The Wisdom of Hypatia

Ancient Spiritual Practices
for a More Meaningful Life

News and Events
On March 24, 2024 I was on a panel, “Hypatia of Alexandria: Martyr for Philosophy,” sponsored by the East Mediterranean Culture Alliance. A video of the entire panel is here.

On March 24, 2024 I was on a panel, “Hypatia of Alexandria: Martyr for Philosophy,” sponsored by the East Mediterranean Business Culture Alliance. A video of the entire panel is here, and the text of my remarks are here (pdf).
I conducted a 1-hour workshop, "The Theurgy of Eros," at the Mystic South conference in Atlanta, July 15–17, 2022. Our Pagan ancestors used the power of Eros to ascend to the gods, proceeding through initiatory stages of Purification, Illumination, and Divine Union, which parallel those in the ancient Mysteries. The process was outlined by Diotima, the wise woman in Plato’s Symposium, and further developed by the Neoplatonists. The contemplations (visualizations) used in the workshop are available here.
I conducted a 90 min. workshop, “The Theurgy of Eros,” at PantheaCon 2019, on February 16, 2019. It was based on the Ascent by Love in The Wisdom of Hypatia. The contemplations (visualizations) from this workshop are available here. I also participated in a “Theurgy and Activism Panel” on Feb. 17, 2019 with Tony Mierzwicki and Brandy Williams.
I did a 90 min. workshop on “The Pagan Theurgy of Eros” at PantheaCon 2018 on Feb. 19, 2018. It was based on the Ascent by Love in The Wisdom of Hypatia.
I gave a talk on “The Psychological Effects of Henôsis” at the 15th Annual Conference of the International Society for Neoplatonic Studies, Olomouc, Czech Republic, June 13–16, 2017.
I gave a 90 min. workshop on Neoplatonic Theurgy at PantheaCon 2017 on Feb 19, 2017. The slides are available as a big (130MB) pdf file here. 
I gave a talk on “Neurophenomenology and Neoplatonism” at the 14th Annual Conference of the International Society for Neoplatonic Studies, Seattle WA, June 15–18, 2016. An extended version will appear in an anthology.
The Wisdom of Hypatia was reviewed favorably by Prof. Deepa Mujumdar in The International Journal of the Platonic Tradition, here: http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/10.1163/18725473-12341327 (2015).
I was interviewed by Future Primitive about the Wisdom of Hypatia. You can find a link to the interview here: http://www.futureprimitive.org/2015/06/the-wisdom-of-hypatia/ (June, 2015).
I did a webinar with questions and answers for Cherry Hill Seminary on May 30, 2015. 
I gave two 90-min. talks/workshops at PantheaCon 2015. The first (Sat.) was "Neoplatonic Tantra," based on the Ascent by Love in The Wisdom of Hypatia. The other (Sun.) was "The Tablet of Cebes," a slide presentation on an ancient symbolic tablet depicting initiation into wisdom.
I gave a talk, “The Ancient Wisdom of Hypatia” on July 11, 2014 at ORICL (Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning).
I gave a presentation on "Twenty-first Century Theurgy" at the annual conference of the International Society for Neoplatonic Studies in Lisbon, Portugal, June 16–21, 2014. I discussed how ancient theurgy and Neoplatonic philosophy can be illuminated by studying contemporary theurgical practices and active imagination in Jungian psychology.
I was interviewed on Brian Turnoff's show, The Mind's Eye, on Z Talk Radio (May 15, 2014). You can hear a recording on YouTube.
I gave presentations on the spiritual practices of Hypatia and the ancient art of memory at PantheaCon in San Jose, CA, Feb. 13–17, 2014.
Peter J. Morris had some nice things to say about The Wisdom of Hypatia. See it at <http://peterjmorris.com/reviews/wisdom-hypatia-bruce-j-maclennan-phd/>.
I gave a talk at the eleventh annual conference of the International Society for Neoplatonic Studies in Cardiff, Wales, June 12–15, 2013. My presentation was titled "Psychological Effects of Theurgy in Contemporary Practice" and I explained why contemporary psychology allow us to understand how Neoplatonic theurgy leads to greater psychological integration. Here is the ISNS link: <http://www.isns.us/>.
I gave a presentation at the eighth annual conference of the Prometheus Trust, June 21–23, 2013 in Warminster, England. The conference theme was "Philosophy: Restoring the Soul," and my presentation was titled "Practicing the Wisdom of Hypatia Today." Conference page: <http://www.prometheustrust.co.uk/html/conference.html>
I gave a presentation, “Theurgy from the Perspective of Evolutionary Neuropsychology,” at the 10th Annual Conference, International Society for Neoplatonic Studies, Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy, June 20–24, 2012.
I gave a presentation, “Living Neoplatonism,” for panel on Neoplatonism and Contemporary Science, 9th Annual Conference sponsored by International Society for Neoplatonic Studies, Atlanta GA, June 22–26, 2011.
I gave a presentation, “Neoplatonism in Science: Past and Future,” at the Neoplatonism Conference sponsored by International Society for Neoplatonic Studies and the University Press of the South (New Orleans, June 22–26, 2005). An extended version of this paper appears in an anthology, Metaphysical Patterns in Platonism: Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance, and Modern, ed. Robert Berchman & John Finamore, University Press of the South, 2007, pp. 241–59.
I gave a presentation, “Evolutionary Neurotheology as an Explanatory Framework for Theurgy and Related Spiritual Practices,” at the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion annual meeting (Kansas City, Kansas, Oct. 22–24, 2004).
I gave a presentation, “Evolution, Jung, and Theurgy: Their Role in Modern Neoplatonism,” at the Neoplatonism Conference sponsored by International Society for Neoplatonic Studies and the University Press of the South (New Orleans, June 2003). An extended version of this paper appears in an anthology, History of Platonism: Plato Redivivus, ed. Robert Berchman & John Finamore, New Orleans: Univ. Press of the South, 2005, pp. 305–22.