Roman Catholicism
This course provides an introduction to Roman Catholicism.
Prerequisite: THEO 100 or equivalent (transfer courses: THEO 190 or PHIL 190 and Honors: HONR D101).
Outcomes: Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of the most important Roman Catholic beliefs, the historical evolution of Roman Catholicism, the key Roman Catholic concepts, terms, values, and religious practices, and the main lines of current Roman Catholic identity in today's world.
This course provides an introduction to Roman Catholicism.
Prerequisite: THEO 100 or equivalent (transfer courses: THEO 190 or PHIL 190 and Honors: HONR D101).
Outcomes: Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of the most important Roman Catholic beliefs, the historical evolution of Roman Catholicism, the key Roman Catholic concepts, terms, values, and religious practices, and the main lines of current Roman Catholic identity in today's world.
Prerequisite : THEO 100 or equivalent.
Tier 2 Theological Knowledge
Catholic Studies
Italian Studies
James Joyce famously called Roman Catholicism the Here comes everybody tradition, offering an apt description for a faith community made up of both sinners and saints, martyrs and missionaries, defenders and detractors all. This course on Roman Catholicism begins from the assumption that it is fundamentally a tradition of paradox, which establishes constancy through change and firmness through fluidity. Students will explore Roman Catholicism less as a set of definite beliefs and moral precepts, and more as a world-shaping perspective that forms Catholics to see and to be in distinctive ways. Finally, the course will address head-on a range of serious challenges confronting Roman Catholicism today, including widespread disaffiliation, clergy abuse, Magisterial teaching on gender and sexuality, womens ordination, and racism and anti-Judaism in the tradition.
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