We are pleased to welcome Fr. Jordi Pujol to speak on his book: The Collapse of Freedom of Expression: Reconstructing the Ancient Roots of Modern Liberty.
The topic of free speech is rarely addressed from a historical, philosophical, or theological perspective. In The Collapse of Freedom of Expression, Jordi Pujol explores both the modern concept of the freedom of expression based on the European Enlightenment and the deficiencies inherent in this framework. Modernity has disregarded the traditional roots of the freedom of expression drawn from Christianity, Greek philosophy, and Roman law, which has left the door open to the various forms of abuse, censorship, and restrictions seen in contemporary public discourse.
Pujol proposes that we rebuild the foundations of the freedom of expression by returning to older traditions and incorporating both the field of pragmatics of language and theological and ethical concepts on human intentionality as new, complementary disciplines.
Harvard Law Professor Adrian Vermeule will respond to Fr. Pujol’s lecture.
The Collapse of Freedom of Expression
Monday, March 20th @ 5:00 PM
HLS Wasserstein Hall (WCC) 1010
Fr. Jordi Pujol is an associate professor of media ethics and media law at the School of Church Communications in the Pontifical University of Santa Croce in Rome.
His research focuses on:
Ethical dilemmas regarding the principle of freedom of expression in Europe and the United States, and the challenges of exercising freedom of expression online. Upcoming book with Notre Dame University Press: The Collapse of Freedom of Expression: Reconstructing the Foundations of Modern Liberty (February 2023)
Transparency and Church communications. The right to information within the Church. Putting law and communication to work together, particularly in areas such as abuse and data protection. Latest book: Trasparenza e Segreto nella Chiesa Cattolica (Venezia: Marcianum Press, 2022)
Privacy, digital identity and data protection, particularly the impact of Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Church governance. Latest book: Chiesa e protezione dei dati personali (Roma: Edizioni Santa Croce, 2019).