Intellectual Retreat on FreedomPhoenix, AZ · March 25-26, 2022
First Things and Wyoming Catholic College are pleased to announce the 2022 Intellectual Retreat on Freedom, where we will provide our friends and supporters with a memorable weekend of seminars and lectures on the topic of freedom. Participants will converge on Downtown Phoenix from March 25-26 for the opportunity to explore texts alongside scholars from the College and writers and editors from First Things, discussing ideas and questions about freedom in small-group seminar sessions.
There are no grades, exams, or academic prerequisites for participation. If you enjoy reading First Things or discussing the ideas found in its pages, this event is for you. Discussions will take place in small seminar sections with faculty from the College, and participants will explore substantial texts and questions of great significance in an environment animated by a spirit of friendship and common purpose.
This is a rare opportunity to get together with like-minded individuals to talk about big, timeless ideas and how they inform our understanding of the issues that occupy our culture today.
The First Things Intellectual Retreat will be held from Friday evening, March 25th to Saturday evening, March 26, 2021.
Friday, March 25
Location: Hyatt Regency Phoenix – 122 North 2nd Street, Phoenix, AZ 85004
6:00 pm Cocktail Reception
7:00 pm Dinner & Lecture
Saturday, March 26
Location: The Department – 1 North 1st Street , Phoenix, AZ 85004
9:00 am – 10:15 am 1st Seminar: Divine and Human Freedom
10:45 am – 12 pm 2nd Seminar: Freedom and the Fall
12 pm Lunch (not provided)
2 pm – 3:15 pm 3rd Seminar: American Freedom and Equality
3:45 pm – 5 pm 4th Seminar: A Sabbath Freedom
6:00 pm Cocktail Reception
7:00 pm Dinner & Panel Discussion
Reading materials will be emailed to participants, with a bound copy to follow by mail. The readings will include excerpts from the following texts:
Session One: Divine and Human Freedom
- Pericles’ Funeral Oration (In Strassler’s The Landmark Thucydides. New York: Touchstone, Simon & Schuster, 1998, 2.35-2.46)
- St. Paul’s Epistle to the Romans, ch. 4—13
Session Two: Freedom and the Fall
- John Milton’s Paradise Lost, Book 3, lines 1-265, and Book 9
Session Three: American Freedom and Equality
- Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, editor, Harvey Mansfield, trans. Delba Wintrop, Volume I, Part I, Chapter 2, pp. 27-44 and Volume II, Part II, chapters 1-5, p. 479-492
- James Wilson, “Of Man as a Member of Society, Lectures on Law” Chapter 15, document 48, pp. 2402-241, and 556
Session Four: A Sabbath Freedom
- Josef Pieper, “Work, Spare Time, and Leisure” in Only the Lover Sings. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1990, 15-27
- Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath. Prologue-Part I
- Exodus 20:8-11, 31: 12-17, Leviticus 25, Numbers 15:32-36
All participants will attend all seminars through the course of the day.
Cost: $600 per participant
The fee covers seminar tuition, assigned text materials, and meals, including two cocktail reception and dinner lectures with First Things’ editorial staff and faculty from Wyoming Catholic College. There are a limited number of scholarships available for teachers at Christian Classical schools, graduate students, and clergy; please contact us for details.
Companion tickets are available at $100 per ticket for participant companions who would like to attend the evening receptions and dinner lectures but not the day seminars. Please email Brian at bconnor@firstthings.com to learn more.
Please note: The registration fee does not included travel to and from Phoenix and Hotel accommodations. We recommend the Hyatt Regency Phoenix or any other hotel in the downtown Phoenix area.
Retreat Cancellation Policy: For a full refund of tuition fees, please cancel with at least three weeks advance notice from the event’s date. We reserve the right to substitute speakers, change venues, cancel seminars, or cancel part of or the entire event, due to circumstances beyond our control. In such cases, our liability is limited to a prompt refund of the registration fee, on a pro-rata basis, for the affected days.
