Catholics and Public Life vindicates the shared history between America and Spain 

“America and Spain, the faith that unites us. A round trip” is the title of the 28th edition of the Catholics and Public Life Congress which will be held from November 13 to 15 at the CEU San Pablo University.

A challenging topic, within the historical moment in which we find ourselves and which vindicates figures such as Isabella the Catholic or the work of the School of Salamanca, germ “of international law and of the universal dignity of the human person and which has inspired Pope Leo XIV at various times. 

Hispanicity, a point of reference

María San Gil, director of Catholics and Public Life Congress She was in charge of reading the manifesto for Hispanidad, the central theme of this congress, which defends the fact of Hispanidad as a reality that "benefits all of us who speak, think and feel in Spanish on both sides of the Atlantic.". 

The manifesto points out how Hispanidad, far from black or golden legends, is based on a "community of affections and interests, forged by history and sustained, for more than five hundred years, by institutions that no international treaty has managed to replicate.".

With this Congress, the organizers turn their attention back to a complicated issue due to the "loss of some of the anchors that have sustained it for centuries" and encourage people to "look with serenity and pride towards a community that does not depend on these fluctuations.".

Thus, prominent figures from both sides of the Atlantic will advocate for “a profound change of attitude” regarding the defense of Hispanicity and its “cultural and moral vindication commensurate with its history” in order to “recognize that faith has been one of the firmest foundations of that civilization.”. 

A call for unity, for coming together and for the recovery of a shared history, which joins the impetus of the cause of beatification of Isabella the Catholic, an initiative in which some relevant members of the propagandists participate. 

The first Congress under the presidency of José Masip

This 28th edition of the Congress of Catholics and Public Life will be the first under the presidency of José Masip, who succeeded to the position Alfonso Bullón de Mendoza Last July. This was recalled by Pablo Velasco, national secretary of Communication for the ACdP, who highlighted the exponential growth of the Catholic Association of Propagandists under Bullón de Mendoza's leadership. Masip had served, along with María San Gil, as coordinator of the congress in the previous two editions. 

A poster that celebrates the meeting

Among the most noteworthy new features of this congress, Velasco highlighted the authorship of the poster, which this year emerged from a proposal to students in the Communication areas of the four universities that CEU has in Spain. 

The design by Carlos Figuero, a student of the Digital Art Degree, was the winner, and the young man, who defines himself as a “Catholic artist and lover of history,” explained the key elements of a poster that represents the fraternity between both peoples: “Two schools of fish, of different colors, symbolize both hemispheres. From each school, a fish emerges to meet the other. That is what defines us: the encounter. The fish are inspired by Mayan art and Christian iconography.”. 

In recent years, the Catholics and Public Life Congress has established itself as one of the key events for thought and the promotion of Catholic participation in civil and cultural society.