Signs of summer on the grounds

The Portsmouth Institute has announced its upcoming conference, the Humanitis Summer Symposium. The program, entitled “‘To Cultivate and to Toil’: On Profession and Vocation” will take place June 9-11, 2023 here at Portsmouth Abbey.

The Humanitis Summer Symposium is the flagship conference of the Institute. Initiated by alumnus James McGuire, this conference was the seed first planted, and the Portsmouth Institute has grown from this original vision. Echoing this summer’s title, the institute itself is now bearing the fruit of ongoing “cultivation and toil”, having blossomed into an array of programs and events. We find amongst the ever-increasing offerings the PIETAS program for teachers; the annual Providence Symposium; numerous lectures and conferences; the Oxford Trip, and more. The Institute’s own website offers descriptions and details on all of these developments, including links for registration for the symposium and other events.

The Humanitas symposium has invited participants to “gather with like-minded friends for a memorable weekend of learning, fellowship, and prayer.” These elements have been central in the vision for the program from its inception, enhanced by the monastery’s beautiful setting on Narragansett Bay. Each summer, the Institute provides occasion to discuss issues “at the intersection of faith and culture,” highlighting current Catholics leaders and public intellectuals. Such conversations mirror the “love of learning” inspiring Benedictine life, in a context of hospitality, study, and prayer. The conference is structured with small-group sessions led by expert teachers and scholars, many representing Portsmouth Abbey School and Providence College.

The Institute is an apostolate shared by Portsmouth and St. Louis abbeys

Partial Schedule of Events
Humanitas Summer Symposium

Friday, June 9
5:15 PM Solemn Vespers and Benediction in the Abbey Church
6:00 PM Registration and Opening Reception; Dinner and Keynote Address by Thomas Hibbs

Saturday, June 10
7:20 AM Holy Mass
8:30 AM Plenary Lecture I - Michael Miller; Breakout Discussions
10:45 AM Plenary Lecture II - Michael Krom; Breakout Discussions
1:45 PM Plenary Lecture III - Tommy Heyne; Breakout Discussions
4:00 PM Keynote Lecture - Ross Douthat
7:30 PM Performance - Collegium Ancora; Dessert Reception

Sunday, June 11
9:30 AM Conventual Mass – celebrant Bishop Thomas Tobin (Ret.)
10:30 AM Eucharistic Procession
11:00 AM Closing Brunch

The institute’s mission echoes that of the School, to “grow in knowledge and grace,” with liturgy and prayer woven seamlessly into the weekend’s intellectual reflection. The theological elements are geared to a range of experience, with no academic expertise required to participate effectively in the programs. The Institute has also developed an important partnership with Cluny Media, making possible the publication of a handsome edition of the conference readings for inclusion with conferee materials. The symposium truly provides opportunity to appreciate the beauty of our grounds situated here along the shores of the Narragansett Bay and to recapture some of the inspiration that no doubt drew Leonard Sargent to this location to begin his monastic community in 1918.