Summer Seminar 2007

In August, the Neuwaldegg Institute hosted its annual Summer Seminar in Vienna, where we presented a critical examination of ethics, bio-ethics, metaphysics, and political philosophy. More than fifty students representing twenty countries gathered to hear Drs. Don Asci, Patrick Derr, Sean Kelsey, and Michael Pakaluk discuss these topics in depth.

Dr. Asci’s lectures explored early questions regarding ethics including freedom, autonomy, and natural law, and applied these questions to modern issues. He went on to explain that freedom itself can be defined in various ways, as it relates to issues such as self-movement, self-determination, and self-governance. In addition, he explained how the foundation behind freedom for and freedom from has the power to transform the way in which we look at ethical issues. Many of our students instantly recognized the importance of freedom from oppressive governments, like the communist regimes their families endured during the 20th century.

Dr. Kelsey’s lectures addressed the metaphysics of God, the mind, free will, skepticism, and relativism. Some students noted a relationship between the metaphysical concept of free will and the ethical questions of freedom they had learned in Dr. Asci’s presentation. The concept of freedom dates back thousands of years, and the students effectively used their new knowledge of the history of freedom to apply it to current issues in their own countries.

The Neuwaldegg Summer Seminar students left with a stronger sense of kinship thanks to the friends they made, and discussions they had. The Neuwaldegg Institute extends its thanks to the students for their many contributions, and to the professors, who made the seminar possible.