Discussion group: Pain and suffering. Medical and theological perspectives

The discussion group Divine Grace and Human Disgrace in Suffering It was formed by professors from the Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, from Nursing, Medicine, Biology, Philosophy and Theology, under the direction of Dr. Mariano Asla and Dr. Omar Pivetta.

From August 2015 to May 2016, seven working sessions were held, in which two participants briefly presented the proposed bibliography, followed by a discussion. The initial working session was led by Dr. Ignacio Silva from the University of Oxford.

Through two open lectures, the topics worked on by the group were shared with the entire academic community. The first lecture, on December 9, 2015, was given by Dr. Agustín Echavarría from the University of Navarra, and dealt with God and the Mystery of EvilThe second one, which took place on May 24, 2016, was led by Prof. Eleonore Stump from Saint Louis University, and was entitled: Suffering and the Desires of the Heart.

The working sessions followed the following program:

• August 25: The Problem of Divine Special ActionPresenter: Ignacio Silva.
• September 8: Laws of nature, free will, and special divine actionPresenters: Juan F. Franck and Mariano Asla.
• October 13: Special Divine Action and the Problem of EvilPresenters: Cristina Viñuela and Sara Consigli.
• November 4: In search of an answer: from human suffering to divine sufferingExhibitors: Agustín Silberberg and María Echevarría.
• December 11: Introduction to the topic of evil in the debate of contemporary analytical philosophy of religionPresenter: Agustín Echavarría.
• May 16: Eleonore Stump's narrative approach to the Problem of Evil. Speakers: Omar Pivetta, Jorge Aquino, Marcelo Villar, Ángela Suburo, Pbro. Manuel de Elía.
• May 23: The problem of suffering: a Thomistic approachPresenter: Eleonore Stump.

The group integrated the Project Special Divine Action of the Ian Ramsey Center for Science and Religion (University of Oxford), which is funded by the John Templeton Foundation.