Other Institute Activities
"Ora et Labora"
Join other UVA graduate/professional students, researchers and postdocs from across the University for monthly Fellowship & Dinner+ events. Our primary goal is to create a forum for friendship and support across our disciplinary divisions, where we can find refreshment and encouragement in the commitments of others to their academic works and our shared Faith. To join the group list, fill out this REGISTRATION FORM. Unregistered friends always welcome to attend.
Questions? Interested in helping? Email grad student co-facilitators: Mary Clare Young (Classics, cdn3nm) or Bill Vincent (Philosophy, wbv4ke).
Feb. 21, 2024 (Wed., 6:30-8:00pm, @ St. Thomas Aquinas Parish): Dinner +
March 20, 2024 (Wed., 6:30-8:00pm, @ St. Thomas Aquinas Parish): Dinner +
April 24, 2024 (Wed., 6:30-8:00pm, @ St. Thomas Aquinas Parish): Dinner +
Past Events
Contemplating Catholicism in the University: A Breakfast Discussion with Meghan Sullivan
University of Notre Dame Philosophy Professor Meghan Sullivan will join UVA students for breakfast and an open discusison on the life and trials of a faithful Catholic within our secular age. Join us for a light morning meal and the opportunity to ask your most pressing questions—what was Meghan's path for becoming Catholic while an undergrad at UVA? how Catholic contemplative practices harmonize with the active life of a student and a university professor? or even something more challenging like why does a just God permit suffering and death. RSVP recommended through this form to ensure we have enough seats. Email Dr. Jocelyn Moore (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) with questions.
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."
Yes! YOU are invited to this outdoor/in-person event. Bring a friend! or just come to meet someone new.
Visit our Facebook page or new YouTube channel to enjoy the daily blossoming of an Easter Poetry Garland, where UVA faculty, students, and friends of the Institute share poems that express Joy!
Lenten Dinner & Discussion
The gift of silence: St. Rafael Arnáiz Barón's Spirituality for Troubled Times
February 28, 6:30-8:00pm (Saint Thomas Aquinas University Parish)
Join for a very special evening and saint: St. Rafael (1911-38) found meaning within the difficulties of his brief life through faith, his Cistercian charism, and especially in the sacred space of silence. Our guest will be Sr. Maria Gonzalo from the Trappist Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, who with Catherine Addington (Spanish), is working on a project to translate and share more of St. Rafael’s writings and spirituality. A short reading (and some of his wonderful artwork) will be distributed before discussion; all are invited to join for 5:15 Mass and Lenten soup supper before discussion at 6:30pm. RSVP appreciated to Dr. Jocelyn Moore (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
Please join us and other new friends for an early semester evening of Joy, Mirth and Light. UVA Students, faculty and friends of the Institute will offer brief introductions to a famous or less well-known poet, and then they'll share a favorite poem. All, especially those with little exposure to poetry, are invited to attend and enjoy. Bring a friend or come to meet someone new. Refreshments at intermission. Contact Dr. Jocelyn Moore (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) with questions.
George Oppen (1908-1984), "Psalm"
What is L'Arche?
UVA OpenGrounds, 6:00pm
St. Bernard and the Love of God
Join us after 5:15pm Mass for dinner and a discussion of "The Lived Complementarity of Jacques and Raissa Maritain." Special guest Sr. Prudence Allen will introduce us to the deep, marital friendship of the Maritains, two important 20th-century Catholic intellectuals, who refocused our attention on the human person. Help us with the dinner count by emailing Jocelyn Moore: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
40-hour Lenten Retreat
Group I: Flannery O'Connor Short Stories
A bit pressed for time? Then this is your group. We'll will meet two Friday afternoons in April to enjoy several Flannery O'Connor short stories. Not familiar with Ms. O'Connor? Don't worry about it: we promise a wonderful and twisted adventure! Not prone to risk-taking? We'll have the experienced and ethereal Religious Studies professor emeritus Bill Wilson on hand to share his helpful insights into the wonderful world of Flannery. Heck, were so convinced that you'll enjoy this group and Flannery O'Connor that we'll buy The Collected Works of Flannery O'Connor for you!
April 1: "Judgment Day" and "Displaced Person"
April 15: "Parker's Back" and "A Good Man is Hard to Find"
UVA Monroe Hall, Room 134, 2:00-3:00pm.
Group II: St. Augustine, City of God
Group III: Laudato Si!
The St. Anselm Institute will host a special faculty & friends of the Institute dinner colloquium on Pope Francis's encyclical Laudato Si'! We'll meet at 5:30pm, with a simple Lenten dinner served around 6:15pm. Discussion of the encyclical will follow dinner. Interested attendees are expected to have read Laudato Si', but we've also invited several faculty, including Kevin Hart, Gerry Fogarty SJ, Catholic University of America theology professor Paul Scherz and Fr. Thomas Petri, O.P. of the St..Thomas Institute, to offer initial comments on various parts of the text. After their preliminary comments, we'll open up the discussion to the full group. Given space limitations and as an aid for our dinner preparations, please let us know if you'll be able to join us. Sorry, but limited seats available for this event. RSPVP: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..