Previous Years' Course Catalogues

Inspiring and profound are terms often attributed to the theology of von Balthasar. Benedict XVI said of his work, "His theological reflection maintains intact, to this day, a profound timeliness and leads many to penetrate ever more into the profundity of the mystery of faith". This course begins an exploration of his work. There is consideration of the Trilogy: Herrlichkeit, Theo-Drama and Theo-Logic; the influence of Ignatius Loyola and Adrienne von Speyr; and the place of Mary. Not a course for the faint-hearted, von Balthasar's work is at times dense and complex but the rewards are beyond price.

Inspiring and profound are terms often attributed to the theology of von Balthasar. Benedict XVI said of his work, "His theological reflection maintains intact, to this day, a profound timeliness and leads many to penetrate ever more into the profoundity of the mystery of faith". This course begins an exploration of his work. There is consideration of the Trilogy: Herrlichkeit, Theo-Drama and Theo-Logic; the influence of Ignatius Loyola and Adrienne von Speyr; and the place of Mary. Not a course for the faint-hearted, von Balthasar's work is at times dense and complex but the rewards are beyond price. Prerequisite: one year of theology, at least three theology courses. Lectures, seminar discussions, student presentations, one short paper and a research paper.

Inspiring and profound are terms often attributed to the theology of von Balthasar. Benedict XVI said of his work, "His theological reflection maintains intact, to this day, a profound timeliness and leads many to penetrate ever more into the profundity of the mystery of faith". This course begins an exploration of his work. There is consideration of the Trilogy: Herrlichkeit, Theo-Drama and Theo-Logic; the influence of Ignatius Loyola and Adrienne von Speyr; and the place of Mary. Not a course for the faint-hearted, von Balthasar's work is at times dense and complex but the rewards are beyond price.

Inspiring and profound are terms often attributed to the theology of von Balthasar. Benedict XVI said of his work, "His theological reflection maintains intact, to this day, a profound timeliness and leads many to penetrate ever more into the profoundity of the mystery of faith". This course begins an exploration of his work. There is consideration of the Trilogy: Herrlichkeit, Theo-Drama and Theo-Logic; the influence of Ignatius Loyola and Adrienne von Speyr; and the place of Mary. Not a course for the faint-hearted, von Balthasar's work is at times dense and complex but the rewards are beyond price.

The course will specifically focus on the muraqabah techniques (such as silence and opening reflections) used in classical Islamic spiritual traditions and engage in comparative analysis between these practices and mindfulness-based stress reduction, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, meditation, transcendental meditation, mind-body techniques (meditation, relaxation) and body-mind techniques. We will also highlight ethical issues, emphasizing that not all Islamic mindfulness practices might be effective for all mental health issues and the importance of familiarity with classical Islamic spiritual traditions before applying Islamic mindfulness techniques.

Both Buddhism and psychoanalysis (and psychotherapy) share an interest into the nature of the mind, consciousness, and the self. While Buddhism attaches soteriological significance to its mapping of the human mind and consciousness, with the ultimate aim of Awakening to the realization of ‘no-self,’ psychoanalytic and psychotherapeutic theories and practices developed in Western cultures are framed as secular, and focus on the actualization of one’s self. Over the past century, both Western and Eastern thinkers have been interpreting, comparing, distinguishing, and integrating Buddhist and psychoanalytic (and psychotherapeutic) systems, and in the process, transforming them. This course is an interdisciplinary study of these cross-cultural engagements between Buddhism and psychodynamics with an emphasis on conceptions of the mind, consciousness and self, especially as they relate to psychoanalysis and psychotherapy.

In this course, students will begin to construct their own theologies of the body, in creative dialogue with questions raised by significant historical and contemporary. theologians. The course will explore the ro!e and function of the human body in past and present Christologies, ecclesiolcigies, theologies of sin, pneumatologies (theologies of the Holy Spirit) and eschatologies. It will also investigate how our theologies of the body impact pastoral and theological questions.of eroticism, physical violence, gender inequality, racism and medical ethics.

Each Clinical Practicum (A and B) provides students with the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and skill necessary for providing competent spiritually integrated psychotherapy. Course A provides the basis for course B. The course explores both theoretical and applied aspects of Supervised Pastoral Education (SPE). It is located at the intersection of the theology of caring, grief and loss, and social sciences. The course emphasizes multidimensional assessments and teaches interventions that are spiritual, therapeutic, supportive, and/or educational. Professional identity and professional ethics as well as the place of spiritual care and counselling in Canada are also examined. The course highlights significant aspects of the theologies of psycho-spiritual care and therapy.

The course will explore the major theological themes addressed by Jurgen Moltmann in relation to the traditions of Reformed Theology. Students will read key works of the author, engage in seminar presentations, and will do a research paper on an aspect of Moltmann's theology.

The course will explore the major theological themes addressed by Jurgen Moltmann in relation to the traditions of Reformed Theology. Students will read key works of the author, engage in seminar presentations, and will do a research paper on an aspect of Moltmann's theology.

Each Clinical Practicum (A and B) provides students with the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and skill necessary for providing competent spiritually integrated psychotherapy. Course B builds on course A. The course explores both theoretical and applied aspects of Supervised Pastoral Education (SPE). It is located at the intersection of the theology of caring, grief and loss, and social sciences. The course emphasizes multidimensional assessments and teaches interventions that are spiritual, therapeutic, supportive, and/or educational. Professional identity and professional ethics as well as the place of spiritual care and counselling in Canada are also examined. The course highlights significant aspects of the theologies of psycho-spiritual care and therapy.

This course examines the intimate connection between theology, culture and praxis. The course draws on the liberationist and praxlcal notion tilat doing theology comes out of what we ''do," how we express our faith in daily life. The work and life of the people of God are therefore a locus theologicus. We will explore various theological positions on the notion of culture, their Influence and impact on the process of thinking theologically, and finally, the form of living out both the cultural and theology In praxis, especially In church practices. Students will therefore be encouraged to reflect specifically on various aspects of their ministries, in light of the themes of the course. Key themes Include: the relation between theology and culture; the relation between church practices and culture/theology; ideology, culture and theology; and liberation theories and post/decolonial studies.