How Should We Live?
“How should we live?” is a question that lies at the core of human identity. Its ever-elusive answer has been pursued, examined and fought over throughout various traditions for millennia. The Great Conversation explores the most serious answers put forward through a weekly reading group covering a rich variety of foundational Western texts. This semester, we will explore a period of reform and enlightenment, including writers such as Martin Luther, Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Shakespeare, and Francis Bacon.
If you are able, there is a suggested donation to help with book production costs.
Volume III: Reform and Enlightenment
Syllabus
Introduction
Week 1:
Martin Luther: Freedom of a Christian
Week 2:
Desiderius Erasmus: The Sileni of Alcibiades
Week 3:
Francis Bacon: The New Atlantis
Week 4:
William Shakespeare: The Tempest
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11
Week 12
Convener of The Great Conversation: Dr. J. David Franks
J. David Franks received his Ph.D. in systematic theology from Boston College, and was professor of sacred theology for almost a decade at St. John’s Seminary, where he co-founded the Theological Institute for the New Evangelization.
He speaks monthly at the Thursday Men’s Breakfast, an ecumenical Union Club event, and teaches at Boston Trinity Academy, where he is the director of the Trinity Institute for Leadership and Social Justice. He has led the Great Conversation for four years.
