CRC to host sixth annual symposium this weekend
Photo by Senior Photographer Morgan Kiehl
On Friday and Saturday, Feb. 18-19, Lee University’s Center for Responsible Citizenship will host its sixth annual symposium.
Lee University approved the founding of the CRC in September 2021. The CRC is directed by Dr. Thomas Pope, professor of political science, and coordinated by Audrey Haley, a 2019 Lee alumna.
“The Center for Responsible Citizenship promotes interdisciplinary conversation on the elements of a flourishing political community. In a time fraught with conflict and confusion about Christian engagement in the world, it hopes to highlight the need for moral and civic virtue as the foundation for political life,” said Pope. “We see human life as inexorably bound up in other persons made in the image of God. Thus, as we consider the Good Life, it is always an activity done in consideration of those around us and our place among them. Responsible Citizenship asks who we are as members of that body and how we ought to live. This, really, is the highest form of political life.”
The year’s symposium theme, “Persons and Place: Wendell Berry and the Weight of Love,” will explore the importance of human connection through Berry’s writings.
Berry is an American novelist, poet, essayist, environmental activist and cultural critic. He is an elected member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers, a recipient of the National Humanities Medal and the Jefferson Lecturer for 2012.
“He is the author of over 50 books of poetry, fiction and essays. His poetry celebrates the holiness of life and everyday miracles often taken for granted,” reports the Poetry Foundation.
The symposium will include discussion seminars and a keynote by David Kern. Kern is the owner of Goldberry Books in Concord, North Carolina, and the director of Goldberry Studios, which produces several literary podcasts. Kern has also served as multimedia director for the CiRCE Institute, which provides training and resources in classical education throughout North America.
“Berry’s thought embodies the careful love of persons and place that bind together a healthy community. It reminds me of beauty that I often overlook and encourages me to live a life of gratitude. Kern is a genuine and graceful speaker who I am thrilled to introduce to Lee University,” said Pope.
Discussion seminars will cover Berry’s novel “Hannah Coulter,” along with several of his poems and essays.
Kern’s keynote lecture is free and open to the public and will take place Friday, Feb. 18, at 5:30 p.m. in the Johnson Lecture Hall.
This symposium is just one of the many opportunities the CRC is offering this semester.
“The Center for Responsible Citizenship offers programming of two sorts: theory and practice. In the first category, we offer reading groups, lectures and symposia to discuss ideas that can deepen our understanding of ourselves and our obligations. Hopefully, these readings and conversations are joyful things — we are, after all, at an institution of higher education because we delight in thinking and take pleasure in wisdom,” said Pope. “However, perhaps the deepest way of knowing is doing. In this regard, we hope to provide occasion for the practice of responsible citizenship through community engagement, internships and professional development.”
For more information, or to receive updates about upcoming events or opportunities, contact crc@leeuniversity.edu.
