Previous Years' Course Catalogues

We will explore the evolution of the Anglican spiritual tradition from Jesus to today, including ways in which contemporary Anglican spirituality has been influenced by other traditions and vice-versa. Anglicanism is rooted deeply in the call to worship and serve Jesus Christ and God’s world in the context of various vocations (lay, ordained, and monastic), and the course aims to help students discern and articulate such calls. We will explore ways to integrate spiritual expression (both prayer and action) as a grounding for all forms of ministry and to learn and practice some traditional forms of prayer: lectio divina, the Jesus Prayer, centering prayer, awareness examen, Ignatian contemplation, and others. The course will encourage students to explore their own spiritual journeys and to develop a flexible and evolving Rule of Life that will ground their spiritual journeys.

A survey of both patristic and contemporary approaches to Christological questions (how the divinity and humanity of Christ come together in one person). Soteriological questions will also be addressed (what is salvation, how Jesus saves, from what and for what He saves}. This will also necessitate some examination of Theological Anthropology (from creation according to the Divine Image to the fulfillment of likeness to God in Theosis/Divinization) and the human condition that requires an Incarnate Saviour. Comparisons will be made among ancient Christological approaches (Alexandria, Antioch, Rome), as well as between Eastern and Western Christian understandings of the means and the content of salvation. Emphasis will be placed on apophatic and antinomic tools for articulating an understanding of Christ the Saviour that operates coherently within the complex of the elements of Holy Tradition (Scripture, Fathers, Councils, Creeds, Liturgy, Iconography, Hagiography, etc.)

A survey of both patristic and contemporary approaches to Christological questions (how the divinity and humanity of Christ come together in one person). Soteriological questions will also be addressed (what is salvation, how Jesus saves, from what and for what He saves}. This will also necessitate some examination of Theological Anthropology (from creation according to the Divine Image to the fulfillment of likeness to God in Theosis/Divinization) and the human condition that requires an Incarnate Saviour. Comparisons will be made among ancient Christological approaches (Alexandria, Antioch, Rome), as well as between Eastern and Western Christian understandings of the means and the content of salvation. Emphasis will be placed on apophatic and antinomic tools for articulating an understanding of Christ the Saviour that operates coherently within the complex of the elements of Holy Tradition (Scripture, Fathers, Councils, Creeds, Liturgy, Iconography, Hagiography, etc.)

A survey of both patristic and contemporary approaches to Christological questions (how the divinity and humanity of Christ come together in one person). Soteriological questions will also be addressed (what is salvation, how Jesus saves, from what and for what He saves}. This will also necessitate some examination of Theological Anthropology (from creation according to the Divine Image to the fulfillment of likeness to God in Theosis/Divinization) and the human condition that requires an Incarnate Saviour. Comparisons will be made among ancient Christological approaches (Alexandria, Antioch, Rome), as well as between Eastern and Western Christian understandings of the means and the content of salvation. Emphasis will be placed on apophatic and antinomic tools for articulating an understanding of Christ the Saviour that operates coherently within the complex of the elements of Holy Tradition (Scripture, Fathers, Councils, Creeds, Liturgy, Iconography, Hagiography, etc.)

This course will examine how Christianity has both contributed to theemergence of the modern world and has responded to some of the major developments that characterize modernity. Topics may include the impact of new ways of thinking on Christian world views; movements of religious renewal; Christian responses to new social trends and development; the geographic expansion of Christianity; developments in Christian practice and worship; Christianity and public life; new trends in Christian thought.

This course will examine how Christianity has both contributed to theemergence of the modern world and has responded to some of the major developments that characterize modernity. Topics may include the impact of new ways of thinking on Christian world views; movements of religious renewal; Christian responses to new social trends and development; the geographic expansion of Christianity; developments in Christian practice and worship; Christianity and public life; new trends in Christian thought.

St. Benedict's "Little Rule", written in the fourth century, is the primary source of Anglican spirituality, liturgy and ecclesiology. Since the mid-twentieth century it has had a profound influence on the "New Monasticism", Fresh Expressions, and the Emergence movement. The course will examine the historical roots of Benedictine spirituality in the desert tradition, the spread of the Benedictineÿ radition across Europe and the British Isles, theÿclash between the Roman Benedictine tradition and Celtic spirituality, the profound influence of Benedictine liturgy during the English Reformation especially in the shaping of the Book of Common Prayer, and the influence of Benedict's Rule on the development of Anglican and ecumenical religious communities. As we follow the tradition into the 20th and 21st centuries we will examine the increasing interest in Benedictine monastic spirituality among lay people, and the evolution of monastic life into the "mixed economy" of traditional and emerging "new monastic" communities and fresh expressions of monasticism.

This course introduces students to the expansion, proliferation, and transformation of Christian movements from 1491 to the present day. It focuses primarily on the context of the Americas to illustrate the centrality of colonialism to the last five hundred years of Christian history, and argues that Christian movements which reinforce, resist, and adapt to colonialism are the rule, not the exception. We will explore this relationship through specific historical case studies, focusing on the particularities of specific Christianities to hone our skills in historical analysis. As we learn how to study Christian history, we will also learn why these histories matter. Regularly throughout the course, we will examine how contemporary Christian communities understand the histories we learn, why they understand them in this way, and how we hold the tension between those understandings and our historical studies. This course requires no previous grounding in Christian history or theology. Prior experience with the study of history at the undergraduate or graduate level is helpful, but not a prerequisite.

This course introduces students to the expansion, proliferation, and transformation of Christian movements from 1491 to the present day. It focuses primarily on the context of the Americas to illustrate the centrality of colonialism to the last five hundred years of Christian history, and argues that Christian movements which Reinforce, resist, and adapt to colonialism are the rule, not the exception. We will explore this relationship through specific historical case studies, focusing on the particularities of specific “Christianities” to hone our skills in historical analysis. As we learn how to study Christian history, we will also learn why these histories matter. Regularly throughout the course, we will examine how contemporary Christian communities understand the histories we learn, why they understand them in this way, and how we hold the tension between those understandings and our historical studies. This course requires no previous grounding in Christian history or theology. Prior experience with the study of history at the undergraduate or graduate level is helpful, but not a prerequisite.

This course introduces students to the expansion, proliferation, and transformation of Christian movements from 1491 to the present day. It focuses primarily on the context of the Americas to illustrate the centrality of colonialism to the last five hundred years of Christian history, and argues that Christian movements which reinforce, resist, and adapt to colonialism are the rule, not the exception. We will explore this relationship through specific historical case studies, focusing on the particularities of specific Christianities to hone our skills in historical analysis. As we learn how to study Christian history, we will also learn why these histories matter. Regularly throughout the course, we will examine how contemporary Christian communities understand the histories we learn, why they understand them in this way, and how we hold the tension between those understandings and our historical studies. This course requires no previous grounding in Christian history or theology. Prior experience with the study of history at the undergraduate or graduate level is helpful, but not a prerequisite.

This course introduces students to the expansion, proliferation, and transformation of Christian movements from 1491 to the present day. It focuses primarily on the context of the Americas to illustrate the centrality of colonialism to the last five hundred years of Christian history, and argues that Christian movements which Reinforce, resist, and adapt to colonialism are the rule, not the exception. We will explore this relationship through specific historical case studies, focusing on the particularities of specific ‚¬Å“Christianities‚¬ to hone our skills in historical analysis. As we learn how to study Christian history, we will also learn why these histories matter. Regularly throughout the course, we will examine how contemporary Christian communities understand the histories we learn, why they understand them in this way, and how we hold the tension between those understandings and our historical studies. This course requires no previous grounding in Christian history or theology. Prior experience with the study of history at the undergraduate or graduate level is helpful, but not a prerequisite.

Surveys the history of Christianity from the mid-seventeenth century to the present. Highlights the impact of rationalist and revivalist movements, the rise of Christian mission, developments in Roman Catholicism, the Church and modernity, the rise of global Christianity, the churches and development, Christianity and other religions.