This course welcomes participants to an introductory college exploration of Christian theology, providing a group inquiry into faith, belief, and the religious dimensions of human existence, whether one’s own or that of others. The course also offers an introduction to the hallmarks of the Benedictine tradition and their grounding in local Benedictine communities. Participants also examine examples of religious engagements, discussing how religious beliefs and practices inform people’s social actions. They also begin to explore the notion of the “common good,” debating different ideas of what the common good is and contemplating their own roles in communal flourishing. Overall this course hones student skills in theological reasoning and in the analysis of texts, of religious engagement, and of the common good through exploring Benedictine Tradition, central themes in the diverse field of Christian theology, and the practices of deep inquiry and personal reflection.

In this course, students and various members of the theology faculty will read and discuss current and classic writings in the discipline. Topics will vary.

Supervised reading or research at the lower-division level. Consult department chair for applicability towards major requirements. Not available to first-year students.

The goal of the course is to deepen students' familiarity with foundational biblical texts and with different ways these texts have been interpreted through the centuries. Content will ordinarily include at least one major section from the Old Testament (Pentateuch or Prophets) and the New Testament (Gospels or Pauline Letters). Ordinarily offered once a year in fall and taken during the sophomore or junior year.

A survey of writings sacred to both Jewish and Christian traditions, this course examines the three parts of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament (Law, Prophets and Writings). The various types of literature found in the Old Testament (narrative, law, prophetic oracle, poetry, etc.) are analyzed according to traditional and contemporary techniques of biblical interpretation. Special attention is paid to theological themes (God, creation, redemption, etc.).

This course provides a historical and theological overview of the major New Testament writings. While studying select portions of the Gospels, the Pauline letters, and other writings, this course analyzes various types of literature found in the New Testament (apocalyptic, homiletic, liturgical, etc.).

This course focuses on the Israelites' encounter with God at the time of their liberation from slavery in Egypt, and on their reflection upon God's special relationship with them and their ancestors from the time of creation until their entry into the Promised Land. Emphasis is placed upon Genesis, Exodus and Deuteronomy.

Through a study of select prophetic writings from the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, this courses focuses on the prophets sent by God to challenge the Israelite people to be faithful to the covenant with God and to promote justice in the society of their time.

This course explores the origins of the Gospels and the meaning of the teachings and deeds of Jesus as presented in the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

This course presents a survey of Paul’s life and thought as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles and other writings, and it pursues a historical and theological study of the genuine letters of Paul as he confronts challenges during the development of early Christian communities.

This course will comprise an investigation of the historical and evolving relationship between theology and the natural sciences. This will involve some study of a) the rise of science in the western world, b) the reception and resistance it has encountered within Christianity, c) recent theologies that have taken account of major scientific advances, and d) some major issues that require and bring together contributions from both theology and the natural sciences.

Throughout history, people have been drawn to theology as a way of exploring their deepest questions, pursuing justice, practicing spiritual reflection, and growing in their relationship with God. "Thinking Theologically" offers theology majors, minors, and other students, the opportunity to explore the discipline of theology in order to understand its aims, employ its methods and develop the skills necessary for expressing theological commitments in a variety of formats. To that end, the class will: (1) introduce the nature and task of theology as well as key developments in this discipline, (2) explore multiple theological methods and their formative influence on theological arguments; (3) probe fundamental theological teachings related to God, creation, revelation,theological anthropology and ecclesiology; and (4) train students to construct theological arguments in oral and written formats.

This course examines the development of Christianity in specific contexts around the globe. Special emphasis is given to Africa, Asia, and Latin America, continents that are now home to more than half of the world’s Christians.

Human beings innately feel deep questions about themselves, about God, and about the surrounding world. Some of these questions include: What can we know about God? What is the relationship between faith and reason? What does it mean to be human? Why is there evil in the world? This course considers some of the ways that Christian theological traditions have responded to fundamental human questions throughout history and are responding to them today. A significant goal of the course is to empower students to formulate unique arguments related to the perennial questions of theology by integrating theological wisdom from contrasting perspectives.

Why do people believe what they do about God? How does culture and context influence how God is understood? Close contact with and examination of ancient sites and artifacts bring such questions into profile and press individuals for self-reflection on personal beliefs. We will walk where St. Paul walked, visit where Socrates taught and died, and contemplate unfathomable architecture. This course seeks to explore the diverse ways that God has been understood in a variety of ancient Greek contexts. Understandings of God can be examined concretely in the archeological, artistic, and architectural legacy of the ancient Greeks. All of this will be wrapped in an experience of modern Greece, with its spectacular scenery, great food, warm hospitality, and healthy chaos.

Humans have always been anxious about the future. This course will explore the ancient fascination with the end of time by looking at important biblical books and little-known ancient texts such as the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Book of Watchers. Why were ancient people so preoccupied with the future? The course will also explore what legacy these texts have in our world today, by asking particularly about issues of violence, culture, and environmental destruction.

At the heart of Christian faith lies the conviction that sinful human beings are redeemed and saved through Jesus Christ who introduces them into a new and grace-filled relationship with God. While such a belief is universal to all Christians, the specific way in which redemption and salvation is understood has assumed varied expressions throughout the history of Christian thought. This course will explore Christian attempts to understand human salvation with particular focus on the notion of “justification” – the movement of a person from a state of sin into a state of grace. Central to this exploration will be the study of how God and human beings both play meaningful roles in the process of justification and the movement toward eternal life. As they relate to this central theme, the course will also explore topics including Christ’s role as savior, faith, grace, merit, sin, free will, and predestination. Surveying justification from a historical perspective, the course will offer students the opportunity to compare and evaluate diverse viewpoints using skills and vocabulary acquired during the semester.

People today disagree about “What’s fair?” – both personally and in the life of nations. From the Scriptures to the 21st century, Christians have struggled to answer the underlying question, “What is justice and what does justice require?” The development of doctrine in the Christian tradition means that we today have lots to learn from the tradition but also that we have to apply traditional insights to new settings where the concrete implications of those insights are often different today from those in the past. Is there too much economic inequality today? Is US capitalism just? Is liberation theology or libertarianism a better answer? Students will analyze a variety of theological and philosophical texts to under how Christians have engaged issues of justice, both historically and in contemporary debates from left to right on the political spectrum.

The claim has often been made that good literature trains us to see reality more truthfully. That claim may be no more compelling than in the realm of theology, where basic themes (creation, sin, redemption, evil, grace) are often illustrated in fiction more clearly than they can be defined in systematic theology. This course will provide an encounter with a fascinating collection of modern literature – primarily but not exclusively authors identified as Catholic – and a series of wicked questions: Is there “Catholic” fiction? If so, what makes a work of literature “Catholic”? How does a “Catholic imagination” shape the way authors struggle with questions of meaning, purpose, and suffering? Does the “Catholic imagination” tell us anything about the good life? Does this literature have anything to say to a post-Christian culture?

This course examines the implications of Christian theology for the ethical life of contemporary society. Drawing from the social dimensions of biblical ethics, Catholic Social Teaching, and diverse theological approaches to communal and civic life, students will both explore what it means to discern and craft a “social ethic,” and will apply those ethics to particular contemporary social issues. Topics will include the social and civic implications of the sanctity of human life, subsidiarity and solidarity, the dignity of work, and the connections between Christian sacramental life and social ethics. As they relate to these topics, particular focus will be given to issues of race, labor rights/practices, LGBTQ+ issues, and issues associated with the use of coercive force/violence.

This course explores perspectives on the meaning of the existence, nature, attributes, revelation, and presence of God. Emphasis is on Christian and Jewish theological perspectives, but views about God found in other religious traditions — especially Islam and Hinduism — are also examined. Special attention is given to what it means to have faith in God, the sources of and challenges to such faith, the variety of views about God, theological approaches to religious diversity, the relationship between morality and faith in God, the effects of scientific knowledge on beliefs about God, feminist critiques of and alternatives to traditional patriarchal perspectives on God, and the relationship between views about God and approaches to ecological issues.

This course examines theological approaches to doubt and problems of theistic belief. Drawing from theological and philosophical sources, the course focuses on challenges to theistic belief deriving especially from the problem of evil and suffering(e.g. how can a loving God allow so much misery in the world), questions of the reasonableness and relevance of theism, and the sometimes tense relationship between doubt, belief, and organized religion. The course engages diverse approaches to atheism, agnosticism, and theism, ultimately aimed at helping students to craft their own intellectually integrated approach to questions of belief and doubt.

Focusing on Vatican Council II as a pivotal event in the Roman Catholic Church, this course examines models for understanding the Church today, its leadership structures, its tasks in society, and its ecumenical and inter-faith endeavors. Each semester, special attention is paid to current issues facing the Church.

This course examines a variety of Christian theological positions on other religions. Perspectives from the Bible, Church councils, doctrinal statements, and works of theologians are studied. Concurrently, attention is given to other religions and their relationships to Christianity.

This course in “U.S. Latino/a Theologies” aims to introduce students to the analytic and constructive practice of “theological discourse” as distinctively enriched by U.S. Latin American perspectives. Like all theological endeavors, U.S. Latino/a theological perspectives seek to express the reality of God’s revelation to humankind and God’s on-going presence among human beings in ways that add understanding and wisdom to people’s experience of God, one another, and the world around them. While much of the Christian tradition is continuous and shared among diverse peoples, this course will enable students to explore how U.S. Latino/a experiences (e.g. religious, social, cultural, gender, racial, economic, political, etc) provide vital theological insight and approaches to work of Christian theology and practice. To that end, the course will look at the development of U.S. Latino/a Theology (1) in connection with the Latin American traditions of liberation theology, (2) in its distinctive methodological perspectives, (3) in its constructive treatment of God, human beings, and salvation, (4) as a source for Christian Spirituality, and (5) for the way in which it is giving shape to the U.S. church in general and the Roman Catholic Church in particular. As the course proceeds, it seeks to build an increasingly rich and multifaceted sense of what it means to engage or practice U.S. Latino/a theologies. To that end, the course cultivates comprehension of the central ideas shaping U.S. Latino/a theologies and the skills to engage, analyze, and asses the theological content and merit of various positions and perspectives, thereby affording students the opportunity to practice theological discourse in their own right.

This course analyzes feminist biblical interpretation, feminist readings of Christian history, and the work of feminist and womanist scholars in systematic theology and theological ethics. Attention is given throughout to the ways in which embodiment and social location, especially in terms of race, class, sexuality, and ethnicity, shape theological work.

Liberation theology is the name for a well-known and, to some, notorious form of religious action and reflection that emerged in Latin American some forty years ago. Today, it has now grown into a family of related though different theologies, which have similar methods, and which all start for the experience of oppression. Although Latin American theology of liberation is perhaps the most influential expression of this relation in the twentieth century, other forms of religious reflection owe a debt to liberation theology, even as they add to the profundity of its insights. This course will begin with Latin American liberation theology and then turn to the work of black, feminist, womanist, U.S. Latino/a, gay/lesbian and ecological theologies to broaden our understanding of the relationship between the Gospels and the imperative to structural change in our society.

This course considers how Christian theologies-biblical, ancient, and modern - have contributed to the cultural construction of gender. Conversely, the course studies the ways in which cultural ideas of gender, and gendered ideas about sexuality, have shaped understandings of God, Christ, church, and theological anthropology. In analyzing scriptural, historical, and contemporary sources, including ecclesial documents, the course draws upon scholarship at the intersections of Christian theology and feminist theory, masculinity studies, queer theory, and sexuality studies.

This course provides a study of the Christian tradition of spirituality as reflected by some classic and contemporary Christian writers, with particular focus on the influence of beliefs (about Trinity, Christ, grace, etc.) and elements of spiritual formation (such as prayer, reading, solitude, and social responsibility) on Christian living today.

This course explores the origins and essentials of Benedictine spirituality, giving special attention to how this spirituality is expressed in the lives of the monastics at Saint Benedict's Monastery and Saint John’s Abbey. It encourages students to envision for themselves and others how the lessons of Benedictine spirituality can influence their lives whatever their vocation might be.

Theology is never simply an intellectual pursuit. Its thinking often arises out of and returns to practice, especially in ritual, prayer, and spirituality. This course considers aspects and traditions of Christian practice that shape theological thought, moral life, and personal vocation, historically and today. Major figures and/or movements in Christian spirituality will be examined through reading primary and secondary sources. One central aim of the course is to empower students to explore their own spiritual practices and personal sense of vocation in dialogue with significant figures and movements in the history of spirituality.

This course introduces students to the relationships between theology, spirituality, and the arts, with a primary focus on the visual arts. The course will explore how the making of art and experiencing art can inform both theology and spirituality. We will look at what is central in a theological reflection on the arts beginning with the contributions of theologians who have reflected on art, beauty, and aesthetics. We will also examine the significance of artistic style in the presentation of religious subject matter and meaning, and the importance of formal analysis of a work of art in the process of theological interpretation.

This course explores the transmigration of Christian art and iconography from Spain, including its Jewish and Muslim influences and its convergence with indigenous cultures and African expressions in the Americas. The course will consider the ways religious art and iconography reflects, transmits, changes and maintains theological, socio-political, cultural, and aesthetic meanings over space and time. Designed with an art historical focus with attention to theological issues, interdisciplinary methods will be used to assess religious imagery, devotional objects, and sacred spaces that continue to hold significance for Latin American and Latino/a populations today.

Songs of Love and Freedom will survey the spiritual practices and devotional traditions of Christianity and Hinduism as well as their transformative impact upon individuals and communities. Practices like yoga, meditation, lectio divina, and the Spiritual Exercises will be examined in both practice and theory. Devotional traditions embodied in the poems and songs of these traditions' mystics will be explored to see how experiences beyond words are nevertheless communicated. Finally, the class will highlight the transformative impact of these spiritual and devotional traditions as they are made manifest in the lives and communities of modern figures who strove and strive to live lives of love and freedom.

This course explores how God, our image of God, and our speech about God makes a difference in the way Christians live. It develops views of the moral life within a Christian theological vision of goodness, sin, redemption, vocation, and human community. Within this vision, various ethical issues will be examined with the aim of living into right relationships.

This course invites students to explore theological perspectives on justice, emphasizingtheology’s commitment to promoting human dignity and challenging systems of oppression. Through engagement with Scripture, religious texts, and the voices of marginalized and underrepresented communities, students will critically examine the ways theology has been used to both uphold and resist injustice. The course also calls students to reflect on the theological imperative to pursue justice, foster solidarity, and engage in transformative action across a range of contemporary issues and social concerns.

Given the inescapable complexities surrounding human sexuality, gender, and embodiment, how might we live and relate to one another in ways that are increasingly fulfilling, and in ways that deepen our relationships with ourselves, others, and God? This course will introduce students to the methodology of Christian ethics, i.e., the process of drawing upon sources of knowledge (scripture, tradition, reason, and contemporary experience) to formulate responses to contemporary issues regarding sexuality and relationships. Specifically, we will be exploring the concept of justice as it relates to sex, contemporary hookup culture, love, and relationships. In the end, students will be equipped to construct and articulate a compelling theological sexual ethic for college students.

This course will introduce students to the ways that various world religions are engaging with today’s multidimensional environmental crisis. In light of climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, deforestation, and the increasing insecurity surrounding food and water for people all over the globe, world religions are both re-examining their traditions for resources on how to engage spiritually with today’s environmental problems, and also becoming politically active with respect to environmental ethics. The religions studied in this course include Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and select Native American traditions.

Moral theology asks what religious faith means for living a good life—for each person and for society as a whole. This course examines various visions of economic life held by religious people in the West, focusing on the Christian understanding of economic life.

This course examines theological perspectives on violence and nonviolence ranging from absolute pacifism to just war theory to the celebration of “redemptive violence.”

This course explores diversity as a dynamic component of Christian communities and studies the contextual nature of Christian theology. The course also analyzes the ways in which racism and classism are experienced, perpetuated, and sometimes dismantled in Christian communities. In addition to theological texts, including those based on scripture and contemporary Catholic social teaching, the course relies upon service-learning in local organizations.

Recent developments in the United States and other parts of the world have led observers to look closely at religious groups, beliefs and activities concerning the state, society and sociopolitical issues like cultural diversity and war and peace. In this course we will examine the Judeo-Christian tradition and address such questions as: What is the relationship between religion and ethnicity and religion and nationalism? What is religious fundamentalism? How do various groups view their relationship with the state and the broader society? What kinds of social and political goals do religious groups have and how do they try and achieve them? We will try to answer these and other questions through the study of historical and sociological case studies and selected religious texts reflecting the range of belief and practice in the Judeo-Christian tradition.

Drawing on historical, sociological, and religious sources, this course introduces students to a range of perspectives concerning the intersection of family, church and society, focusing on issues such as cohabitation, marriage, divorce, homosexuality, and gender roles.

This course will examine the role of faith in addressing a variety of moral issues raised by the advancement of medical science and technology and by ongoing research to cure diseases.  The course will survey issues such as stem cell research, reproductive technologies, health care reform, the patient-physician relationship, euthanasia, beginning and end of life questions and HIV/AIDS.  Each issue will be explored from the perspectives of theology, medicine, and other pertinent disciplines, such as psychology.  Theological themes will be looked at to see what theology and faith offer in addressing the variety of moral issues.  These themes include theological anthropology (how we understand the human person), views on God, sin, grace, the communal nature of morality, the Resurrection (as a framework to discuss what it means to die a good death), as well as Catholic social teaching and the Christian obligation to care for the poor and vulnerable. 

From the Book of Exodus to the Hebrew prophets and the New Testament, one finds the utopian vision of a just, peaceful and reconciled world, summarized in the biblical term “shalom.” Through the study of biblical texts and contemporary writings, we will explore the Judeo-Christian tradition’s vision of justice, peace and reconciliation. Through the analysis of case studies we will explore how individuals, organizations and communities in the tradition are working to bring about shalom in various parts of the world through such means as nonviolent action, the defense of human rights, methods to conflict resolution and transformation, and efforts for peacebuilding and reconciliation.

An examination of how economic life has been viewed from the perspective of religion, particularly Western Christianity: from roots in the Hebrew and Christian scriptures, through the early church, middle ages and the Protestant Reformation, up to contemporary debates about free markets, Marxism, feminism and the social teaching of the Roman Catholic Church today.

An exploration of the ethical and moral perspectives developed by theologies and philosophies of liberation, with a focus on Latin American liberation thought and its influence on contemporary Catholic Social Teaching and faith. The themes of liberation and the preferential option for the poor that are central to liberation theology and its mainstream developments will be compared to traditional moral theology and traditional philosophical approaches to ethics, as well as to traditional conceptions of Christian faith. Emphasis will be given to practical applications for understanding contemporary issues of faith, ethics and justice.

This course in Christianity and Colonialism in Ireland offers an exploration of Christian theology in the context of Irish history and contemporary culture. The broad topic of Christianity and Colonialism allows us to analyze ancient and contemporary sites through the lenses of both Christian theology and postcolonial theory. As we encounter the legacies of Celtic spirituality, Roman Catholicism, and the Anglican Church, alongside various other forms of contemporary Irish religiosity both beyond and within Christianity, students encounter evidence that culture is never monolithic and that social power structures impact the formation of cultural diversities. Theological texts studied in the course help students analyze ways in which Christianity has functioned in Ireland both as a colonizing force and as a source of anti-colonial resistance.

This class introduces students to womanist and feminist theological diverse perspectives on identity, embodiment, sexuality, reproductive health, and justice. Students will examine womanist and feminist insights into the nature of God, theological anthropology, sin, Christ, human freedom, grace, and discipleship. They will gain an understanding of the interconnections between neoliberalism, racism, sexism, and heterosexism on these theological ethical issues. Students will develop their own theological and ethical perspectives on these issues in dialogue with these resources.

This course offers an overview of the origin, development, and cultural aspects of Christian worship, giving special attention to the Church's celebration of the mystery of Christ in word and sacrament, and to the meaning and rhythm of Sundays, feasts and seasons.

Course title(s) and description(s) appear in the official class schedule published each semester.

This course focuses on major religions of the world cross-culturally in terms of categories such as sacred text, sacred time, sacred space, myth, ritual, symbol, ethics, and politics. The relationships among the religions and topics pertaining to inter-religious dialogue are examined.

Analysis of the changing cultural meaning and experience of religion in America. Considers why American religious experience has been so diverse, how religiosity has shaped our society, and how in turn society's values and structure have shaped religion. Primary focus on the 19th and 20th centuries. Yearly.

This course explores the history of Islam and its interpretations, as well as doctrines and practices among Muslims in various parts of the world. It examines the Quran and Hadith, and topics related to women and gender, Islamic law, and Islam and politics, and it examines the relationship between Islam and the Judeo-Christian tradition.

An exploration of the theological and historical encounters between Judaism and Christianity, from the emergence of both Christianity and Judaism out of biblical religion, the disagreements and distancing of one faith from the other over the centuries, but culminating, in the late 20th century, in efforts at rapprochement and mutual acceptance.

After providing an introduction to the beliefs, practices, and history of Islam, this course will analyze some of the relationships between Islam and politics in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries among Islamist (or “fundamentalist Islamic groups”) in the Middle East, South Asia, and other parts of the world. Specifically, the course will examine the histories, ideologies, and structures of groups. This course will examine the religious, theological, and political, foundations of these groups while analyzing their work in education, literacy, social service to people in many sectors of societies (including the underprivileged), religious and political instruction, and community-building. The course will also explore the various perspectives of members of these groups and movements toward peace and violence as well as their religiously- and politically-based reasons for attacking various targets. Finally, the course will compare and contrast those Islamist trends with those represented by some liberal Muslims.

This course will focus on the various ways in which relations between Muslim women and men have been appropriated, interpreted, and concretized in a variety of real-life situations throughout the early, medieval, and modern periods in Islam with a regional focus on Islam and gender in the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, Europe, and/or North America. This course will use gender as a primary lens of analysis for examining course content by examining the, at times static and at other times dynamic, roles of women and men in societies where Muslims are in the majority and others where they are the minority in order to gain an understanding of the relationship between appropriations of gender with respect to Islam and its corresponding cultural contexts.

Islam shapes much of our current political and social context: 9/11, the Arab spring, ISIS, the war in Syria, our complex relationship with Iran, all have a major impact on the world we live in. Islam is also the fastest growing faith, both globally and here in America. This course will focus on how Muslims have encountered God, how this encounter informs their daily lives, and how the traditions of Islam are influencing and informing (or not) current political and cultural events around the globe. Studying another faith tradition also provides a lens through which to examine one’s own faith and society, and an appreciation for the commonality of the human condition. Our study of Islam while looking at the particulars of that faith, will also raise a variety of broad questions, including the conflict of faith versus reason, the role and position of women, the rights of religious and cultural minorities, freedom of speech vs. religious respect, and multiculturalism vs. assimilation.

Supervised reading or research at the upper-division level. Permission of department chair and completion and/or concurrent registration of 12 credits within the department required. Consult department chair for applicability towards major requirements. Not available to first-year students.

Theology as a discipline, practice, and method of inquiry does not exist in a vacuum. The reality of religious pluralism requires theologians to be conversant with faith traditions other than their own and competent in the methods of interfaith dialogue. To speak confidently and intelligibly to the signs of the time and the myriad of challenges the world faces, theologians will also need to be capable of doing their work in conversation across disciplines—learning from and working with of thinkers committed to a common cause. In this course, students will learn to articulate the dialogical dimensions of theology, will be equipped with the skills to engage in dialogue, and will examine both the problems and possibilities that such a dialogical approach offers. The particularities of the course will change with the expertise of the instructor. For interfaith dialogue, a course might focus on Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and/or Hinduism in dialogue. For an interdisciplinary approach, a course might focus on theology and ecology, theology and art, and/or theology and economics. Regardless of the instructor, students will gain fluency in doing theology in dialogue.

This course introduces students to basic ethical concepts (such as human action, human agency, natural law, freedom, conscience, and the Christian moral life) and to the application of Christian moral reasoning to contemporary ethical issues. It offers theology majors a common grounding in Catholic moral theology. Ordinarily offered once a year in fall and taken in senior year after the completion of most requirements for the major.

This course provides an integrative exercise in theological thought based on a conversation between two theological sub disciplines (e.g. scriptures and ethics) guiding the development of a capstone research paper.

This is a supervised practicum for students majoring in theology, serving as a capstone experience for those specializing in education or in pastoral ministry.