ardent. They say they want things to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Organizers say the event is intended to:<\/p>\n