More than 750 scholars and guests are gathering at the University of 91吃瓜 for the Center for Ethics and Culture鈥檚 18th annual interdisciplinary Fall Conference, 鈥淭hrough Every Human Heart,鈥� Nov. 9-11. The conference features 112 presentations that consider the perennial problem of good and evil in our world, including the Nov. 9 (Thursday) keynote lecture 鈥淚s the God of the Old Testament Evil?鈥� by Gary Anderson, the Hesburgh Professor of Catholic Theology at 91吃瓜, and Saturday鈥檚 closing keynote presentation by Harvey Mansfield of Harvard University, 鈥淢achiavelli on Necessary Evil.鈥� Additional keynote speakers include Jacqueline Rivers of Harvard University; the University of Chicago鈥檚 Jonathan Lear;聽Bishop Godfrey Onah of Nsukka, Nigeria; James Hankins of Harvard University; and the Center for Ethics and Culture Senior Distinguished Research Fellow Alasdair MacIntyre.
鈥淎gain this year, we are pleased to welcome the world鈥檚 leading thinkers to our Fall Conference to grapple with some of the most pressing questions of ethics, culture and public policy,鈥� said O. Carter Snead, director of the Center for Ethics and Culture. 鈥淚n addition to our impressive array of 112 presenters, we also welcome hundreds of scholars and friends from around the world to join in the discussion about the significance of the distinction between good and evil for human flourishing and the common good.鈥�
The conference鈥檚 30 colloquium sessions, chosen from a record number of paper submissions, include presentations on criminal law, education and moral formation, theology, storytelling, the common good, political science, medical ethics, the death penalty, religious freedom and literature. Continuing an initiative began at the 2016 conference, the Thursday colloquium sessions are dedicated to 鈥渞ising scholars,鈥� providing graduate and postdoctoral students an opportunity to present their research and receive feedback from faculty moderators and experts. The full conference schedule is available at .
The Center for Ethics and Culture鈥檚 Fall Conference, now in its 18th year, is the most important venue worldwide for fruitful dialogue and exchange among the world鈥檚 leading Catholic thinkers, as well as those from other traditions. Already established as the largest annual academic conference hosted by 91吃瓜, this year鈥檚 conference will be among the best-attended in the history of the center. Previous conference themes have included the Catholic imagination, freedom, poverty, the body and human identity, secularism, justice, sin, the family聽and intercultural dialogue. Notable past speakers include Jean Bethke Elshtain, Charles Taylor, Rev. Juli谩n Carr贸n, Mary Ann Glendon, Jean Porter, James Heckman, Michael Sandel, Elizabeth Lev, Gerhard Cardinal M眉ller, Robert P. George, Lorenza Violini, Peter Edelman, John Carr, Lucy Beckett, John Finnis, R茅mi Brague, Eva Brann聽and Sister Helen Prejean.
Several keynote lectures are being livestreamed at . Major presentations will be available after the conference for on-demand viewing via the center鈥檚 YouTube page at: . Follow the conference proceedings on Twitter via the hashtag .
Originally published by at on November 09, 2017.