Younger than Sin

The Center for Ethics and Culture at Notre Dame is calling for papers for their fall conference "Younger than Sin" (November 18th-20th). A few Tractarians are considering submitting something. The theme is all about Retrieving Simplicity through the Virtues of Humility, Wonder, and Joy. Possible paper topics are:

 Education and the cultivation of the simple mind
 Cultivating a sense of wonder
 An addiction to self-distraction—Web-surfing, infinite playlists, and the pursuit of novelty ―on demand‖
 E.F. Schumacher and distributivism—small is beautiful
 Subsidiarity and the role of small, mediating institutions in a flourishing society
 The clear sight of truth—the complexity of simplicity in the arts
 The role of wonder and beauty in the sciences
 The modern emphasis on youth
 The beauty of simplicity
 The virtue of smallness
 Contraception and abortion—the rejection of children
 Childishness v. childlikeness
 The simplicity of the Liturgy
 Advent and Christmas mediations on childhood
 Herod and the Massacre of the Innocents
 Awakening us to the sacred: what children teach us about God
 St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Doctor of the Church, and her ―little Way‖
 The Christ-child—The Word has made Himself small
 Reflections on dependence, vulnerability and trust
 Reflections on the adage, ―wise as serpents and innocent as doves‖
 Reflections on wonder, whimsy, and spontaneity
 ―Divine play‖ and ―divine order‖ in Christianity and Eastern religions
 Analysis of legal protections for the vulnerable and the innocent
 The virtue of humility in politics and business
 Humility and humor
 Mediations on the virtue of hilaritas
 Exploration of the theme of childlikeness in the work of:
o St. Therese of Lisieux
o George Bernanos
o Charles Peguy
o Hans Urs von Balthasar
o G.K. Chesterton
o C.S. Lewis
o Hans Christian Anderson
o John Paul II

A couple ideas we are having are papers on Music and Wonder, Naivete, and Obedience in Catholic Universities.

Hopefully if we end up giving papers, we'll be able to enter the arena with our ideas and will have an easier time writing and spreading the Truth.