Wednesday, March 6, 2024
220 St. Paul's College
12:00 pm
Speaker: Dr. Peter Ludlow
In the face of industrial unrest in the coal towns of industrial Cape Breton, generational outmigration, and the loss of traditional farms, in 1928, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, created the St. Francis Xavier University Extension Department. Through study clubs, cooperatives, credit unions and self-help initiatives, Catholics in Nova Scotia created one of Canada's most successful social movements, which propelled this small, politically marginalized community of believers to global fame. This talk will examine the history of the Antigonish Movement, explain why its brand of social Catholicism was so successful, and offer some lessons that may apply to our current economic and social challenges.