University of St. Thomas is the local host for the 33rd Annual International American Maritain Association Conference “St. Thomas and the Problem of Evil: Choice, History and Providence” from Thursday to Saturday, Oct. 22-24 at the Renaissance Houston Hotel Greenway Plaza.

The theme of the meeting comes from Maritain’s 1942 Marquette Lecture, St. Thomas and the Problem of Evil. Professors, graduate students and alumni from UST and from many other institutions will speak and present papers at the conference. Dr. Mary Catherine Sommers, director of the UST Center for Thomistic Studies, will be a plenary speaker.

Jacques Maritain was a Catholic philosopher who provided a model of the way religious belief and various cultural, intellectual and political concerns can be interwoven. At the time of his death, Maritain was the best-known Catholic philosopher in the world. His philosophical work, his influence in the social philosophy of the Catholic Church and his ardent defenses of human rights made him one of the central figures of his time.

The late Fr. Victor Brezik, CSB, was a student and friend of Maritain. After founding the Center for Thomistic Studies at UST, Fr. Brezik awarded Maritain the position of honorary faculty member of the Center.

On Thursday and Friday, the conference will be held at the Renaissance Hotel, but Saturday sessions will be on the St. Thomas campus. The conference will conclude with a banquet at the hotel where the American Maritain Association will present awards for scholarly excellence, lifetime achievement and humanitarian service.

Co-sponsoring the conference with UST is Walsh University, an Ohio Catholic university. For more information, contact Dr. John Hittinger at mailto:hittinger@stthom.edu. For more information about the conference visit www.jacquesmaritain.org/meetings.html. View the complete program.

Shown at top, Jacques Maritain. Shown above from left to right, Fr. Victor Brezik and Maritain.