Lectures
Â鶹´«Ã½'s College of Philosophy and Letters offers multiple lectures throughout the year.
Scholars in Our Midst
This ongoing series features scholars from across the Â鶹´«Ã½ community
who are engaging questions that intersect with the Catholic intellectual tradition
and the mission of the Society of Jesus. The series is sponsored by SLU’s College of Philosophy and Letters and the Office of Mission and Identity.
Past Lectures
2021: *New Book*: (2021)
Jennifer Popiel, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of History
2021: Supernatural Naturalism: The Holy Matrimony of the Modern Poet and Scientist
Emily Dumler-Winckler, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Theological Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
Respondent: Helen De Cruz, Ph.D.
Danforth Chair in the Humanities, Philosophy
Respondent: Daniel Finucane, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Theological Studies
2021: Rene Girard: The Last Nietzschean
Grant Kaplan, Ph.D.
Professor, Theological Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
Respondent: Paul Lynch, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, English
Respondent: Benjamin de Foy, Ph.D.
Professor, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
2020: Romero's Martyrology: "The Only Violence Permissible by the Gospel"
Ruben Rosario Rodriguez, Ph.D.
Professor, Theological Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
Respondent: D. Matthew Baugh, S.J.
Philosophy and Letters Chair in Catholicism and Community
Director of Catholic Studies
Secondary Appointment, Political Science
Respondent: Gregory R. Beabout, Ph.D.
Professor, Philosophy, College of Arts and Sciences
2020: Catholic Personalism and the Political: Liberalism's Unfinished Revolution
Christopher Duncan, Ph.D.
Professor, Political Science, College of Arts and Sciences
Respondent: Michael D. Barber S.J.
Professor, Philosophy, College of Arts and Sciences
Respondent: Jay M. Hammond, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Theological Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
Eleonore Stump, Ph.D.
Robert J. Henle, S.J., Professor of Philosophy, College of Arts and Sciences
Respondent: Cristina McGroarty. M.S.N., R.N.
Assistant Professor, Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing Respondent: J. Mark Pousson, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, School of Education 2020: Augustine, Aquinas, and Tolkien
Craig A. Boyd, Ph.D.
School for Professional Studies Respondent: Atria Larson, Ph.D.
Department of Theological Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
John F. Kavanaugh, S.J., Philosophy for Ministry Lecture
This series of lectures delivered by leading scholars exemplify the central mission of the Â鶹´«Ã½ College of Philosophy and Letters: to provide our students with the intellectual tools for reflecting on the social, cultural and theological contexts of Catholic ministry in today's world. The discipline of philosophy has traditionally supplied the framework for such reflection, oriented toward preparation for theological studies. Today, in response to the Church's call for fruitful dialogue between faith and the contemporary world, philosophical reflection must also illuminate the various social and cultural contexts in which Christian ministry finds itself.
This orientation toward the context of ministry thoroughly imbued the research, writing and teaching of Father John F. Kavanaugh, S.J., a Jesuit philosopher and member of the Â鶹´«Ã½ Department of Philosophy from 1974 until his death in 2012. It is thus entirely appropriate that the Lecture Series takes Fr. Kavanaugh as its inspiration and exemplar.
Past Lectures
2022: Consider the Birds: The Nature and Graces of a Trumpeter Swan Gregory Beabout, Ph.D. Professor of Philosophy, Â鶹´«Ã½ 2021: The Point of PhilosophyColleen McCluskey, Ph.D.
Professor of Philosophy, Â鶹´«Ã½
2019: The Pursuit of Intimacy
Theodore Vitali, C.P.
Former Chair of the Department of Philosophy, Â鶹´«Ã½
2018: A Joint John F. Kavanaugh, S.J.- Walter J. Ong, S.J. Bicentennial Event The
Pressure of the Word: Presence and Distance in Walter J. Ong’s Secondary Orality
Steve Schloesser, S.J.
Professor History, Loyola University-Chicago
2017: Guilt and Forgiveness
Eleonore Stump, Ph.D.
Robert J. Henle, S.J., Professor of Philosophy, Â鶹´«Ã½
2016: Lest Loves Compete: St. Augustine’s Theology of Charity
David Meconi, S.J., D.Phil.
Associate Professor of Theological Studies, Â鶹´«Ã½
2015: Liturgy and the Work of Ethics
Jeffrey Bishop, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Philosophy, Â鶹´«Ã½
Director, Albert Gnaegi Center for Health Care Ethics, Â鶹´«Ã½
Tenet Chair of Health Care Ethics, Â鶹´«Ã½
2014: Testimony and Religious Belief
John Greco, Ph.D.
Leonard and Elizabeth Eslick Chair in Philosophy, Â鶹´«Ã½
Lilly Workshop Series
This series of six workshops aims to facilitate communication, coordination and collaboration among various groups from across the Â鶹´«Ã½ community involved in service-learning. Workshop presenters will offer brief presentations to facilitate discussion among participants.Experiencing SLU's Mission through Ignatian Service: A Project Based, Collaborative Exercise
Past Workshops
2021: Examining SLU's Mission: The Four Apostolic Preferences
Presenter1: Molly Schaller, Associate Dean, School of Education
Presenter 2: LaKricia Cox, Director of Programming, The Little Bit Foundation
Participants: Community Engagement and Service Coordinators
Presenter 1: D. Matthew Baugh, S.J., Philosophy and Letters Chair in Catholicism and Community, Direct of Catholic Studies, Secondary Appointment, Political Science
Presenter 2: Gina Merys, Acting Director, Reinert Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning
Presenters: Directors and Facilitators of the Core
2021: Building an Educational Pathway as a Mission of Reconciliation and Justice: The Second Apostolic Preference
Presenter 1: Ronny O'Dwyer, S.J., Assistant to the Dean, School of Education
Presenter 2: Amber Johnson, Associate Provost, Diversity and Community Engagement
Participants: Deans and Associate Deans
2021: Creating a Hope Filled Future for SLU/STL Students: The Third Apostolic Preference
Presenter 1: Eric Clark, President, Loyola Academy of Saint Louis
Presenter 2: Allen Brizee, Director of Writing Across the Curriculum, Associate Professor, Department of English
Participants: Faculty and Graduate Instructors