New Book by Paul Gifford on Girard and Violence

Purchase here.

Why do humans sacralise the causes for which they fight? Who will decipher for us the enigma of 'sacred violence'? Paul Gifford shows that the culture theorist and fundamental anthropologist Rene Girard has in fact decoded the obscurely 'foundational' complicity between violence and the sacred.

Paul Gifford is Buchanan Professor Emeritus of the University of St Andrews. He worked with Rene Girard as Invited Scholar at Stanford University. He has co-edited two collections of Girardian essays published by Michigan State University Press: Can We Survive Our Origins? (2015) and How We Became Human (2015).

Girard biographer Haven delivers lecture at Notre Dame

Cynthia Haven, author of Evolution of Desire: A Life of René Girard, lectured on the French philosopher’s urgent relevance on Monday, 23 September at the University of Notre Dame. Sponsored by the McGrath Institute’s Church Life Journal, the talk was entitled “René Girard and the Present Moment.”

Organizer and Church Life Journal editor Artur Rosman announced the event on https://churchlifejournal.nd.edu: “French theorist René Girard called for forgiveness and the total renunciation of violence. While most focus on his theories about conflict, how do we pursue his solutions in a technological world where we are being more and more conditioned to join mobs?

Cynthia Haven is a 2018/19 National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar, and writes regularly for The Times Literary Supplement, and has also contributed to The New York Times, The Nation, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, and many others.”

"Scapegoat" at the Swiss National Museum, Zurich, 15 March - 30 June, 2019

On March 15, the Swiss National Museum in Zurich will open an exhibition titled “Scapegoat”. The exhibition examines collective violence against individuals, from antiquity to the present day. Topics cover the range from human sacrifice and lynchings of Jews and witches to the scapegoating mechanism, with its civilised violence extending into the modern era. The show builds its argument on René Girard’s theory of mimetic desire and, also in accordance to Girard, presents those powers who have opposed the violence, as the Jewish and Christian religion as well as the Enlightenment.

A Press Conference will take place on Thursday March 14 at the Swiss National Museum at 10am.

New Release: Philosophical Journal of Conflict and Violence, Issue 2

The Philosophical Journal of Conflict and Violence has released its second issue featuring a thematic dossier on René Girard's approach to modern terrorism. The issue includes articles by editor-in-chief Andreas Wilmes, Paul Dumouchel, Benoît Chantre, and Jacob Rogozinski, among others. Also included: three interviews with René Girard never before published in English, and several book reviews. Find the issue (free in open access) here

The Philosophical Journal of Conflict and Violence - call for papers

The Philosophical Journal of Conflict and Violence has issued a call for papers for its second issue, and welcomes submissions from young researchers and established academics concerning the philosophical issues raised by violent crimes. The call for papers specifically mentions René Girard's mimetic theory:

• The PJCV also welcomes novel papers on crime and René Girard’s mimetic theory.

Submissions should be sent to: publishing@trivent-publishing.eu; andreas.wilmes@trivent-publishing.eu

Dates and deadlines Manuscript Submission September 18th, 2017

Decision Notification November 1st, 2017 Publication Date December 2017

More information here.

Pierre Manent to give 2016 Girard Lecture in Paris

17 OCTOBER 2016

SCIENCES PO, BOUTMY AMPHITHEATER, 7:15 p.m.

PIERRE MANENT

"SHAKESPEARE'S JULIUS CAESAR, OR THE TRAGEDY OF THE REPUBLIC"

Political philosopher Pierre Manent will give the 2016 Girard Lecture entitled "Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, or The Tragedy of the Republic" (Le "Jules César" de Shakespeare, ou la Tragédie de la République") October 17th, 2016 at Sciences Po in Paris. National Review has called Manent "the most deeply original, broadly erudite, and genuinely politically engaged thinker alive today." His most recent book is Beyond Radical Secularism (St. Augustine's Press, 2016), which caused a sensation when it was first published in France in 2015. His talk will confront the current situation of France and Europe through a reading of Shakespeare's most powerful political drama.

COV&R 2016 Registration Now Open

From the organizers: 

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

Please find attached the flyer for the 2016 conference of the ‘Colloquium on Violence and Religion (COV&R)’ in Melbourne, Australia, on 13-17 July 2016at the Australian Catholic University (ACU). The flyer gives details about the conference and is for public distribution.

The topic of the conference is ‘Violence in the Name of Religion…’.  We now have a full list of keynote speakers (see the attached or the website). We are very grateful that all these speakers have accepted the invitation to speak at the conference. 

Registration: Registration is open online at the conference website:

http://www.acu.edu.au/covr2016

Go to the registration page to register. Please read the instructions before registering.

The website can only accept credit cards. If you would like to pay by another means (cash, invoice or direct transfer), please send an email to the conference email address: covr2016.FTP@acu.edu.au. The early-bird rate will be extended by another week to 8 March.

The website also contains practical information, including venue information and accommodation options.

Call for Papers/Workshops: The call for papers and workshop proposals has been released. The details for the Call for Papers/Workshop Proposals is available on the website. Please send your proposals to the conference email at any time.

Contact Information: The conference has a special email address for inquiries or paper submissions: covr2016.FTP@acu.edu.au.

We also have a Facebook presence through the Australian Girard Seminar Facebook page: 

https://www.facebook.com/AustralianGirardSeminar

If you are on Facebook, please become a friend of the AGS to remain updated about the latest information about the conference. We post status updates about the conference.

We hope you can make the conference in 2016. Please forward information about the conference to your networks. 

René Girard (1923-2015)

René Girard died on November 4, 2015. A memorial service will take place on January 19 at 2 p.m. at the Stanford Memorial Church. Find links to a number of tributes below (not an exhaustive list):

Mark Anspach's overview of Girard's contribution on the Imitatio website.

James Alison speaks with America Magazine's Zac Davis on René Girard.

Cynthia Haven's obituary on the Stanford News website.

Grant's Kaplan's tribute in America Magazine.

Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry's article on the "unlikely Christianity" of Girard in The Week.

Giles Fraser writes on Girard and the Paris attacks in The Guardian.

Bishop Robert Barron declares Girard a "Church Father" in the National Catholic Register.

Quentin Hardy's obituary in The New York Times.

Daniel Lance's video of René Girard's "last laugh."

Scott Cowdell's "theological retrospective" on abc.net.au.