The Greatest Poet in Italian History. The Eccentric Conversationalist of the Counter Reformation. The First Kiev-Rus Martyrs. What possible connections do they display? What lessons convey? Dante converses with the inhabitants of Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. How do his conversations with sinners and saints lead him (and his readers) to “conversion”? His fellow Florentine, Philip Neri walked the streets of Rome striking up conversations with strangers who soon became fast friends. How did their penchant for conversation with God and one another lead to the transformation of Rome? Boris and Gleb were the sons of Prince Vladimir of Kiev whose conversion to Christianity meant the conversion of his nation. How did their shed blood seal the Christianization of the Kievan-Rus and inform Orthodox hagiography? Just a few of the fascinating questions to be posed as we explore sin and mercy, reason and imagination at Conversing Conversion.