EDITOR

Linda McKnight’s publishing experience runs for decades. She has been President and Publisher for McClelland and Stewart, Publisher for Macmillan of Canada, President of MGA Inc and Vice President of the literary agents Sterling Lord Associates. She has recently retired from the business of literary agency as Director and Vice President of Westwood Creative Artists.

A recipient of the 2016 Ivy Award for her substantial contribution to Canadian publishing, she taught at Humber College’s postgraduate programme on Creative Book Publishing for ten years.

WRITERS

Catholics from different cultural backgrounds—she from England, he from Italian roots in Canada—both found their way into writing books on the side, while running businesses. Hers was in publishing and literary agenting, his in advertising and corporate consulting.

After their first books were published they met each other and were married within a year. He’d just sold his interests in his company and she was about to sell hers. Both pursued studies and a different career. He with ethics consulting, teaching and theology, she with gestalt experiential teaching, guided retreats and pilgrimages. Further books were written on contemporary spiritual writing in all religions, the teachings of Mother Teresa, a book of prayers by women, Italian pilgrimages, on the meaning of business, and the necessity of faith and wisdom in the workplace. They co-wrote one on being generous.

When illness struck, she became home bound and studied feminine mysticism, contemplation and sacramentality in the natural world, while he served university students, the local Church and consulted on the issues of Trust in governance and management. His travels involved him in international interfaith dialogue where he collaborated with The Dialogue Institute at Temple University, Philadelphia and the Caux Round Table.

After he became a founding member of Director’s College and she established a lay community of contemplative Catholic women, they both received a call to yet another change by moving permanently to Italy. Here they continue to contribute to the theological and spiritual needs of the Church, society and community in accordance with Pope Francis’ writings and direction. He through various dialogue initiatives with the Vatican, and she organizing a series of seminars in Rome exploring what is intrinsic to a feminine theology.

They are both founding members of the Rome Round Table on the Feminine Dimension of the Church and the Magdala Conciliary in Toronto. She is editor of—and he consultant to— the online journal With One Accord: Learning and Living the Feminine Dimension as Church in which they contribute articles, and he teaches bible study at the local cathedral. He contributes to many theological initiatives in Rome and elsewhere, while she translates into English the writings of lesser-known Italian and French women mystics.

WEBMASTER

Michael Pirri works as a community and small business consultant at MVP Consulting. He also serves as the Director of Community Engagement at St. Basil’s Parish, Toronto. He is a member of the Magdala Conciliary on the Feminine Dimension, production co-ordinator for its international online journal, With One Accord, and Chair of the Toronto chapter of the Royal School of Church Music Canada.