Fellowship Announcement – Big Questions in Free Will: The Theology of Free Will

Grants offered through Florida State University supporting philosophical and theological inquiry into the importance and implications of free will in the theological domain. The Big Questions in Free Will Program offers funds for inquiry into theological presuppositions and implications of belief in free will. Grants will support work along two general lines. The first includes projects that aim to elucidate the nature of divine freedom itself. The second includes projects addressing the interplay between human free will and divine attributes.

For more information about the project and the application process, go to www.freewillandscience.com.

Robin Collins
2010 Distinguished Lecturer
Tuesday and Wednesday, April 6 and 7, 2010, 7:00pm
Arntzen Hall 100; Western Washington University

Philosopher of science and religion Robin Collins is Professor of Philosophy at Messiah College in Grantham, Pennsylvania. With earned degrees in mathematics, physics, and philosophy, Professor Collins is widely regarded as one of the foremost proponents of the fine-tuning argument. His book, The Well-Tempered Universe: God, the Fine-Tuning, and the Laws of Nature, will soon become the standard on the topic. His work in the philosophy of religion focuses on Eastern religions and the Christian doctrine of the atonement. Professor Collins will offer two lectures for a general audience on successive evenings, the first on the fine-tuning argument and the second on the incarnational theory of atonement. For more details, please visit:

http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~howardd/blpc.html

The Lectureship is sponsored by the Society of Christian Philosophers, Western’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences and Department of Philosophy, and several student groups on campus.

The St. Thomas Philosophy of Religion Project announces two prizes for work in the philosophy of religion and/or philosophical theology. Both prizes have been made possible by a generous grant from the John Templeton Foundation.

1. The 2009 Excellence in Philosophy of Religion Prize attempts to identify the three best papers published in 2009 in the areas of philosophy of religion or philosophical theology. A panel of three expert reviewers will select three winners. Each winner will receive an award of $2000.
2. The C. S. Lewis Prize recognizes the best recent book in the philosophy of religion or philosophical theology written for a general audience. A panel of three expert reviewers will select one first place winner, who will receive a $15,000 prize, and one second place winner, who will receive a $7,500 prize.

The deadline for submissions is March 31, 2010. For details, please go to:

http://www.stthomas.edu/philosophy/templeton/awards.html

15th Biennial Conference of the International Society for Religion, Literature and Culture (ISRLC), at St Catherine’s College, University of Oxford, England, 23-26 September 2010

http://users.ox.ac.uk/~worc2329/index.html

A panel on “Continental Philosophy of Religion” is to be organized for this conference.

The panel invites submissions which consider the turn to religion in recent continental philosophy and the implications this has for understandings of religion, reason, and spiritual practice. If philosophy is called, driven, or solicited to think its other, does this mean that philosophy itself is compelled by a religious dynamic? A particular focus will be on the debate around theological and dialectical accounts of materialism. What kind of thinking does justice to the passion of reason, the integrity of matter, and the injunctions of ethical and political commitment? Relevant thinkers and themes might include Jean-Luc Nancy, Radical Orthodoxy, Slavoj Žižek, Grace Jantzen, phenomenology (Henry, Chrétien, Lacoste, Marion), speculative realism/materialism. However, other relevant submissions will be considered.

The panel is being convened by the Association for Continental Philosophy of Religion: www.hope.ac.uk/acpr

Panel leaders: Steven Shakespeare and Patrice Haynes (both Liverpool Hope University): shakess@hope.ac.uk, haynesp@hope.ac.uk

Short papers are invited for this panel; contributors should aim to deliver a 20-minute piece with 10 further minutes for questions and discussion. Please send the proposed title of your paper, with an abstract of not more than 500 words, to the convenors of the panel.

Deadline for receipt of abstracts: 30 March 2010

One of the keynote speakers at the conference will be Graham Ward (University of Manchester), co-editor of “Radical Orthodoxy: A New Theology” (Routledge, 1998).

Seven Deadly Sins (Capital Vices) in the Christian Tradition
June 21 – July 2nd, 2010
Directed by Rebecca DeYoung, Robert Kruschwitz
Guest Speakers J. William Harmless, Paul J. Wadell

Seminar Description
This two-week seminar on the seven deadly sinsor, capital vicesin the Christian tradition will explore a philosophical understanding of the vices as moral concepts that played a central role in spiritual formation and cultural critique from the 4th to the 13th century.

We aim to deepen understanding of the vices among Christian scholars by embedding a rigorous conceptual analysis of the vices within their historical and theological tradition and the Christian practices that gave them shape. With this background in hand, Christian scholars, teachers, and pastors can more accurately and winsomely articulate for contemporary audiences what is valuable in the vices tradition, counter contemporary secular treatments (or mistreatments) of the sins, and enrich impoverished Christian conceptions of their own traditions and practices in the church and community. Finally, we will explore ways to apply this scholarly research fruitfully in Christian practices and pedagogy in worship and in the classroom.

About the Directors
Dr. Rebecca DeYoung is associate professor of philosophy at Calvin College. Her work on the virtues and vices includes Glittering Vices (Brazos 2009), and Aquinass Ethics (Notre Dame, 2009), as well as several articles and book chapters on courage, sloth, pusillanimity, gluttony, hope and fear, and despair. She has also published curricula on the vices for both young people and adults with Faith Alive Christian Resources. She holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Notre Dame in 2000 and has been teaching philosophy at Calvin College, her alma mater, since 1998. She and her husband Scot have four children ages 4, 6, 9 and 11.

Dr. Robert Kruschwitz is the creator and general editor of Christian Reflection, the Center for Christian Ethics innovative quarterly series in faith and ethics for church laypersons. Among the ethics courses he teaches at Baylor is a popular introductory course on the Seven Deadly Sins. Previously he taught for twenty-one years at Georgetown College (Kentucky) where he had chaired the faculty and the philosophy department. He holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Texas at Austin and a B.A. degree from Georgetown College. An early member of the Society of Christian Philosophers (1982) and a founder of the Baptist Association of Philosophy Teachers (1988), he received the George Walker Redding Faculty Award for Outstanding Christian Service from Georgetown College in 1997 for his leadership in integrating Christian faith with teaching and research. With Robert C. Roberts, he co-edited The Virtues (Wadsworth, 1987), a pioneering anthology of recent essays on moral character. His articles and reviews on ethics have appeared in Faith and Philosophy, Perspectives in Religious Studies, Faculty Dialogue, The Thomist, and Christian Reflection. He is married to Vicki Kruschwitz, who is taking a sabbatical from her career in international transportation with IBM and Lexmark International, and is the familys genealogist

Applicant Information
Who may Apply
We would strongly prefer applicants…

1. practiced in the Christian tradition,
2. eager to engage in serious Christian scholarship and pedagogy, and
3. with graduate-level training in moral philosophy or moral theology (or closely related field).
4. Applicants should have earned a Ph.D. or terminal degree in their field.
5. We will aim to balance the seminar with applicants at various stages of their careers.
6. Participants should already have experience teaching or researching in the field of moral philosophy, moral theology, or psychology.

How to Apply
To apply, an applicant must submit the application form and arrange for submission of a letter of recommendation. In addition to general applicant information, the application form will require:

• curriculum vitae or resume
• a letter stating reason for interest in the topic, noting any previous experience publishing or teaching on the topic of virtue or vice
• an abstract proposing a potential contribution based on the seminar-e.g., conference talk (specify venue), scholarly research (specify journal, genre, audience), teaching (specify venue), or dissemination to the larger Christian community, ecclesiastical or academic, in other ways

Name and contact information for two (2) references – one of these references may also be used for your letter of recommendation.

A letter of recommendation should be sent from the recommender directly to the Seminars office at seminars@calvin.edu and must include the applicant’s name and “Seven Deadly Sins” in the subject line.

You will receive an email confirmation within 10 days of submitting your complete application and receipt of your letter of recommendation. If you do not hear from us, please call us to determine whether your complete application has been received.

The application deadline is January 15, 2010. Participants will be selected after the application deadline. Incomplete and/or late applications will not be considered. Applicants will be notified of their status by March 1, 2010.

Thanks so much,
Mary
———————————–
Ruth Groenhout, Interim Director
Mary Bennett, Coordinator
Katie Robrahn, Dept Assistant
Seminars @ Calvin
1855 Knollcrest Circle SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402
ph: 616.526.8558, fax: 616.526.6682
www.calvin.edu/scs

Society of Christian Philosophers – 2010 Eastern Regional Conference

“Metaphysics: Old and New”

March 12-13, 2010
Wake Forest University
Winston Salem, NC

Plenary Speakers:

Kathrin Koslicki (University of Colorado)
Commentator: E. J. Lowe (Durham University)

Jeffrey Brower (Purdue University)
Commentator: Hud Hudson (Western Washington University)

Samuel Newlands (University of Notre Dame)
Commentator: Robert M. Adams (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)

After a difficult 20th century, metaphysics has made its way back into the mainstream, and current work in metaphysics is often admirably well-argued, scientifically-informed, and engagingly-written. But much of the most important work in contemporary metaphysics is done without serious attention to the history of the discipline. (Needless to say, there are notable exceptions!) The theme of this conference is the relation of metaphysics to its history. Relevant topics abound. For example, should metaphysicians look to historical figures for guidance or inspiration? Perhaps advances in science make earlier thinkers obsolete. Are Christian metaphysicians likely to profit from more attention to history? Do Christians have more motivation (or less?) than non-Christians for turning to historical figures? Can the thought of a great dead philosopher guide contemporary thinking on a specific metaphysical problem? Can our understanding of great dead philosophers be improved by reading them in the light of contemporary metaphysics?

However, papers on any philosophical topic are welcome, as is participation by both Christians and non-Christians.

Submission Deadline: January 1, 2010
Papers (of 25-30 minutes reading time) should be prepared for blind review, and submitted electronically in an easily accessible form. Decisions will be made by February 1. For more information or to submit a paper, contact Patrick Toner
tonerpj {at} wfu {dot} edu

Cambridge University Press is inviting applications for the position of Editor of Religious Studies: An international journal for the philosophy of religion.

Religious Studies, published by Cambridge University Press, was launched in 1966. Since then, it has established itself as a leading international journal devoted to the problems of philosophy of religion as they arise out of classical and contemporary discussions and from varied religious traditions.

Professor Peter Byrne, who has been editing the journal for almost 20 years, will be retiring at the end of 2010. In order to ensure a smooth transition, we are now inviting applications from those interested in taking on the editorship of the journal from 1st January 2011, for an initial term of five years. The new Editor(s) will ‘shadow’ Peter from September 2010.

We are open to applications from individuals or editorial partnerships (based in the UK, North America or elsewhere).

Interested applicants are invited to send a brief CV and covering letter to the Chair of the Search Committee and to Cambridge University Press at the email addresses below. Covering letters should outline how the applicant(s) would approach the editorship, including:

• thoughts on the future content and strategic direction of Religious Studies, development of the journal’s international profile and aims and scope
• the day to day running of the journal editorial office
• any institutional support available, including financial support and time allowed for journal work
• details of any prior journals experience

The total document should comprise no more than five pages. Applications (by email) are welcome at any time up until 31st March 2010. Any potential applicants who wish to discuss the role informally with the present editor should contact Professor Peter Byrne (religiousstudies@cambridge.org).

Financial support in the form of an annual editorial stipend will be available from Cambridge University Press. Enquiries about this, or any other contractual issues, should be made to Sally Hoffmann (shoffmann@cambridge.org ).

Contact details
Chair of the Search Committee: Professor Richard Swinburne
Email: Richard.Swinburne@oriel.ox.ac.uk
Cambridge University Press: Sally Hoffmann
Email: shoffmann@cambridge.org
http://journals.cambridge.org/res

Call for Papers and Proposals – TRUTH MATTERS

www.icscanada.edu/truthmatters/

Toronto, August 18-20, 2010

We live in an age of skepticism about the idea of truth. Contemporary skeptics question the nature and value of truth and the concomitant virtue of truthfulness. Skepticism about truth is not restricted to popular culture. It occurs within the academic world, where deflationists have argued that the idea of truth is not a substantive notion and some poststructuralists have portrayed it as primarily the scene of struggles for power. Such skepticism is surprising, for truth and truthfulness have been central to Western civilization and the academic enterprise. Historically, the idea of truth has helped organize Western intellectual culture since ancient times. It is a central theme in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the three monotheistic religions that have shaped Western society. Conceptually, the idea of truth sets a stage for fundamental debates about the point and worth of academic work: debates between realists and anti-realists in philosophy, theology, and the natural sciences, for example, or between relativists and anti-relativists in the humanities and social sciences. Societally, the idea of truth provides a normative background for ethics, law, and public discourse: we expect friends and colleagues to be truthful; we ask witnesses in courts of law to “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth”; and we get upset when journalists deliberately fabricate their reports.

Given both contemporary skepticism and the centrality of truth, we believe it is time to reconceptualize truth and to reclaim truthfulness for the academic enterprise. The conference organizers have undertaken an interdisciplinary philosophical effort to develop a new model of truth. Now we wish to expand the scope of our work by engaging with discussion partners from other schools and from across the disciplines. The Truth Matters conference will be an occasion for international dialogue and debate. Relevant topics for papers and proposals include:

• artistic and narrative truth
• power, truth, and ideology
• realism, anti-realism, and truth
• relativism, anti-relativism, and truth
• religious truth
• teaching and learning for truth
• truth in ethics
• truthfulness in public life

We invite submissions in English of 700-word proposals or papers not exceeding 3500 words. Interdisciplinary approaches are welcome, and submissions by graduate students are encouraged.  There will be up to two merit-based graduate essay awards of $250 Canadian. All submissions must be formatted for blind review. On a separate cover sheet give your name, contact information, and 2-4 key words. Please identify yourself as a graduate student if you wish to be considered for an award. Send your submission via e-mail to TruthMatters@icscanada.edu

Submission deadline: March 1, 2010.

Truth Matters continues a series of conferences on issues of faith and scholarship organized by four schools in the Reformed tradition. It is hosted by the Institute for Christian Studies, a graduate school for interdisciplinary philosophy in Toronto, and co-sponsored by Calvin College (Grand Rapids, MI), Dordt College (Sioux Center, IA), and the Free University (Amsterdam).

This conference is supported by a generous grant from the Priscilla and Stanford Reid Trust.

Centre for Philosophy of Natural and Social Sciences, Dept of Philosophy

Post Doctoral Research Officer

Salary:   From £31,311 – £38, 391 per annum inclusive (pay award pending)

The Centre for Philosophy of Natural and Social Science is seeking to appoint a three year research officer in the Templeton Project, ‘God’s Order, Man’s Order and the Order of Nature’ from 30 September 2010. The post holder will have the exciting opportunity to work within an international team of experts in history-and-philosophy of science and theology from LSE, Oxford and UCSD and play a key role in advancing research at the interface of those fields.   Established competence in one of these areas is required, as well as evidence of ability in both.

Candidates should have a PhD and will be required to conduct project research both independently and in a team, contribute to the intellectual agenda of project activities, maintain research relations with the project team and write up research for publication in a variety of modes, including peer-reviewed journals and/or a book and non-academic venues.

Full application details can be obtained at www.lse.ac.uk/jobsatLSE.  If you cannot download the forms, email hr.recruit.res@lse.ac.uk or call 0207 955 7859 quoting reference RES/09/11.

Applications must be received by 5:30 pm by 16 December 2009

The Society for Continental Philosophy and Theology is proud to announce the Politics of Peace Conference to be held on April 16th-17th, 2010 at Messiah College in Grantham, PA.

Keynote Speakers:

• Catherine Keller (Drew University)
• William T. Cavanaugh (University of St. Thomas)

Call for Papers:
SCPT’s 2010 conference will focus on PEACE. We invite papers that examine the many dimensions of peace from social, political, religious, scientific, theological, and philosophical points of view. We also seek papers dealing with complementary topics such as justice, reconciliation, forgiveness, and peace-making, and that deal with the practical aspects of the above topics. SCPT is an organization that seeks to promote inquiry at the intersection of philosophy and theology, through the study of phenomenology, deconstruction, feminism, Radical Orthodoxy, and other related fields.

Only complete papers with a maximum of 3,000 words will be accepted. Papers should be prepared for blind review and sent to peacestudies@messiah.edu.

Deadline – February 8th, 2010
The Society for Continental Philosophy and Theology seeks to promote inquiry at the intersection of philosophy and theology. For more information about SCPT, visit www.scptonline.org.