Past Events
Find summaries, photos, and resources from the past events of the Claritas Initiative below.
Spring 2024
May 15, 2024
Local musician, composer, Zen priest and poet Marc Anderson called upon an extensive background to share with the community an immersive sound bath experience that "bathed" attendees in the beauty of sound. Waves of soft tones, shifting textures, and gentle rhythms connected us to sound and created a sense of peace, well-being, and connectedness to the world.
May 13, 2024
The Hoedeman Gallery of Sacred Art was showcased alongside inspiring stories of generosity from the Thrivent Art Collection. Presented by Dakota Passariello, Assistant Curator of the Thrivent Art Collection, and Dr. Mark McInroy, Associate Chair of the Theology Department.
Presented in partnership with The Hoedeman Gallery of Sacred Art.
April 4 & 17, 2024
Faculty and staff were invited to participate in a reading group that examined a series of important, accessible texts for deeper consideration of beauty, goodness, and truth.
April 23, 2024
A campus-wide opportunity to encounter our natural environment with an openness to wonder, beauty, and an understanding of our interconnections with all life, presented in partnership with our Office of Sustainability Initiatives. Students, faculty, and staff were invited to use an observation guide and share a campus photograph.
March 16, 2024
Musicians Kelly Kruse (soprano), Jacob Benda (organist), Ekaterina Knyazeva (pianist), and Marion Judish (violinist) performed a concert inspired by themes expressed within the permanent art exhibit on display in the Iverson Center for Faith by artist Kelly Kruse, Embodied: The Earthly Immortal Soul and the Battle of Becoming.
Presented in partnership with the Chapel Arts Series.
February 15, 2024
The John P. Monahan Gallery in the Schoenecker Center saw its first visitors during this dedication ceremony. Among the stunning artworks and sculptures featured was the official unveiling of the Portal Icosahedron by artist Anthony James, now visible to all in the Schoenecker Center main lobby.
Fall 2023
December 9, 2023
Dr. Mark McInroy offered reflections on beauty and music during this evening inspired by the seasons of Advent and Christmas. Conductor Patrick Schneider and the Basilica of St. Mary Cathedral Choir joined St. Thomas faculty Jacob Benda and violinist Allison Ostrander as we visited the works of Ola Gjeilo, Jessie Montgomery, Stephen Paulus, Antonio Vivaldi, and more.
Presented in partnership with the Chapel Arts Series.
December 6, 2023
This tour around and through the Chapel of St. Thomas Aquinas and the Iversen Center for Faith offered direct experiences of the beauty of our university, as expressed in its art, architecture, and music. Discussions among St. Thomas community members at tour stops deepened awareness of the significance of this beauty for our work together as a university.
September 19, 2023
This inaugural lecture and discussion panel addressed the particular importance of beauty. Dr. Jennifer Newsome Martin of the University of Notre Dame introduced the campus community to the transcendentals of beauty, goodness, and truth and oriented us to recent efforts to retrieve a rigorous understanding of beauty. A panel of faculty members from St. Thomas responded to the lecture from their disciplinary perspectives.