The Vision of God
24-31 May 2025 | The Angelicum, Rome, Italy
The Holy Father has declared the 2025 Jubilee Year theme “Pilgrims of Hope.”
For what do Christian pilgrims hope?
In seeking a robust theological answer to this question, the IHE Rome Seminar will contribute its own spiritual and intellectual riches to the harvest of the Universal Church in this Jubilee Year.
Admitted students will spend a week studying the doctrine of the beatific vision, the highest and ultimate object of Christian hope. To approach this topic most generally, we will study the inchoate vision of God in this life and its summit at the end of the earthly pilgrimage.
Our study will revolve around the Thomistic doctrine that all of the theological virtues (faith, hope, and charity) are ordered toward the human person’s enjoyment of the sight of supernatural mysteries, both here and in eternity. This hoped-for unitive vision begins in the grace of faith and is perfected by the light of love.
Saint Thomas Aquinas recognizes a distinction between the vision of God available by grace in this life and its perfection in the next life. For “we walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). But what exactly accounts for the difference between grace and glory according to Saint Thomas, if both belong to the same genus? We will address this question by studying the Thomistic distinction between the three-fold perfection of the Imago Dei.
Additional topics of study will include:
- Aristotle and Aquinas on Nous
- Intellection of Angels and Separated Souls
- The Triune Perfection of the Imago Dei: the Theological Virtues and Beatitude
- Saint Albert and Saint Thomas’s Theories of Vision and Beatitude
- Deiformity in Grace and Glory
- The Natural Desire to See God
Speakers
Program Costs
All expenses for the seminar are covered by the IHE with the exception of travel to and from Rome. A small number of partial travel stipends are available on a need basis.
Participants are expected to arrange their own travel to Rome. They should plan to arrive before the evening of May 24 and depart on the morning of Sunday, June 1 or Monday, June 2.
Admitted applicants will be required to submit a $400 deposit to secure a place in the program. This deposit will be returned in full upon completion of the program and submission (non-anonymous) of both the survey and the testimonial (125-175 words).
Who Should Apply?
- Ph.D. candidates are preferred; outstanding Master’s students (or equivalent) on an academic track will be considered.
- Priests, religious, and seminarians are eligible.
- IHE Fellows, IHE Graduate Scholars, and former IHE workers will be considered.
- Successful completion of the IHE’s Civitas Dei program is a plus.
- Previous experience in Thomistic philosophy and theology is a plus.
- As part of the evaluation of applicants, the following are among the items that will be considered: academic publications and presentations, experience in academic teaching, and research.
- An important part of the evaluation is a strong cover letter that demonstrates interest in the Rome Seminar, familiarity with Thomistic philosophy, and alignment with the mission of the IHE.
How to Apply
To apply, please send a cover letter and CV to ihe@cua.edu by 1:00 p.m. (EST) on Monday, 3 February, 2025.
Testimonials
