Join us!

In collaboration with the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, Prof. Ryan McDermott will address common questions surrounding the Gospels in this final seminar of the semester.

Did Jesus even exist? Why are there four Gospels? Why do they disagree on details? Can we trust the writers’ memories? What about the Gnostic Gospels? We will discuss a brief reading (found here) by New Testament scholar Richard Bauckham that addresses these and other questions.

This event is open to all undergraduate students in the Pittsburgh area. RSVP not required.

RSVP HERE

Our All Fellows Seminar serves as the final seminar for all cohorts (taking the place of any seminars previously scheduled from December 2nd through the 10th) This is an opportunity for all of our fellows to come together to celebrate our work this fall.

It’s a basic axiom of Christianity that we wouldn’t have knowledge of God’s plan for salvation without the Bible. The Apostle Paul said that “all Scripture is God-breathed” (2 Tim. 3:16). But Peter acknowledged that humans collaborated in the writing of the Bible (2 Peter 1:21). The tools of modern scholarship have opened windows onto the human element of the Bible’s composition and, as with all things human, there is a lot of evidence of screwiness. Manuscripts got lost or corrupted. The Bible is rife with contradictions of fact. From a modern scientific and historical outlook, the Bible seems supremely unreliable. How could such a mess of a book be the Word of God?

In this talk, Prof. Ryan McDermott (Pitt, English) examines what Christians claim and don’t claim about the Bible’s reliability as history. He will compare different Christian understandings of how humans collaborated with God to compose the Bible and will draw on recent research in anthropology, oral history, literary studies, and classical history writing to contrast the Bible’s claims to truth with modern standards of history and science. Prof. McDermott argues that in the 21st century, we often need a conversion of mind in order to be able to trust the Bible. 

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Students will attend a showcase of Christmas music from the Heinz Chapel Choir. This performance is a part of the University of Pittsburgh’s holiday concert series for 2024.

Doors will open to at 4:45pm (30 minutes prior to the concert start time).

Click here to check out more Heinz Chapel Choir events.

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Join us for a viewing of the new Angel Studios movie on Dietrich Bonhoeffer!

If interested in a late night discussion and debrief on the topics examined in this film, stick around at First Trinity after the showing for free pizza and good conversation led by Pastor Eric Andrae, a published scholar on Bonhoeffer!

Movie Description: As the world teeters on the brink of annihilation, Dietrich Bonhoeffer is swept into the epicenter of a deadly plot to assassinate Hitler. With his faith and fate at stake, Bonhoeffer must choose between upholding his moral convictions or risking it all to save millions of Jews from genocide. Will his shift from preaching peace to plotting murder alter the course of history or cost him everything?

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Old Economy Village was the home of a communal Christian society formed by a group of German Lutheran separatists in 1824. In an age rife with utopias attempting to establish themselves in the newly-founded United States, the Harmonists were among the most successful, lasting for about eighty industrious years before dwindling membership and financial stressors caused the village's closure. Today, the Old Economy Village site offers insights into both the daily lives of community members and the larger ideals that drew them there.

The schedule for our day is as follows:

11:30 - Carpool departs from the parking lot of Central Catholic High School

12-1 - Lunch at the Village

1-3 - Tour

3:30-4 - Return

Admission, carpool, and lunch will be provided.

RSVP HERE

This is a free event; RSVP requested but not required. Through the link above, you will have the option to purchase a ticket for a pre-event reception at Soldiers & Sailors.

Is the work of the composer and musician a distinctively human act? For all of human history until only recently the answer was an obvious yes. But as we find ourselves in a brave new world of machine learning and artificial intelligence, many no longer see art as so specifically human. In the era of AI, can we still speak of art as essentially human? 

Who better to address these questions than Maestro Manfred Honeck, now in his 17th season as Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and known the world over for his acclaimed performances and Grammy-winning recordings. 

Maestro Honeck will explore the richness of the creative process. What does the composer bring to the creation of a new musical work? What is the role of the composer’s imagination? The composer’s musical and cultural context? What about the performing musician, and the conductor in particular? How do they approach a musical score? How does their knowledge of the composer’s life and intentions shape their interpretation of the music they perform? 

No prior knowledge of classical music is required for this evening. Maestro Honeck will make these themes come alive in speech and sound. To highlight the various dimensions of the musical works and to showcase the creativity involved in the performing musician, he will play excerpts from several recordings of the same works of music. 

After his lecture, Maestro Honeck will be joined by John Henry Crosby for a one-on-one interview, then followed by a time of Q&A for audience members.

The International Poetry Forum, a Pittsburgh-based arts nonprofit, is hosting their first event in 15 years: a poetry reading by Samuel Hazo, one of today’s finest Catholic poets and the Forum’s founder. Learn more about Sam Hazo here.

The event is free, but tickets are required. Be sure to both reserve your ticket here, and RSVP with BI.

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Kick off the start of the fall semester with us as we welcome back old students, onboard new ones, and enjoy time with faculty, parents, and members of the Pittsburgh community.

For Fellows, we will be having a brief orientation from 5-5:30 pm, where we’ll be distributing important information, materials for the semester, and t-shirts! Please attend if you are able.

RSVP Here

What’s the Difference? Being a Christian in College

What does flourishing look like in college? Can faith be intellectual? How do you excel in a secular course of study and grow in the knowledge of your faith? And is it even possible to change the world?

Beatrice Institute invites undergrads to join faculty and alumni for a day of good food, fun, and conversation - including an afternoon museum excursion guided by faculty.

Breakfast, lunch, and museum admission are on us!

schedule

8:30 AM Breakfast

9:00 AM Faculty Presentation | “Can I Really Change the World?” | Dr. David Sanchez (Engineering, University of Pittsburgh)

10:00 AM Mixer Activity

10:30 AM Faculty Panel and Q&A | “How to be a Christian Professional”

• Dr. Ryan McDermott (English, University of Pittsburgh; Beatrice Institute Founder)

• Dr. Larry Heimann (Information Systems, Carnegie Mellon University)

• Dr. Irene Mena (Engineering, University of Pittsburgh)

• Kristin Gottron (Data Architect, Beatrice Institute Faculty Fellow)

11:30 AM Lunch & Upperclassmen/Alumni Panel | “What I Wish I Had Known”

1:00 PM Faculty Guided Museum Tour

• Dr. Seth Strickland (Writing & Communication, Carnegie Mellon University)

• Dr. Allyson Creasman (History, Carnegie Mellon University)

• Dr. Elise Ryan (English, University of Pittsburgh)

RSVP Here!

Please join us for an end-of-semester celebration of our graduating seniors! This is one of Beatrice Institute's signature events: an undergraduate colloquium spotlighting our graduating seniors that brings together our community in celebration of what these students have accomplished. Come hear what our Christian Studies Fellows have been working on this year: short stories, poetry, essays and provocations, meditations and musings. Following the presentations and Q&A, we will have dinner and toast our graduating fellows. This is a celebration you don't want to miss!

Presentations will happen on the 5th floor of the Cathedral of Learning with a dinner reception to follow at Aria Persian Cuisine & Turkish Grille (272 Melwood Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15213)

RESERVE YOUR TICKETS

Beatrice Institute’s Spring Salon asks the question: What constitutes human thriving, and how would these general prescriptions apply to those without the security of basic needs?

When many of us consider the homeless community here in Pittsburgh, very often we are led to think of a monolithic problem. Although we might recognize upon reflection that many of those who live on the streets are there for different, nuanced, complex, individuated reasons, our approach to the question can become uniform and directed at survival: shelter, food, clothing, warmth, medicine, etc. Very seldom are we encouraged to think about the needs of those living on the streets as needs of thriving not simply surviving.

Four panelists — representing different mediums, fields, traditions, and historical epochs — will investigate these questions and discuss what thriving on the streets looks like and how it is possible.

We will meet in the John Knox Room at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary.

Tickets are $15 until April 5th, after which they will be $20. Food and wine provided!

If you are interested in the inspiration for this salon, read presenter Brent Robbins' piece in the Post Gazette from 2022. 

Registration Full

Join Beatrice Institute in attending the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s performance of Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Piano Concerto. More information here.

We will gather for a lecture before the performance.

This year marks the 750th anniversary of Dante's first encounter with the flesh and blood Beatrice who would become la donna gloriosa of Dante's mind. In the chivalric mode, Dante fell in love with Beatrice at the age of nine, and throughout his life and career, he would revisit the importance of this encounter. Beatrice dies at a young age, and Dante makes her his guide through Paradise in his masterwork, The Divine Comedy. Of course, Beatrice's role in The Divine Comedy inspires our own Beatrice Institute.

To commemorate this anniversary, we are reading the entirety of The Divine Comedy in a year. The goal is to take a slow, ruminating walkthrough of this text — often hailed as the greatest work of imagination in the Western world — and to come to terms with Dante's grand synthesis of the cosmos and the human heart. Reading only six cantos every two weeks, we will aim to finish Inferno and half of Purgatorio this semester and the other half of Purgatorio and Paradiso in the Fall Semester.

We will meet in person every other Wednesday at 10:30 am. Books will be provided.

RSVP HERE

Dr. DeMasi will be leading fellows on a tour through the "Rembrant, Vermeer, and Monet" exhibition at the Frick Art Museum, exploring the question, “Why the Fine Arts are Essential to the Good Life?”

This is technically an HGL seminar but will be open to any fellow interested (and can count as a seminar make-up!)

This year marks the 750th anniversary of Dante's first encounter with the flesh and blood Beatrice who would become la donna gloriosa of Dante's mind. In the chivalric mode, Dante fell in love with Beatrice at the age of nine, and throughout his life and career, he would revisit the importance of this encounter. Beatrice dies at a young age, and Dante makes her his guide through Paradise in his masterwork, The Divine Comedy. Of course, Beatrice's role in The Divine Comedy inspires our own Beatrice Institute.

To commemorate this anniversary, we are reading the entirety of The Divine Comedy in a year. The goal is to take a slow, ruminating walkthrough of this text — often hailed as the greatest work of imagination in the Western world — and to come to terms with Dante's grand synthesis of the cosmos and the human heart. Reading only six cantos every two weeks, we will aim to finish Inferno and half of Purgatorio this semester and the other half of Purgatorio and Paradiso in the Fall Semester.

We will meet in person every other Wednesday at 10:30 am. Books will be provided.

This year marks the 750th anniversary of Dante's first encounter with the flesh and blood Beatrice who would become la donna gloriosa of Dante's mind. In the chivalric mode, Dante fell in love with Beatrice at the age of nine, and throughout his life and career, he would revisit the importance of this encounter. Beatrice dies at a young age, and Dante makes her his guide through Paradise in his masterwork, The Divine Comedy. Of course, Beatrice's role in The Divine Comedy inspires our own Beatrice Institute.

To commemorate this anniversary, we are reading the entirety of The Divine Comedy in a year. The goal is to take a slow, ruminating walkthrough of this text — often hailed as the greatest work of imagination in the Western world — and to come to terms with Dante's grand synthesis of the cosmos and the human heart. Reading only six cantos every two weeks, we will aim to finish Inferno and half of Purgatorio this semester and the other half of Purgatorio and Paradiso in the Fall Semester.

We will meet in person every other Wednesday at 10:30 am. Books will be provided.

This year marks the 750th anniversary of Dante's first encounter with the flesh and blood Beatrice who would become la donna gloriosa of Dante's mind. In the chivalric mode, Dante fell in love with Beatrice at the age of nine, and throughout his life and career, he would revisit the importance of this encounter. Beatrice dies at a young age, and Dante makes her his guide through Paradise in his masterwork, The Divine Comedy. Of course, Beatrice's role in The Divine Comedy inspires our own Beatrice Institute.

To commemorate this anniversary, we are reading the entirety of The Divine Comedy in a year. The goal is to take a slow, ruminating walkthrough of this text — often hailed as the greatest work of imagination in the Western world — and to come to terms with Dante's grand synthesis of the cosmos and the human heart. Reading only six cantos every two weeks, we will aim to finish Inferno and half of Purgatorio this semester and the other half of Purgatorio and Paradiso in the Fall Semester.

We will meet in person every other Wednesday at 10:30 am. Books will be provided.

RSVP Here

Join us for an afternoon of conversation and local food at the beautiful Garfield Community Farm in the Garfield Neighborhood of Pittsburgh. We'll be discussing the intersection between Christian theology, foodways and food distribution, and Christian hospitality. The meal will include small bites and locally made sourdough crust pizza from the kitchen at Spirit Lodge, prepared on the farm's wood-fired oven.

This will be a low key, informal gathering. Please wear comfortable clothes so that you can participate in a farm tour that will be part of the Miller Youth Institute at Pittsburgh Seminary's presentation and information session on its annual Summer Fellowship for Undergraduates Program.

This year marks the 750th anniversary of Dante's first encounter with the flesh and blood Beatrice who would become la donna gloriosa of Dante's mind. In the chivalric mode, Dante fell in love with Beatrice at the age of nine, and throughout his life and career, he would revisit the importance of this encounter. Beatrice dies at a young age, and Dante makes her his guide through Paradise in his masterwork, The Divine Comedy. Of course, Beatrice's role in The Divine Comedy inspires our own Beatrice Institute.

To commemorate this anniversary, we are reading the entirety of The Divine Comedy in a year. The goal is to take a slow, ruminating walkthrough of this text — often hailed as the greatest work of imagination in the Western world — and to come to terms with Dante's grand synthesis of the cosmos and the human heart. Reading only six cantos every two weeks, we will aim to finish Inferno and half of Purgatorio this semester and the other half of Purgatorio and Paradiso in the Fall Semester.

We will meet in person every other Wednesday at 10:30 am. Books will be provided.

This year marks the 750th anniversary of Dante's first encounter with the flesh and blood Beatrice who would become la donna gloriosa of Dante's mind. In the chivalric mode, Dante fell in love with Beatrice at the age of nine, and throughout his life and career, he would revisit the importance of this encounter. Beatrice dies at a young age, and Dante makes her his guide through Paradise in his masterwork, The Divine Comedy. Of course, Beatrice's role in The Divine Comedy inspires our own Beatrice Institute.

To commemorate this anniversary, we are reading the entirety of The Divine Comedy in a year. The goal is to take a slow, ruminating walkthrough of this text — often hailed as the greatest work of imagination in the Western world — and to come to terms with Dante's grand synthesis of the cosmos and the human heart. Reading only six cantos every two weeks, we will aim to finish Inferno and half of Purgatorio this semester and the other half of Purgatorio and Paradiso in the Fall Semester.

We will meet in person every other Wednesday at 10:30 am. Books will be provided.