This interdisciplinary course begins exploration of the relations between [Catholic Christian] faith and culture exhibited through works of imagination and intellect drawn from the New Testament through medieval periods. As part of the M.A. program core curriculum, the course focuses on the multifaceted Catholic tradition but includes perspectives from Christians of other denominations and non-Christians selected to show the dialogue between Catholic thought and other cultural views and accomplishments. Primary attention will be given to works of literature, music, and art, with some attention to philosophical and theological works selected especially for their contributions to articulating insights concerning the relationship between faith and culture.
Life in society requires order. Order is established through authority which is power used for the common good. Power and money can serve human society well; they can also be violently destructive on both the personal and social level. Catholics have thought long and hard about both political and economic power and the complex relationships between them. What does God have to do with either? Does it really matter for Catholics? Rooted in Scripture, the thinking of the early Church and the developing Catholic community on social questions has always constituted a challenge to civil society to protect human dignity from the concrete threats of the day. The purpose of this graduate course will be to explore different dimensions of the Catholic social tradition, in its historical origins, its classic writers, and its contemporary expressions (e.g., papal encyclicals and conciliar documents). We will be discussing what the Catholic social tradition means for some of the contemporary challenges (“signs of the times”) we are facing in society today.
This course takes an interdisciplinary look at one of the most important figures of Catholicism—Mary, the Mother of God. Drawing on philosophy, theology, poetry, music, and the visual arts, we will examine three key moments in Mary’s life as mother: the Annunciation, the Nativity, and the Stabat Mater (Mary at the foot of the cross). These culturally and historically diverse depictions of Mary set the stage for an investigation into the meaning of her role, within Catholicism as a whole and within the lives of individual Christians.
Topics courses examine in detail a small, focused set of questions arising from one or more of the disciplines within the graduate Catholic Studies program. Topics and instructors will vary.