More Spring Announcements

Res Philosophica is sponsoring an essay prize on the topic Theological Dogma and Philosophical Innovation in Medieval Philosophy. There’s a cash prize to be won, and of course publication in the journal. Papers must be received by July 1, 2021.

The long-awaited third meeting of the Avicenna Study Group, originally scheduled for last June, has now been reorganized by Andreas Lammer (Trier) as a weekly series, beginning June 1, 2021. Details here.

The Roger Bacon Research Society has scheduled a series of online talks over the next 12 months, each on a different aspect of Bacon’s scientific theory. Next up (March 19, 2021) is Alexander Fidora (Barcelona) on “The Division of Science.”

The Graduate Student Chapter of the Aquinas and the Arabs International Working Group is meeting on March 19-20, 2021. Details here.

The Medieval Philosophy in the UK Network is holding its next meeting online, on March 26, 2021. Details here.

The University of Würzburg has rescheduled, for the coming summer, last year’s summer school on Affective Intentionality in Medieval Philosophy and Phenomenology (July 26-30, 2021). Application deadline is March 31, 2021.

Trinity College Dublin is sponsoring an online course in Byzantine Greek: both a beginners and a more advanced class. The price is quite reasonable, with further financial support available. Details here.

Doctor Virtualis is planning a special 20th-anniversary issue on Analogy and the Middle Ages. Deadline for submissions is April 30, 2021.

There’s a conference in honor of Miguel Cruz Hernández scheduled for September: Pensamiento del Islam: fundamentos, instituciones y sociedades (Alcalá la Real, September 24-25, 2021).

Congratulations to Jari Kaukua (Jyväskylä), who won the Journal of the History of Philosophy‘s prize for best article, for his paper on “Avicenna’s Outsourced Rationalism.”

Latest News in the Field

I ought to have posted before now that the Franciscan Institute (St. Bonaventure, NY) is advertising a tenure-track assistant–professor position in theology. They seek candidates whose doctorate is in theology, with a strong knowledge of the Franciscan tradition. The soft deadline was March 1, 2021, but I should think it’s not too late to get an application in.

Christophe Geudens (Leuven) and Nicola Polloni (Leuven) have formed MeLO, the Medieval Logic and Ontology Seminar. They’ve scheduled online talks throughout this spring.

The Max Planck Institute’s research group on premodern sciences is holding a series of online talks this spring, many of interest to medievalists. Details here.

The British Society for the History of Philosophy holds its annual conference, online, on April 21-23, 2021. This year’s topic is Women in the History of Philosophy.

The postponed inaugural conference of the Society for Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy has been rescheduled for October 3-6, 2021 (U. of Notre Dame). Already, they’ve received around 70 proposals for talks, but they’re open to receiving still more, until April 11. Details here.

The Catholic Theological Faculty of Prague has organized a conference in honor of of Professor Stanislav Sousedík’s 90th birthday, focusing on three subjects: Second Scholasticism, Analytical Metaphysics, and Christian Apologetics (October 27-29, 2021). Details here.

A conference on Augustine’s De civitate Dei is being organized in Leuven/Brussels for next January, focused on political doctrine, textual transmission and early medieval reception. Details here; cfp deadline is March 31, 2021.

There’s a new, open-access tool available for the “accurate machine-reading of medieval Latin texts.” The folk who have developed this tool are holding an online training session on March 10, 2021. As I understand it, there are two things here: the Transkribus platform, designed in general for historical texts, and a specialized “model” for medieval Latin. If anyone out there knows more about this program, and how useful it might be for our world, comments to this post would be warmly welcomed.

Finally, I’m sorry to report the death of Fabrizio Mondadori (1943-2021), a longtime professor at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, and the author of a series of brilliant papers on modality, especially the work of John Duns Scotus. There’s a nice obituary here.

News for a Cold Planet

Globally, we’re in no position to object to cold weather but, still, it’s cold here! It’s also, unaccountably, been a long time since I posted anything, so here’s an attempt to catch up:

A online conference showcasing the work of female scholars working in medieval philosophy is being held on July 8-10, 2021. It’s being organized by folk at KU-Leuven. Details here. The cfp deadline is March 1.

The SIEPM has two colloquia tentatively scheduled for this summer, which may or may not happen in person (details here):

• June 7-9, 2021, in Ramat Gan, Israel, on “Dialectic in the Middle Ages: Between Debate and the Foundation of Science”;
• June 14-15, 2021, in Porto, on “Per cognitionem visualem. From the Visual Exegesis to the Visualization of Cognitive Processes in the Middle Ages and Beyond” (originally scheduled for 2020).

The International Congress of the SIEPM, which meets only once every five years, is scheduled for August 23-27, 2022, in Paris. Further details to come.

There’s an online summer school scheduled for July 5-9, 2021, organized out of Groningen, on Methodologies in the History of Philosophy. Applications are due by March 14.

Thomas Hibbs (University of Dallas) is directing a summer program for PhD students on Justice in Thomistic Ethics (July 18-24, 2021, in Washington DC). Application deadline March 31.

The American Philosophical Association has announced an annual Alvin Plantinga Prize, awarded for “original essays that engage philosophical issues about or in substantial ways related to theism.” The prize money is significant, but you must be an APA member. The deadline is March 30, 2021.

Scott Williams (UNC Asheville), in collaboration with Gordon Wilson, has created an extremely useful webpage on Henry of Ghent, complete with extensive links to online texts, an up-to-date account of where the critical edition stands, and a comprehensive bibliography.

There’s an interview with Ana Maria Mora Marquez (Gothenburg) at the blog 3:16.

I’ve got more material to share, but that’s all for this post. Will be back soon.

More of What We’ve Come to Expect from 2020

Silvia di Donato (CNRS Paris) has organized, this Thursday, a daylong conference on La prophétie et la révélation dans les traditions philosophiques arabo-islamique et juive. It’s a mix of French and English papers, all online of course (December 10, 2020).

Antoine Côté (Ottawa) has organized a great series of online talks for this spring, starting with Scott MacDonald (Cornell) on January 15, 2021. Details here.

Next fall, the Sociedad de Filosofía Medieval will hold its 8th International Congress on the subject De cognitione (Porto, September 6-8, 2021). The cfp deadline is March 15, 2021.

Schabel and Duba have concluded their editorship at Vivarium with an issue that seems perfectly suited to 2020. When I unwrapped my hard copy yesterday, I swear that a little smoke came off the thing. It begins with a series of Retraction Notices and ends with an extended review by Mark Thakkar (St. Andrews) that forecasts “a gathering crisis in medieval studies.” I won’t be publishing reader comments here—this isn’t that sort of blog—but suffice it to say that volume 58:4 is a memorable read.

Berlin, Oxford, and Other News

Three one-year postdocs on the topic of Human Abilities are being advertised at the Humboldt University in Berlin. This is the latest funding opportunity from the Perler-Vetter DFG project. The application deadline is January 10, 2021.

Oxford is advertising a multi-year postdoc in medieval Islamic philosophy, with the possibility of its turning into a permanent position. The application deadline is very soon: midday UK time on Friday November 27, 2020.

The Medieval Institute at Notre Dame is advertising a one-year junior faculty fellowship. To apply you must hold a position as an assistant professor at a North American university. The application deadline is February 1, 2021.

Don’t yet have a job as an assistant professor in North America? Maybe it’s because you’re not studying Byzantine philosophy! But, good news, the Gennadius Library in Athens is sponsoring a summer session on medieval Greek, with some funding available (June 28 – July 28, 2021). Application deadline is January 15, 2021.

For the record, that was just a little Thanksgiving humor about Byzantine philosophy as useful on the job market. (Though, who knows….) But if by chance you do have expertise in Byzantine philosophy, you can apply for the Medieval Institute at Notre Dame’s nine-month postdoc in Byzantine Studies. The application deadline is February 1, 2021.

The British Society for the History of Philosophy is sponsoring a Graduate Essay Prize. The deadline is very soon: November 30, 2020.

The Scotus Archiv at Bonn is sponsoring a colloquium on the Quodlibet of John Duns Scotus (December 4-5, 2020, online).

The Aquinas and ‘the Arabs’ Group at Marquette is advertising their annual graduate-student workshop (March 19-20, 2021, online). The cfp deadline is February 1, 2021.

There’s an interview of Henrik Lagerlund (Stockholm University) at Richard Marshall’s site 3:16am.

If you’ve been waiting to buy the critical edition of William Ockham, or any of the many other useful texts published by the Franciscan Institute, now is a good time: all books, from November 27 to 30, are 40% off.

News of the Week

The Maimonides Centre for Advanced Studies (Hamburg) is advertising junior and senior fellowships for 2021-2022. The topic for next year is language and scepticism. The application deadline is December 10, 2020. Details here.

SUNY Stony Brook has started an MA in the History of Philosophies, East and West. This is a joint MA between Philosophy and Asian Studies, across the whole history of philosophy. Thanks to Rosabel Ansari for the pointer.

A year-long series of seven lectures on the theme The Christian West And Islamic East is starting up this next Tuesday, October 20, 2020, featuring Billy Dunaway on “The Epistemology of Theological Predication.” The series is sponsored by Dunaway and Jon McGinnis’ Templeton project, and by Richard Taylor’s Aquinas and “The Arabs” group. Lecture time is 9am in St. Louis.

Three days of talks on Theories of Paradox in the Middle Ages begins next week. The fun starts Wednesday, October 21, 2020, at 1:45pm in St. Andrews. Organized by Stephen Read.

There’s an interview of Scott Williams (UNC Asheville) on the podcast The Reluctant Theologian, concerning Scott’s new edited volume, Disability in Medieval Christian Philosophy and Theology (Routledge, 2020).

End of Summer News

Lots of useful information has been piling up in my inbox. Many of the deadlines are soon!

• The 42nd Kölner Mediaevistentagung, on the topic ‘Curiositas,’ is online this year, and so accessible to everyone (September 7-10, 2020). It’s a wonderfully international program, with lots of talks in English. Registration and general information here.
• Leuven is hosting, virtually, a conference on “Essence and Existence in the 13th and 14th Centuries.” (September 11-13, 2020).
• The University of Jyväskylä is advertising a three-year postdoc to work on the project “Vicious, Antisocial and Sinful: The Social and Political Dimension of Moral Vices from Medieval to Early Modern Philosophy.” Application deadline is September 15, 2020. Details here.
• Filipe Silva (University of Helsinki) is advertising a 46-month postdoc to research Augustinian Natural Philosophy ca. 1277. Application deadline September 15, 2020. Details here.
• NYU Abu Dhabi is advertising research fellowships for junior and senior scholars focusing on “the study of the Arab world.” Application deadline is October 1, 2020. Details here.
• Christina Thomsen Thörnqvist (Gothenburg) is advertising a multi-year postdoc as part the project on Medieval Aristotelian Logic 1240-1360. Application deadline is September 24, 2020. Details here.
• The Schindler Foundation is advertising a 3-6 month grant for junior scholars focusing on “Medieval Latin Studies,” in honor of Claudio Leonardi. Application deadline is September 15, 2020. Details here.
• UCLA is advertising the Wellman Chair in medieval European history. Review of applications begins November 1, 2020.
• Western University (Ontario) is organizing a weekly online Latin study group, aimed at students who are just beginning their Latin studies, and who wish to concentrate on philosophical texts. Application deadline is September 5, 2020.
• The New Narratives Project is organizing a work-in-progress seminar for early-career scholars. Officially the deadline passed yesterday to submit a proposal, but it might not be too late to get involved!
• The SMRP has issued a call for papers, on any medieval topic, from scholars of any rank, for the APA Central meeting in February 2021 (which will be online). Deadline is September 15, 2020. Details here.
• Reginald Lynch is organizing a session at Kalamazoo (May 13-15, 2021) on “Scholasticism and the Sacraments.” Cfp deadline is September 15. Details here.
• The Paris Institute for Advanced Studies is accepting applicants for visiting fellowships during 2021-22. Having spent a year there myself, I can report that they are enthusiastic about the history of philosophy. The deadline is September 15, 2020.
• The Aquinas Institute has begun an online masters program in theology. Details here.
• Congratulations to Michiel Streijger, who has won a three-year German Research Foundation grant: “Digitale Edition von Walter Burleys zwei frühen Kommentaren zur Physik des Aristoteles.”
• Congratulations to Gordon Wilson and to Rega Wood for each receiving a National Endowment for the Humanities grant for their editions of Henry of Ghent and Richard Rufus.
• Congratulations to Gaston LeNotre (Dominican University College), who won the annual SMRP Founder’s Award for the best paper by a younger scholar. Honorable mention went to Milo Crimi (UCLA).

News of the Week

• I previously announced the major grant on Human Abilities that Dominik Perler and Barbara Vetter won in Berlin this past year. Currently posted, as part of that project, is a PhD position in the history of philosophy scheduled to begin this October. Details here. The application deadline is August 8, 2020.
• The SMRP is sponsoring a session on Giordano Bruno at the Renaissance Society of America meeting in Dublin (April 7-10, 2021, deo volente). The cfp deadline is this coming Monday (July 27, 2020). Details here.
• As it happens, you can learn more about Giordano Bruno this coming Tuesday (July 28, 2020) at the next installment of the Lumen Christi series of online lectures. Valentina Zaffino will be speaking on Giordano Bruno and the Poetry of the Cosmos.
• This Friday begins the weekly series of online lectures on 13th-Century English Franciscans that Lydia Schumacher has organized. Speaking this week are Nicola Polloni, Simon Kopf, and Neil Lewis. Details here.

This Week’s News

• The Università della Svizzera Italiana (Lugano) is offering a new MA program, in English, focusing on a mix of analytic philosophy and the history of philosophy. Some quite distinguished scholars are involved, including, in our field, John Marenbon and Pasquale Porro. They expect to hold lectures on campus this fall. For application instructions go here. Some scholarship support is available and although some deadlines have passed, I am told interested students may be able to get an extension to that deadline.
• I’ve recently discovered the website of the Red Latinoamericana de Filosofía Medieval, which contains a great deal of useful information about their activities, members, et cetera.
• The University of South Bohemia, in beautiful České Budějovice, hopes to host a conference on February 11-13, 2021, on Cognitive Issues in the Long Scotist Tradition. The Cfp deadline is the end of July 2020. Let’s all hope the Scotists will be drinking their fill of Budweiser in February.
• Peter Adamson’s latest column in Philosophy Now argues for the value of studying minor figures in the history of philosophy.

Virtual Colloquium 14: Graduate-Student Take Over

This Thursday will be the last virtual medieval colloquium of the summer. It seems fitting to turn things over to the virtual dissertation workshop group, which has been meeting in parallel for the last several months. So I have invited a couple of members of that group to make their presentation to the larger colloquium. Our speakers will be:

• Dominic Dold (TU Berlin / Max Planck Institute), “Albert the Great on the Subject of Zoology.” The slides for this presentation are here.
  
• Philip-Neri Reese (Notre Dame), “Aquinas on the Genus of Intellectual Virtue.” The handout for this presentation is here.

When: Thursday, July 2, 2020, 18:00 in Berlin, 12 noon in the eastern United States.

A recording is available here.

Sponsored by the Paris Institute of Advanced Studies.