SEEKING THE SACRED IN THE DIGITAL AGE

(All sessions will be held in Hemmingson 312-4) 

Saturday, February 18th:  

9:00-10:15: “Virtual Religion and the Rise of a New Axial Age”  

by Fr Tim Clancy SJ, Gonzaga University 

10:30-12:00: Virtual Ritual: Dr. Greg Orofino, Dr. Joe Mudd, (the prospects for sacraments  and devotions online) Francis Xu SJ (power of virtual music);  

12:15-1:30 Lunch at Hemmingson 

1:30-3:00 Virtual religious experience: Bill Woody SJ, Dr. Dan Bradley (experience of the  sacred in oral presence, literate absence (ie negative theology), and virtual telepresence; Corwin Bryan (religious experience in virtual reality) 

3:15-4:30: Virtual symbolism: Matt Yim SJ . Dr. Roisin Lally, David Nguyen 

4:45-6:00: “Technologies of transcendence: on the technological mediation of the sacred”  by Dr. Peter-Paul Verbeek, Professor of the Philosophy of Technology, University of Twente, the Netherlands 

6:30 Mass (Jesuit House Chapel) 

7:30 Dinner (Pizza party at Jesuit House) 

Sunday, February 19th

9:00-10:00:  “Guarding Against Teleopathy: Organizational Leadership Towards Ultimate Ends” by L. Kim, VP at a high tech firm 

10:15-11:45 Virtual Evangelization: Fr. Michael Rossman SJ (Jesuit Post), Fr. Wojciech   Moranski SJ (DEON.pl), Tucker Redding SJ (social media) 

12:00: Brunch at Jesuit House 

1:30-3:00  Virtual Politics: Macklen Scribner (Vocation in a virtual post wage labor  

economy): Dr. Joan Braune (Occupy Wall Street as a case study in enlisting social media in political organizing) Michael Martinez SJ (digital community organizing) 

4:30-5:00  On Avatars: Fr. Tim Clancy SJ (Avatar Christology) , Dr. Krista Sajber   (radicalizing the networked self), Dr. Kirk Besmer, respondent.   

5:30: Wrap up and next steps