General Information

Following the 1997 LEST I international conference on The Myriad Christ, the 1999 LEST II international conference on Sacramental Presence in a Postmodern Context, the 2001 LEST III international conference on Theology and Conversation and the 2003 LEST IV international conference on Religious Experience and Contemporary Theological Epistemology, the Department of Dogmatic Theology (Faculty of Theology, K.U.Leuven), organises a fifth Leuven Encounters in Systematic Theology: LEST V.

The aim of the congress is to reflect on the 'classical' doctrine of Incarnation from a variety of perspectives, with particular attention to the siginificance of the doctrine (or the lack thereof) for the understanding of human history as a history of suffering. The title of the congress is taken from the first line of a poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins, celebrating the incarnation and its sacramental implications. Taken in isolation from the rest of the text, however, these opening words are ambiguous. They may be read either as a confession of faith or as a comment on the ambiguity of God's presence in history. Both themes are central to the congress.

The 5th International L.E.S.T. Conference will take place from Wednesday, November 2, 2005 at 8.00 p.m. until noon on Saturday, November 5, 2005 followed by a closing banquet at 1.00 p.m.

The Junior Scholars Conference will be held on Wednesday, November 2, 2005 from 9.00 a.m. to 6 p.m. The opening lecture of the full conference will begin t 19:30.

The conference working language is English. Simultaneous translation of main lectures and responses in French and German into English will be available.

The conference will take place in the Faculty of Theology, located in the centre of Leuven. Leuven is located 25 km from Brussels and easily accessible. Please note that Leuven (in French: Louvain) is not the same town as Louvain-la-Neuve.

Main speakers include: Gerald O'Collins (Gregorian University), Bishop A. Tagle (Philippines), Sarah Coakley (Harvard University), David Tracy (University of Chicago), Frances Young (University of Birmingham), Daniel Madigan (Gregorian University), Paul Williams (University of Bristol) Richard Bauckham (St. Andrew's, Scotland)