Institute Events
Doctores Ecclesiae Faculty/Student Lunch Seminar Series:
Join us for a friendly gathering of students and faculty as we take a closer or perhaps first look at a Doctor of the Church or some other great teacher who aided the Church in Her thinking. Prior experience is not required, and first-year students and advanced graduate and professional students regularly participate along with a changing set of University faculty. Space, however, is limited, so reservations are strongly suggested. A set of short readings for each lunch seminar will be posted to serve as a focal point for our discussion. If you haven't participated in one of these (free!) faculty/student lunch seminars, don't be bashful: simply email the Institute at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and reserve a place at the table!
October 4, 2021 (Monday): St. Gregory of Nazianzus, "The Theologian" (329-390)
Get to know this great Cappodocian father and one of the most eloquent writers of the early Church. Our discussion will center on how Gregory's Christology forms the groundwork for his poetry and teaching on why Christians should love the poor as their own body. Space limited; RSVP to Dr. Jocelyn Moore (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
Faculty Participants: Fr. Andrew Hofer, O.P., Jocelyn Moore (Classics), Charles Kromkowski (Politics), TBA
Common Reading: 1) Letter 101; 2) Poetry & Oration 14: On Love for the Poor
Since 2004, St. Thomas Aquinas and Holy Comforter Parishes in Charlottesville have provided assistance for the planning, building and operations of a new St. Michel Catholic school in Saltadère, Haiti. The new school was dedicated in February 2007, but the need for assistance persists as nearly 500 students are now educated, fed and cared for there each day. Individuals from both parishes as well as students and faculty from the University of Virginia regularly travel to Saltadère and they can speak with great authority about the clear human needs and ongoing good works at St. Michel. Please do not hesitate to contact Professor Kate Burke or the Haiti Ministry Committee (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) if you have any questions.
The St. Anselm Institute is offering free, non-credit, faculty-led minicourses for UVA students regardless of their areas of study. The readings are short; there are no papers, quizzes or exams; and a box lunch or morning Bodos are on us! Prior experience is not expected, but space is limited, so registration is strongly encouraged. Students may attend in both the Fall and Spring semesters, as each minicourse is unique. Our 2 Spring 2023 minicourses are: 1) Beauty & the Catholic Imagination! and 2) Faith & Reason as a Pathway to a Meaningful Life!*Spring 2023: Beauty and the Catholic Imagination
4 Fridays 10:30-11:30am (Minor Hall Auditorium), with Bodos bagels and coffee at 10:15am!
The goal of our Spring 2023 minicourse is to sharpen our capacities to see more: more in our studies of past, present and future things, more in each other, and more in ourself. To learn how to see more, we will draw upon both familiar and unfamiliar Catholic resources that reveal something more about our experiences of Beauty. We all have these experiences, but what exactly are they? and why do our experiences of Beauty come and go in quite mysterious ways? Sign-up with this form or by emailing Charles Kromkowski (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or Jocelyn Moore at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Feb. 3: Our Experiences of Beauty. Dana Gioia, “Why Beauty Matters”; Wilbur, “Hamlen Brook,” Hopkins, "God’s Grandeur"
Feb. 10: Who is the Artist? Why Art? JPII, "Letter to Artists"
Feb. 17: Revelation of Beauty in Christ & the Eucharist. Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, "The Feeling of Things, the Contemplation of Beauty" (2002); Selections from Benedict XVI, Sacramentum Caritatis (2007)
Feb. 24: How Can an Image of a Crucifixion be Beautiful? Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, “The Question of Images" (2000)
March TBD: Sacramental Beauty in the "Ordinary" Moments of a Life Well-Lived
*Spring 2023: Faith, Reason and a Meaningful Life
4 Thursdays: Feb. 2, 9, 16, 23, 2023 (12:00 lunch; 12:30-1:30 seminar)
We all seek “meaningful work” and a "successful career," but will work and career satisfy our deepest desire for the meaning of our existence? This Spring 2023 minicourse will offer UVA students and faculty a shared opportunity to consider how Faith and Reason work together to reveal great truths and wondrous mysteries about God, nature, society, and ourselves. This 6-hour commitment just might change how you understand your life! UVA students and faculty are invited to register by filling out this form or by emailing Dr. Anna Stelow This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Feb. 2, Undivided Logos and Our Understanding of the Radiance of Epiphanies
Edith Stein, "The Hidden Life and Epiphany" [3pp]
Edith Stein, "The Hidden Life and Epiphany" [3pp]
Supplemental Reading: Wilken,"The Reasonableness of Faith"
Feb. 9, Understanding Meaningmaking and the Christian Difference
Fr. Robert Sokolowski, "Christian Experience"
Fr. Robert Sokolowski, "Christian Experience"
Feb. 16, Understanding the Imperfections of Freedom: The Natural Pursuit of Happiness and the Problem of Justice
St. Anselm, "On the Fall of the Devil"
St. Anselm, "On the Fall of the Devil"
Feb. 23, The Meaning of the Lay Vocation in the Modern World
Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar, "The State of Lay Persons in the World," and selections from Gaudium et Spes
Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar, "The State of Lay Persons in the World," and selections from Gaudium et Spes
This program is made possible through the support of grant #62372 from the John Templeton Foundation, “In Lumine: Promoting the Catholic Intellectual Tradition on Campuses Nationwide."