Open Classroom

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

The fall of Constantinople (1453), the publication of Gutenberg’s Bible (1454), and the discovery of the Americas (1492) signaled the end of the era of Latin Christendom and the beginning of the age we call modern. This period has been shaped by the founding and steady growth of a secular replacement for Christendom, first in Europe, then in North America, and, concurrently, the spread of the Gospel and the growth of the Church in the East and the Global South. This course will offer a narrative of the modern period down to the present, with special emphasis on the progress of evangelization, the saints and martyrs as teachers and models of Catholic thought and life, and the Church’s response to secularism.

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

This course analyzes the major literary, historical, and theological issues involved with the study of St. Paul’s letters. Special attention is given to the Apostle’s identity as a first-century Jew, his faith in Christ the Lord, and to the way the scriptures inform his theology. Students will learn how to explain and synthesize key aspects of his theology (e.g., his Christology, Ecclesiology, Soteriology, Eschatology). In addition, students will learn how to evaluate and critique different views of his teachings. Finally, this course will emphasize the way Paul’s pastoral concerns are driven by in-depth theological reflection. In this, students will learn how Paul provides us with a model for dealing with the challenges involved with the spiritual life, evangelization, and ministry today.

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

This course will explore the literature of worship and wisdom in the Old Testament. Through an in-depth engagement with these ancient texts in light of recent scholarship, students will examine the historical background, literary provenance and poetic purposes of the diverse books of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Sirach and Wisdom. Rather than limiting the scope to form-critical and compositional concerns, the course will consider the function of the Psalms in the cult of ancient Israel and the social role and development of wisdom literature in the life of post-exilic Judaism. Furthermore, this course will uncover the roots of Christological interpretation of the Psalms in the New Testament, and the use of Psalms in Jewish and Christian traditions of prayer. The course will highlight the theological significance of these texts’ structures, their inner coherence, their original meaning and their relevance for the life of the Church today.

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

This course offers an in-depth study of the Gospel according to Matthew. Special attention is given to the Jewish character of the Gospel. After looking at issues pertaining to the authorship and dating of the book, the course will examine the Gospel’s literary structure, highlighting the way Jesus’ major discourses relate to the narrative sections that precede them. Along the way, students will see how the theme of the fulfillment of the scriptures is essential for understanding the Gospel’s Christology, its ecclesiology, its teaching on discipleship, and its eschatology. In all of this, students will discover that Matthew presents Jesus as Israel’s Messiah (the “son of David”), the only beloved Son of the Father who is sacrificed to bring blessings to all nations (the “son of Abraham”), the true interpreter of the Law (the New Moses), the Son of Man, the New Israel, and as Emmanuel, “God with us.”

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

Students will read substantially the entire Catechism of the Catholic Church together with selections from the Fathers of the Church, noted saints such as St. Augustine, and key post- conciliar papal teachings.

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

Students will be introduced to the history of the Church and her mission of evangelization and catechesis by reading texts from Ignatius of Antioch, Athanasius, Augustine, Benedict, Gregory the Great, Bernard, Francis de Sales, John Henry Newman, and Karol Wojtyła (John Paul II).

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

What does it mean to be made in the image of God? This course seeks to provide the rudiments of an answer by learning from the Church’s tradition of thinking theologically in company with the best available philosophical reflection. Along the way, we will consider some questions about human nature that are common and pressing today, including: Is life more than a chemical reaction? Is the mind more than the brain? And, can we affirm from our reflection upon common experience that the human soul is incorruptible, or does the Christian belief in the immortality of the soul repose solely upon Revelation? What does the Gospel of Jesus Christ reveal about human nature and its destiny?

January 13 - May 2, 2025

$400

Beginning with the Church’s teaching on marriage both as a natural human institution and as a sacrament, this course explores the new evangelization especially in the context of marriage and family. Examining the difficulties of irregular marriages in evangelization, particularly regarding the celebration of the sacraments, this class will look at canon law and the sacraments of initiation, as well as providing a moral framework for these cases and strategies for accompaniment. The class will conclude with a study of the role of parents in evangelization and the domestic Church.