- June 10-16: Annual Seminar on Carmelite Spirituality, Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame,IN
- June 24-27: Spiritual Direction in the African Context, Johannesburg, South Africa
- June 25-29: Global Conference of Chaplains in Higher Education, Yale University
- Sept. 7-8: Commitments to Medieval Mystical Texts within Contemporary Contexts, Leuven
- Dec. 2-5: Politics, Probity, Poverty and Prayer: African Spiritualities, Economic and Socio-Political Transformation - University of Pretoria, South Africa.
Saint Theresa of Avila and Other Carmelite Voices: Annual Seminar on Carmelite Spirituality, Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame,IN
June 10-16, 2012.
The year 2010 marked the 25th anniversary of the Carmelite Forum’s summer seminar at Saint Mary’s College. In 2012 the Forum’s seminar, “Saint Teresa and Other Carmelite Voices,” will help participants prepare for the 500th anniversary of the birth of Saint Teresa in 2015. Lectures, workshops, common prayer, and daily Eucharist are the rhythm of this one-week seminar, and participants have an opportunity to renew one’s life, prayer, study, and friendships. The Center for Spirituality welcomes laity, religious, and clergy of all faiths to this event. The seminar begins Sunday, June 10, with the celebration of the Eucharist at 4:30 p.m., and concludes Saturday, June 16, with lunch.
Presenters include:
Daniel Chowning, OCD
Kevin Culligan, OCD
Keith J. Egan, T. O. Carm.
Constance FitzGerald, OCD
Fran Horner, OCD
Kieran Kavanaugh, OCD
Patrick McMahon, O. Carm.
Steven Payne, OCD
John Welch, O. Carm.
For details: Mrs. Kathy Guthrie: E-Mail: kguthrie@saintmarys.edu or 574-284-4636.
SPIRITUAL DIRECTION IN THE AFRICAN CONTEXT
A unique international Conference
Johannesburg, South Africa: 24-27 June 2012
This conference is for those engaged in the ministry of Christian spiritual direction as well as for academics with an interest in the subject. It will provide a forum to explore issues related to giving Spiritual Direction in an African context. The conference’s academic and practical perspectives are reflected in the fact that it will be hosted by St Augustine College, Johannesburg in partnership with the Jesuit Institute-South Africa.
The first two and a half days of the conference (24 to 26) will offer papers on different aspects of Spiritual Direction; the last day (27) will be more experiential and geared to spiritual directors and formators, focusing on implications for the practice of spiritual direction.
Speakers and papers include:
Professor Raymond Mosha (Tanzania): Life Direction in the African Context
Liz Budd Ellmann (USA): Global trends in Spiritual Direction
Puleng Matsaneng/ Dr Annemarie Paulin-Campbell (South Africa): Difference and Dialogue
Rev Dr Festo Mkenda SJ (Kenya): The Spiritual Director as a Contextualised Translator
Rev Bienvenu Matanzonga SJ (DRC): African Culture and Counselling
Sr Ann Wigley OP/ Tshifhiwa Munzhedzi OP (South Africa): Healing and Forgiveness
Rev. Chikere Ugwuanyi SJ (Nigeria): Adaptations of the Spiritual Exercises
Prof. Susan Rakoczy IHM (South Africa): Women and Spiritual Direction
Full Registration: R1,000/ Attendance only R500
For more information and for a registration form e-mail: j.urbaniak@staugustine.ac.za
Global Conference of Chaplains in Higher Education
June 25-29, 2012, in New Haven, Connecticut, USA
The Global Conference of Chaplains in Higher Education is held every four years. In 2012 we look forward to welcoming you to New Haven, Connecticut. The conference theme “Mosaics in Motion: Spiritual Leadership in a Multifaith World” will be explored by looking at the core values of:
- religious literacy
- radical hospitality
- service with thoughtful reflection
- creating and sharing sacred space
Commitments to Medieval Mystical Texts within Contemporary Contexts
Leuven September 7-8, 2012
Why do we, as contemporary scholars within the field of Christian spirituality, privilege the reading of medieval mystical texts as a critical mainstay of our focus? How do we define their historical (dis)continuity with our contemporary contexts and their ability to uniquely address relevant issues for readers today? These meta-questions on the meaningfulness of our scholarship seek to encourage critical reflection on our distinct approaches to the medieval texts?historical, literary, theological hermeneutical, and interdisciplinary praxis-based approaches?as well as on our scholarly and personal relations to others (academy, Church and society) mediated by such texts. At the intersection of questions of meaningfulness mutually interacting with our diverging methodologies, this conference aims to provide a fruitful, dialogical forum in which we may better encounter strengths and/or weaknesses of our own presumptions in reading these mystical texts.
This conference will offer opportunities to both senior and junior scholars whose work involves engaging with primary medieval mystical texts to give a short, 20 minute presentation, which will in turn be followed by a 10 minute moderated discussion. There will be various topical sessions that envisage exchange amongst conversant perspectives. The working language is English.
We kindly ask to those who are interested to send a proposed paper title with a brief abstract (200-400 words in English) to the contact address below by April 25 (Wed), 2012. Please note that, due to the limited size of the conference, there may be cases that we are unable to accommodate all proposed papers. In such a case, selection will be made based on abstracts.
Contact: Satoshi Kikuchi satoshi.kikuchi@theo.kuleuven.be Catholic University of Leuven
Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies
Sint-Michielsstraat 4 box 3101, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
The Institute for the Study of Spirituality
Head of the institute: Prof. Dr. Rob Faesen
Organizers of the conference: Drs. Patrick Cooper, Dr. Satoshi Kikuchi
An International, Interdisciplinary Conference: POLITICS, PROBITY, POVERTY AND PRAYER: AFRICAN SPIRITUALITIES, ECONOMIC AND SOCIO-POLITICAL TRANSFORMATION
University of Pretoria, South Africa. December 2-5, 2012
This International Conference brings together scholars/researchers, practitioners of diverse religious traditions and spiritualities, FBOs/NGOs and policy makers to interrogate how and to what extent various religions and spiritualities in Africa and the African diaspora engage in processes of economic, social and political transformation. Public commentators often criticize political entrepreneurs and African states of their failure to develop an ethic of public probity and accountability, partly exemplified by corruption. The enigmas of public transparency and probity can hardly be limited to public governance. We can also explore how religious institutions in Africa interrogate, critique, practice or fail to eschew transparency, accountability and probity in the quest for economic and social-political transformation. Religious entrepreneurs grapple with similar issues of leadership, good governance, probity, integrity as a reflection of their wider societies. Ecclesiastical, Islamic, or Indigenous religious polities are situated within wider pluralistic (secular) polities in Africa and are thus mutually reinforcing each other. The significance of leadership and corporate governance (religious/secular) lies in its contribution to prosperity, peaceful coexistence, moral regeneration and accountability. Accountability requires appropriate rules and regulations, doctrines, codes of conduct, values and behaviour to make for viable transformation. For instance, a historical perspective on leadership dynamics can be helpful in the present crisis in leadership in church and secular contexts. The churches and missionary societies played a crucial role in the shaping of South African cultures, as much in the colonial period as during the years of the formation of the Union and the apartheid era.
The conference provides a platform in which scholars/researchers, practitioners and policy makers will explore, through historical and contemporary perspectives, how authority structures, institutionalized myths, beliefs, and rituals of authority differently mobilize and influence members? behaviour and attitudes towards financial probity and organizational policies. How do various hierarchical/decentralized religious polities (i.e. structures of church government) in Africa deal with issues of probity (moral regeneration), equity and sustainable development? What values do African religions and spiritualities evince that represent a boon or bane for improving corporate governance and ensuring improved ethics and probity in African systems of governance? How should religious polity structures respond, critique and identify with national/international policies that are aimed at a disciplined management and equitable distribution of public resources, and the establishment of a viable culture of financial probity? What various models condition religious polities and leadership in Africa, and how have these been influenced by modern political movements, such as Western democracy, as well as by modern economics and technology? Are liberal or conservative forms of religiosity compatible with Western democracy? How and to what extent should religious insights be present in the public sphere of the secular polity and vice versa? ?How do engage prayer ritual action impact on their religious and national polities to maximize probity at personal and institutional levels?
The conference will highlight and explore how and to what extent African and diaspora religious traditions and spiritualities may cohere on the critical issues, such as that of probity, equity and accountability, which confront the African continent, their ?faiths? in relation to the wider, global community. Interrelated issues on religion, spirituality, leadership, social capital, public role, poverty, corruption, transparency will be discussed. The conference is intended to build synergies and forge dialogue on how religious/spiritual communities in Africa and the African Diaspora can combat poverty and foster probity and sustainable development.
The conference programme shall focus on the following and related sub-themes:
- African politico-economies, religious polity and accountability
- religious polity structures, corruption and transparency
- religious polity, social and religious capital
- religious values, behaviour, probity and financial accountability
- ethics, socio-cultural values, and social action
- democracy and ecclesiastical polity
- traditional (indigenous) systems of governance and probity
- religion/spiritualities, prayer and poverty
- religion, politics and socioeconomic empowerment
- church polity, apartheid and post-apartheid transformation
- religion, spiritualities and sustainable development in Africa and the African Diaspora
- Probity and African and African-derived religions/spiritualities in a new global order
Paper/presentation proposals based or related to one or more of the above themes are invited from the interested public: scholars, religious/spiritual communities and organizations, policy makers, and FBOs/NGOs. Interested panelists are invited to submit a paper/abstract proposal (max. 200 words), stating institutional affiliation, on or before 28 May 2012. The conference will be jointly hosted by the University of Pretoria, University of South Africa, The University of Edinburgh, and PANAFSTRAG. Abstract proposals and all correspondences regarding the conference should be sent electronically (email) to the conference organizers: Afe Adogame: a.adogame@ed.ac.uk and Graham Duncan: Graham.Duncan@up.ac.za
Updated 4/22/12