Science, Faith, and Superstition
​
-Spring seminar-

The University of Belgrade's Faculty of Philosophy is pleased to announce an upcoming Spring seminar presented by the Science, Faith, and Superstition Project. This seminar will delve into the history and philosophy of science, religion, and superstition, focusing on the Late Antiquity and Early Modern periods in Europe. Lectures will be conducted via Zoom and are open to the public.
Lecture VIII – Steve Fuller
 
February 2, 2024.
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1277 And All That: The Legacy Of Cancel Culture, Thirteenth Century Style  
The Condemnation of 1277 is normally regarded by intellectual historians as a turning point in the checkered relationship between theology, philosophy and science. The Bishop of Paris Etienne Tempier collected over 200 ‘errors’ that were being taught at the Sorbonne’s Arts Faculty and appeared to be especially popular with students. Although much confusion surrounds the Condemnation, it resulted in the expulsion of several academics and students from the university and greater doctrinal restrictions on the teaching of theology. Seen from that standpoint, the Condemnation seems very harsh. However, the sort of theology that Tempier wanted to see taught in Paris portrays God as bound not by the laws of his own Creation but by the logic of his will. For their part, academics who portrayed God as bound by his own laws were shown the door, yet they were also allowed to pursue the study of nature, albeit without theological authority – but also without theological hindrance. According to Pierre Duhem, the long-term effect of the Condemnation was to dissolve the authority of Aristotle, which had been taking hold of the universities throughout the thirteenth century, resulting in the stagnation of both the theological and scientific imaginations. In this respect, the Condemnation may be seen as removing a bottleneck in the development of thought. I shall explore the lessons of this episode, then and now.

​Steve Fuller is Auguste Comte Professor of Social Epistemology at the University of Warwick, UK. Originally trained in history, philosophy and sociology of science, Fuller is best known for his foundational work in the field of ‘social epistemology’, which is the name of a quarterly journal he founded in 1987 as well as the first of his twenty-six books. His most recent research has focused on what he calls ‘Humanity 2.0’, which concerns the sustainability of ‘humanity’ as a concept in light of emerging ‘trans’ and ‘post-human’ tendencies in politics, society and culture.

Meeting ID: 814 3913 2274
Passcode: 354742
Date: February 2, 2024.
Time: 18.30 CET
Zoom info: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81439132274?pwd=ItmWGvVg6NHcEIAbY3N0q10bO6DMM5.1
Lecture IX – Steffen Hope
 
February 20, 2024.
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Science, faith and superstition in Utopia – continuity from the Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period
The presentation compares the Utopias of the Early Modern Period with the imagined worlds of the Middle Ages, arguing that the early modern visions of the ideal society continued and repeated many of the features and ideas from the medieval period. The talk will explore aspects such as the impact of the divine in human history, of bad religious practices, and of technological wonders, and show how these aspects were used in similar ways both in the medieval period and in the early modern period. The talk will emphasize the continuity between the periods, and highlight the medieval roots of the many famous Utopian societies of Early Modern Literature.

Steffen Hope is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Archaeology, Conservation and History at the University of Oslo. His main research interests are the cult of saints, history-writing, identity-construction, and how these phenomena combine. He also works on fragments of medieval manuscripts, and is currently co-teaching a course on utopian thought in the Middle Ages. 

Meeting ID: 838 6612 7962
Passcode: 840006
Date: February 20, 2024.
Time: 18.30 CET
Zoom info:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83866127962?pwd=4bKcAloKyCE2eDhjx1kmDWKojMe1wz.1     
Lecture X - Dejan Dželebdžić

March 05, 2024.

The Greek concept of superstition from its beginnings until Late Antiquity
​In the framework of the three-part structured project Science, Faith and Superstition my research is primarily focused on the concept of superstition. What is superstition? It might be defined as a religious belief that can be quite widespread in a certain society, but at the same time, it is persistently being disapproved by some individuals who mostly belong to the same society. In other words, the superstition does not exist in itself, but only in relation to its critiques. Throughout the history critics were philosophers, theologians or educated people in general. In this lecture, I will examine the concept of superstition from its origins in the early Hellenistic Age up to the 2nd century AD. In the subsequent phases of the project I shall try to examine how this concept was developing in Late Antiquity and Byzantium. 

Professor Dejan Dželebžić is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Classics, University of Belgrade. He has participated in numerous research projects relevant to the main topic of the project, e.g. "Humans and Society in Times of Crisis", "Tradition, Innovation, and Identity in the Byzantine World".  

Meeting ID: 850 2995 5907
Passcode: 702770
Date: March 05, 2024.
Time: 19:30 CET
Zoom info:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85029955907?pwd=alZQYldXopX8xZcsnVStzmAlRfz6AQ.1
Lecture XI - Rastko Jevtić

March 21, 2024.

Teleology in Descartes’ Philosophy: Knowledge or Superstition?
In my talk I will explore Descartes’ views on teleology: a branch of philosophical inquiry concerned with ascriptions and explanations of purposes. The case of divine teleology is especially interesting in this context. On one hand, Descartes frequently claims that we are unable to know the purposes of God’s acts. This means that any such belief is a superstitious belief. On the other hand, Descartes’ crucial thesis that explains the mind-body interaction invokes the notion of purpose. I believe that this thesis implicitly contains the ascription of a purpose to God’s creative act and I will present an argument for this. Two important consequences follow from my reading: 1) at least one kind of belief about divine purposes must be considered knowledge instead of superstition; 2) there is a contradiction at the heart of Descartes’ system — the explanation of mind-body interaction. 
 
Rastko Jevtić is a PhD student at the Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Philosophy. His doctoral thesis explores the metaphysics of human being in Descartes' philosophy. His research interest is early modern philosophy.  Consequently, he is mainly devoted to the investigation of the Late Middle Ages and the Early modern period, but he cannot stop himself from delving into whatever tickles his curiosity. 

Meeting ID: 824 1069 5363
Passcode: 157046
Date: March 21, 2024.
Time: 18:00 CET
Zoom info:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82410695363?pwd=UpAZ1a4cJdFrs2rFMQ5Ft4tuuwjJOS.1
Lecture XII - Miloš Vuletić

April 25, 2024.

“Many a good, old honest woman hath been condemned innocently”: Cavendish on Witchcraft and Spirits
The debate over the reality of witchcraft occupied a number of most dedicated practitioners, allies, and defenders of the “new science” during the Restoration period in England. Figures like Robert Boyle, Henry More and Joseph Glanvill adhered, to varying degrees, to the view that testimonies of poltergeists, demonic possession, and sorcery were indicative of a range of authentic phenomena. Historians of science once viewed entries in this debate as embarrassing oddities when juxtaposed with scientifically progressive opinions of these authors. More recent contributions recognize the complexity of the seventeenth-century intellectual milieu and find that many conceptions and notions viewed today as backward or superstitious once sat comfortably next to radically innovative and successful scientific contributions. In this paper I will focus on one of the dissenting voices—that of Margaret Cavendish. In her natural philosophy, Cavendish staunchly objects to the existence of spirits, both natural and supernatural, and denies the existence of witches. Cavendish’s epistemological objections to the reality of witchcraft and spirits have been a subject of examination among the scholars of the early modern period, but here I will address the metaphysical underpinnings of her position. Drawing on Alison Peterman’s recent work, I aim to show that Cavendish’s radical rejection of the substance/accident metaphysical framework is a key element of a proper understanding of her position on witchcraft and spirits. 
 
Miloš Vuletić is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Belgrade's Department of Philosophy. His main areas of research are philosophy of perception, epistemology, and the history of Early Modern philosophy, with a special focus on topics that lie at their intersection.

Meeting ID: 854 6644 2853
Passcode: 169284
Date: April 25, 2024.
Time: 17:00 CEST
Zoom info:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85466442853?pwd=UUOhtfo4AwQuF4OwlLUWI6VBm4MIaj.1
​
Lecture XIII - Il Akkad

May 9, 2024.

Elements of Popular Beliefs in John Moschus - What are the Criteria?
​A repository of various and most interesting tale from the very last years of Roman Middle-East, The Spiritual Meadow written by John Moschus and his companion Sophronius is also a valuable account of the beliefs and practices of his age. The question we will address is whether it is possible to discern those which are an expression of a popular religious world-view, and, if so, how to go about it.
 
Il Akkad is an assistant professor at the Department of Classics at the Philosophical Faculty of Belgrade University. His main research interests are Greek language in Late Antiquity and Late Antique Greek Literature.

Meeting ID: 893 2701 1808
Passcode: 795438
Date: May 9, 2024.
Time: 18:00 CEST
Zoom info:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89327011808?pwd=hsUmPQXXHLpmYcZRTvGYcA8gCkiaWH.1
Lecture XIV - Milan M. Ćirković

May 22, 2024.

Epicurean cosmology and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence 
Epicurean atomism is arguably the most modern and liveliest physicalist ontology of the entire pre-Enlightenment history. In particular, his reductionism and his insistence on non-teleological and mechanistic explanations resonate very well with the epistemology and methodology of modern science. Among several aspects of what Collin Robbins justifiably calls the “scientific prescience of Epicureanism”, one which has not been discussed in the literature so far deals with the place of life and mind in their widest cosmic context – that is, with canonical questions of contemporary astrobiology. In this talk, I shall argue that Epicureanism remains an excellent philosophical foundation for our quest for cosmic life and in particular in our search for other minds in the universe. In particular, the controversy surrounding “gods” in the doctrine of Epicurus and his pupils should be resolved in accordance with both his underlying naturalism superposed with subsequently emerging awareness of secular evolution of both physical and biological systems. There are multiple arguments for thinking about Epicurean gods as advanced extraterrestrial intelligences, achieving high degree of control over the physical environment, superhuman moral capacities, and conquering death in purely naturalistic, scientific manner. In the present era of search for extraterrestrial technosignatures, this aspect of the Epicurean thought is likely to become more and more congenial.
 
Milan M. Ćirković is a senior Research Professor at the Astronomical Observatory of Belgrade, (Serbia). He obtained his PhD at the Dept. of Physics, State University of New York in Stony Brook in 2000 with the thesis in astrophysical cosmology. His primary research interests are in the fields of astrobiology (habitable zones, habitability of galaxies, SETI studies), philosophy of science (futures studies, philosophy of cosmology), and risk analysis (global catastrophes, observation selection effects, epistemology of risk). He co-edited the widely-cited anthology on Global Catastrophic Risks (Oxford University Press, 2008, with Nick Bostrom), wrote four research monographs (the latest being Cosmic Microwave Background: Philosophical and Historical Aspects, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2024, with S. Perović), as well as five popular science/general nonfiction books, and authored about 200 research and professional papers. He is currently working on The Terrors of the Earth: Why We Ought to Leave this Planet – and Soon, to be published in 2025 by Penguin Random House.

Meeting ID: 818 3980 8887
Passcode: 170677
Date: May 22, 2024.
Time: 18:00 CEST
Zoom info: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81839808887?pwd=JRo9nZh1rmZYxsyVtLKcbDVrrcS5Ic.1
Workshop: Science, Faith, and Superstition

May 30th - June 1st, 2024.

Tempus Hall, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade​
Workshop Science, Faith and Superstition will be held from May 30th to June 1st at Tempus Hall, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade. This event aims to develop historical challenges to the prevalent understanding of science and religion, wherein religion is often relegated to an insignificant place in our worldview or identified with superstition.

Lectures will be focused on two key historical periods: late Antiquity and the Renaissance through the 17th century. These periods are crucial due to significant shifts in understanding the intersections of the natural, human, and divine. Central questions include how philosophers, doctors, alchemists (proto-chemists), and Church Fathers in early Christianity and early Modernity understood the purpose of studying nature, the nature of faith, and the meaning of superstition.

This workshop is especially geared towards PhD students and early career researchers who wish to broaden their knowledge on these topics.

Schedule, talks and lecturers are provided below:
Lecture XV - Pavle Stojanović

May 27, 2024.

Can a Skeptic Be Pious and Should He Be: Lessons from Ancient Pyrrhonism
One of the chief tenets of the Pyrrhonists, the first philosophers to call themselves skeptics, is suspension of belief on everything, including the matters pertaining to religion. This suspension results from the fact that the skeptic finds that mutually exclusive accounts for and against the existence of gods are equally persuasive, in virtue of which he has no reason to prefer either of the two positions. Once suspension is achieved, ideally ataraxia follows, the mental state in which unnecessary disturbances are thoroughly eliminated, making the skeptic perfectly unconcerned and indifferent. Based on this, one would expect the skeptic to be rather disinterested in taking any kind of position towards piety, or at least to be equally disposed both towards affirming as well as denying the existence of gods, and towards engaging in as well as ignoring the religious observances and rituals. Yet surprisingly, this is not what Sextus Empiricus, one of the most prominent Pyrrhonists and our main source on their views, tells us. Instead, he is quite explicit in describing the skeptic as someone who, as a follower of ‘ordinary life’ and ‘laws and customs’ of his community, will say that gods exist and who will engage in religious practice. My aim will be to explore the reasons why a Pyrrhonean skeptic would take such an approach, and to assess whether he can consistently do so.
 
Pavle Stojanović is an Assistant Professor (Docent) of Philosophy at the University of Belgrade. His area of research so far has been in the philosophy of the Hellenistic period, in which he has published several papers. This is part of his broader interest in the questions pertaining to human knowledge and its limits.

Meeting ID: 870 2219 2222
Passcode: 297642
Date: May 27, 2024.
Time: 19:00 CEST
Zoom info: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87022192222?pwd=dp94NSEeGwMkfJqqqHec1V4pEQOpcy.1
Lecture XVI - Andrej Jeftić

June 19, 2024.

The Birth of the 'Creatio Ex Nihilo' Doctrine: Mapping the Territories of Science and Religion in Late Antiquity
While it is often assumed that the idea of the cosmos being created 'out of nothing' is inherently present in the biblical creation narrative, historical analysis reveals that this doctrine was not fully developed until the early Christian Church Fathers articulated it. The emergence of the creatio ex nihilo doctrine marked a significant departure from classical Greek metaphysics and cosmology. In this presentation, I will trace the origins of the creatio ex nihilo doctrine to draw lessons on how we map the territories of science and religion in late antiquity.
 
Dr. Andrej Jeftić is the Director of the World Council of Churches’ Faith and Order Commission. He obtained his Ph.D. degree in theology at the Faculty of Orthodox Theology at the University of Belgrade where he taught as an assistant professor. He also worked as a research fellow at the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory at the same university. His area of interest includes ecumenical theology, patristic theology and philosophy, systematic theology, contemporary Orthodox theology, and the science-theology relationship.

Meeting ID: 844 3734 5757
Passcode: 501446
Date: June 19, 2024.
Time: 18:00 CEST
Zoom info:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84437345757?pwd=kct4vFhqo74RqekqW6QjOGFcpzPDlm.1