Wisdom from the Middle Ages: Philosophical Contributions from the Abrahamic Traditions
May 12 - 13, 2026
University of New Brunswick | location TBA | Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
This conference will highlight the important philosophical contributions made by Jewish, Christian, and Islamic thinkers in the Middle Ages. A secondary goal of the conference is to encourage dialogue and collaboration among researchers who work in different Abrahamic traditions, as well as to prompt new comparative studies among these traditions.
Conference hosts
- Dr. Jennifer Hart Weed (University of New Brunswick)
- Dr. Alexander Green (University of Florida)
Call for papers
The University of New Brunswick’s Department of Philosophy invites scholars to submit abstracts for an international conference on "Wisdom from the Middle Ages: Philosophical Contributions from the Abrahamic Traditions."
The conference welcomes proposals from academics working in medieval philosophy broadly conceived, which includes the related fields of ethics, history, political science, religious studies, and theology.
The conference also welcomes proposals from graduate students and is reserving several spaces on the program for their presentations. Selected papers may be invited to be published in an edited volume following the conference.
Interested scholars should submit a 200–300-word abstract of their presentation to jweed@unb.ca.
Selected papers should have a reading time of twenty minutes.
Deadline: Jan. 30, 2026.
Keynote speakers
Dr. Alexander Fidora
ICREA Research Professor, Autonomous University of Barcelona
Professor Fidora's research focuses on medieval philosophy as well as the intercultural and interre ligious dimensions of medieval thought. He has directed the ERC Starting grant “Latin into Hebrew” (2008-2012) and the ERC Consolidator project “The Latin Talmud” (2014-2019).
Recent books include: Albertus Magnus und der Talmud (Münster i. W. 2020), a critical edition, with U. Cecini, Ó. de la Cruz and I. Lampurlanés, of the Extractiones de Talmud per ordinem thematicum (Turnhout 2021) and Christian Readings of Rabbinic Sources in Medieval Polemic, edited with M. Lutz-Bachmann (Tübingen 2024).
The title of Professor Fidora's lecture is, "Aristotle in Tortosa, or: Can one only understand what one is convinced of?
Reflections on the role of philosophy during the great Talmud disputation under Benedict XIII (1412-1414)"
In this plenary talk, Professor Fidora will examine the Disputation of Tortosa, convened by Pope Benedict XIII, which was the final and most protracted in a series of Christian-Jewish disputations concerning the Talmud that began in the 13th century.
Following an initial meeting in Tortosa in the summer of 1412, Benedict XIII summoned rabbis from various Jewish communities to participate in the formal disputation. Over the course of sixty-nine sessions, held between Feb. 7, 1413 and Nov. 13, 1414, these rabbis engaged in debate with a small group of Christian interlocutors, led by the Jewish convert Jerónimo de Santa Fe.
Based on the authority of rabbinic proof texts, the Christians sought to persuade the Jewish participants that the Messiah had already come. Investigating the role of philosophy—particularly Aristotelian thought—in the context of the Tortosa disputation, this paper addresses the philosophical assumptions underlying the Christian use of the Talmud.
Dr. Warren Zev Harvey
Professor Emeritus, Department of Jewish Thought, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Professor Emeritus, Department of Jewish Thought, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Professor Warren Zev Harvey has been teaching since 1977. He is the author of many studies on medieval and modern Jewish philosophy, including Physics and Metaphysics in Hasdai Crescas (1998). He was an EMET Prize laureate in the Humanities in 2009.
The title of Professor Harvey's lecture is "The Medieval Invention of Free Will.
"In this plenary talk, Professor Harvey will discuss Augustine, Saadia, Alghazali, Maimonides, Nahmanides, Aquinas, Kaspi, Buridan, Crescas, and Albo.
He will examine the question why medieval philosophers invented the Idea of "free will, " and he will explore why the idea is so important for us today.
Accommodations and travel information
Hotel accommodation
Crown Plaza Fredericton-Lord Beaverbrook
659 Queen St | Fredericton, NB | E3B 1C4
Guests are welcome to reserve their room by:
- Calling the front desk: 1-506-455-3371
- Emailing: reservations@cpfredericton.com
- Online: book now
Book under the “Department of Philosophy Conference” room block to secure the group rate.
Deadline for group reservations: Apr. 10, 2026.
For more information, contact phil@unb.ca.
Air travel information
The airport code for Fredericton is YFC.
Fredericton International Airport is the primary airport serving Fredericton, Canada. The official address is: 2570 Route 102 Hwy Lincoln, NB Canada E3B 9G1
The airport is located approximately thirteen kilometers outside of the city, and it is a 15-20 minute drive to the university/downtown.
For more information contact
1-506-453-4762
PHIL@UNB.CA
