Dear Lord Pay Attention to Me: How to Read Christian Poetry What do poetry and prayer have in common? In our contemporary world, poetry is often thought of as an art form of personal expression, or a meditation on personal identity. Prayer, on the other hand,...

Catholic Theology Reading Group Dates: Wednesday afternoons on 2.21, 2.28, 3.14, 3.21. Time: 2:30-3:30pm Student Leaders: Alexander Huber and Jule Coppa Reading: Selections from Thomas Joseph White, The Light of Christ: An Introduction to Catholicism Reading schedule:...

Do We Have Free Will? It seems hardly possible to lead a meaningful life without assuming the freedom to choose and to pursue goals and purposes. Nevertheless, throughout history this assumption has been challenged, be it by Marxists, psychologists or, more recently,...

Science and Value Some think that good science is, or should be, free from the influence of values. Drawing from contemporary philosophy of science, in this seminar we will explore questions like: what does it mean for science to be free from values? Can science be...

Christian Love vs Friendship: How to Treat Ourselves and Others What does it mean to love? How is the Christian commandment to love one’s neighbor di.ferent from loving one’s friends or partner? What does love require one to believe, do, and hope for? We will read...

The Structure of Scientific Revolutions When Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientifc Revolutions appeared in 1962, it offered a radically new perspective on the history of science. It challenged the prevailing view that science develops by “accumulation” and argued...

Truth and Tolerance: Ways to Deal with Disagreement How should we deal with people who hold views we find noxious, irrational, or dangerous? Should we aim to be non-judgmental or should we instead aim to correct, marginalize, or even shame them? This seminar will...

Painting Reality The contemporary age talks much about “virtual realities” and spends much time living in them. But perhaps some virtual realities are not an escape from reality, but a deeper entrance into it. This seminar will examine the art of painting as one way...

How to Be Christian In College A lot of people think it should be hard to be a Christian and a college student. Is it? Should it be? And in any case, how can you do both well? Berkeley professors Lara Buchak and Steven Justice will offer both intellectual and...

The Problem of Female Spirituality Public discourse has long considered the Catholic Church as a vehicle for the subjugation of women. For this reason, feminist spirituality is widely thought to be necessarily subversive of traditional Christian teachings, perhaps...

Watching Movies with St. Thomas Aquinas Ludwig Wittgenstein said there was more wisdom in detective stories than in philosophy journals, but he might have mentioned movies too. Movies conform to life-as-lived more readily than ethical theories, and the study of...