Patience in Adversity Summer Seminar

This seminar aims to equip doctoral students and early career scholars in philosophy and religion to explore patience in adversity. We hope participants will emerge ready to contribute to the growing research on patience as it relates to courage, anger, self-control, awe, as well as how virtues interact with personal and structural hardship.

The seminar will cover cutting-edge research in philosophy and religion and will feature senior scholars who will present their own work and advise students on their writing projects in this general area. Participants will benefit from mentoring and engagement with their own research during daily sessions.

Together, we will consider questions such as:

• What are viable conceptions of patience?
• How is patience related to other moral psychological phenomena, like peace, self-control, moral anger, courage? How might it shape or be developed by patterns of attention?
• What social and cultural practices impact the experience and expression of patience?
• Do different theologically or culturally embedded ideas of time change the experience of patience or its value?
• Does patience have special political value in certain societies, such as religiously plural societies? What other virtues might have to be operative for patience to have that value?
• How does a patient person properly relate to feelings of anger and sorrow in adversity?

Logistics and Funding: Seminar main meetings will convene each day and involve discussion of invited scholars’ work, breakout sessions, and small group mentoring workshops. Seminar participants will receive a $5,000 honorarium for their participation and time. All payments will be made in US dollars.Cost of travel and lodging for award recipients is expected to be covered by the individuals themselves.

Application Deadline: January 9, 2026.

Application Instructions: Applicants must submit the following materials at this link (https://baylor.app.box.com/f/e71a529d377840e896baddc6ed936914) using the document names indicated below each document description:

1) Letter of application of no more than 1 page explaining: what topics regarding patience interest you; connection of these topics with your previous or ongoing research; how research you do or plan to do impacts populations facing adversity; level of familiarity with moral psychology and virtue ethics generally.

Name Document: [Your Last Name, Your First Name] – Letter of Application

2) A 250-word statement describing the scholar’s capacity for successful collaboration with scholars from diverse disciplines and backgrounds (psychology, religion, philosophy).

Name Document: [Your Last Name, Your First Name] - Collaboration Statement

3) Curriculum Vitae

Name Document: [Your Last Name, Your First Name] - CV

4) Short bio (less than 200-word) for posting on a website featuring participants.

Name Document: [Your Last Name, Your First Name] - Short Bio

5) Letter of support from primary advisor (PhD mentor for graduate students, supervisor for postdoctoral researchers) stating the advisor’s supports for the advisee's participation and time commitment.

Name Document: [Your Last Name, Your First Name] - Letter of Support

6) Contact information for an additional 2-3 professional references (no letter is required from these additional references at time of application.)

Name Document: [Your Last Name, Your First Name] - Professional References