Revolutions in Moral Knowledge

October 6-7, 2022 at Geneva College (at Homecoming)

Christian philosopher Josef Pieper wrote: “Philosophical thinking does not become easier when it ties itself to the norm of Christian Revelation, but - and this claim is simply self-evident to the Christian - it is more genuine and more in keeping with reality! It is a creative, a productive resistance that revealed truth sets in opposition to philosophical thought. It is a more rigorous prerequisite to which Christian philosophizing is subject.”

The Philosophy program at Geneva College seeks to engage the historic philosophical conversation, hone critical skills and passions, cultivate wisdom for service and for living, in submission to Jesus Christ, the Truth. Geneva College offers students the opportunity to cultivate the philosophical life essential to humanness and to professional excellence in all walks of life. Our program also equips its majors for graduate study and a lifetime of professional philosophical service to the world and the church.

2022 Bitar Memorial Lecturer

Dr. Mark Boespflug, Ph.D. ’05

Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Fort Lewis College (Durango, CO)

Dr. Boespflug's research concerns human rationality, especially as it pertains to our scientific and religious beliefs, and the voluntary control we exert over our beliefs. Articles of his have been published in Synthese, British Journal for the History of Philosophy, Archiv für Geschichte der Philosophie, Res Philosophica, The Lockean Mind, The Journal of Scottish Philosophy and Religious Studies. He has presented his work at the British Society for the Philosophy of Science, the Princeton Project in Philosophy and Religion, the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies, the Iranian Institute of Philosophy, the Rocky Mountain Ethics Congress among other venues. He has served as reviewer for the Australasian Journal of Philosophy, Philosophical Studies, Synthese, Journal of Modern Philosophy, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, British Journal for the History of Philosophy.

Mark graduated from Geneva College with a degree in Philosophy in 2005, went on to complete a MA in Philosophy from Biola University in 2013, and completed his Ph.D. in Philosophy at University of Colorado in 2020. Prior to coming to Fort Lewis College, Dr. Boespflug was a Postdoctoral Lecturer associated with the Baier Chair in Early Modern Philosophy at the University of Otago in New Zealand. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of Colorado at Boulder under the supervision of Robert Pasnau.

When not doing philosophy, Mark enjoys hiking, cycling, piano, tennis, various forms of carpentry, and, most of all, spending time with his wife, Emily (Geneva College class of 2009), and their kids, Zoe and Rowan.

Dr. Byron I. Bitar Memorial Lecture

Dr. Byron I. Bitar

The Dr. Byron I. Bitar Memorial Lecture in Philosophy was endowed by the William C. Kriner Family in memory of Geneva College′s beloved professor of a quarter-century, in order to continue his legacy and vision for philosophy. The Lecture was inaugurated in 2004, a year after Dr. Bitar′s untimely death. Past Bitar Lecturers include renowned philosophers Stephen Evans, Paul Helm, Alvin Plantinga, Nicholas Wolterstorff, and Linda Zagzebski.

In addition to the lectures, the Bitar event includes a special by-invitation banquet for student and alumni Philosophy Majors, as well as to honor the Lectures′ endowing families, the William Kriners and the family of Byron Bitar. It features the announcement of the annual Bitar Cash Prize for best student philosophy paper, a gift from Mrs. Gail Bitar. Also there is a catered meal for the Lecturers and the Panelists.

Past Bitar Lecturers include:

• 2004-05: Dr. Stephen Evans, Baylor University – “Can Love be Commanded?: Kierkegaard on the Foundations of Moral Obligation”        
• 2005-06: Dr. Paul Helm – “John Calvin′s Big Idea”
• 2006-07: Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff – "Love and Justice"
• 2007-08: Dr. Linda Zagzebski – "Self-Trust and Religious Belief"
• 2008-09: Dr. James K.A. Smith – "A Liturgical Phenomenology for a Post-Secular Age"
• 2009-10: Dr. R.J. Snell – "Culture of Boredom, Culture of Death"
• 2010-11: Dr. Paul K. Moser – “Expecting a Severe God”
• 2011-12: Dr. Alvin Plantinga – “Science, Religion and Naturalism”
• 2012-13: Dr. Nancey Murphy – “Human Nature at the Intersection of Science, Religion and Philosophy”
• 2013-14: Dr. Merold Westphal – "Getting from There to Here: From Modernity to Postmodernity"
• 2014-15:  Dr. D.C. Schindler "A Pre-Modern Response to the Post-Modern 'Lonely Mind’"
• 2015-16: Dr. Gregory R. Beabout - "Philosophical Wisdom for Business Savvy: The Character of the Manager"
• 2016-17: Dr. Frances Howard-Snyder  - "The Moral Risk of Trust: Learning from Fiction"
• 2017-18:  Dr. D.C. Schindler - “Hans Urs von Balthasar on Beauty” and Dr. John F. Crosby - 
  “Dietrich von Hildebrand’s Defense of Beauty Against Its Detractors"
• 2018-19: Dr. R. J. Snell/Dr. Matthew Kaemingk  - "Political Theology: Classical & Reformed Approaches"
• 2021-22: Dr. Kyle D. Bennett '03 - Disagreement as Spiritual Practice
  Dr. Keith R. Martel '97, '04 MAHE - “Imagined Worlds, Imagined Word: A Phenomenology of Imagination for a Critical Pedagogy
  Dr. John Buchmann '07 - Money as Metaphysical Monstrosity: Or, How to Do Christian Ethics in the Void
  Dr. Jennifer Kiefer Fenton '07 - Jane Addams and Democracy as a Way of Life
• 2022: Dr. Esther Lightcap Meek - Philosophy for Artistry: Beauty and the Artful Dance of Communion with the Real

Philosophy at Geneva College

“Engaging the philosophical conversation, honing critical skills and passions, cultivating wisdom, for service, for living; in submission to Jesus Christ the Truth.”