Through this second edition of the CHARISM Speaker Series, students and faculty gathered to reflect on Catholic faith in this literary genre.
By Brenda Figueroa Gómez
Journalism Student
Universidad del Sagrado Corazón recently held the second conference of the CHARISM Speaker Series, an initiative developed in collaboration with the University of the Incarnate Word (UIW) to promote academic exchange and provide new perspectives to students and communities from both institutions.
The event focused on the presentation of the book Wondrous Reading: Encountering the Catholic Faith in Children’s Literature by author LuElla D’Amico, associate professor of English and Women’s and Gender Studies at UIW. The author also has multiple academic publications centered on children’s literature and the Catholic imagination.
During the session, participants discussed how children’s literature can serve as a tool to address complex and universal themes from an early age. Through analysis of the text, they explored its capacity to foster critical thinking and open spaces for reflection on spirituality and the human experience.
The dialogue also examined how children’s stories raise profound questions about life, transcendence, and the meaning of existence, integrating literature with formative and spiritual dimensions. This approach encouraged academic exchange among students and professors interested in new ways of engaging with reading.
According to Fr. Yamil Samalot Rivera, chaplain and professor of Theology, Languages, and Literature at Sagrado, this type of reading “opens the conscience to confront transcendence” by integrating a spiritual dimension into the educational process.
Meanwhile, Theology professor Wanda Rivera Figueroa highlighted that the book offers a unique perspective by identifying elements of faith and spiritual growth in everyday stories. “The author shows how, through common tales, values can be drawn that contribute to children’s spiritual development,” she explained.
Rivera Figueroa added that initiatives like this also encourage creativity and writing among students, especially in the field of children’s literature. “Students are encouraged to write and integrate elements that provide meaning beyond the narrative,” she noted.
This conference is part of the academic series developed within the CHARISM alliance, an initiative that promotes collaboration among higher education institutions to strengthen academic exchange, joint research, and the comprehensive formation of students.
The event continues the series launched in March with Samalot Rivera’s lecture titled The Glass Slipper and the Cross: A Catholic Reading of Cinderella, demonstrating an ongoing academic dialogue between both institutions around literature, faith, and humanistic education.
Nearly 40 theology students participated in the event, where they had the opportunity to engage with these topics and connect them to their academic formation. These types of spaces promote an integrative education in which critical analysis, cultural awareness, and spiritual development are cultivated together.