Survey of church history from the apostolic age to the Council of Chalcedon in 451, with special emphasis on the Apostolic Fathers, the Christianization of the Roman Empire, and the formation of Christian doctrine.

This course will examine the development of the Christian tradition, including the expression of seminal doctrines within the Christian church, from its origins to the eleventh century. The course will explore the main trends in the development of the institution and primary doctrines of the church within the larger philosophical, social, and political contexts of the first millennium, paying attention to the ways in which the lived experience of Christian peoples informs and shapes its thinking.

Medieval and Reformation theology and spirituality are often construed as oppositional in their uses of scripture, understandings of justification and sanctification, approaches to sacramental life, and their presentations of discipleship. This course will put seminal theological and spiritual texts from the medieval and Reformation periods into context and conversation, exploring areas of deep continuity as well as points of significant departure for the way in which medieval and Reformation thought can be said to continue to inform present-day Christian life, thought, and practice, including its ecumenical dimensions.

This course will examine the development of the Christian tradition, including the expression of seminal doctrines within the Christian church, from the twelfth century to the present day. The course will explore the main trends in the development of the institution and primary doctrines of the church within the larger philosophical, social, and political contexts of the second millennium, paying attention to the ways in which the lived experience of Christian peoples informs and shapes its thinking.

This course examines historical perspectives on what it means to be “Catholic” in a distinctively “American” setting. At the heart of this inquiry will be the question of the mutual influence and relationship between Catholic religious and American political/cultural identities. Our task will be to explore the ways in which “being Catholic in America” may differ from being Catholic in other places, and in doing so, to probe the ways in which American life can be said to shape Catholic perspectives and practices. The course explores American Catholicism from the 16th Century to present day, focusing on questions including religious freedom, social action, cultural diversity.

Survey of church history from the age of Luther to the present. This course will introduce students to the historical dynamics that transformed the united “Christendom” of the Middle Ages into a diverse and truly global twenty-first century church.

The rise of monasticism within the early church of East and West to the time of Benedict. Cross-listed with MONS 402.

The development of Western monastic life and reform movements from the early middle ages through the fifteenth century. Cross-listed with MONS 404.

The decline of Western monasticism in the sixteenth century through its revival in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Cross-listed with MONS 406.

An exploration of the significant formative elements, experiences and writers of Christian spirituality in its first seven hundred years. Cross-listed with SPIR 424.

A study of the Christian spirituality of the Middle Ages, especially from the end of the seventh century to the Reformation. Special attention will be given to notable figures, writings, events, institutions and movements that shaped the expression of Christian convictions and practice, up to the dawn of the "modern" period. Cross-listed with SPIR 425.

Significant persons and movements in the development of Judaism.

The development of Christian spirituality from the Protestant and Catholic Reformations to the present. Also included will be events in Asia, Africa, North and Latin America. Cross-listed with SPIR 426.

This course involves critical and reflective reading of works that might be classified as "spiritual autobiography" in the Christian theological and spiritual tradition. Examining these "self-presentations" as theological fonts, the course introduces students to this genre and an understanding of each work in its historical and theological context. Particular attention is given to presentations of life as a "journey" with emphasis on those experiences which advance the person in his or her relationship with God. Themes such as grace, sacramental action, self-examination, prayer, and good works inform the way in which the course considers progress in the life stories, and the course will invite students to think about how biography might shape on-going insights into current Christian thought and practice.