We were delighted to welcome Dr Gemma Simmonds CJ to launch our new theme of ‘Finding Hope In Uncertain Times’. Gemma’s talk entitled ‘Hope: living differently‘ is a reference to Spe Salvi* and we reflected on the Christian message and the transformative power of hope. An insightful and compelling talk which gave us much to ponder on.
*‘The Christian message [is] not only “informative” but “performative”. That means: the Gospel is not merely a communication of things that can be known—it is one that makes things happen and is life-changing. […] The one who has hope lives differently’.
Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi
Gemma Simmonds is a sister of the Congregation of Jesus. She is a senior research fellow at the Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology in Cambridge where she is director of the Religious Life Institute, teaching Christian spirituality and pastoral theology. An international speaker and lecturer, she is an honorary fellow of Durham University, past president of the Catholic Theological Association of Great Britain and chair of trustees of the ecumenical Community of St. Anselm based at Lambeth Palace, London. She lectured in theology at Heythrop College, University of London from 2005 until its closure in 2018.
Gemma has been a missionary in Brazil, a chaplain in the Universities of Cambridge and London and a chaplaincy volunteer in Holloway Prison for 25 years. She is a regular broadcaster on religious matters on the BBC, Premier Radio and other radio and television networks.