Philosophy in the Abrahamic Traditions
2012 Annual ACPA Meeting
(2 November-November 4)

Call for Papers

From the President 
May 2011 

Dear Colleagues and Members of the ACPA: 

I am delighted to have the pleasure of inviting you to the Eighty-sixth Annual Meeting of the ACPA in Los Angeles, California, to take place in the Fall of 2012 (late October or early November). This meeting is generously hosted by Loyola Marymount University. 

Our theme will be Philosophy in the Abrahamic Traditions. 

Classical and Post-Classical Philosophy in the Greek tradition played powerful roles in the formation of philosophical, scientific and theological thought produced in the religious and cultural milieux of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The scriptures, theologies and fundamental concerns of these Abrahamic religious traditions have reciprocally enriched the development of both religious thought and secular philosophy and science, by prompting ethical, metaphysical and epistemological questions that have continued to challenge philosophers from the time of Philo up to the present day. While political conflicts of the 20th and 21st centuries have led to a public emphasis on distinctions and differences among these faiths, the history of philosophy shows over the centuries that thinkers of each tradition share in the common purpose of seeking to reconcile the principles and insights of their beliefs with the truths of secular natural reason. Through argument and counter argument philosophers and theologians have engaged their peers and predecessors inside and outside their own faith traditions, in order to advance to more and more sophisticated and penetrating analyses of faith principles, philosophy, and truth. For our 2012 meeting I propose that we take the occasion to enter into the same sorts of engagements within and across specific historical and religious boundaries, without topical restriction, so that we may come to better understand the richness of our own tradition and the commonalities of thinkers of the religions of the Abrahamic traditions. 

Everyone is cordially invited to make a submission for this meeting. While the Program Committee is particularly interested in submissions addressing issues of the theme, papers in any area of philosophy are most welcome. 

Please see the attached guidelines for information on how to submit. 

Yours sincerely, 
Richard C. Taylor 
Professor of Philosophy 
Marquette University, 
Visiting Research Professor 2010-11 
DeWulf-Mansion Centre for Ancient, Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy, 
Hoger Instituut voor Wijsbegeerte, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium


ACPA National Office 
Center for Thomistic Studies, University of St. Thomas 
3800 Montrose Blvd., Houston, TX 77006 
Phone: (713) 525-3596 Fax: (713) 942-3483 
E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] 
Web: www.acpaweb.org
ACPA Subscription and Membership Services 
Philosophy Documentation Center 
P.O. Box 7147, Charlottesville, VA 22906-7147 
Phone: (800) 444-2419 
E-mail: [email protected] 
Web: www.pdcnet.org