IPED Lecture: “Bid for Internationalism—The Dialogue Between Pope Pius XII and President Franklin Roosevelt on Peace and International Order”

Join Fordham IPED, the Curran Center for American Catholic Studies, and the political science department for a talk by Madalena Meyer Resende, PhD, examining the dialogue between Pope Pius XII and President Franklin D. Roosevelt on the future postwar international order during the first year of World War II (1939–1940). As leaders of officially neutral states, both sought pathways to negotiated peace. The presentation explores Catholic thought on international relations, focusing on national self-determination, the role of states, disarmament, and international organizations, and situating these within Wilsonian ideas and the Thomist natural law tradition. The talk also examines Roosevelt’s emerging universalist vision and growing use of Christian language, set against deepening Vatican–White House engagement. It concludes with the influence of the American episcopate, whose approach to international relations blended neo-Thomist natural law internationalism with a commitment to liberal democratic statehood.

Resende is an associate professor at NOVA University of Lisbon – School of Social Sciences and Humanities (NOVA FCSH) and a senior researcher at Portuguese Institute of Internacional Relations (IPRI-NOVA). She held visiting fellowships at the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt (Oder) and at the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. She holds a PhD in government from the London School of Economics (2005). Her research focuses on nationalism, Catholicism and constitutionalism. She is a member of the academic council of the Wilfried Martens Centre in Brussels and has held leadership positions in national and international associations, including president of the Portuguese Political Science Association (APCP) and vice president of the International Political Science Association (IPSA). She is currently sub dean for Internationalization at NOVA FCSH.