Iona Pacific Inter-Religious Centre is delighted to welcome Jonathan Lerner as its newest Iona Pacific Intern. Jonathan joins returning Intern Aliya Hirji, who will serve as Senior Intern in the 2010-2011 academic year.

The focus of Jonathan’s internship will be planning and coordinating the development and implementation of Iona Pacific’s inaugural inter-religious philosophy conference for undergraduate and graduate students. The conference will be multi-faceted and diverse in its focus, applying religious teachings to contemporary issues. As many religious traditions as possible will be represented. Calls for papers will be sent to all major campuses and student philosophy groups, as well as religious groups. Students whose papers are accepted for presentation will come to Vancouver School of Theology for a weekend, where they will engage with one another and present their papers. Discussion groups and peer commenting will be facilitated. Examples of paper topics might include Environmental Ethics, Free Will and Divine Omnipotence, Biomedical Ethics from a Religious Perspective, etc.

Jonathan Lerner has a strong passion for Philosophy, having earned his B. A. with Honours in Philosophy from the University of British Columbia in 2010. He recently presented a scholarly paper at the 13th Annual Pacific University Undergraduate Philosophy Conference in Oregon entitled “Does It Hurt?: Are Performance Enhancing Drugs Morally Permissible In Sport?” Jonathan also studied at Langara College. He served as 2009-2010 President of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity’s UBC Chapter. In addition to his academic studies, he has extensive experience in event planning, fundraising, databases, and technical theatre. Jonathan has received numerous awards for community service and leadership, including the British Columbia District Scholarship Award for Community Service, Magee Secondary School Technical Theatre Award, Vancouver Foundation Award for Community Service and Leadership, Mordehai and Hana Wosk Jewish Student Leadership Award, Vancouver Hillel Foundation Special Commendation Award for Extraordinary Service, and Bonnie Colleen Thurston Memorial Bursary for a student of philosophy.

Jonathan’s appointment begins July 1.