Dr. Vedaste Kayisabe
Short-Term Fellow
July 2025
Bio
Vedaste Kayisabe is a distinguished Rwandan philosopher specializing in medieval philosophy, ethics, and African philosophy. He earned his doctorate in philosophy with a specialization in ethics from the Pontifical Urbaniana University in Rome. From 2011 to 2024, he served as Rector of the St Thomas Aquinas Major Seminary–Philosophicum of Kabgayi, where he was instrumental in shaping philosophical education and fostering intellectual engagement in Rwanda.
Kayisabe has made significant contributions as an editorialist and director of the philosophical review Aréopage, where he published numerous articles exploring intersections of classical philosophy and contemporary African thought. His notable works include studies on Aristotelian phronesis and Thomistic prudentia, reflections on freedom and moral decision-making in Thomistic ethics, examinations of universality and relativism in Étienne Gilson’s Christian philosophy, and comparative analyses of value theory in Western and Rwandan cultural contexts. His article on reconciliation offers an insightful socio-political approach to Rwanda’s post-genocide healing process.
In addition to his academic research, Kayisabe was a member of the Rwandan Academy of Language and Culture (RALC) from 2012 to 2017, contributing to efforts to promote Rwanda’s linguistic and cultural heritage. He is fluent in French, English, Italian, and Kinyarwanda, and his regional specialization focuses on Rwanda and East Africa.
Research
Medieval Philosophy, Ethics, African Philosophy
Regions
Rwanda, East Africa
Languages
French, English, Italian, Kinyarwanda
Books
La phronesis aristotélicienne et ta prudentia thomasienne, Dissertatio ad doctoratum in facultate philosophiae, Romae 2010.
Articles
« La liberté et les choix difficiles dans l’éthique de Saint Thomas d’Aquin », in Aréopage 19 (Mars), 2012, 58-69.
« Universalisme et relativisme dans la philosophie chrétienne d’Etienne Gilson », in Aréopage 20 (Aout), 2012, 3-13.
« La notion de la valeur chez L. Lavelle et l’échelle des valeurs dans la culture rwandaise », in Aréopage 21 (Mars), 2013, 3-21.
« Analyse et approche sociopolitique de la réconciliation: le cas du Rwanda », in Communio 1(3), 2, 2019, 116-129.
“The Logic of Consciencism,” in: Martin Ajei (ed.), Disentangling Consciencism: Essays on Kwame Nkrumah’s Philosophy, Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2017, pp. 185-198.
