12.-14. June 2025
This workshop explores the various ways ancient authors expressed the idea of divine involvement in the course of history. By adopting an interdisciplinary and cross-cultural approach, the workshop will examine religious and philosophical traditions across different historical contexts, including Jewish, Christian, and Graeco-Roman literature, with a particular focus on their shared Mediterranean cultural milieu.
The discussion will delve into how language shapes our understanding of the intersection between divine action and historical events. This exploration is not limited to a linguistic analysis; it also invites reflection on broader philosophical, theological, and interpretative frameworks that underlie ancient authors’ portrayals of divine agency.
Key questions to be explored include:
- What terms or expressions were used to describe divine action in history?
- Is history driven by fate, predetermined processes, or personal divine intervention?
- How do different cultural or religious traditions conceptualize divine influence in shaping historical events?
Through this inquiry, the workshop aims to provide a deeper understanding of the rich interplay between language, theology, and philosophy, offering fresh insights into how ancient texts and traditions conceptualized divine involvement in human affairs.
Programm
Thursday 12
18:15 Gastvortrag Teresa Morgan: God’s Interference in History: Between Philosophy and Religion
19:30 Conference dinner
Friday 13 (HAUS DER UNIVERSITÄT)
9:00 Welcome and coffee
9:30-10:00 Rainer Hirsch-Luipold + Stefano De Feo: Introduction
10:00-10:45 Stefano De Feo, The Language of the Divine in Plutarch’s Lives
10:45-11:15 Coffee Break
11:15-12:00 Rainer Hirsch-Luipold/David Hirsch: Grammar Expressing Theology: The New Testament and Plutarch
12:00-12:45 Severin Hof: Menschliches Streben und göttliches Eingreifen in Pindars Oden
12:45-14:15 Lunch Break
14:15-15:00 ***: Divine Agency in Imperial Philosophy
15:00-15:45 Ilinca Tanaseanu-Doebler: The Construal of Divine Involvement in History – Neoplatonism
15:45-16:15 Coffee Break
16:15-17:45/18:00 Short Papers by Junior Scholars
18:30 Conference dinner
Saturday 14 (UniS)
8:30-9:15 Martin Hose: Darstellungen göttlichen Eingreifens in griechisch-römischer Literatur: eine Fall Studie zur Tragödie
9:15-9:45 Beatrice Wyss: Philo of Alexandria, God’s Acting in the History of His People and in the Lives of Individuals
9:45-10:15 Coffee break
10:15-10:45 Martina Vercesi: Divine Involvement in the Time of the End: Rome vs New Jerusalem in Early Christianity
10:45-11:30 Olivier Guerrier: The Modern French Translations of Divine Language in Plutarch
11:30-12:15 Round table
12:30-14:00 Lunch
Beitragsbild: Kairos di Torino, Wikimedia Commons/Grigur