A Symposium Sponsored by Mormon Scholars in the Humanities

Call for Papers
Mormon Belief, Scholarship, and the Humanities

March 23-24, 2007
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT

A Symposium Sponsored by Mormon Scholars in the Humanities
With Support of the College of Humanities at BYU-Provo

Keynote Address by Richard Bushman

As the inaugural meeting for Mormon Scholars in the Humanities, this
symposium will explore the relationship between Mormon belief and the
practice of humanistic scholarship. We invite papers that will cover a
wide range of practical, theoretical, and historical questions
regarding the connection between faith, teaching and research, and
that draw on experiences at a wide range of institutions of higher
education. We wish to provide a forum for humanities scholars that
reflects on the experience of Mormon religious practice and its
connection to humanistic scholarship, how the experience of Mormon
scholars in the humanities relates to historical and contemporary
scholars of other faiths, and what prospects exist for the successful
integration of faith and scholarship. Although Mormon Scholars in the
Humanities enjoys the support of the College of Humanities at
BYU-Provo, the organization is intended to provide benefits and
reflect the experience of Mormon scholars in the Humanities nationally
and internationally. In this spirit, we are committed to finding other
venues beyond the BYU campus for future symposia.

We welcome papers that will explore such questions as:

* Scholarship: Is there a Mormon foundation to humanistic inquiry?
What is the role Mormon belief plays in the practice of scholarship,
especially in regard to topics far afield of Mormon experience? What
is the Mormon responsibility toward secular, cultural, and
intellectual knowledge? How does one approach the lifestyles, belief
systems, and values that humanistic scholarship analyzes when these
conflict with those of the Mormon faith?
* Religious Humanism, Past and Present: What examples from the
past demonstrate the successful integration of faith and scholarship?
What examples from other religious and cultural contexts today provide
insightful comparative contexts for the symposium's themes? What
values ought the Humanities espouse in light of Mormon belief? To what
degree is secular humanism compatible with religious humanism? Where
must they part ways?
* Pedagogy: What is the relationship between scholarship and
teaching? What is the role Mormon belief plays in teaching mostly
non-LDS students, or for that matter, mostly LDS students? Which
aspects of teaching are particularly challenging and rewarding? Is
there a Mormon pedagogy in the humanities? What are the ultimate aims
of teaching the humanities and how do those aims relate to spiritual
and intellectual development?
* Intellectual and Professional Development: What roadmaps exist
for those pursuing the life of scholarship in the humanities? What
advice can be given to future PhDs? How does one balance the
expectations of a humanistic scholar with the expectations of an
active LDS church member?

Please submit no more than one-page paper proposals to George Handley
(George_Handley@byu.edu) by December 15, 2006. Include a two-page CV.
We also welcome entire panel proposals, workshop ideas, or other
proposed formats.

All participants must be members of MSH at the time of the symposium.
Membership information is available at http://www.mormonscholars.org/.