In her new book Schoolishness: Alienated Education and the Quest for Authentic, Joyful Learning, published by Cornell University Press, Kellogg faculty fellow Susan D. Blum presents a a theory-based phenomenology of institutional education. She defines "schoolishness" as educational practices that emphasize packaged "learning," unimaginative teaching, uniformity, constant evaluation by others, arbitrary forms, predetermined time, and artificial boundaries, resulting in personal and educational alienation, dependence, and dread. Drawing on critical, progressive, and feminist pedagogy in conversation with the anthropology of learning, and building on the insights of her two previous books, Blum proposes less-schoolish ways of learning in ten dimensions, to lessen the mismatch between learning in school and learning in the wild. Join the Kellogg Institute for a book launch conversation between the author and special guests Jean Lave and Rev. Hugh R. Page, Jr. A reception will follow and books will be available for purchase and signing. Co-presented with the Department of Anthropology, with co-sponsorship by the Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts and the Center for Educational Research and Action.   More information here. 

Join us for an engaging panel discussion as experts unpack the results of the 2024 U.S. election.   Welcoming remarks will be made by Notre Dame President, Rev. Robert A Dowd, C.S.C.  Moderated by David Campbell, director, Notre Dame Democracy Initiative, this event features insights from leading scholars Derek Muller, professor of law, Geoffrey Layman, chair of the Department of Political Science, and Laura Gamboa, assistant professor of democracy and global affairs, Keough School of Global Affairs.  The panel will analyze the election's key outcomes, voter behavior, ongoing contention and certification processes, and the broader implications for American democracy. A light lunch will be served from 12:30 - 1:00 pm before the panel begins.  The event is free and open to the public. Don’t miss this chance to hear from top experts about what just happened and what it means for the future of U.S. politics. This event is sponsored by the Notre Dame Democracy Initiative, and co-sponsored by the Kellogg Institute for International Studies, the Rooney Center for the Study of American Democracy, and Notre Dame Student Government. Originally published at rooneycenter.nd.edu.

Saturdays with the Saints has established itself as a popular Notre Dame football pregame ritual that combines the university's rich traditions of Catholic faith and spirited game days. In this lecture, Therese Cory, associate professor of Thomistic studies, will present. The lectures take place in the Andrews Auditorium on the lower level of Geddes Hall adjacent to Hesburgh Library. The talks are free and open to the public. Attendees are encouraged to arrive early as the events tend to fill to capacity. Come and grab a free T-shirt! Originally published at mcgrath.nd.edu.

American political life is characterized by hyper-partisanship and polarization. Each election cycle seems to sharpen divisions and deepen political idolatry, while leaving most of us exasperated and exhausted. Yet, the Catholic Church encourages us to participate in politics. Pope Francis expresses the Church’s conviction that politics is “a lofty vocation and one of the highest forms of charity, inasmuch as it seeks the common good” (EV, 205). This series explores the Church’s call to participate in political life and the complexities, challenges, and possibilities therein: What is politics? How do Catholics balance the call to participation without making an idol of politics? Is our call to participate exhausted by our duty to vote? What is the mission of Catholics in the public square? What constitutes the public square? How can the Eucharist transform our understanding of politics? Can we envision a world where charity, not political ideology, guides all our actions and decisions? Featured panelists will include: Frederick Christian Bauerschmidt, professor of theology at Loyola University Maryland and a deacon of the Archdiocese of Baltimore; Kathleen Buckley Domingo, executive director of the California Catholic Conference; and Theresa MacArt, assistant professor of politics and public service at Holy Cross College.  Click here to register. Originally published at mcgrath.nd.edu.

The Medieval Institute is pleased to present the eighteenth lecture in the Graduate Student Invitation Series with Hanna Gentili (University of Hamburg, Institut für Jüdische Philosophie und Religion), who will be speaking on "Natural Philosophy in the Arabic-Hebrew-Latin Landscape: Deconstructing and Reconstructing the Corpus." About the Talk Averroes’ works received their authoritative form in Latin in the Renaissance printed projects, culminating in the mid-sixteenth century Giunta editions. From this moment, up to modern editions, Averroes’ text remained “frozen in place.” But in reality, it was never like that. Dynamic and fluid, Averroes’ works were constantly evolving, circulating in various forms already in the Arabic world. This complication escalated as they reached the Latin world, often via the mediation of Hebrew, as further hands became involved. Finally, there was the hidden space that occupied the transitions from manuscript to print. Through a series of examples on the macro and micro levels, my talk will breathe life into this process, with focus on Averroes’ natural philosophy. I will argue that examining the texts across languages and media has philosophical and historiographical implications, and that we should adopt new methods to better understand philosophy and its study in premodern circles.  About the Speaker Hanna Gentili (Ph.D, Warburg Institute) is a historian of Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy. Her research focuses on the consolidation and circulation of the Hebrew philosophical corpus in manuscript and early print. She is currently a Research Associate at the University of Hamburg where she is working on Averroes’ natural philosophy in Hebrew and Latin within the ERC Project HEPMASITE (Hebrew Philosophical Manuscripts as Sites of Engagement). Before joining the University of Hamburg, she worked at the crossroads of philosophy and kabbalah in the Digital Humanities project Ilanot and in 2023 she was the curator of the Hebrew collections at the British Library. Her first monograph—about the philosophical notebook of the fifteenth-century Jewish intellectual Yoḥanan Alemanno in the context of the Italian Renaissance and Jewish philosophical training—is currently in preparation. Originally published at medieval.nd.edu.

Join the McGrath Institute for Church Life for a special book launch and lecture on "The Concept of Woman: A Synthesis in One Volume" by Sr. Prudence Allen, RSM. Topics of discussion will include the development of a philosophically coherent concept of woman from the pre-Socratics to the 20th-century personalists. Brief presentations will be led by Sr. Ann Astell, Ph.D., John Cavadini, Ph.D., and Abigail Favale, Ph.D., with a response by the author, Sr. Prudence Allen, RSM. Originally published at mcgrath.nd.edu.

The Center for Italian Studies is pleased to host a lecture by Professor Eva Del Soldato (University of Pennsylvania) titled: A Reckless and Scandalous Doctrine: Matthias Ferchius, a Franciscan in the Index  This paper delves into the intriguing journey of a forgotten booklet by the Franciscan Matthias Ferchius (1583-1669), drawing from recently unearthed material. It uncovers a fascinating blend of Biblical exegesis, poison expertise, medical reasoning, and rhetorical balancing acts, all in an audacious attempt by Ferchius to present no less than a revisionist account of the death of Jesus Christ. The paper will engage in the dialectic between Ferchius and the Holy Office censors, shedding light on the aspects of Ferchius’s text that raised particular concerns. It will also demonstrate how the pursuit of “new” outlooks in philosophy and theology always necessitated a firm reliance on tradition, a fact exemplified by other episodes of Ferchius’ intellectual career. Lastly, it will bring to the fore the paradoxical outcomes of this form of “conspiracy” philology.  Eva Del Soldato is associate professor of Italian Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, where she directs the FIGS Graduate Program and serves as interim director of the Center for Italian Studies. She was trained in philosophy and intellectual history at the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa. Her research is primarily devoted to Renaissance thought and culture, particularly the Aristotelian and Platonic traditions. Her current project is focused on lovesickness treatises in the Counterreformation period. She is the author of the monographs Simone Porzio (2010) and Early Modern Aristotle. On the Making and Unmaking of Authority (2020). She has also published several articles and editions, including the Italian translation of Bessarion's In calumniatorem Platonis. She has co-edited several volumes (the most recent is Plato in the Italian Universities, 2024). She received— among others — fellowships from the Scuola Normale Superiore, Villa I Tatti, the Herzog August Bibliothek in Wolfenbuettel, the Huntington Library in Pasadena, and she has been a Marie Curie Fellow at the University of Warwick, UK. She has been a visiting professor at the University of Milan, the University of Bergamo, and the 2022/2023 Charles Speroni Chair at UCLA. She has been the interim director (2019/2020) of the Global Medieval Studies Program at Penn, and she is currently the executive secretary of the American Association for Italian Studies (AAIS).   The lecture is co-sponsored by the Medieval Institute.The Italian Research Seminar, a core event of the Center for Italian Studies, aims to provide a regular forum for faculty, postdoctoral scholars, graduate students, and colleagues from other universities to present and discuss their current research. The Seminar is vigorously interdisciplinary, and embraces all areas of Italian literature, language, and culture, as well as perceptions of Italy, its achievements and its peoples in other national and international cultures. The Seminar constitutes an important element in the effort by Notre Dame's Center for Italian Studies to promote the study of Italy and to serve as a strategic point of contact for scholarly exchange.Originally published at italianstudies.nd.edu.

Bringing together scholars, activists, and faith leaders with expertise in religion, radicalism, democracy, and depolarization, the 2024 Election Postmortem offers space for interdisciplinary analysis and collaboration at this critical historical moment. All sessions are free and open to the public. Drop-ins are welcome, but advanced registration is appreciated for planning purposes. REGISTER HERE.8:45AM - 9:00AM   Opening RemarksLaura Frances Callahan, Asssistant Professor of Philosophy and Co-Director of the Center for Philosophy of Religion, University of Notre DameMichael Rea, Rev. John A. O'Brien Professor of Philosophy and Co-Director of the Center for Philosophy of Religion, University of Notre Dame9:00AM - 10:45AM   What Happened: Reflecting on the 2024 Election and How We Got HerePanelists:David Campbell, Packey J. Dee Professor of American Democracy and the Director of the Notre Dame Democracy Initiative, University of Notre DameDavid French, Opinion Columnist for The New York TimesRobert P. Jones, President and Founder of the Public Religion Research InstituteChristopher Sebastian Parker, Professor of Political Science, University of California, Santa BarbaraKatherine Stewart, Journalist, Author of The Power Worshippers and Money, Lies, and GodModerator: Michael Rea11:00AM - 12:45PM   Remaining Vigilant: What to Watch for in the Days AheadPanelists:Rachel Brown, Founder and Executive Director of Over ZeroKristin Kobes Du Mez, Professor of History and Gender Studies, Calvin UniversityLilliana Mason, SNF Angora Institute Associate Professor of Political Science, Johns Hopkins UniversityElizabeth Neumann, Department of Homeland Security (former)Matthew D. Taylor, Protestant Scholar, Institute for Islamic • Christian • Jewish StudiesModerator: Laura Frances Callahan3:30PM - 5:30PM   Strategy Session: Planning, Partnerships, and Practical Steps for the Next Four YearsPanelists:Chris Crawford, Policy Strategist, Free & Fair Elections, at Protect DemocracyMary Novak, Executive Director of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social JusticeAmanda Tyler, Executive Director of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious LibertyJim Wallis, Director of the Center on Faith +Justice, Georgetown UniversityModerator: Joel Day, Managing Director of the Notre Dame Democracy Initiative, University of Notre DameThe 2024 Election Postmortem event is hosted by the Center for Philosophy of Religion at the Unversity of Notre Dame. Please contact the Center for Philosophy of Religion with questions. Originally published at philreligion.nd.edu.

Register here  We hope you will join us each month for the Virtues & Vocations lunchtime webinar series, Conversations on Character & the Common Good. There is always time for audience questions. Sanford “Sandy” Shugart served from 2000 to 2021 as the fourth president of Valencia College in greater Orlando, Florida. He is a senior fellow with the Aspen Institute and the author of Leadership in the Crucible of Work: Discovering the Interior Life of an Authentic Leader. Our conversation will consider the broad landscape of higher education — and particularly pre-professional and professional education for flourishing within community colleges — along with issues of leadership and character. Virtues & Vocations is a national forum for scholars and practitioners across disciplines to consider how best to cultivate character in pre-professional and professional education. Virtues & Vocations hosts faculty workshops, an annual conference, and monthly webinars, and engages issues of character, professional identity, and moral purpose through our publications.