The Res Philosophica Conference is hosted by the Department of Philosophy at Saint Louis University. The themes are chosen by members of the Department, and the papers from the conference are published in a special issue of the journal.

2023 Conference: Alienation & the Virtues: Personal, Social, & Spiritual

The 2023 Res Philosophica Conference, titled Alienation and the Virtues: Personal, Social, and Spiritual, is organized by Greg Beabout and will be held March 30-31 in the Pere Marquette Gallery in DuBourg Hall (221 N. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63103). Participants include Daniel De Haan, Celeste Harvey, F. Russell Hittinger, Anne Jeffrey, David McPherson, and John Stein, S.J.

Human existence includes both an awareness of alienation, that is, a sense of estrangement or separation, and recognition that lives which embody and participate in the virtues fruitfully flourish in a manner that somehow overcomes alienation. The aim of this conference is to bring together philosophers to reflect on perennial questions about the link between alienation and the virtues. This issue is multi-layered; it involves considering human existence as personal, social, and spiritual.  What is it that makes our lives alienated? What is the proper response to an awareness of alienation? Is there a connection between personal, social, and spiritual alienation? How might practicing the virtues, especially through participation in communities that pursue common goods, be understood as an antidote to alienation? The conference aims to bring together philosophers from various points in their careers to reflect together on fundamental questions about alienation and the virtues. 
  • Participants
  • Program
  • Registration
Tab 1
  • F. Russell Hittinger
    (Keynote: Wade Memorial Lecture)
  • Daniel De Haan
  • Celeste Harvey
  • Anne Jeffrey
  • David McPherson
  • John Stein, S.J.



Tab 2
Thursday, March 30  
 
10:00 a.m. 
"Authenticity:  
An aspiration that can alienate us from virtue" 
Daniel DeHaan, University of Oxford 
 
1:15 p.m. 
"Luxury, Alienation, and the Good Life" 
Celeste Harvey, College of St. Mary 
 
3:00 p.m. 
“Spiritual Alienation:  
What is it? How can it be overcome?” 
David McPherson, Creighton University 
 
 
Friday, March 31  
 
10:00 a.m. 
“Love of Enemy and Alienation” 
Anne Jeffrey, Baylor University 
 
1:15 p.m. 
“Faith, Alienation, and Anxiety:  
19th century dialectics; 21st century tensions” 
John Stein, S.J., Saint Louis University 
 
3:00 p.m. 
“Joseph Ratzinger on What Limits the State” 
F. Russell Hittinger, Catholic University of America 
 
 
 
Tab 3
We welcome anyone who wishes to attend sessions. Registration is free, but necessary.

Email coordinator@resphilosophica.org with "Registration" in the subject field.
Tab 4

2021 Conference: Globalizing Empirically-Informed Philosophy

The 2021 Res Philosophica Conference, titled Globalizing Empirically-Informed Philosophy, was organized by Helen De Cruz and will be held online on November 18-19, 2021. Participants include Julianne N. Chung, Alexis Elder, Bryce Huebner, Nicholaos Jones, Edouard Machery, Ryan Nichols and Hagop Sarkissian. The papers were published in the January 2023 issue of the journal.

2019 Conference: Mass Incarceration and Racial Justice

The 2019 Res Philosophica Conference, titled Mass Incarceration and Racial Justice, was organized by Scott Berman and Chad Flanders and held March 22, 2019 at Saint Louis University. Participants included Tommie Shelby, Ekow Yankah, Erin Kelly, Eric Miller, Raff Donelson, Brandon Hogan and Myisha Cherry. The papers were published in the April 2020 issue of the journal.

2017 Conference: Race and Gender

The 2017 Res Philosophica Conference, titled Race and Gender, was held April 28–29, 2017 at Saint Louis University, organized by Colleen McCluskey. Speakers included Tina Botts,Tommy Curry, Lewis Gordon, Leonard Harris, Michele Moody-Adams, and Naomi Zack. The papers were published in the April 2018 issue of the journal.

2016 Conference: Bridging Formal and Traditional Epistemology

The 2016 Res Philosophica Conference, on formal and traditional epistemology, was held April 8–9, 2016 at Saint Louis University, organized by Joe Salerno. Speakers were Kenny Easwaran, Alan Hájek, Terry Horgan, Susanna Rinard, Sherri Roush, and Julia Staffel. The papers were published in the April 2017 issue of the journal.

2014 Conference: Transformative Experiences

The 2014 Res Philosophica Conference, on transformative experience, was held September 19–20, 2014 at Saint Louis University, organized by Jon Jacobs. Speakers were Rachael Briggs, Jennifer Carr, Ruth Chang, John Collins, and L. A. Paul. Those papers, among others, were published in the April 2015 issue of the journal.