Curtis Hancock

Kansas City, MO

Dr. Curtis Hancock, Ph.D. is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Rockhurst University, with 33 years full-time experience as a teacher of philosophy. He taught philosophy for 32 years at Rockhurst Jesuit University, Kansas City, Missouri. At Rockhurst he held the Joseph M. Freeman Chair of Philosophy. He is former President of the American Jacques Maritain Association and is co-founder (with Dr. Peter Redpath) of the Etienne Gilson Society. He has published numerous books, including Recovering A Catholic Philosophy of Elementary Education (2005). In addition to his seven books, he has published over eighty articles and reviews. He has a close association with the Lublin School of Thomism (Lublin, Poland), and is a Senior Fellow of the Adler-Aquinas Institute. For over a decade he taught for “Great Books Discussions,” an online homeschooling program.

146 Lectures
68 Articles
34 Reviews
11 Books

Education

Ph.D, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois, 1985

Dissertation: Energeia (Actuality) in the Enneads of Plotinus: A Reaction to Plato and Aristotle

M.A. University of Oklahoma, 1974

B.A. University of Oklahoma, 1972

Fellowships and Awards

Endowed Chair: Joseph M. Freeman Chair of Philosophy
Rockhurst University
1998-Present

Governor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching
Awarded by Governor of Missouri, Mel Carnahan
December 11, 1997

Teacher of the Year
Rockhurst College
1997

Presidential Grant
Rockhurst College
1997

Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers
1996

Brenner Scholar’s Award
Rockhurst College
1992

Presidential Grant
Rockhurst College
1988

Teacher of the Year
Rockhurst College
1987

Schmitt Fellowship
Loyola University
1981

Lottinville Grant
University of Oklahoma
1976

Memberships and Associations

Senior Fellow of Adler-Aquinas Institute

Member of Scientific Council of Studia Gilsoniana

Member of The Catholic Academy of Sciences in the United States of America

Board Member at Catholic Education Foundation

Board Member and Director at The Angelicum Academy

Board Member and Director at The Great Books Academy

Former President of American Maritain Association

Former President of the Gilson Society

American Catholic Philosophical Association

International Society for Neoplatonic Studies

Areas of Specialization

Metaphysics
Philosophy of Religion
Philosophy of Mind
Ethics
Political Philosophy
History of Philosophy
Philosophy of Education

Language Facility

Near fluency in Spanish
Excellent command of Ancient Greek
Competence in Modern Greek
Reading knowledge of Latin, Italian, French, German, and Polish

Teaching Experience

Professor Emeritus Rockhurst Jesuit University
2018-Present

Director of History of Philosophy Concentration
Holy Apostles College and Seminary

Professor of Philosophy and the Joseph M. Freeman Chair of Philosophy
Rockhurst University

Coordinator and Lecturer in Great Books Program
“Return to the Classics”
Alumni Office and Center for Arts and Letters
Rockhurst University
1996-2004

Associate Professor of Philosophy
Rockhurst College
1994-1996

Chair and Associate Professor of Philosophy
Rockhurst College
1991-1994

Associate Professor of Philosophy
Rockhurst College
1990-1991

Assistant Professor of Philosophy
Rockhurst College
1985-1990

Director of Spanish Study Program for Rockhurst College
University of Veracruz at Jalapa, Veracruz, Mexico
Summer 1988

Seminars for the state of Oklahoma on ethics in management
1985-1988

Instructor of Philosophy
Cardinal Newman College
St. Louis, Missouri
1983-1985

Seminars and programs in ethics and other areas: State of Oklahoma, Department of Human Services, Ecosystems Inc., and USDA

Part-time instructor of Adult Education
University of Oklahoma
1979-1981

Teaching Assistant
Loyola University of Chicago
1977-1979

Teaching Assistant
University of Oklahoma
1973-1975

Publications and Presentations

Books

The Case of the Owl of Minerva: A Father Shrader Mystery (co-authored with Charles Kovich). West Conshocken, Pennsylvania: Infinity Publishing, 2014.

Recovering A Catholic Philosophy of Catholic Education. Workbook to Accompany Recovering A Catholic Philosophy of Elementary Education. Rochester, New York: Catholic Education Foundation, 2006.

Recovering A Catholic Philosophy of Elementary Education. Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania: Newman House Press, 2005.

Faith and the Life of the Intellect. Co-edited with Brendan Sweetman. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2003.

The Case of Ockham’s Razor: A Father Shrader Mystery (co-authored with Charles Kovich). Kansas City, Missouri: Liber Media Publishing, August 2000.

Evil Beyond Belief (first volume in series; co-edited with Brendan Sweetman). Series in Philosophy of Religion for M.E. Sharpe: James Petrik, 2000.

How Should I Live? Philosophical Conversations About Moral Life. Korean Translation by Park, Jang-Ho. Pusan, South Korea: Kyungsung University Press, 1999.

Truth and Religious Belief. (co-authored with Brendan Sweetman). Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe, Inc., February 1998.

Freedom, Virtue, and the Common Good. (co-edited with Anthony O. Simon). Distributed by University of Notre Dame Press: American Maritain Association, 1995.

How Should I Live? Philosophical Conversations About Moral Life. (co-authored with Randolph M. Feezell). Minneapolis, MN: Paragon House, 1991.

Energeia in the Enneads of Plotinus: A Reaction to Plato and Aristotle. Dissertation, 1985.

Articles

“Texas versus Washington: A Mexican Standoff” in Nasz Diennik, February, 2023.

“Will Immigration Propel Trump to Reelection” in Nasz Diennik, December, 2023.

“The Relationship of Concepts, Memory, and Language in the Cognitive Psychology of Thinking: An Aristotelian-Thomistic Appraisal.” With James M. Stedman, Thomas L. Spalding and Christina L. Gagne. The Journal of Mind and Behavior. Winter and Spring, 2023. Vol. 44, Numbers 1 and 2, pages 15-36.

“Suicide of a Nation.” in Nasz Dziennik, May, 2023.

“Why Education Today Ought to be Counter-Cultural.” In Annals of Culture (Rocniki Kulturoznawcze) Vol. 13 No. 1 (2022) 81-90.

“Why American Education Today Ought to be Counter Cultural.” Roczniki Kulturoznawcze [Cultural Studies], Tom XIII, 1, 2022.

“Why American Education Today Ought to be Counter Cultural.” Annales of Cultural Studies, Scientific Society: Catholic University, Lublin, 2022.

“Afghanistan: The Anatomy of an American Failure,” in Nasz Dziennik, October 10-11, 2021.

A Companion to Polish Christian Philosophy of the 20th and 21st Centuries, eds. Piotr S. Mazur, Piotr Duchlinski, Pawel Skrrzydlewski, In Forum Philosophicum 26 (2021) no. 2, 345-350, August, 2021.

“The Mystery of Suffering,” in Dialogue: A Journal of Religion and Philosophy. Issue 56, April 2021, 26-31.

“A Tonic for What Ails America.” Nasz Dziennik, May 2021. Nr. 122 [7084].

“The Mystery of Evil,” in Dialogue. No. 56., April 2021.

“On America’s Struggle to Protect Free Speech: Some Important Questions.” Wpoliticye.pl, January 2021.

“The Biden Administration: Whither Bound.” Nasz Dziennik, January 23, 2021.

“America’s Cultural Revolution.” Nasz Dziennik, June 2020.

“Suggestions of a Neoplatonic Semiotics: Act and Potency in Plotinus’ Metaphysics.” Semiotica. Re-issue of Semiotica Vol. 2010, Issue 178. De Gruyter Mouton, 2020.

“Aquinas as a Guide for Teaching Philosophy,” in Encyclopedia of Teacher Education, M.A. Peters, editor. Singapore: Springer, 2019.

“Peter Redpath’s Philosophy of History,” in Festschrift to Peter Redpath. Catholic University of Lublin Press, 2016.

“The One and the Many: The Ontology of Science in Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas.” The Review of Metaphysics, 69, 233-259. December 2015.

“Why Can’t Philosophers and Poets Get Along? Reflections on an Ancient Quarrel.” A Piercing Light: Beauty, Faith, and Human Transcendence. James Jacobs, editor, Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2015.

“Intentionality and the Aristotelian View of Concepts” with James Stedman, Christina Gagne, and Thomas Spalding. Journal of Mind and Behavior, vol. 35 issue 4: August 2014.

“The Meaning of Life (ζωή) in the Metaphysics of Plotinus.” in Art and Reality (Sztuka i Realizm), a Festschrift to Henrik Kieres. Lublin, Poland: Catholic Univesrity of Lublin, 2014.

“Values,” in New Catholic Encyclopedia Supplement, 2012-2013: Ethics and Philosophy. Robert L. Fastiggi, editor, Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America. Gale, Cengage Learning, Inc., pp. 1601-1603.

“Values and Facts,” in New Catholic Encyclopedia Supplement, 2012-2013: Ethics and Philosophy. Catholic University of America: published by Gale, Cengage Learning, Inc., pp. 1603-1604.

“Gilson on the Rationality of Christian Belief,” Studia Gilsoniana, #1, 2012.

Foreward to Peter Redpath’s A Not So Elementary Metaphysics: Written with Hope of Ending the Centuries-Long Separation Between Science and Philosophy. Manitou Springs, Colorado: Socratic Press, 2012.

“Wisdom and the Recovery of the Human Person in Elementary Education: A Response to Rousseau’s Educational Utopianism.” published by Abat Oliba University Press, Barcelona, Spain, 2012.

“Why Gilson? Why Now?” Article highlighted on Adler-Aquinas Institute website, as of April 2012.

“American Presidential Campaigns as Political Theater,” Nasz Dziennik. January 31, 2012.

“Plotinus’ Adoption of Aristotle’s Doctrine of Act (Energeia)” in Studia Elckie, #14, 2012.

“The Problem of the One and the Many: The Nature of Metaphysics and Science in Thomas Aquinas” in Metaphysics, Mark Pestana, Editor. Rijeka, Croatia: In-Tech Publications, 2012.

“America Before and After 9/11/2001,” for special 9/11/2001 edition of Nasz Dziennik.

“In Memoriam: A Tribute to Ralph McInerny,” in Czlowiek w Kulturze (Person and Culture), Katholik University Lublin, 2010.

“The American University Exposed,” in Czlowiek w Kulturze (Person and Culture), Katholik University Lublin, 2010.

“A Neoplatonic Semiotics: Act and Potency in the Philosophy of Plotinus,” in Semiotica, Editor, Marcel Danesi, Volume 178 no. 14, 2010, pp. 39-52.

“Warts and All: An Insider’s Appraisal of America,” in Czlowiek w Kulturze (Person and Culture), Katholik University Lublin, 2009.

“Hermeneutics and Scientific Realism: Rival Philosophical Claims in Psychology,” Contemporary Philosophy, Vol. XXVII, No. 3.

“Etienne Gilson on the Future of Western Philosophy,” in Studia Elckie (Diocesan Journal of Elk, Poland), 2008.

“Philosophy and the Struggle for the Soul of Western Culture.” in Deep Down Things: Catholic Culture in the Contemporary World, Editor, Joseph Cirincione. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Press, 2008.

“Augustine Goes Postmodern,” The Political Science Reviewer. Autumn, 2007.

“Filozofia a walka o dusze cywilizacji Zachodu,” (“Modern Philosophy and the Deconstruction of Philosophical Experience”) in Czlowiek w Kulturze. Lublin, POland: Catholic University of Lublin, 2007.

“O Plusach i minusach bycia politikiem chrzescijanskim” (“On Being a Christian in the Modern World”) in Czlowiek i panstwo (“Person and State”), Editor, Piotr Jaroszynski. Lublin, Poland: John Paul II Catholic University, 2006.

“What Makes a School Catholic?” The Catholic Response. Autumn 2005.

Foreword to Thomistic Tapestry: Essays in Memory of Etienne Gilson. Editor, Peter Redpath. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Rodopi Press, 2003.

“Faith, Reason, and the Perennial Philosophy,” in Faith and the Life of the Intellect. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2001.

“Athens Befriends Jerusalem: Philosophy in Defense of Christian Wisdom,” in The Ideal of a University. Editor, Patrick Carmack. On-line. Seattle, Washington: The Great Books Academy, 2003.

“One Still Must Consider the Ethics of War,” op-ed article for Kansas City Star. October 8, 2001.

“The Search of Psychology for a Philosophy of Science” with James Stedman and Brendan Sweetman. Journal of the Human Sciencs and Constructivism, 2001.

“To Tell the Truth: Talking Across the Disciplines,” in Classical Homeschooling (On-Line). Summer, 2002.

“The Perennial Philosophy: A Tonic for What Ails Us,” in Catholicism at the Millenium: the Church of Tradition in Transition. Kansas City, MO: Rockhurst University Press, 2001.

“The Influence of Plotinus on Henri Bergson’s Critque of Empirical Science,” in Neoplatonism and Contemporary Philosophy. Editor, R. Baine Harris. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2001.

“An Opportunity for Genuine Educational Reform: Homeschooling,” in Classical Homeschooling. Summer 200, pp. 19-22.

“What Happened to the Catholic University?” in The Common Things: Essays on the Philosophy of Education. Daniel McInerny, editor. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 1999.

Epilogue to The Failure of Modernism. Brendan Sweetman, editor. Washington, D.C." The Catholic University of America Press, 1999.

“Social Construct Theory: Relativism’s Latest Fashion,” in The Failure of Modernism. Brendan Sweetman, editor. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 1999.

“Jacques Maritain, Persistent Opponent of Naturalism,” in The Maritain Notebook. July 1998.

Foreword to Peter Redpath’s Wisdom’s Odyssey From Philosophy to Transcendental Sophistry. New York: Rodopi Press, 1997.

Epilogue to Postmodernism and Christian Philosophy. Roman Ciapalo, editor. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 1996.

“Philosophers in the Mist,” Crisis. March 1996.

“Lessons and Reminders about Natural Law,” Introduction to Freedom, Virtue, and The Common Good. Curtis L. Hancock and Anthony O. Simon, editors. South Bend, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1995.

“The Impossible Dream? Merging Moral Values and Social Science: A Reply to James Q. Wilson’s The Moral Sense,” Crisis. July 1995.

“Maritain’s Three Degrees of Abstraction as a Solution to Boundary and Philosophical Problems within the Psychology of Religion,” with James M. Stedman and John E. Cannell, Contemporary Philosophy, June 1995.

“Cicero versus Machiavelli: Does The End Justify the Means?” in Contemporary Philosophy. December 1994.

“Energeia in Two Selected Treatises of Plotinus’ Enneads: II, 5 (25) and VI, 2 (43): A Reaction to Plato and Aristotle,” in Ancient and Medieval Studies in Honor of Leo Sweeney, S.J. William Carroll and John Furlong, editors. New York: Peter Lang, 1994.

“Negative Theology in Gnosticism and Neoplatonism,” in Gnosticism and Neoplatonism. John Bregman and R. Baine Harris, editors. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 1992.

“Caveat Emptor: In Search of a Good Ethics Instructor,” in Rockhurst Magazine. Summer 1991.

“A Return to the Crossroads: An Assessment of the New Educational Reformers,” in From Twilight to Dawn: The Cultural Vision of Jacques Maritain. Peter Redpath, editor. Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1990.

“Morality and MAchiavelli,” in The Prroceedings of the Fourteenth Annual European Studies Conference. 1989.

“Sport and Education: Partners in Degradation,” in Rockhurst Magainze. Spring 1989.

“Jacques Maritain on Mystical Contemplation,” in Understanding Maritain. Deal Hudson and Matthew Mancini, editors. Atlanta, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 1987.

“Homo Ludens Revisited,” (co-authored with Randolph Feezell) Contemporary Philosophy. 1981.

Reviews

The Catholic Challenge to Progressivism.. At https://www.thepostil.com/the-catholic-challenge-to-progressivism/. For Posil, February 1, 2023.

A Companion to Polish Christian Philosophy of the 20th and 21st Centuries. Edited by Piotr S. Mazur, Piotr Duchlinski, and Pawel Skrzydlewski. For Forum Philosophicum, Fall 2021.

A Political Philosophy of Conservatism. Ferenc Hörcher. For International Philosophical Quarterly, September 2021.

In Search of the Good Life: Through the Eyes of Aristotle, Maimonides, and Aquinas. Corey Miller. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2019. For International Philosophical Quarterly, Spring 2021.

The Other Pascals: The Philosophy of Jacqueline Pascal, Gilberte Pascal Perier, and Marguerite Perior. John Conley. For International Philosophical Quarterly, March 2021.

The Human Person: What Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas Offer Modern Psychology. Thomas L. Spalding, James M. Stedman, Christina L. Gagne, and Matthew Kostelecky. Basel, Switzerland: Springer 2020. For Journal of Mind and Behavior, vol. 41 no. 2, Spring 2020.

Europe: Civilzations Clashing—From Athens to European Union. Piotr Jaroszynski and Lindael Rolstone. Berlin: Peter Lang, 2019. For Fellowship of Catholic Scholars Journal, Summer 2020.

Through a Glass Brightly: Using Science to See Our species as We Really Are. David P. Barash. New York: Oxford University Press, 2018. For International Philosophical Quarterly, January 2019.

Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologiae: A Guide and Commentary." Brian Davies. Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press, 2014. For International Philosophical Quarterly, January 2016.

Aristotle as Teacher: His Introduction to a Philosophic Science. Christopher Bruell. South Bend, Indiana: St. Augustine’s Press, 2014. For The Review of Metaphysics, September, 2015.

Living the Good Life: A Beginner’s Thomistic Ethics. Steven J. Jensen. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2013. For International Philosophical Quarterly, June 2014.

Putting Science in its Place: Geographies of Scientific Knowledge. David N. Livingstone. Chicago, Illinois: The University of Chicago Press, 2013. For The Review of Metaphysics.

The Nature of Scientific Explanation. Jude Dougherty. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2013. For The Review of Metaphysics.

Poetry, Beauty, and Contemplation: The Complete Aesthetics of Jacques Maritain. John G. Trapani. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2011. For International Philosophical Quarterly, December 2012.

Institutions of Education: Then and Today: The Legacy of German Idealism. Leiden: The Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers, 2010. For The Review of Metaphysics, December 2011.

Descartes & Poinsot: The Crossroad of Signs and Ideas. John Deely. Scranton, Pennsylvania: University of Scranton Press, 2009. For The Review of Metaphysics, January 2011.

The Writings of Charles De Koninck. Vol. II. Edited by Ralph McInerny. Notre Dame, Indiana: Notre Dame University Press, 2009. For International Philosophical Quarterly, December, 2010.

Aristotle and the Metaphysics. Vasilis Politis. London and New York: Routledge Philosophy Guidebook, 2004. For International Philosophical Quarterly, December 2008.

Descartes’ Regulae: The Power and Poverty of Method. Glenn Statile. For International Philosophical Quarterly, September 2008.

Praeambula Fidei: Thomism and the God of the Philosophers. Ralph McInerny. For International Philosophical Quarterly, June 2008.

Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault. Stephen R.C. Hicks. For The Review of Metaphysics, Spring 2006.

Anti-Abortionist at Large: How to Argue Intelligently about Abortion and Live to Tell about It. Raymond Dennehy. For Philosophia Christii. Vol. 16, No. 2, 2004.

The Origin of the Human Species. Dennis Bonnette. For The Review of Metaphysics, 2003.

Iris Exiled: A Synoptic History of Wonder. Dennis Quinn. For The Review of Metaphysics, 2003.

The Concept of Moral Obligation. Michael J. Zimmerman. For The Review of Metaphysics, 2000.

Narrative and the Natural Law. Pamela M. Hall. For International Studies in Philosophy, 2000.

Cartesian Nightmare. Peter A. Redpath. For Telos, 2000.

The Political Realism of Reinhold Niebuhr. Colm McKeogh. For Ethics, 1999.

The Measure of Man: Incursions in Philosophical and Political Anthropology. David J. Levy. For International Philosophical Quarterly, 1997.

Foresight and Knowledge. Yves R. Simon. For Crisis, December 1996.

Personal Existence After Death: Reductionist Circularities and the Evidence. Robert J. Geis. For The Review of Metaphysics, 1996.

The Metaphysics of Edmund Burke. Joseph L. Pappin, III. For American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly, 1995.

Philosophers Who Believe. Edited by Kelly James Clark. For International Philosophical Quarterly, 1995.

Plato’s Parmenides. Reginald E. Allen. For The Modern Schoolman, 1988.

Aristotle’s Metaphysics: A New Translation. Montgomery Furth. For The Modern Schoolman, 1988.

Aristotelian Aporetic Ontology in Islamic and Christian Thinkers. Edward Booth, O.P. For The Journal of the History of Philosophy, 1987.

Presentations

“Climate Change in American Schools: Ideology or Science?” Lecture for “Man and State” Conference (Transmitted by Internet), Sponsored by Catholic University of Lublin, Piotr Jaroszynski, Director, Date of Lecture, December 3rd, 2020.

Tribunal Judge of Doctoral Dissertation, Abat Oliba University, Barcelona Spain, June 24, 2019. Judged Doctoral Dissertation of William McVey, titled Soulful Organizational Leadership.

“The Abolition of Man: Artificial Intelligence and the Deconstruction of the Human Person.” Conference on Metaphysics, Ethics, and Cultural Leadership. Sponsored by Peter Redpath and Kelly Fitzsimmons,Paradise Valley Community College, May 4, 2019.

“Myths and Deceptions about Illegal Immigration in America.” Presented at Conference on Global Migrations, Catholic University of Lublin, May 17, 2016.

“Apologetics and the New Atheism.” Presented at Conference titled “Renewing the West: Religion, Atheism, and Common Sense,” at Immaculate Conception Seminary, Huntington (Long Island), New York, June 26, 2015. Conference sponsored by Aquinas Leadership International World Congress and Holy Apostles College and Seminary.

“Truth in Religion: Exclusivism, Pluralism, or Inclusivism?” Presented at Conference titled “Renewing the West: Religion, Atheism, and Common Sense,” at Immaculate Conception Seminary, Huntington (Long Island), NewYork, June 25, 2015. . Conference sponsored by Aquinas Leadership International World Congress and Holy Apostles College and Seminary.

“American’s Traditional Ambivalence about Elites: Observations Inspired by Alexis de Tocqueville,” Presented at Conference, “Elites: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow,” sponsored by Department of Philosophy and Culture, Catholic University of Lublin, Lublin, Poland, May 6, 2015.

“The American Political Experience: America’s First, Second, and Third Republics.” Presented at International Etienne Gilson Society Meeting, April 27, 2013, Lublin, Poland.

“The Need to Reunify Philosophy and Science.” Presented at Session of American Catholic Philosophical Association meeting, session sponsored by the Gilson Society, November 1, 2014.

Woroniecki Lectures: “The American Political Experience: Between Facts and Rhetoric.” Catholic University of Lublin, April 22-17, 2013.

“Homeschooling and the Struggle to Safeguard the Family.” Presented in Plenary Session, International Congress on Education. Catholic University of Lublin, April 24, 2013.

“Why Can’t Poets and Philosophers Get Along: Reflections on an Ancient Quarrel.” Lecture for American Maritain Association. Plenary Session. Philadelphia, October 11, 2012.

“Examples of Successful and Unsuccessful Leadership: A Philosopher’s Search for a Definition,” at Conference titled “Leadership in the Liberal Arts,” West Liberty University, Wheeling, West Virginia, October 22, 2011.

Commentary on Piotr Jaroszynski’s presentation titled “Socialism and the Reversal of Nature,” at Leadership in the Liberal Arts,” West Liberty University, Wheeling, West Virginia, October 21, 2011.

“Illegal Immigration and Its Challenge to American Sovereignty,” to International Congress on Immigration, sponsored by Katholik University Lublin, Lublin, Poland, May 14, 2011.

“George Bush was Right: Jesus was a Philosopher!” Lecture to International Gilson Society, Lublin, Poland, May 13, 2011.

Visiting Scholar’s Lecture: “John Stuart Mill’s The Subjection of Women: A New Interpretation.” St. Thomas Aquinas University, Houston, Texas, March 4, 2011.

Colloquium with Philosophy Department Faculty of St. Thomas Aquinas University,on John Stuart Mill’s The Subjection of Women, Houston, Texas, March 3, 2011.

“Joachim of Fiore: The Hidden Elephant in the Room Called ‘Philosophy of Religion in the Renaissance,” Etienne Gilson Society meeting at American Catholic Philosophical Association conference, Loyola University, Baltimore, Maryland, November 5, 2011.

Lecture on “Rousseau’s Educational Utopianism and Its Influence on American Education.” Conference on “Depersonalization in Society.” Abat Oliba Universidad, Barcelona, Spain. May 14, 2010.

Commentary on Peter Redpath’s paper, “Transcending Depersonalization in Contemporary Science.” Conference on “Depersonalization in Society.” Abat Oliba Universidad. Barcelona, Spain, May 13, 2010.

Lecture titled “Catholic Education and the Struggle for the Soul of Western Culture,”at Loras College, Dubuque, Iowa, November 13, 2009.

Lecture titled “The Education of a Philosopher and the Future of Catholic Education,” at International Gilson Society meeting, Loyola-Maryland University, Baltimore, Maryland, October 3, 2009.

Lecture titled “Why Gilson? Why Now?” at International Gilson Society meeting, John Paul II, Catholic University of Lublin, Lublin, Poland May 21, 2009.

Jadzek Woroniecki Lecturer, Week of May 18-23, John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. Title of Lectures: “Cicero on Friendship.”

Lecture titled “On the Myth of Secular Neutrality,” at Catholic Educational Foundation Symposium, Uniondale, New York, April 16, 2009.

Lecture titled “Lessons from the History of Catholic Education in North America,” at Conference on Education in Torun, Poland. Conference title: “Catholic Education: Problems, Risks, and Rewards,” November 21, 2008.

Lecture titled “Jacques Maritain on the Mystical Semiotics of Plotinus,” at Semiotic Society of America, 33rd Annual Meeting, Houston, Texas, October 17, 2008.

Inaugural Address for Opening of St. John Bosco School, Rochester, New York, August 20, 2008.

Plenary Address: International Gilson Society, Warsaw, Poland, April 18, 2008. Sponsored by Christiana Veritas and Catholic University of Lublin, Poland. Title of Lecture: “Etienne Gilson’s Prescription for Philosophy in the Twenty-First Century.”

Interviewed by Al Cresta on Ave Maria Radio, on “Recovering a Catholic Philosophy of Elementary Education,” February, 2008.

Lecture on the Future of the Catholic University to Members of St. Stanislaus Parish, Chicago, Illinois, December 16, 2007.

Interviewed on Radio Marya International, Torun, Poland, on the Future of the Catholic University, Chicago, Illinois, December 16, 2007.

Lecture to Polish Community of Chicago, Illinois. “The Genius of Catholic Education.” Lecture sponsored by Radio Marya International, Torun, Poland. December 14, 2007.

Conducted (with two other instructors) a two day seminar on Ethics and Leadership for all second year students of the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, August 27-28, 2007.

Lecture titled “What Makes a School Catholic?” for Symposium on Catholic Education, Sponsored by John Paul II Center and Catholic Education Foundation, Washington, D.C., March 23.

Lecture to Carrollton School (founded and administered by Sisters of the Sacred Heart). Keynote speaker to Administration, Faculty, and Staff During Their Day of Professional Reflection, February 16, 2007, Coconut Grove, Florida.

Lecture to Catholic Studies Program at Rockhurst University, January 30, 2007. Lecture on the Catholic Philosophical Tradition in Education.

Plenary Speaker at National Catholic Educational Association meeting (CACE [Chief Administrator’s of Catholic Education session], October 24, 2006, Los Angeles, California.

Panelist discussing Larry Azar’s book, Evolution and Other Fairy Tales, Meeting of the American Maritain Association, October 19, 2006, Nashville, Tennessee.

Lecture titled “Faith and Reason in the Catholic Educational Tradition,” Catholic Education Foundation, October 7, 2006, Rochester, New York.

Lecture titled “Plotinus’ Answer to Central Questions in Classical Ontology,” World Conference of Metaphysics, July 8, 2006, Rome, Italy.

Lecture titled “Postmodern Idols of the Pedagogical Tribe: The Abolition of Education,” World Conference of Metaphysics, July 7, 2006, Rome, Italy.

Presentation to St. Agnes Parish, Fairway, Kansas. “Anti-Catholic Prejudice: Is it Alive and Well in Contemporary America?” February 13, 2006.

Conducted Three-Day Workshop Based on My Book, Recovering a Catholic Philosophy of Elementary Education. For Principals and Superintendents of Catholic Schools of the Archdiocese of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, February, 10-12, 2006.

Conducted a Two Hour Discussion on The Essentials of Catholic Education, at Total Education Conference, Archdiocese of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, October 21, 2005.

Lecture titled “Recovering A Catholic Philosophy of Education” at Annual Meeting of American Maritain Association, October 15, 2005, The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.

Respondent to Brendan Sweetman’s Article, “To Be a Christian Politician in theContemporary World,” The Catholic University of Lublin, Lublin, Poland. Conference on “Man and the State,” April 27, 2005.

Lecture titled “Philosophy and the Struggle for the Soul of Western
Culture,” to Seminar on the Philosophy of Law, The Catholic University of Lublin, Lublin, Poland. April 26, 2005.

Sponsored Panel (as President of Gilson Society) at Annual Meeting of the American Catholic Philosophical Association, on John Deely’s Four Ages of Understanding, Chicago, Illinois, November 4, 2004.

Lecture titled, “John Deely: Exemplary Historian,” a commentary on John Deely’s Four Ages of Understanding, Chicago, Illinois, Meeting of the American Maritain Association, November 4, 2004.

Panel Respondent at Annual Meeting of the American Maritain Association, on Piotr Jaroszynski’s Ethics: The Drama of the Moral Life, Atlanta, Georgia, October 22, 2004.

Three Day Workshop with Elementary Teachers of St. Vincent De Paul School, Hanover, Pennsylvania. Subject: my manuscript, Recovering a Catholic Philosophy of Elementary Education. Assisted in conducting the workshop by Peter A. Redpath, St. John’s University. August 16-18, 2004.

Biographical Lecture on “St. Thomas Aquinas: the Man Behind the Caricatures.”For Thomas More Center (the Catholic Studies Program of Rockhurst University), March 22, 2004.

Conducted Discussion of “Return to the Classics” (Great Books Program) at Rockhurst College. Subject: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. March 16, 2004.

Lecture on Just War and the Catholic Tradition. With William Kendall. Curé of Ars Parish, Leawood, Kansas, February 9, 2003.

Ascension Parish, Overland Park, Kansas. Three Hour Question-and-Answer Session called “Theology on Tap.” Panelist with Fr. Mark Goldasich, Fr. Phillip Kendall, Sr. Diane Steele. September 20, 2002.

Discussion on The Case of Ockham’s Razor (with Charles Kovich) with “Partners in Crime” (the Mystery Club of Kansas City) at Borders Bookstore, 91st and Metcalf, Overland Park, Kansas, August 14, 2002.

Lecture titled “The Wisdom of Fides et Ratio: Faith and Reason in Harmony,” at Conference on the Ideal of a University. Sponsored by Great Books Academy and Angelicum, Seattle, Washington, July 20, 2002.

Lecture titled “Philosophy and the Essentials of Culture and Civilization.” April 25, 2002. Thomas More Center, Rockhurst University.

Lecture titled “Jacques Maritain: Friend of the Americas,” delivered to the French Academy of Kansas City, November 12, 2001.

President’s Address: “Wisdom Deferred: The Effects of Anti-Realism and Naturalism on the Philosopher’s Task.” Annual Meeting of the American Maritain Association, Boca Raton, Florida, October 19, 2001.

Member of Panel (with Fr. Wilfred LaCroix) discussing “the Just War Tradition”Rockhurst College, October 4, 2001.

Interviewed (with Fr. Wilfred LaCroix) for one hour on the Mike Murphy Show, KCMO Radio, Kansas City, September 27, 2001.

Lecture titled “A Philosopher Examines Naturalism,” delivered at conference titled “Darwin, Democracy, and Design,” Kansas City, Missouri, June 30, 2001.

Lecture titled “Philosophers Stoned: How the Draft of Modernist Skepticism has Impaired the Educators’ Judgment,” delivered at the University of Kansas, Classical Homeschooling Conference, June 1, 2001.

Conducted Seminar on John Locke’s The Second Treatise on Government, as Session of my Continuing Great Books Program, “Return to the Classics,” sponsored jointly by Rockhurst’s Alumni Office and the Center for Arts and Letters, March 14, 2001.

Interviewed by The Leaven, the Archdiocesan Newspaper of Kansas City in Kansas, about my Mystery Novel, The Case of Ockham’s Razor. Co-authored with Charles M. Kovich. Article appeared April 6, 2001.

Lecture titled “Saint Thomas Aquinas: The Man Behind The Caricature,” delivered to “Catholic Biographies Series,” sponsored by The Thomas More Center for Catholic Studies at Rockhurst College, February 15, 2001.

Interviewed by Kansas City Star about my Mystery Novel, The Case of Ockham’s Razor. Co-authored with Charles M. Kovich. Article appeared February 10, 2001.

Interviewed on NPR (Seattle Affiliate) on the Ethics of Lying: A Reply to Michael Lewis, Co-Editor of Lying and Deception, December 8, 2000.

Interviewed on KCUR about my Mystery Novel, The Case of Ockham’s Razor. Co-Authored with Charles M. Kovich. November 10, 2000.

Conducted Seminar on Friedrich Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil, as a Session of Continuing Great Books Program, “Return to the Classics,” sponsored jointly by Rockhurst’s Alumni Office and the Center for Arts and Letters, November 14, 2000.

Banquet Address as President of American Maritain Association, “Philosophical Lessons from Oklahoma and Notre Dame Football,” University of Notre Dame, October 21, 2000.

Panel Participant, at session of American Maritain Association, University of Notre Dame, in Discussion with James Marsden, on his book, The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship, Notre Dame, October 23, 2000.

Presented Lecture to Executive Committee of Intelligent Design Network on “Darwinism and Naturalism,” Kansas City, Missouri, August 12, 2000.

Presented Lecture at Conference Sponsored by Intelligent Design NetworkConference title: Darwin, Design & Democracy. Lecture: “Naturalism: An Assessment.” Rockhurst High School, Kansas City, Missouri, July 15, 2000.

Organized Reading Seminar for American Maritain Association, May 25-27, Rockhurst University. Seminar examined Maritain’s The Peasant of the Garonne. Seminar led by Dr. John Trapani of Walsh University.

Conducted Seminar (with Joseph Cirincione of the Department of English of Rockhurst University). My “Return to the Classics” Program, Sponsored by Rockhurst University’s Alumni Office and the Center for Arts and Letters on Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, March 16, 2000.

Presented Lecture as Visiting Scholar at Wheeling Jesuit University, Wheeling, West Virginia, titled “Education for the Whole Person: The Promise and Power of Catholic Education for the 21st Century,” February 7, 2000.

Conducted Seminar Sponsored by Rockhurst University’s Alumni Office and the Center for Arts and Letters on Cardinal Newman’s The Idea of A University, November 9, 2000.

Conducted Seminar on “Pedagogy and Philosophical Reading.” Sponsored by American Maritain Association. Conducted May 17-19 at Rockhurst University. Dr. Peter Redpath, St. John’s University, led the Seminar.

Conducted Seminar on Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics. Sponsored by Rockhurst’s Alumni Office and the Center for Arts and Letters, March 16, 1999.

Panelist (with Michael Novak, Paul Sigmund, Francis Slade, and Peter Redpath) discussing “Ethics, Theology, and Catholic Social Teaching,” at St. Francis College, Brooklyn, New York, November 5, 1998.

Conducted Seminar (“Return to the Classics”) Sponsored by Rockhurst College’s Alumni Office and the Center for Arts and Letters on “The Last Days of Socrates,” a discussion of the Euthyphro, Apology, and Crito, October 27, 1998.

Presented Paper titled “Social Construct Theory: Relativism’s Latest Fashion,” at annual meeting of the American Maritain Association, Colorado Springs, Colorado, October 2, 1998.

Conducted Seminar (“Return to the Classics”) Sponsored by Rockhurst College’s Alumni Office on Alexis De Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, March, 1998.

Presented lecture to Kansas City’s Professional Insurance Association, February17, 1998. Lecture titled “Ethics for Everyday Heroes.”

Moderated Panel at National Association of Scholars Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, December 13, 1997, in response to Peter Redpath’s presentation on “Cartesianism and Modern Education.”

Conducted Seminar Sponsored by Rockhurst College’s Alumni Office for City Community on Machiavelli’s The Prince, November 18, 1997, as Coordinator and Lecturer of Great Books Program, “Return to the Classics,” Rockhurst College.

Banquet Address and Conference Chair as President of American Maritain Association, Boston College, Boston, Massachusetts, October 23-26, 1997.

Invited Participant in Seminar on Democracy and Technology Sponsored by The Liberty Fund, Savannah, Georgia, October 2-5, 1997.

Conducted discussion on the Christian Philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas at St. Raphael the Archangel Church, Kansas City, Missouri, February 20, 1997.

Presented paper “On the Supposed Conflict Between Religion and Science: Overcoming a Common Confusion” at Kansas City Area Philosophical Association, Rockhurst College, November 16, 1996.

Banquet Address as President of American Maritain Association, titled “The Educated Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste,” Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, November, 1996.

Presented paper (with Brendan Sweetman) entitled “Physician Assisted Suicide:A Consideration of the Case Against It,” at annual meeting of the Midwest Society of Social and Political Philosophy, sponsored by Rockhurst College, April 19, 1996.

Interviewed for one hour on artificial intelligence and animal intelligence WYLL radio, Chicago, Illinois, March 22, 1996.

Presented paper entitled “What Happened to the Catholic University?” at annual conference of the American Maritain Association, Charleston College, Charleston, South Carolina, December 1, 1995.

Presented paper entitled “Explaining Irony in Plato: Socrates versus the Sophists,”at annual meeting of Institute of Advanced Philosophical Research, Estes Park, Colorado, August 17, 1995.

Paper titled “The Influence of Plotinus on Henri Bergson’s Critique of Empirical Science” read (in absentia) at International Society for Neoplatonic Studies conference, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, May 25, 1995.

Chaired session of American Maritain Association conference, New York University, November 11, 1994. Presented three lectures as Visiting Scholar at the University of South Carolina-Lancaster, October 24-27, 1995. Lectures included a discussion on ethics for University 101 class (hosted by John Gardner); a paper titled “Cicero and Machiavelli at the Nuremberg Trials,” initiating a community-wide evening discussion on ethics and politics; and a faculty workshop on relativism and skepticism in contemporary education.

Presented paper titled “Cicero and Machiavelli at the Nuremberg Trials” at annual meeting of Institute of Advanced Philosophical Research, Estes Park, Colorado, August 18, 1994.

Presented lecture as Visiting Scholar at Loras College, Dubuque, Iowa Presentation as part of their “Contemporary Issues in Philosophy” lecture series. Topic of lecture: “Talking to the Animals: Did Doctor Doolittle Get It Wrong?” April 7, 1994.

Conducted Seminar on “Machiavelli in Management” for Executive Fellows Program, Rockhurst College, March 5, 1994.

Chaired Session of American Maritain Association meeting at University of Dallas, November, 9, 1993.

Taught five-day seminar on “Ethics in Management” for Columbia Gas Corporation, Charleston, West Virginia, May 17-21, 1993.

Sponsored and organized annual conference of American Maritain Association, November 7-10, 1992. November 8 sessions held at Rockhurst, Massman Gallery. All other sessions held at Hyatt Regency Hotel, Crown Center.

Consulted with Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock regarding the formation of a Center for Ethics and Public Policy, June, 1992.

Luncheon address to Serra Club on the difference between theological and philosophical morality, March, 1992.

Interviewed by Kansas City Star on ethics and book How Should I Live? Interview appeared in Star Magazine, November 24, 1991.

Presented paper titled “The Case for Moderate Anthropocentrism: A Reply to Darwin and Callicott” at Environmental Ethics Conference, University of Arkansas-Little Rock, April, 1991.

Conducted three-day seminar on Ethics in Public Life at Rockhurst College, March, 1991, sponsored by Office of Continuing Education.

Conducted three successive public lectures on ethics for Platte City United Methodist Church, three successive Sundays, March, 1991.

Conducted seminar on Aquinas for Honors Convocation, Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska, January, 1991.

Invited respondent to papers on Aquinas and Philoponous at American Catholic Philosophical Association conference, Toronto, 1989.

Chaired session on “Neoplatonism: Its Nature and Origins” at International Congress of Medieval Studies, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, May, 1988.

Presented paper titled “Socrates as Theocrat” at Midwestern Society for Social and Political Philosophy, Kansas City, Missouri, April, 1988.

Chaired session on “The Nineteenth-Century Influences on Maritain’s Thought” at American Maritain Conference, Montreal, October, 1987.

Presented paper titled “Act and Potency in the Philosophy of Plotinus” at International Congress of Medieval Studies, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, May, 1987.

Invited respondent at session on “The Political Philosophy of Jacques Maritain” at American Maritain Association conference, St. Thomas University, Houston, Texas, October, 1986.

Presented paper titled “Negative Theology in Gnosticism and Neoplatonism” at Society of Christian Philosophers meeting, Loras College, Dubuque, Iowa, October, 1985.

Presented paper titled “Act and Potency in Plotinus’ Later Enneads” at meeting of International Society of Neoplatonic Studies, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, April, 1985.

Presented paper titled “Negative Theology in Gnosticism and Neoplatonism” at International Conference on Hellenistic Studies, sponsored by Department of Classics, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, 1984.

Some Record of Service

Senior Fellow Adler-Aquinas Institute
Board Member Catholic Education Foundation, Rochester, New York
Director Angelicum Academy
Director Great Books Discussions
President of the Etienne Gilson Society
Scientific Council Member for Studia Gilsoniana
Rockhurst Liaison to Research Hospital School of Nursing, the Nursing College of Rockhurst University, 2011-present
External Reviewer for Baker University’s Philosophy Department, Spring 2014.
Member: Committee Deciding Sabbaticals and Presidential Grants, Rockhurst University, 2005-2010.
Member: Advisor to Moderator of Student Newspaper, The Sentinel, Rockhurst University, 2005-2008.
Committee for Honors Students, 2008-2010.
Coordinator of “Return to the Classics,” a Program for Reading Great Books. Program sponsered by Alumni Office and Center for Arts and Letters. Rockhurst College, 1996-2004.
Member of Rank and Tenure Committee, 1999-2002.
Member of Search Committee for Spanish Position in Foreign Language Department. Rockhurst University, 2000-2001.
President of the American Maritain Association, 1997-2001.
Conference Chair of Annual Meetings at Graduate Theological Union, 1999; at Air Force Academy, 1998; at Boston College, 1997; at Arizona Sate University, 1996; at Kansas City, 1992.
Member of Faculty Review Committee for Grievances regarding Rank or Tenure, 1997.
Executive Committee, American Maritain Association, 1994-2001.
Moderator of Rockhurst Chapter of Phi Sigma Tau, Honorary Philosophy Society, 1995-1998.
Member of Implementation Committee Reporting to Curriculum Committee, 1995-1998.
Chair, Department of Philosophy, Rockhurst College, 1991-1994.
Member of Rank and Tenure Committee, 1992-1994.