Course Catalogue 2025-2026

This is an exploratory course and will proceed as a seminar on "modes of thought" with special attention to the changing role/value of "religious thought" with the eventual development of the modern Western epistemic tradition. Readings will deal with that tradition from the prehistory of the human mind and the stages in the evolution of human cognition to the radical historical transformations of that growth with the emergence of the new cultural value of seeking knowledge for its own sake and, finally to the emergence of the modern mind with the scientific revolution in sixteenth- and seventeenth century Europe.

This course will introduce central theoretical concepts in psychoanalytic psychotherapy and their importance in effective clinical work. An underlying premise of the course is that therapeutic action occurs within the relationship between therapist and patient, two individuals who struggle together to reclaim and deepen their shared humanity. While theory is essential to the task of providing responsible clinical care, it is understood that it always follows deeply attentive, empathic observation, not only of the patient, but of the psychodynamic processes that occur between the therapist and patient. Theory helps to "hold" and "contain" the therapist as she enters the unique, often strange and at times disturbing inner world of the person who seeks her help. Theory must always be held lightly while it is actively operative in the mind of the therapist as he navigates his way through the world that emerges within the analytic setting. A solid grounding in psychodynamic theory helps the therapist maintain a calm receptivity to the patient in the midst of unknowing, which most often characterizes the immediacy of clinical work. It also helps the therapist cultivate and sustain a reflective use of herself that establishes a safe and supportive professional framework that holds and protects both parties in the clinical dyad.

This is an exploratory course and will proceed as a seminar on "modes of thought" with special attention to the changing role/value of "religious thought" with the eventual development of the modern Western epistemic tradition. Readings will deal with that tradition from the prehistory of the human mind and the stages in the evolution of human cognition to the radical historical transformations of that growth with the emergence of the new cultural value of seeking knowledge for its own sake and, finally to the emergence of the modern mind with the scientific revolution in sixteenth- and seventeenth century Europe.

Theology was established as an academic discipline in the Christian universities of the European Middle Ages. Methodologically, however, that discipline seems ill-suited for the new epistemic culture produced in the West by the Scientific Revolution and now institutionalized in the modern secular research university. This is the intellectual context in which Christian theology emerged and matured as an academic discipline and against which its ‘religious knowledge’ claims will be measured. Understanding this history is essential, therefore, in methodological discussions in all areas of the theological encyclopedia.

Theology was established as an academic discipline in the Christian universities of the European Middle Ages. Methodologically, however, the discipline seems ill-suited for the new epistemic culture produced in the West by the Scientific Revolution and now institutionalized in the modern research university. Understanding this history is essential to understanding the character and place of theology in our culture today.

This seminar examines that philosophical approach to the history of philosophy that travels under the name of genealogy. It does so in terms of close readings of selected texts of the tradition's two major figures: Friederich Nietzsche and Michel Foucault against the backdrop of a number of ancient and medieval examples of protreptic rhetoric. It thereby attests the thesis that contemporary genealogy is the latest manifestation of the protreptic tradition in the history of philosophy, i.e., a deliberative rhetoric designed to exhort recipients to turn (convertere) from harm to health, from falsehood to truth, from the base to the noble.

Most people, when the subject of mediaeval liturgy is mentioned, think of the old service books which have the words spoken (sacramentaries, lectionaries, missals, breviaries) and descriptions of the action (ordos). There is another class of book entirely, the liturgical commentaries, which goes through the public services, explaining the elements they contain. They were also interested in the ministers of the liturgy, their orders and dress, in the structure of church and altar, in the calendar (temporal and sanctoral), and of course in the vexed question of how a priest computed the date of Easter (no diocesan journals in those days).

Course explores contemporary issues in phenomenology

Stewart Clegg has suggested that 'the forgetting' of power may yet be the 'fate of our time'. His caution signals how the more difficult it becomes to locate the source and nature of power amidst the complexity of social and political life, the harder it is to discern power, presence, employ it effectively, or resist it when necessary. This course addresses a 'forgetting' of power in Christian theology. Although various approaches to contemporary political theology imply differing conceptions of the workings of power, seldom is the concept itself the focus of direct analysis. Without a fully developed concept of power, efforts to advance a coherent political theology, or to resolve problems in ecclesiology more generally, leave many questions unaddressed and numerous tensions obscured. In addition to analyzing both the limitations and untapped resources regarding the concept of power within the Christian tradition, the course will also engage wider debates over the nature of power by making the concept of 'powerlessnes' a significant topic for discussion. For as contemporary scholars investigate the nature of power as both an oppressive and productive force, the Christian tradition, wrestling with the significance of being without power, and its reflections on whether this is always an inherently negative situation, promises to offer a unique contribution to debates over the nature of power.

Stewart Clegg has suggested that 'the forgetting' of power may yet be the 'fate of our time'. His caution signals how the more difficult it becomes to locate the source and nature of power amidst the complexity of social and political life, the harder it is to discern power, presence, employ it effectively, or resist it when necessary. This course addresses a 'forgetting' of power in Christian theology. Although various approaches to contemporary political theology imply differing conceptions of the workings of power, seldom is the concept itself the focus of direct analysis. Without a fully developed concept of power, efforts to advance a coherent political theology, or to resolve problems in ecclesiology more generally, leave many questions unaddressed and numerous tensions obscured. In addition to analyzing both the limitations and untapped resources regarding the concept of power within the Christian tradition, the course will also engage wider debates over the nature of power by making the concept of 'powerlessnes' a significant topic for discussion. For as contemporary scholars investigate the nature of power as both an oppressive and productive force, the Christian tradition, wrestling with the significance of being without power, and its reflections on whether this is always an inherently negative situation, promises to offer a unique contribution to debates over the nature of power.

Stewart Clegg has suggested that 'the forgetting' of power may yet be the 'fate of our time'. His caution signals how the more difficult it becomes to locate the source and nature of power amidst the complexity of social and political life, the harder it is to discern power, presence, employ it effectively, or resist it when necessary. This course addresses a 'forgetting' of power in Christian theology. Although various approaches to contemporary political theology imply differing conceptions of the workings of power, seldom is the concept itself the focus of direct analysis. Without a fully developed concept of power, efforts to advance a coherent political theology, or to resolve problems in ecclesiology more generally, leave many questions unaddressed and numerous tensions obscured. In addition to analyzing both the limitations and untapped resources regarding the concept of power within the Christian tradition, the course will also engage wider debates over the nature of power by making the concept of 'powerlessnes' a significant topic for discussion. For as contemporary scholars investigate the nature of power as both an oppressive and productive force, the Christian tradition, wrestling with the significance of being without power, and its reflections on whether this is always an inherently negative situation, promises to offer a unique contribution to debates over the nature of power.

Challenges of religious pluralism to Christianity appearing from outside Christianity, and responses to it. How do other world religious traditions think about Christianity or religions for that matter? What are the theoretical problems of religious pluralism and the response to them from within Christianity?