Dr. L.P. Mousseau Memorial Ethics Lecture Series

CONSCIENCE

Naming its Rights and Duties

“Freedom of conscience, along with the freedoms of religion and of speech, has long been regarded as a fundamental good within Canada and among other liberal democracies.  Increasingly, however, professional societies, universities, and political parties have sought to pit the exercise of conscience against the assertions of competing rights and claims.  Do the rights of conscience have a limit? What obligations do we have to educate our consciences? How can Christians better advance respect for conscience in public and professional spheres? Inspired by the work of John Henry Newman, and drawing from the riches of the Catholic intellectual tradition, this conference seeks to explore the rights and duties of conscience in our time.”

View the Videos Below


  

Keynote: Rev. Dr. Andrew Bennett

Director, Cardus Religious Freedom Institute

The Rev. Dr. Andrew P.W. Bennett is Director of the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute. He is an ordained deacon in the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church in the Eparchy (Diocese) of Toronto and Eastern Canada.

Fr. Deacon Andrew served as Canada's first Ambassador for Religious Freedom and Head of the Office of Religious Freedom from 2013 to 2016 during which time he led in defending and championing religious freedom internationally as a core element of Canada's foreign policy. At the same time, he served as Canada's Head of Delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, a 31-country body which leads international efforts in Holocaust education, research, and remembrance.

As Director of the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute, Fr. Deacon Andrew works to promote religious freedom and the importance of public faith to our common life. Through Cardus Law, he works to shape Cardus’ research on how citizens engage with public institutions, including exploring the relationship between government and faith institutions. In conjunction with his work at Cardus, Fr. Deacon Andrew is Director of the North America Action Team and Senior Fellow at the Religious Freedom Institute (RFI) in Washington, DC. The RFI is a leading independent think-tank committed to achieving broad acceptance of religious liberty as a fundamental human right, the cornerstone of a successful society, and a source of national and international security.

Fr. Deacon Andrew holds a Ph.D. in Politics (2002) from the University of Edinburgh as well as degrees in history from McGill and Dalhousie universities. When not praying, studying, or advocating, Fr. Deacon Andrew can be found with his fly rod in a stream, listening to bluegrass or Bach, or reading the Church Fathers.
 

Hon. Mr. Justice Kevin Feehan

Alberta Court of Appeal

Justice Feehan graduated from the University of Alberta Law School in 1978, articled at the Milner & Steer firm and practiced with that firm through its various iterations (Milner & Steer, Milner Fenerty, Fraser Milner, Fraser Milner Casgrain, FMC LLP and Dentons LLP) for his entire 38-year career. As a civil litigator, he practiced in the areas of constitutional, education, health, insurance, personal injury, corporate commercial, medical negligence, and oil and gas litigation. Justice Feehan has been a sessional instructor in constitutional litigation since 2000 and is the author of more than 200 legal publications.

Justice Feehan has been actively involved in the community as Vice-Chair of St. Joseph’s College at the University of Alberta, Chancellor of Newman Theological College and St. Joseph’s Seminary, Chair of Catholic Social Services and Catholic Charities Societies, Chair of the Edmonton Social Planning Council, President of The Works International Visual Arts Society, and numerous other boards and committees. He is the recipient of both the Queen Elizabeth II Golden and Diamond Jubilee Medals, the Alberta Centennial Medal for Public Service, the Royal Lifesaving Society Commonwealth Honourary Life Governor award, the Alberta Civil Trial Lawyers Association President’s award, and the Justice James Higgins Award. He was named Best Lawyers in Canada “Lawyer of the Year” in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016 in the areas of personal injury, insurance and medical negligence litigation, was named Queen’s Counsel in 2003 and a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2015. He was appointed to the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta in October, 2016 and the Court of Appeal in January, 2019.
 

Dr. Christina Lamb

Faculty of Nursing, UofA and Founder of the Aletheia Conscience Project

Dr. Lamb is a bioethicist and Assistant Professor with the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Alberta. She is the founder and Principal Investigator of the Aletheia Conscience Project, which focuses on her research regarding conscience and conscientious objection for health care professionals. Dr. Lamb also researches ethical issues at the end of life for children and ethics in a Global Heath context related to maternal, newborn and child health.
 

Mr. Dean Sarnecki

Executive Director, Alberta Catholic School Trustees’ Association (ACSTA)

Dean Sarnecki is the Executive Director of the Alberta Catholic Schools Trustees Association. He has taught grades 4-12 with Elk Island Catholic Schools and at the post-secondary levels at St. Joseph’s College and Newman Theological College in the areas of theology and religious education. Dean is currently a PhD (Candidate) at the University of Alberta focusing on teacher formation, secularism, and Catholic education in a pluralistic society. He has a strong interest on the work of Charles Taylor and the role of religion in public life.

 

Dr. Jason West

President and Faculty of Philosophy, NTC

Dr. Jason West is currently the President & Vice Chancellor of Newman Theological College in Edmonton, AB. He completed his Ph.D. in Philosophy at the University of Waterloo (Ontario). Dr. West is married to his wife Christine with whom he has six children. An expert on the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, Dr. West is author of How to become a Rational Animal (Justin Press) and has published many articles in academic journals on a wide range of topics. He is the Past-President of the Canadian Society of Christian Philosophers.


 

Mr. Dan Williams

MLA for Peace River, AB

Dan Williams was elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for Peace River on April 16, 2019.

Mr. Williams is a member of the Special Standing Committee on Members' Services. Prior to being elected, Mr. Williams worked at a construction and gravel company.

Mr. Williams and his wife, Maureen, live in La Crête, Alberta. In his spare time he enjoys hiking, climbing and canoeing. Mr. Williams also speaks French.

Watch the 2019 Dr. L.P. Mousseau Memorial Ethics Lecture Series 

Conscience - Naming It's Right and Freedoms

Dr. Ryan Topping, MC and Academic Dean, Faculty of Philosophy, Newman Theological College

Dr. Jason West, President and Faculty of Philosophy, Newman Theological College

Mr. Dean Sarnecki, Executive Director, Alberta Catholic School Trustees’ Association (ACSTA)

Hon. Mr. Justice Kevin Feehan, Alberta Court of Appeal

Rev. Deacon Dr. Andrew Bennett, Director, Cardus Religious Freedom Institute

About Dr. Louis-Phillippe Mousseau, M.D.; F.A.C.S. 1908 - 1962

Early Years

Dr. Mousseau was born on February 7, 1908 in Montreal, Quebec. He graduated in medicine from the University of Montreal in 1932. He completed two years surgical  training at the l'Hopital de Notre Dame in Montreal. At the request of the Grey Nuns, he moved to Alberta to practice surgery at the Edmonton General Hospital.

Professional and Community Achievements

In 1942, Dr. Mousseau was appointed Chief of Surgery. In 1944, he earned his Royal College Specialist Certificate. In 1948, he earned his fellowship from the American College of Physicians and Surgeons. In 1952, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Edmonton General Hospital. In 1956, he served as President of "Association des Medecins de language francaise du Canada". He received Honourary Doctorate of Laws from both the Universite de Montreal and Universite du Laval for his outstanding contributions to surgery.

He also served on the Senate of the University of Alberta and on the Government of Canada's Glassco Commission on medical issues in northern and remote areas. He established Alberta's first French radio station. He was a trustee for the French church St. Jochaim's Parish and was on the Board of Directors of the French language "LA Suvilance".

Upon his untimely death at age 54 years. his colleagues established the Mousseau Memorial Lecture. The Lecture attracted notable physicians including Drs. Michael DeBakey, Alexander Walt, Mary Ellen Avery, J. William Fielding and Edmund l'elligrino. In 2012, the Mousseau Memorial Lecture Fund was gifted to the Newman Theological College in the memory of Dr. Mousseau to advance medical ethics.

In 2005, the Alberta Medical Association recognized Dr. Mousseau's legacy as one of Alberta's 100 Physicians of the Century.

Legacy

In the 1940's at a presentation to the American College of Physician and Surgeons, Dr. Mousseau presenting his philosophy of care. He believed the patient must be treated as a whole person and must be informed about his/her treatment options. This approach is commonly understood today as a best practice. In the 1940's, it was revolutionary.

When the newspapers reported his death, he was remembered as "an instrument of God".

Quick Links

Date: November 20, 2019
Time: 8:30am - 4:10pm
Location: St. Joseph's Basilica, 10044-113 Street, Edmonton, AB

Schedule

8:30am - 9:00am   Registration/Coffee
9:00am - 9:20am   Welcome - Dr. Ryan Topping
9:20am - 9:50am   Dr. Jason West
9:50am - 10:20am   Mr. Dan Williams, MLA
10:20am - 10:50am   Break
10:50am - 11:50am   Dr. Christina Lamb
     
12:05am - 12:45pm   Holy Mass
12:45pm - 1:30pm   Lunch
     
1:30pm - 2:00pm   Hon. Mr. Justice Kevin Feehan 
2:00pm - 2:30pm   Mr. Dean Sarnecki
2:30pm - 3:00pm   Break
3:00pm - 4:00pm   Keynote: Rev. Dr. Andrew Bennett
4:00pm - 4:10pm   Closing Remarks