Roots: Dialogues for the Common Good — Why Do We Suffer?
Columbia University hosts an interdisciplinary dialogue on the nature of human suffering, drawing on philosophy, theology, and science.
Why we picked this
This is one of the rare events where philosophy, theology, and science sit at the same table without anyone trying to win — the question of suffering is too big for any single discipline to own.
Columbia’s Roots series brings together thinkers from different intellectual traditions to tackle a question that refuses neat answers: why do we suffer? The evening pairs philosophers, theologians, and scientists in a structured dialogue designed to find friction and common ground, not consensus.
What makes this installment distinctive is the format itself — Roots doesn’t stage debates or lectures but genuine conversation, where participants respond to each other in real time. The interdisciplinary setup means you’ll hear suffering examined through evolutionary biology, theodicy, and phenomenology in the same room.
Free and open to the public at Columbia University.