Religious Experiences

Call for Papers: Graduate Conference on Religious Experiences

Keynote Speaker: Dolores Morris

The Philosophy Graduate Student Organization of the University of South Tampa invites submissions to our annual graduate conference. The conference will be held at the University of South Florida Tampa on April 13, 2024. The theme of this year’s conference is religious experiences. Some questions that will be discussed include: When is a religious experience warranted? Are religious experiences trustworthy? Can experiencing the death of a loved one be a part of religious experiences? Can science explain religious knowledge? What do believers and non-believers of various stripes say about religious experiences? Do religious experiences inevitably lead to mysticism? Is it sufficient to explain them as psychological or neurophysiological phenomena? In what ways does the philosophy of religion explain religious experiences?

Papers may adopt various perspectives, such as critical, descriptive, theoretical, comparative, historical, phenomenological, etc., concerning religious experiences. In addition, papers can explore the interaction between the philosophy of religion and religious experiences, religious or spiritual experiences--their diverse theoretical frameworks--or they can develop new theories based on these experiences.

Please send the abstract anonymized for blind review by February 8, 2024. In addition, send a separate document stating your name, affiliation, and title of your paper. Email all documents to [email protected] and [email protected]. Abstract acceptances will be announced in the first week of March.

Submissions from undergraduates will also be considered, for whom a parallel session will be planned. 

Prizes to be awarded for the best conference papers, with a $350 prize for the best graduate paper and another prize of $250 for the best undergraduate paper.

Full papers need to be submitted to [email protected] and diamond[email protected] by March 31 in order to be considered for the prize.