From the Director

Since its revitalization three years ago, the Gerber Institute has engaged in a variety of programming initiatives to fulfill its mission of “promoting interdisciplinary dialogue exploring Catholic thought and practice in the diverse realms of educational, philosophical, political, social, and cultural life.” Our aim has been to foster the sort of discourse that is, we feel, most proper to a Catholic institution of higher learning: rigorous without being rigid, respectful without being uncritical, and inclusive in both the ecumenical and the interdisciplinary senses of the word.

In particular, we are committed to dialogue that actively seeks to reconcile differences. This does not mean abandoning principles or softening commitments. But too much of what passes for dialogue today is in reality a polite form of shouting that only reinforces what divides us. Genuine dialogue, by contrast, is built on the discipline of listening to the other; is unifying, not divisive; and is, we believe, fundamentally transformative for those who genuinely participate in it.

In launching a journal conceived as a forum for academic and creative work that advances the tradition of dialogical inquiry into the true, the beautiful, and the good, we are simply pursuing our mission into the realms of the written word and the printed page. Let souls encounter souls within these pages, that something transcendent may come forth!

—Jamey Findling, Director, Gerber Institute