This course surveys selected writings from the principal Fathers of the Church. The focus is on the development of Catholic Doctrine from the Apostolic Fathers to St. Gregory the Great, with emphasis on the Trinitarian and Christological questions.
The course introduces students to ecclesiastical law through a systematic presentation and study of the 1983 Code of Canon Law, reflecting on the purpose, nature, content, history, background, and consequences of what ecclesiastical law achieves in the life of the Church.
This course provides a study of the great spiritual writers with an emphasis on how the beautiful images and concepts in such classics can help us grow in our own union with God, and in our love of those we encounter in friendship, family, work and mission.
This course will provide an exploration of the teachings of the Church on the mysteries of faith and revelation, through the study of related Magisterial documents and various writings of St. Thomas Aquinas. Topics include: the meaning of Revelation; the relationship between Sacred Scripture, Tradition, and the Magisterium; the relationship between faith and reason; the necessity, character, and effects of grace; the object, act, and virtue of faith; sins against faith; and the nature and mission of theology.
Building on the knowledge of the Sacraments, students in this course will study the words and rituals of the Sacraments of Initiation for a deeper appreciation of their continuing effects in our lives.
This course presents fundamental moral principles from the perspective of the classical Catholic moral tradition especially as represented by Thomas Aquinas and John Paul II. Primary questions include the end of man, human acts, moral determinants, freedom, sin, moral responsibility, and conscience.
The purpose of this course is to locate the moral virtues within the context of confessional practice. Special attention is given to the virtue of justice and the material sins needed to fully help penitents and encourage a thorough examination of conscience.
This course examines the topic of suffering, dying and death from doctrinal, pastoral, spiritual, and human dimensions. The psychological and social aspects of dying and death will also be considered, along with a brief study on end of life issues. This course enables one in any ministry to address concerns and questions that arise in life, especially with a view to family and youth ministry, hospital chaplaincy, grief ministry, the elderly, and care for the physically and mentally challenged.
This course develops preaching skills for ordination to the diaconate and priesthood with attention on the spiritual formation of the preacher. Students develop public speaking skills through constructive critique. Reserved for the ordained or those preparing for ordination.
This course builds on, and develops the skills learned in Homiletics I, so the student can prepare and deliver homilies with passion and conviction. Pre-requisite PAS 751 Homiletics.
This course provides a pastoral understanding of two central mysteries of the Catholic Faith: the Holy Trinity and the Incarnation of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Since pastoral ministry concerns putting people in “communion with the Person of Christ” and helping others to follow Him, this course focuses upon Jesus Christ as the Way to the Father (John Paul II, Catechesis Tradendae #5). A second pastoral focus highlights the practical dimensions by which we can live our communion with the Blessed Trinity in family life, pastoral settings, and in the various ministries in the Church.
The course examines concepts and criteria used in Biblical and Theological Sciences: word, Revelation, transmission, Truth in Scripture, Canonicity, Authenticity, Integrity, Magisterium, Tradition, etc., and acquaints the students with the Books of the Bible per se: languages; traditions.
This course is a study of the background, purpose, composition, structure, and content of the Pentateuch (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) and Historical Books (Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I-II Samuel, I-II Kings, I-II Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Tobit, Judith, I-II Maccabees). Students will be introduced to a variety of patristic, medieval, and contemporary interpretive approaches to the Pentateuch and Historical Books as found in the rich Catholic spiritual and intellectual tradition. In the first half of the course, emphasis will be placed upon the historical, theological, legal, and ceremonial aspects of the Pentateuch, as well as upon themes of creation, sin, and the redemption of Jesus Christ both promised and foreshadowed in the lives of the Patriarchs and in the precepts of the Law. In the second half of the course, emphasis will be placed upon the outworking of God’s divine covenants despite, and through, human fallibility, as well as upon Jesus Christ as the ultimate interpretive “key” and culmination of ancient Israelite history and monarchy.
This course explores the stylistic and literary characteristics of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Students study the Synoptic Gospels’ theological, spiritual, and historical background.