In presenting this vision, our approach will be twofold: to reflect upon the past and to revitalize the present, to celebrate the feminine genealogy of the faith and to amplify the prophetic mission of women in our current moment. By illuminating the riches of the faith and reading the signs of the times, we hope to equip faithful Catholics and formators with a robust foundation for understanding and articulating the Church’s vision for women in our time. Register Here Originally published at mcgrath.nd.edu.

Each year, the University's Byzantine Studies Program offers a workshop with the year's Byzantine Studies Postdoctoral Fellow. This year's workshop is with our 2024–25 fellow, Tyler Wolford, and speakers Darlene Brooks Hedstrom (Brandeis), Marica Cassis (Calgary), and Myrto Veikou (Patras/Uppsala).How to AttendIn person (with lunch provided): please reserve your spot by March 25, 2025.Via Zoom if you cannot attend in person; register for ZoomSchedule 10:00–11:00 AMSpeaker 1: Tyler Wolford, Byzantine Postdoctoral Fellow, Medieval Institute, University of Notre Dame, "Byzantine Landscapes of Power and Resilience"Speaker 2: Marica Cassis, Associate Professor of History and Classics & Religion, University of Calgary, "Using Medieval Anatolian Microhistories to Understand Resilience and Change" About the Talk: As increasing attention is paid to the environmental history of the medieval world, archaeologists must contend with how to understand their sites within new methodologies and theoretical approaches, including resilience theory. In doing, so, we must resist the urge to oversimplify the results to create another overarching narrative, one which would simply replace the older one based on written texts. This is a problem that can result in locations like Anatolia, which has limited excavations for the medieval period. Rather, careful examination of individual sites as microhistories illustrates the diversity of responses to environmental change that characterized the medieval period in Anatolia. By situating individual sites in regional contexts, we open new questions about populations, material culture, and trade which, in turn, provide a much more complex and comprehensive view of the past. About the Speaker: Marica Cassis is an associate professor of history at the University of Calgary. She specializes in the history and archaeology of the Medieval Near East, and directs the medieval excavations at the site of Çadır Höyük in Türkiye.11:00–11:15 AM Coffee11:15 AM–12:15 PMSpeaker 3: Darlene L. Brooks Hedstrom, the Myra and Robert Kraft and Jacob Hiatt Associate Professor of Christian Studies, Brandeis University, "Aesthetics and Movement in Monastic Landscapes" About the Talk: Oscar Aldred (2021) challenges archaeologists to ask "how" people moved through landscapes by posing new questions to move us beyond the more traditional question of "why" people moved in antiquity. The archaeology of movement shifts us away from a fixation with the archaeology of a place to the archaeology of a space. Philosopher Yuriko Saito, author of Everyday Aesthetics (2007) and Aesthetics of the Familiar (2017) offers language for describing the archaeology of everyday spaces frequently devalued for their ordinariness. In this paper, I draw inspiration from Saito’s everyday aesthetics of defamiliarization and Aldred’s archaeology of movement to examine how archaeologists of monasticism may expand our writing techniques for landscape archaeology. By integrating philosophy and archaeological theory, I demonstrate the importance of studying past movements in landscape and the role of archaeologists in considering past design aesthetics as a departure from more utilitarian and functionalist readings of built environments. About the Speaker: Darlene L. Brooks Hedstrom is the Myra and Robert Kraft and Jacob Hiatt Chair in Christian Studies with a joint appointment in the Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies and Classical and Early Mediterranean Studies. Brooks Hedstrom is an archaeologist and historian of ancient and early Byzantine Christianity of the eastern Mediterranean world (c. 300- 1000 CE) with a specialization in the archaeology and history of monasticism. She is Senior Archaeological Consultant for the Yale Monastic Archaeology Project-North, in Wadi Natrun, Egypt, and co- director of the Monastic Archaeology Field School in Scotland. Her work combines texts, material culture, and theory to examine the history of monastic makers of late antique objects and spaces.Speaker 4: Myrto Veikou, Assistant Professor of Byzantine Archaeology, University of Patras/Uppsala University, "Mountain People in Byzantium (9th–15th centuries): Spaces, Life-styles, Cultures, and Identities" About the Talk: The paper examines the formation of mountainous life-styles and cultures in Byzantium from the 9th century onwards, drawing from investigations in the Greek mainland. It contextualizes social/spatial/cultural practices and collective identities of the Byzantine montagnards with land-use patterns and spatial formations of the Greek highlands. About the Speaker: Myrto Veikou is Assistant Professor of Byzantine Archaeology in the Department of History and Archaeology, University of Patras. She is also a Researcher for the Department of Linguistics and Philology, Uppsala University, in the research programme "Retracing Connections—Byzantine Storyworlds in Greek, Arabic, Georgian, and Old Slavonic (c.950–c.1100)." Within the Association Internationale des Études Byzantines (AIEB), she is active as Vice-Representative for Sweden, as Vice-Chair of the AIEB Commission for the Historical Topography and Spatial Analysis of Byantium, and as founding member of the Commission for Byzantine Archaeology.12:15–1:00 PM Lunch1:00–2:00 PM Speaker Roundtable and Q&AAbout the Workshop Following substantial investment in the area of Byzantine Studies at the University of Notre Dame, including the acquisition of the Milton V. Anastos Library of Byzantine Civilization and generous support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Medieval Institute at the University of Notre Dame has established an annual nine-month Postdoctoral Fellowship in Byzantine Studies. This fellowship is designed for junior scholars with a completed doctorate whose research deals with some aspect of the Byzantine world. The intent of this Fellowship is to enable its holder to do innovative research drawing on the rich resources held in the Milton V. Anastos Collection, the Medieval Institute, and the Hesburgh Library more broadly. This may include the completion of book manuscripts and articles, work on text editions, or the development of new trajectories of research in one of the aforementioned fields. Towards the conclusion of the fellowship period the fellow’s work will be at the center of a workshop organized within the framework of the Byzantine Studies Seminar. Senior scholars, chosen in cooperation with the Medieval Institute, will be invited for this event treating the fellow’s subject matter. The senior scholars will discuss draft versions of the fellow’s book manuscript or articles or discuss the further development of ongoing research projects. Originally published at medieval.nd.edu.

A symphonic concert featuring the Songs of Harriet Tubman and Louise Farrenc's Third Symphony, presented in Women's History Month. Faculty conductor Cynthia Katsarelis (in the Program in Sacred Music at Notre Dame) leads a collaboration with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra, and our invited guest, South African soprano Goitsemang Lehobye, in presenting the Songs of Harriet Tubman by American composer, Nkeiru Okoye, and the Third Symphony by the 19th-Century French composer, Louise Farrenc.Harriet Tubman is the quintessential liberation figure in American history. Her courage and activism has inspired many, including the civic leaders in South Bend who brought a beautiful statue of Harriet Tubman to Howard Park. Louise Farrenc was a virtuoso pianist and composer and the first women to serve full-time on the faculty of the Paris Conservatoire. Famously, she fought for, and attained, equal pay with her male colleagues.The pre-concert conversation at 6:30 p.m. will focus on the meaning of Tubman for South Bend, a "station" on the Underground Railroad. Participants will include Alfred Guillaume, retired from IUSB, a civic leader who helped bring the inspiring Harriet Tubman statue to Howard Park.Nkeiru Okoye is one of the most exciting composers in America. Her works include operas, oratorios, music for orchestras, choruses, and chamber music ensembles, as well as song cycles. Her recent oratorio, When the Caged Bird Sings, premiered in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 2024 to great acclaim.Soprano Goitsemang Lehobye, a native of Ga-Rankuwa, South Africa, is an emerging star who in the last year has performed with the Finnish National Opera, the Minnesota Orchestra, and made her Carnegie Hall debut. Tickets are available at: performingarts.nd.edu Co-sponsorsed by the Program in Sacred Music at Notre Dame, Gender Studies, and the Department of MusicThis concert is made possible in part by support from the Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts, College of Arts and Letters, University of Notre Dame.

Register here Deondra Rose is associate professor of public policy, political science, and history at Duke University. We will discuss Rose’s recent book The Power of Black Excellence: HBCUs and the Fight for American Democracy, and lessons we can learn from HBCUs about cultivating character for the common good. There will be time for audience questions. 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. virtuesvocations.org

Sponsored by the History of Philosophy Forum In this first roundtable in the series "Dialogues between Eastern Philosophy and Western Traditions," participants will discuss the topic of "The Good Life with Responsibility and Freedom." Speakers:Michael Puett, the Walter C. Klein Professor of Chinese History and Anthropology, Harvard UniversityMeghan Sullivan, the Wilsey Family College Professor of Philosophy; director of the Institute for Ethics and the Common Good, University of Notre DameThe speakers in the first roundtable, Michael Puett and Meghan Sullivan, are leading scholars of Eastern and Western ethical traditions, respectively. Both professors have crafted phenomenally successful undergraduate courses. Prof. Puett's "Classical Chinese Ethical and Political Theory" is Harvard's third most popular undergraduate course, inviting students to reevaluate contemporary assumptions about ethics in light of classical Chinese thought. Prof. Sullivan's "God and the Good Life" at Notre Dame introduces philosophy to students as a "way of life," drawing upon such figures as Plato, Aristotle , and Descartes to present different ways of engaging with questions of ultimate meaning. Organizer: Liang Cai, associate professor of history, University of Notre Dame Series Description: This series of roundtables is designed to foster meaningful exchanges between Eastern and Western philosophers on the themes of responsibility, rights, and virtue. These dialogues aim to inspire thoughtful solutions to contemporary social and international challenges. In the early 20th century, Chinese intellectuals and politicians, confronted with Western imperialism and colonialism, critiqued their own traditions, particularly Confucianism, for a perceived lack of emphasis on freedom and rights. They argued that the focus on responsibility and virtue stifled humanity, individual freedom, and creativity, leading to slower economic and technological development. In 1992, the American political scientist Francis Fukuyama argued that the rise of Western liberal democracy signified the "end of history" and the final form of human government. However, in the 21st century, we have seen that societies prioritizing freedom and individual rights can become polarized and divided, both internally and internationally. Echoing the 2024–25 Notre Dame Forum Theme, "What Do We Owe Each Other," this roundtable series aims to create a platform for Eastern and Western philosophers to discuss different philosophical traditions’ perspectives on responsibility, rights, and virtue. Through these dialogues, we hope to bridge social divides and foster healing amidst suffering, division, and injustice.Cosponsored by the Institute for Ethics and the Common Good, the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies, and the Kellogg Institute for International Studies. Originally published at historyofphilosophy.nd.edu.

In this first roundtable in the series "Dialogues between Eastern Philosophy and Western Traditions," participants will discuss the topic of "The Good Life with Responsibility and Freedom." This event is sponsored by the History of Philosophy Forum and co-sponsored by the  Institute for Ethics and the Common Good, the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies, and the Kellogg Institute for International Studies. Speakers:Michael Puett, the Walter C. Klein Professor of Chinese History and Anthropology, Harvard UniversityMeghan Sullivan, the Wilsey Family College Professor of Philosophy; Director of the Institute for Ethics and the Common Good, University of Notre DameThe speakers in the first roundtable, Michael Puett and Meghan Sullivan, are leading scholars of Eastern and Western ethical traditions, respectively. Both professors have crafted phenomenally successful undergraduate courses. Prof. Puett's "Classical Chinese Ethical and Political Theory" is Harvard's third most popular undergraduate course, inviting students to reevaluate contemporary assumptions about ethics in light of classical Chinese thought. Prof. Sullivan's "God and the Good Life" at Notre Dame introduces philosophy to students as a "way of life," drawing upon such figures as Plato, Aristotle , and Descartes to present different ways of engaging with questions of ultimate meaning. Organizer: Liang Cai, Associate Professor of History, University of Notre Dame Series Description: This series of roundtables is designed to foster meaningful exchanges between Eastern and Western philosophers on the themes of responsibility, rights, and virtue. These dialogues aim to inspire thoughtful solutions to contemporary social and international challenges. In the early 20th century, Chinese intellectuals and politicians, confronted with Western imperialism and colonialism, critiqued their own traditions, particularly Confucianism, for a perceived lack of emphasis on freedom and rights. They argued that the focus on responsibility and virtue stifled humanity, individual freedom, and creativity, leading to slower economic and technological development. In 1992, the American political scientist Francis Fukuyama argued that the rise of Western liberal democracy signified the "end of history" and the final form of human government. However, in the 21st century, we have seen that societies prioritizing freedom and individual rights can become polarized and divided, both internally and internationally. Echoing the 2024-25 Notre Dame Forum Theme, "What Do We Owe Each Other," this roundtable series aims to create a platform for Eastern and Western philosophers to discuss different philosophical traditions’ perspectives on responsibility, rights, and virtue. Through these dialogues, we hope to bridge social divides and foster healing amidst suffering, division, and injustice.Originally published at historyofphilosophy.nd.edu.