To commemorate the 169th anniversary of the death of Father Félix Varela y Morales (1788-1853), Varela scholar Dagoberto Valdés will cover his Cartas a Elpidio contra la Impiedad, la Superstición y el Fanatismo en sus Relaciones con la Sociedad, of which Volumes I and II were published in New York in 1835 and 1838. This work by the eminent Cuban priest and philosopher is considered his masterpiece and, alongside Martí’s oeuvre, is one of the two pillars of ethics in Cuban culture. Prof. Valdés will also address how the ethical teachings of Father Varela can be applied in Cuba today, both inside the Island and in the Diaspora, and how these can contribute to the reconstruction of the whole nation.
The lecture will be followed by a Q&A with the audience via Zoom, moderated by Ricardo Gil, director of our History Program.
This special history event is part of our CreateNYC Language Access Series on Cuban History, Art, and Literature. It will be held in Spanish.
DUE TO THE COVID PANDEMIC, THIS PROGRAM WILL BE STREAMED THROUGH OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL.
Please click on this link on the scheduled date and time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBhvhXTwiVo
Dagoberto Valdés is a Catholic intellectual and the editor and founder of Vitral and Convivencia magazines. He is also the founder and director of the Cuban think tank Centro de Estudios Convivencia, based in Pinar del Río, Cuba. He has been a guest lecturer at Georgetown University and the Catholic University of America. Among his many honors and recognitions is the Prince Claus Award for Culture and Development, which he received from king Willem Alexander in 1999, and his appointment by Pope John Paul II as a full member of the Justice and Peace Pontifical Council of the Holy See (1999-2005). He worked as a professor of Ethics, Civics and Introduction to Ecclesiology at the diocesan Pre-Seminary “Fr. Félix Varela” from 1996 to 2007. Most of his writings deal with the topic he has researched and developed throughout his life: civil society in Cuba. He is the author of numerous books, including Félix Varela: Biografía del Padre de la Cultura Cubana, published by the Pinar del Río Bishopric.
And is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts and the New York State Legislature.
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