Fall 2007 Course Descriptions
60002 Elementary Hebrew I
Avi Winitzer
MW 1:30-2:45
CRN: 12802
Description: This is a two-semester introductory course in biblical Hebrew; under normal circumstances, the student must complete the first in order to enroll in the second. The fall semester will be devoted to learning the grammar of biblical Hebrew. The spring semester will include a completion of and review of the grammar. Also, the spring semester will see the introduction of some modified Biblical texts. The course will focus on developing reading and comprehension skills in biblical Hebrew through the study of biblical texts. It is exclusively a year to learn the grammer of Biblical Hebrew. In addition, students will learn how to use reference grammars, concordances, and apparatus to the Biblica Hebraica. The course encourages students to think about the grammatical forms and their implications for biblical interpretation.
60006 Intermediate Hebrew
Eugene Ulrich
MW 3-4:15
CRN: 12661
Description: The primary focus of this course is on reading
the text of the Hebrew Bible, at first prose narratives, then poetic sections
and consonantal (unpointed) texts.
There will be a review of the grammar of Biblical Hebrew, as well as development of vocabulary and skills in using lexicons and concordances of the Hebrew Bible. There will be quizzes, a mid-term, and a final exam. Elementary Hebrew is required.
60007 Aramaic
Avi Winitzer
MW 4:30-5:45
CRN: 15670
Description: This course provides an overview and critical study of the
Hebrew Bible in its literary, historical, and theological contexts. The focus
will be principally on reading and gaining an informed understanding of the
biblical text, but this will be done against the background of the history,
literature, and religions of the magnificent civilizations in the ancient Near
East. Further aspects include analysis and use of the tools of
historical-critical scholarship; ancient mythology; the processes by which the
Scriptures were composed; Old Testament theology; and contemporary theological
issues. This will be also be an introduction to Standard Literary
Aramaic, using the Aramaic of Targum Onqelos as our dialect and a teaching
grammar of that dialect for our textbook. We will strive to complete the grammar
in the fall semester. The course
is designed to prepare students both for doctoral biblical studies and for
intelligent effectiveness in the contemporary church.
60111 Synoptic Gospels
Mary Rose DÕAngelo
TR 11:00-12:15
CRN: 13840
Descripton:
60121 Early Christianity
Brian Daley
MW 11:45-1
CRN: 12738
Description: This course provides an introduction to the
history and thought of the first 500 years of the Christian church.
General topics to be studied include: Christ of Semitic Christianity, Christ as
the World's True Wisdom, Christ in Controversy, Christ and Human
Transformation, Christ as One Person, Christ as Humble Mediator, and the Nature
Balance of Christ's Person. Texts for purchase will include: R.A. Norris,
The Christological Controversy, E.R. Hardy
(ed.), The Christology of the Later Fathers, Cyril of Alexandria, On the Unity of
Christ (tr. John A. McGuckin), and A.
Louth, Maximus the Confessor.
60213 The Eucharist in High Medieval Religion, Theology and Society
Joseph Wawrykow
MW 1:30-2:45pm
CRN: 17625
Description: The Eucharist stands
at the heart of western European Christianity in the high middle ages. The
insistence of church officials on regular reception of the Eucharist; the
numerous scholastic treatments of the theoretical issues associated with the
Eucharist; the recourse by spiritual authors, especially women, to the
Eucharist to express their most profound religious and devotional insights; the
pointed reference to the Christ Eucharistically-present to establish Christian
identity and to distinguish the members of Christ from others, both within and
outside of western Europe; the development of new rituals focussed on aspects
of the Eucharist; the burgeoning of artistic representations of Eucharistic
themes-all testify to the centrality of the Eucharist in medieval theological
and religious consciousness. Through the close reading of representative texts
by a wide variety of 13th-century authors, and, the study of the different
kinds of 'Eucharistic' art, this course examines the uses made of the Eucharist
by a broad spectrum of high medieval Christians. A special concern of the
course is the relation between Eucharistic doctrine and religious practice-to
what extent have teachings about transubstantiation and real presence shaped religious
expression? how has religious experience itself occasioned the refinement of
these doctrines?
60214 Jews & Christians thru
History
Michael Signer
TR 3:30-4:45
CRN: 12831
Description: In the closing days
of the II Vatican Council Nostra Aetate (Declaration on non-Christian
Religions) reversed the negative attitude of the Catholic Church toward Judaism
and the Jewish people. This
remarkable change promoted "dialogue" with Jews, and suggested positive
changes in the way Judaism was presented in Liturgy and Catechesis. Reactions from the Jewish communities
were diverse: from rejection to welcoming.
This course will explore a number
of issues, which emerge, from the history of Christian thought and
theology: How did a negative image
of Judaism develop within Christianity?
In what ways were these unfavorable teachings contribute toward violence
against the Jews? What is the
relationship between Christian anti-Jewish teachings and Anti-Semitism? Is there any correspondence to
Christian hostility
within Judaism? In what ways have Jewish authors
reacted to Christian tradition?
We shall also analyze recent
theological writings by Jews and Christians about the changed nature of their
relationship. How can Jews and
Christians develop religious responses to modernity? In what senses can a study of Judaism by Christians, or
Christianity by Jews, help either community to understand itself better? How can Christians and Jews develop a
theology of "the other" which is not triumphalist but
empathic?
Students will be asked to keep a
journal; write a term paper
60236 Reformation Theology
Randall Zachman
TR 3:30-4:45
CRN: 17626
Description:
This course will examine the development of Christian theology from the time of
the Reformation through the Enlightenment, with particular emphasis on the
understanding of the person and work of Jesus Christ throughout this period.
We
will begin by examining the undrestandings of Christ developed in the
Reformation
by Desiderius Erasmus, Martin Luther, and John Calvin, and will then
move
to a consideration of the revised understandings of Christ based on critical
reason, including Benedict de Spinoza, John Locke, Samuel Reimarus, and
Immanuel Kant. We will conclude
with an examination of Christ from the perspective of the affections of the
heart, including Blaise Pascal, Nicholas Ludwig, Count von Zinzendorf, and
Jonathan Edwards.
The
course will be a mixture of lecture and seminar discussion of the
readings. Evaluation will be based
on class participation and five comparative papers analysing the readings
assigned for the course.
60249 Religion and the Visual Arts, Christian
and Buddhist
Robert
Gimello
W
8:30-11:30
CRN:
18212
Description:
An exploration of the role of the "icons" or sacred images in
Buddhism and Christianity, and of the controversies in both traditions
regarding their legitimacy and value.
This course has a largely philosophical and/or "theological"
agenda. It aims toward a
"theory" of the holy image broad and supple enough to be usefully
employed in the study of both traditions. It is designed also to provide the
opportunity to assess both Buddhist and Christian conceptions of the religious
sensorium (i.e., assessments offered by both traditions of the salvific value
of "the eye" relative to that of "the ear,"
of the "image" versus the "word," of vision versus
discourse, of the aesthetic dimension of spirituality, etc.) It would proceed by way of careful,
comparative analysis of a few major examples of Buddhist and Christian art
(e.g., Dunhuang murals of the Parinirvana or "Death of the Buddha"
and Grunewald's "Isenhiem Altarpiece," the Shingon "Womb Mandala
" and van Eyck's "Adoration of the Mystic Lamb," Suger's Abbey
Church of St. Denis and Nara's Todaiji or "Great Eastern Temple,"
etc.). These examples would be considered against the background of both
traditional and modern writings on the relations between religion and the arts
(John of Damascus, Asanga, Erwin Panofsky, Jean-Luc Marion, et al.).
60402 Liturgical History
Max Johnson
TR 11-12:15
CRN: 14300
60404 Eucharist
Michael Driscoll
MW 11:45-1
CRN: 10581
60607 Virtue & Sin in the
Christian Tradition
Jean Porter
TR 8-9:15
CRN: 18214
Description: Over the past
several years, there has been a growing interest in reclaiming traditions of
virtue as resources for Christian ethics. In this course, we will examine three
such traditions through a close critical reading of relevant texts from
Augustine, Aquinas, and Jonathan Edwards. Throughout the course, we will focus
on fundamental questions in virtue ethics, including the nature of virtue, the
relation between Christian and ÒpaganÓ or ÒsecularÓ virtue, virtue and the
passions, and the meaning of a virtuous society.
THEO
60611 War, Peace & Conscience
Baxter,
Michael
MW 8:00-9:15
CRN:
18460
Description:
60629 Mysticism and Morality
David Clairmont
MW 3-4:15
CRN: 17627
Description:
Is mysticism (variously described as the presence of God, a direct experience
of God, a consciousness of God, or pure love of God) the culmination of the
moral life or its true beginning? To what extent should our moral decisions be
guided by our personal experiences of the divine? Given the frequent appeals
that thoughtful Christians make to the judgments of conscience, how if at all
can we distinguish between the true voice of God in the human heart and
self-consoling delusion? Are those who claim to have had, and write sweetly
about, an ÒexperienceÓ of God real guides to be trusted by the Christian
community or are they dangerous spiritual individualists who threaten the
coherent moral witness of the Church? How, if at all, are we to reconcile the
teachings of Christian mystical writers with the sacramental life of the Church
and the cultivation of Christian virtue? Is a life of intense asceticism, or
even an explicitly Christian faith, necessary for mystical knowledge? We will
examine these and other questions in the four parts of the course: (1) _Maps of
the Soul_ (through a comparison of AugustineÕs /Confessions/ and Teresa of
AvilaÕs /Interior Castle/), (2) _Reasons of the Soul_ (through a comparison of
BonaventureÕs /Journey of the Mind into God/ and Marguerite PoreteÕs /Mirror of
Simple Souls/), (3) _Loves of the Soul_ (through a comparison of Catherine of
SienaÕs /Dialogue/ and Ignatius of LoyolaÕs /Spiritual Exercises/, and (4)
_Questions of the Soul_ (through a comparison of Simone WeilÕs /Waiting for
God/ and /The Dark Night of the Soul/ by John of the Cross). Course
requirements include two class presentations and a final paper comparing two of
the authors examined during the semester.
60801 Fundamentals of Systematic
Theology
Catherine Hilkert
TR 9:30-10:45
CRN: 11963
Description: This course
is a graduate level introduction to the nature, tasks, and methods of
systematic theology. The primary focus of the course will be an analysis of the
contributions of diverse 20th and 21st century theologians and theological
movements to an understanding of the theological enterprise. Among the
fundamental issues that the course will engage are the following: the
possibility and form of revelation; an understanding of faith and the
relationship between faith and reason; the sources of theology and the
interrelationship of scripture, tradition, and experience/praxis; the
development and interpretation of doctrine; and the roles of the hierarchical magisterium,
theologians, and the community of the baptized in preserving and handing on the
authentic Christian tradition.
60810 Theology of Edward
Schillebeeckx
Catherine Hilkert
MW 3-4:15
CRN: 17629
Description: The
theological project of Edward Schillebeeckx traces one trajectory in the
development of Catholic theology in the 20th
century. This course will explore the evolution in SchillebeeckxÕs thought from
an early sacramental and dogmatic theology grounded in the thought of Thomas
Aquinas, through the turn to history and eschatology in the mid 1960s, to his
later focus on radical suffering (negative contrast experience) as the
necessary starting point for contemporary theology. The course will proceed as
a seminar that will include background lectures and discussion based on a close
reading of selected portions of major works including Revelation and
Theology, Christ the Sacrament of the Encounter with God, God the Future of
Man, Understanding of Faith, and the
christological trilogy Jesus: An Experiment in Christology, Christ:
The Experience of Jesus as Lord, and Church:
The Human Story of God.
Course requirements: Required reading and seminar
participation, mid-term and final examinations, and either a research paper or
three integration papers based on course readings. Doctoral students who take
the course as a doctoral seminar will be expected to read more extensive
sections of SchillebeeckxÕs major works, to select the research paper option,
and to lead one class discussion.
60818 Comparative Spirituality
Bradley Malkovsky
MW 1:30-2:45
CRN: 17630
Description:
This course provides a first introduction to some of the more influential
spiritualities practiced by Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims and Eastern Orthodox
Christians down through the ages and seeks to determine their significance for
contemporary Roman Catholic spiritual praxis and theology. In order to properly
understand the practices of Hindu yoga and bhakti, of Buddhist vipassana and
Zen, of Muslim salat/namaz and Sufism, of the Eastern Orthodox Jesus
Prayer/Hesychasm and the accompanying place of human effort in asceticism and
morality, it will be necessary to examine underlying convictions about the
nature of the human person and the supreme Reality, of Divine presence and
grace, as well as the declared ultimate goal of spiritual endeavor, whether it
be expressed more in terms of a communion of love or of enlightened higher
consciousness. During the semester
we will not only study important spiritual texts of other religions, but we
will also practice meditation, visit a local mosque for Friday prayers and
sermon, and be instructed by expert guest speakers who represent religious
traditions other than our own.
Students will be required to give at least one presentation on a class
reading and write two five-page reflection papers and one ten to twelve-page
research paper.
60835 Canon Law
Gary Chamberland
TR 2-3:15
CRN: 12314
Description: Intended for
students preparing for ministry, the course provides an introduction to
law and its place in the Church. General principles for the interpretation
of canon law as well as its history, and its relationship to theology and
pastoral praxis are discussed. The course is principally concerned with
the 1983 Code of Canon Law, although
other parts of the Church's law (i.e., liturgical law and the Code
of Canons of the Eastern Churches) are
explained and referenced. By a comprehensive overview of the seven books of Code
together with a more focused discussion of
specific canons, the class addresses selected canonical topics of value to
those in ministry. The laws and canonical jurisprudence concerning
marriage are addressed briefly as is appropriate for a general introduction. -
M.Div students only
60846 Christology
Robert Krieg
TR 2-3:15
CRN: 13839
Description:
Theo 60846, "Christology," undertakes in a critical reflection on the
confession that Jesus is the Christ (Mk 8:29; Acts 2:36-38; John 20:31). It considers the origins of this
belief, the unfolding of this belief in the scriptures and tradition, today's
experiences of the living Christ in the church and society, and Christian hope
in the coming of God's new creation.
It has three specific goals: [1] knowledge of the sources, history,
issues, and methods of contemporary Catholic Christology, [2] mental
versatility to reflect on Jesus Christ by means of diverse images, models and
methods, and [3] balanced judgment concerning the merits and limits of various
views of Jesus Christ. The course
consists of four parts: biblical and historical views of Jesus, the
"person" of Jesus Christ, the "work" of Jesus Christ, and
current issues in Christology. The
required readings for Theo 60846 are selected texts from the Bible, Gerald
O'Collins, Christology (1995), the texts contained in the Course Packet (CP), and
texts on electronic reserve in the Hesburgh Library. The final grade for Theo 60846 is based on three essays (3 x
20%), a final reflection paper and oral examination (20%), and class
participation (20%). It is
expected that students will attend every class.
60853
Political and Liberation
Theologies
Gustavo Gutierrez/Matthew Ashley
TR 12:30-1:45
CRN: 17631
Description: This course will
look at the origins and development of political theology in Europe and
liberation theology in Latin America, with particular attention to foundational
texts by figures such as Johann Baptist Metz, Gustavo Gutierrez, Juan Luis
Segundo, and others.
60945 Pastoral Administration
Peter Jarret
TBA
CRN: 12600
Description:
60946 Liturgical
Celebration/Ministry I
TBA
MW 9-11:30
CRN: 11104
60948 Preaching I
Craig Saterlee
F 8-12
CRN: 10671
Description:
60949 Preaching II
Craig Saterlee
F 1-3:30
CRN: 11962
Description:
60952 Fundamentals of Pastoral
Care
Dominic Vachon
TBA
CRN: 12312
Description: Self-assessment of
skills for ministry.
60994 Leadership and Authority
Jan Poorman
R 10-11:30
CRN: 13174
Description: During their third
year of field education, Master of Divinity students explore issues of
leadership, power, and authority in the role of the public minister.
The goal is to complement the
growth in pastoral skills already attained in the first two years with the
acquisition of proficiency in skills for collaborative leadership in the
contemporary Church. The goal is approached through a threefold constellation
of learning contexts: field work, supervision, and the field education seminar.
The primary learning dynamic for the seminar is dialogical and includes
conversation about assigned texts, shared reflection on field experiences, and
faith-sharing.
65931 Images & Models of
Ministry I
Michael Connors
W 1:55-3:50
CRN: 13173
Description: Field Education is an
integral component of education for pastoral ministry. Through field education,
students pursue the integration of theological competence with pastoral skill
in a developing identity as a public minister. For first year students, the
specific goals are to provide initial approaches, of both theoretical and
practical kinds, to two sets of foundational questions:
What is theological reflection?
How is it done? What are some
resources upon which to draw for theological reflection in ministry?
What does it mean to be a
minister? How does one go about constructing one's self-understanding as a lay
or ordained minister today in the Catholic Church? Where is one's place within
the larger mission of the Church? What resources might inform, shape, and
sustain one's identity in ministry?
The goal is approached through a
threefold constellation of learning contexts: field work in a ministry
placement, supervision of that work, and the field education seminar. The
primary learning dynamic for the seminar is dialogical and includes
conversation about assigned texts, as well as shared reflection on field
experiences.
65933 Articulating Faith I
Jan Poorman
W 10-11:30
CRN: 12313
Description: The goal of the
second year of field education is facility in articulating the Christian faith,
particularly as understood in Roman Catholic tradition, and in fostering the
development of faith with others. In the Field Education seminars, students
explore the role of catechesis in ministry and continue to integrate theory and
praxis toward collaborative ministry and community building in fostering the
reign of
God. The goal is approached through a threefold constellation of learning contexts: field work in a ministry placement, supervision of that work, and the field education seminar. The primary learning dynamic for the seminar is dialogical and includes conversation about assigned texts, shared reflection on field experiences, and faith-sharing.
67001 MTS Colloquium
Randall Zachman
W 4:30-5:45
CRN: 10666
40113 Introduction to Old
Testament/Hebrew Bible
Gary Anderson
TR 8-9:15
CRN: 17622
Description:
Purpose of this course is to familiarize students with the basic contents of
the Old Testament. Though often
neglected by contemporary Christians it is worth noting that the Old Testament
was the Bible for the first two centuries of the Church's existence. As such, the Old Testament has played a
major role in all aspects of theological reflection. As would be expected, this course will address basic questions
concerning historical and literary setting.
But
special emphasis will be placed on:
(1) the reception of the text as sacred scripture within the Christian
tradition; (2) how the Old Testament is to be understood in light of the New
and vice versa; and (3) the relationship between Jewish and Christian readings
of this book.
67009 MSM Colloquium
Michael Driscoll
TBA
CRN: 15605
67010 Practicum
Michael Driscoll
TBA
CRN: 15607
67801 Faith and Traditions
TBA
TBA
CRN: 10475
Description: Required for non-degree seeking seminarians only.