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Science & Belief in God | An Intellectual Retreat for Current University Students


  • Dominican House of Studies 487 Michigan Avenue Northeast Washington, DC, 20017 United States (map)

Dominican House of Studies | Washington, D.C.

Join other students of the Thomistic Institute for an Intellectual Retreat!

Students will have the opportunity to attend talks about the relationship between science and belief in God, participate in Mass, attend Eucharistic Adoration, pray the Divine Office with the Dominican community, and attend socials with students and friars throughout the weekend.

Thanks to the generosity of our benefactors, meals and housing will be provided free for accepted applicants. Limited travel scholarships are available upon request.

Schedule:

  • Begins with check-in from 3:00 - 4:00 pm on Friday, February 14

  • Concludes with check-out at 1:30 pm on Sunday, February 16

Speakers:

Prof. Karin Öberg is Professor of Astronomy at Harvard University. Her specialty is astrochemistry and her research aims to uncover how chemical processes affect the outcome of planet formation, especially the chemical habitability of nascent planets. She did postdoctoral work at Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics as a NASA Hubble fellow, focusing on millimeter observations of planet-forming disks around young stars.

Prof. Jonathan Lunine was recently appointed chief scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He is the David C. Duncan Professor in the Physical Sciences and Chair of the Department of Astronomy at Cornell University. Lunine is interested in how planets form and evolve, what processes maintain and establish habitability, and what kinds of exotic environments (methane lakes, etc.) might host a kind of chemistry sophisticated enough to be called "life".  He pursues these interests through theoretical modeling and participation in spacecraft missions.  He is co-investigator on the Juno mission now in orbit at Jupiter, using data from several instruments on the spacecraft, and on the MISE instrument for the Europa Clipper mission.  He is on the science team for the James Webb Space Telescope, focusing on characterization of extrasolar planets and Kuiper Belt objects.  Lunine has contributed to concept studies for a wide range of planetary and exoplanetary missions. Lunine is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and has participated in or chaired a number of advisory and strategic planning committees for the Academy and for NASA.

Sign up for our mailing list here if you’d like to be notified of future retreat opportunities.

Questions? Contact Ms. Bridget Arbuckle at barbuckle@dhs.edu.

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February 13

The Importance of Play

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February 19

2025 Aquinas Lecture