CALL FOR PAPERS / APPEL DE COMMUNICATIONS
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Canadian Jacques Maritain Association /
L’association canadienne Jacques Maritain
Annual Symposium
Saturday, November 2, 2024
Saint Paul University, 223 Main Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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Theme:
Integral Humanism and Political Action
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The 2024 Fall Symposium of the Canadian Jacques Maritain Association will take
place on November 2, 2024, at Saint Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and
will address the relationship between humanism and politics. The theme of the
conference is modelled after Jacques Maritain’s 1936 book Integral Humanism:
Temporal and Spiritual Problems of a New Christendom. In this text Maritain
discusses the problems with the modern anthropocentric humanism that has resulted
in a civic order that acts contrary to the dignity of the human person. By contrast,
Maritain proposes a new integral humanism that is theocentric and communitarian
and that can preserve authentic human freedom. An integral humanism is a complete
and whole humanism, one that integrates all the essential aspects of human nature
into a holistic understanding without excluding any.
We live in an age that both fosters and is constituted by an erroneous anthropology
or theory of human nature. It would not be an exaggeration to assert that much
confusion exists today about what it means to be human. Yet any potential
rectification of the tenets of the prevailing cultural humanism needs to take into
account the political context that nurtures and sustains it. This is why Maritain
clearly saw the need to confront the political arena to rescue the human person from
the crisis in which he currently lives.
The conference welcomes papers that broadly address the conference theme. Some
possible topics include the following: What is the prevailing humanistic philosophy
at the core of the contemporary world ethos? What are the possible solutions to the
problems facing humanity? Can a new humanism that is grounded in religious values
take root in the political order? How must politics be restructured and reanimated to
establish a new, vibrant and life-giving humanism? How should we think about the
distinction between the temporal and spiritual orders of human life? What kinds of
action are human beings called to in order to transform the world for the better?
Any paper that examines the topics of humanism, politics and religion, whether
singly or in combination, particularly with respect to the relationship between
humanism and politics, would be well suited for this conference. Although the theme
is inspired by Maritain’s Integral Humanism, papers from other philosophical
traditions and perspectives are also welcome.
Since the Canadian Jacques Maritain Association is a bilingual association, papers
can be in either English or French.
Selected papers may be published in Études
maritainiennes-Maritain Studies which is the official journal of the association.
Those who wish to present a paper should send by e-mail a one-page abstract or
proposal to:
Dr. Nikolaj Zunic
Department of Philosophy
St. Jerome’s University
290 Westmount Road North, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G3, Canada
E-mail: nzunic@uwaterloo.ca
Deadline for submission of proposals: September 15, 2024
Papers should not exceed 35 minutes reading time.
Please visit the website for the Canadian Jacques Maritain Association:
https://www.maritain.info