Abstract: We often associate sloth with laziness, but is it possible for a culture to be productive and still be slothful? In this talk, Dr Matthew Tan explores how Sloth is arguably the most pervasive of the deadly sins first by understanding it by its original name, the vice of Acedia. Taking its cue from the writings of the desert father, Evagrius of Pontus, the talk would take a deep dive into what the vices do to the life of monastic virtue, and how acedia acts as a spiritual opiate whose affects are more than just spiritual. It will end by looking at how monastic practice can give us clues into providing new responses to this ancient vice.

Bio: Dr Matthew Tan is the private secretary of Bishop Tony Randazzo in the Archdiocese of Sydney, and an Adjunct Senior Lecturer in a Theology at the University of Notre Dame Australia. He received his doctorate in Theology from the Australian Catholic University and his License in Sacred Theology at the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He is the author of two books, the most recent of which is "Redeeming Flesh: The Way of the Cross with Zombie Jesus". He runs the blog "the Divine Wedgie" on the Patheos Catholic blog channel, and will soon be launching his theological side project "AwkwardAsianTheologian.com".