CO-SPONSORSHIP: Nineteenth Century Theology Unit, Pragmatism and Empiricism in American Religious Thought Unit and Wesleyan and Methodist Studies Unit

Revisiting Personalism: In Boston and Beyond

In 2025, the Annual Meeting returns to Boston, approximately 150 years after Borden Parker Bowne (1847–1910) returned to the U.S. from his European studies at Paris, Halle, and Göttingen, where he was deeply influenced by Hermann Lotze. Bowne taught for many years in the School of Theology at Boston University, he founded the Graduate School and the Philosophy Department, and he became known as the “Father of Boston Personalism.”

The Nineteenth Century Theology Unit, the Pragmatism and Empiricism in American Religious Thought Unit, and the Wesleyan and Methodist Studies Unit jointly invite papers on the subject of (Boston) Personalism and especially addressing topics that arise in light of the Annual Meeting’s theme of “Freedom.” Papers may consider nineteenth and early twentieth century philosophical and theological movements that influenced the development of Personalism (as it arose in affirmation of or in contradiction to them) as well as persons, positions, and movements that were directly or indirectly influenced by Personalism, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and the American Civil Rights Movement or attempts at West European Integration after World War II. We also invite papers that delve into original personalist thought and its relevance in contemporary discussions of personalism, connecting past and present by considering how early personalist thought continues to be relevant in our world today.