Mary Beth Yount shook hands with Pope Francis.

A theology professor, Dr. Yount had traveled to the Vatican City to participate in a November colloquium, hosted by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, on the Complementarity of Man and Woman in Marriage.

She knew that the Pope was scheduled to open the three-day event -- a global, interreligious meeting featuring representatives from 14 religious traditions and 23 countries. She just never expected to be face-to-face with the Holy Father, shaking his hand.

Dr. Yount is an internationally known theologian who has presented and written on topics related to the family, parenting, and education. She was recently appointed as director of content and programming for the World Meeting of Families, scheduled for Philadelphia in September 2015. As an assistant professor of pastoral and theological studies at Neumann, she has taught courses related to theological anthropology, marriage and the family, ethics, morality, ecclesiology, scripture, and Church history.