insight4me Philosophy/Religious Studies – Metaphysics of God With University of East Anglia & University of Leeds

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We unfortunately need to postpone this event until the Autumn. Please do continue to register your interest and we will contact you as soon as a new time and date are confirmed.

• University of East Anglia: Dr Philip Wilson, Associate Professor in Philosophy in the School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies. If there is a God, then it would seem that God must be totally different from anything we can imagine. But how could the God of the theists ever interact with the world? I look at some of the other versions of God that have been on offer, from theistic personalism to panentheism, and ask what it might mean to conceive of an absent God. Thinkers addressed include Thomas Aquinas, Friedrich Nietzsche and Simone Weil.

• University of Leeds: Having taught Theology and Philosophy of Religion at several UK universities, Dr Gregory Stacey is now Teaching Fellow in Theology, Philosophy of Religion and Human Rights in the School of Philosophy, Religion and the History of Science Gregory’s research seeks to show the compatibility of faith and reason by bringing Catholic theology into conversation with modern analytic philosophy. Gregory will discuss: Many analytic metaphysicians believe that there are abstract objects such as properties, numbers, and sets. But if God exists, how does He relate to such objects? In this talk, I’ll briefly introduce the concept of abstract objects and examine competing suggestions that abstract objects somehow depend on God and that theists should reject the existence of abstract objects. This will offer an opportunity to consider whether the existence of abstract objects provides evidence for either theism or naturalism.

In this insight4me Philosophy/Religious Studies online event for schools and colleges, University of Leeds and University of East Anglia will each have roughly 30 minutes to deliver a punchy, interactive topic based ‘micro’ talk. Within an overall session theme of Metaphysics of God, the universities have the freedom to choose their own focus and use the time to convey the key points of the case studies for the students.

insight4me is a series of subject specific webinars for Key Stage 5 students, and equivalent. The sessions directly support students’ current studies by giving an insight into particular curriculum areas whilst affording an understanding of how these subjects continue beyond A-levels, T-levels, IB, BTEC and equivalent qualifications, and how they vary between universities.

Our events are designed so that a group of students can take part from a classroom or students and teachers can take part as individuals, either from school or from home. This means that sessions will continue irrespective of possible school closures.

As a live, participative event, this session will not be recorded but slides and other resources will be shared after the event, where available.

Suitable for: Key Stage 5 students (and equivalent) studying, or with a possible interest in studying, Philosophy/Religious Studies and related disciplines. Student groups, and individual students and teachers are very welcome to join us.

Preparation/Pre-Reading: Students may wish to consider the 2 topics and discuss some of the key elements in advance. Students can also think about questions they have about studying at university level.

The IT Setup: The event will be run on Zoom and participants will be able to join using laptops, tablets, and mobile devices. If you are joining as a school group, we recommend connecting with one device and projecting on to a whiteboard. You will be able to interact with the university via typed comments and questions or via a microphone if preferred. Full details will be sent to those who have registered (see below) prior to the event.

Booking a Place: This is free for schools and colleges. If you would like to take part in this event, please register your interest using the link to the registration form below:

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