Discussion
300 Years of Kant: Opening Symposium

Join us in celebrating Immanuel Kant and his lasting principles with Professor Matthias Lutz-Bachmann and Professor Franz Magnis-Suseno.

22.04.2024
6 PM
GoetheHaus Jakarta

Remembering the 300th anniversary of Immanuel Kant’s birth, the Goethe-Institut Indonesien, in close cooperation with Driyarkara School of Philosophy Jakarta and Komunitas Salihara organized a symposium series in honor of the German philosopher of the Enlightenment.

Serving as the opener of the symposium series is the opening lecture on April 22nd, 2024—appropriately also Immanuel Kant’s birthday. The big topic of On Law, Politics, and Religion: Kantian Strengths, Limits, and Practices within Global & Indonesian context” will be the focus of the symposium where we invite all philosophers, academics, students, and general public alike to participate.

Professor Matthias Lutz-Bachmann (Goethe-Universität Frankfurt, attending online) will deliver the topic of “Peace through Law? On the Strengths and Limits of Kant’s Political Philosophy” that deals with Kant’s reasonable political order grounded in his universality and unconditioned validity claims, whereas Professor Franz Magnis-Suseno will raise questions regarding Kantian ethics and its relevance within the spectrum of Indonesian politics today. The evening will be followed by joint discussion which will give strong impulses for the academic and general public, moderated by Retno Daru Dewi GSP.

Let’s discuss Immanuel Kant and his lasting principles that continue to resonate across different social dimensions.

Prof. Dr. phil., Dr. teol. Matthias Lutz-Bachmann (b. 1952 in Frankfurt am Main)
is a German philosopher and professor. He has been teaching and researching at the Institute for Philosophy at the University of Frankfurt since 1994, with a focus on medieval philosophy, practical philosophy, with particular attention to political philosophy and ethics, philosophy of religion, and critical theory. In the academic world, some of his achievements are a dean of the Department of Philosophy and History at the University of Frankfurt (2007-2009), an elected member of the Philosophy Review Board of the German Research Foundation (2004-2008), a Vice President of the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main with special responsibility for research and for the humanities and cultural studies (2009-2015). 

Prof. Dr. Dr. (HC) Franz Magnis-Suseno SJ (b. 1936 in Eckersdorf, Germany)
is a permanent lecturer and professor of social philosophy at the Driyarkara School of Philosophy, Jakarta. He studied philosophy, theology and political science in Pullach, Yogyakarta and Munich, and obtained his doctorate in philosophy from Universität München, Germany (1973) with a dissertation on Karl Marx. Since 1961 he has lived in Indonesia, becoming an Indonesian citizen, and taught at several universities in Jakarta and Bandung. He was also a guest lecturer at the Geschwister Scholl Institut, Universität München (1979), Philosophische Hochschule München (1987 and 1992), and the Faculty of Theology, University of Innsbruck (1987). He received his Doctor honoris causa degree in theology from the University of Lazern, Switzerland (2002).