"Is There But One Christian Spirituality: Discernment and the University"
February 14, 2013, Conaton Board Room, 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Most times in our lives we are not making choices between "good things" and "evil things" but rather between two goods. Ignatius of Loyola called this process the discernment of spirits. Dr. Thomas discusses how we come to make everyday decisions as well as larger life choices in the Ignatian framework.

Presenter:

Dr. Trudelle Thomas

Trudelle Thomas joined the faculty in 1987, having earned degrees from Xavier University, Kent State University, and the University of Cincinnati. She writes and conducts research on composition theory, autobiography and memoir, nature writing, and American literature. Her articles have appeared in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Journal for the Association of Research on Mothering, International Journal of Children's Spirituality, Journal of American Culture, and elsewhere.

Panelists:

Dr. Niamh O'Leary

Born and raised in Connecticut, Niamh J. O'Leary received her BA from the University of Connecticut and her MA and PhD from Penn State University. At Xavier, she teaches lower-division Rhetoric and upper-division and graduate Shakespeare courses and is involved in the summer program in London. Other teaching interests include Renaissance revenge tragedy, the graphic novel, and Milton. She also enjoys leading the English Club along with Dr. Kristine Johnson. Dr. O'Leary's current research focuses on representations of communities of women in Renaissance drama, particularly addressing issues of marriage and maternity. She is also interested in Shakespeare in popular culture and on film. Her article on Chinese film adaptations ofHamlet is forthcoming in the Upstart Crow.

Dr. Stephen Yandell

Stephen Yandell grew up in Missouri and Texas and studied as an undergraduate at the University of Nebraska and the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. Steve's interest in medieval literature and Celtic language politics led him to Indiana University where, as a Jacob K. Javits Fellow, he completed his doctoral work in medieval political prophecy. His current publications include a translation of a Middle Welsh prose narrative in Medieval Literature for Children and a co-edited collection of essays entitled Prophet Margins: The Medieval Vatic Impulse and Social Stability. His current research interests include medieval prophecy, Welsh politics, narrative theory, and the writings of the Inklings (J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, and Charles Williams).

Dr. Mike Sweeney

Dr. Sweeney's general interest and training are in the history of philosophy; his specialization is medieval philosophy. He has supplemented a doctorate in philosophy (The Catholic University of America) with degrees in medieval studies (Toronto) and theology (Rome). In addition to teaching Theory of Knowledge (typically Plato, Aquinas, Descartes, Hume, and Lyotard) each semester, he has offered courses in the Philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, Medieval Christian Philosophy, Medieval Islamic and Jewish Philosophy, and Medieval Political Philosophy. Publications in English have focused on the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. A Fulbright grant allowed Dr. Sweeney to teach in Moscow, Russia during the 1998-1999 academic year.