GRACE AND SANCTIFICATION
DIVINE CAUSALITY, HUMAN ACTION, AND SUPERNATURAL GLORY
June 23-25, 2022 | Northfield, Massachusetts
STEVEN A. LONG & THOMAS JOSEPH WHITE, O.P.
DARIA SPEZZANO & PATRICK M. GARDNER
Co-sponsored with Thomas Aquinas College - New England
The prophet Jeremiah warns, “Cursed is the man who has hope in man, and makes strong the flesh of his arm, and whose heart departs from the Lord” (Jer. 17:4). As such, the Apostle says, "He has chosen us out, in Christ, before the foundation of the world, to be saints, to be blameless in his sight, for love of him; marking us out beforehand (so his will decreed) to be his adopted children through Jesus Christ. Thus he would manifest the splendor of that grace by which he has taken us into his favor in the person of his beloved Son" (Eph. 1: 4 - 6).
How is human action the fruit of divine causality? How do different forms of grace impact the soul? St. Peter tells us that “God has bestowed on us high and treasured promises; you are to share the divine nature” (2 Pet 1:4). What does it mean for grace to elevate humanity to partake in the very nature of God?
This conference seeks to explore any and all facets of the theology of grace including (but not limited to) the essence and divisions of grace, the Christological dimension of grace, the historical debates surrounding grace and salvation, sacramental grace, grace and moral action, grace and the spiritual life, and the ultimate ordering of man to sanctification, deification, and glory.
Registration closed on April 15.
Hosted by Thomas Aquinas College - New England
Keynote Speakers
Steven A. Long
Professor of Theology
Ave Maria University ~ Ave Maria, FL
Dr. Steven A. Long is full professor of theology at Ave Maria University and ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas. Starting in 2022, he will also begin his term as president of the American Catholic Philosophical Association. Dr. Long is author of the following books: Analogia Entis: On the Analogy of Being, Metaphysics, and the Act of Faith; Natura Pura: On the Recovery of Nature in the Doctrine of Grace; and The Teleological Grammar of the Moral Act. He also co-edited Reason and the Rule of Faith: Conversations in the Tradition with John Paul II with Christopher J. Thompson. He has published scholarly articles in The Thomist, Nova et Vetera, Communio, New Blackfriars, Revue thomiste, Studies in Christian Ethics, National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, International Philosophic Quarterly, and First Things, as well as in numerous book-length collections of essays. Dr. Long also serves as a senior advisor to The Sacra Doctrina Project.
Fr. Thomas Joseph White, O.P.
Rector
Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) ~ Rome, Italy
Fr. Thomas Joseph White, O.P. is rector and professor of theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas and has served as Director of the Thomistic Institute in Rome at the Angelicum and in Washington, D.C. at the Dominican House of Studies. Fr. White is co-editor of book series and academic journals, as well as an ordinary member and council member of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas. He has presented extensively and has published scholarly articles in The Thomist, Pro Ecclesia, Nova et Vetera, International Journal of Systematic Theology, and American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly. He has also co-edited and written numerous books, including Wisdom in the Face of Modernity, The Light of Christ, Exodus: A Theological Commentary, The Incarnate Lord, and, forthcoming, The Trinity: On the Nature and Mystery of the One God (March 2022). Fr. White is a solemnly professed priest-friar in the Order of Preachers and serves as a senior advisor to The Sacra Doctrina Project.
Plenary Speakers
daria spezzano
Associate Professor of Theology
Providence College ~ Providence, RI
Dr. Daria Spezzano is associate professor of theology at Providence College. She holds a Ph.D. in theology from the University of Notre Dame and a Master's degree in liturgical studies from the Liturgical Institute. She has published scholarly articles in Nova et Vetera, Cistercian Studies, and Journal of Moral Theology, as well as chapters in edited volumes such as: Aquinas on Initiation and Mystagogy; Reading Job with St. Thomas Aquinas; Thomas Aquinas, Biblical Theologian; and Thomas Aquinas and the Crisis of Christology. Dr. Spezzano is the author of The Glory of God's Grace: Deification according to St. Thomas Aquinas, published by Sapientia Press in 2015.
patrick m. gardner
Tutor and Assistant Dean for Student Affairs
Thomas Aquinas College ~ Northfield, MA
Dr. Patrick M. Gardner serves as a tutor and as the assistant dean for student affairs at the New England campus of Thomas Aquinas College. Dr. Gardner received his Ph.D. and M.M.S. from the University of Notre Dame's Medieval Institute, studying under Ralph McInerny, after completing his B.A. at Harvard University. He was the recipient of the Jefferson Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Texas in 2010. Dr. Gardner has published in The Thomist and in the edited volume, Reviewing Dante's Theology, and has lectured and written on Dante, Aquinas, and Plato.
Other Speakers Include
Jorge E. Arbelaez-Oejuela
Jose Belleza
Vincent Birch
Ryan J Brady
KT Brizek
Christopher Brown
Mike Brummond
Francis J. Caponi
Dominic Casella
Scott Brenon Caton
Kevin M. Clarke
Roy Axel Coats
Daniel Drain
Nathaniel J. Dreyer
Meghan Duke
Brandon Eaves
Brett T. Feger
Lawrence Feingold
Francis Feingold
Marie Ferman
Jeffrey Froula
Josef Froula
John Froula
Mary-Catherine Froula
John Gavin, SJ
Michael Greve
Daniel Gutschke
Sean Haefner
Urban Hannon
Mark Heffley
Aaron Henderson
Joseph Hudson, OSB
Patrick Jones
Kevin Keiser
James E. Kelly
Samuel Korb
John Baptist Ku, OP
Matthew Kuhner
Daniel Lendman
David Liberto
Lisa Lickona
Joshua Lim
Eric Manchester
Charles M. Mangan
Kevin E. Miller
Ryan Modisette
Chris Mooney
Theresa Marie Chau Nguyen, OP
John O'Neill
Taylor Patrick O'Neill
Nicholas Ogle
Christopher Owens
John Anderson P-Duarte
Tyler Pellegrin
Jason Reed
Dylan Schrader
Dominic Spiekermann
Daniel Spiotta
Timothy Streiff
James W. Stroud
Erik van Versendaal
Wong Wai-kin
Mikail Whitfield
Brett Yardley
Conference Details
Location:
Schedule:
Nearest Airports:
Nearest Amtrak Train Station:
On-Campus Lodging:
Off-Campus Lodging:
Dining:
Thomas Aquinas College - New England
231 Main St.
Northfield, MA 01360
N.B.: The 2022 conference will be held exclusively in person.
The conference begins on the evening of Thursday, June 23 and concludes at the end of the night of Saturday, June 25, with Mass on Sunday, June 26.
Schoephoester Rd
Windsor Locks, CT 06096
Boston Logan International Airport
Boston, MA 02128
Multiple shuttles will transport guests to and from the airport at a rate of $50 per round trip between Bradley and TAC and $100 round trip between Logan and TAC. Here is the shuttle schedule:
Thursday, June 23:
Logan: Pickups at 12pm and 3pm
Bradley: Pickups at 1pm and 4pm
Sunday, June 26:
Logan: Depart TAC at 6am and 8:30am
Bradley: Depart TAC at 7am and 11am
If this schedule does not work for you, please email us at sacradoctrinaproject@gmail.com to have the issue sorted.
12 Olive St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
~22 minute car ride. Shuttles service will not be provided to or from the train station.
Conference guests will be able to stay in on-campus dormitories at a discount price. Each guest will have a one- person room with a shared bathroom. Available Thursday June 23 to Sunday, June 26.
Centennial House Bed and Breakfast
94 Main St.
Northfield, MA 01360
(1.4 miles from campus)
71 Northfield Rd.
Bernardston, MA 01337
(6.6 miles from campus)
Shuttle service will not be provided to off-campus accommodations.
The conference will offer a meal option that will include buffet-style meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Additionally, one plated dinner and two cocktail hours shall be included.
