YHS-Historical Studies

Introduction to the field of church history through an examination of the Jewish roots of the Christian community, the development of its doctrinal and ethical positions, its relationship to surrounding cultures, the relationship of church & state, its geographical expansion & consolidation during the first 13 centuries.

This course is an introduction to the field of Church history. It will survey the development of the Church from its Jewish roots through the High Middle Ages. Special attention will be given to the geographical expansion and relationship of the Church to surrounding cultures. The development of doctrinal positions and the relationship between church and state will also be explored.

This course is a survey of European Christian history from the High Middle Ages to the modern ecumenical era. The course will concentrate upon significant theological developments, changes in church-state relations, and major movements, controversies, and reforms. Major emphasis will be placed on the Reformation and Counter-Reformation as well as identifying the roots of Vatican II.

This course offers a study of the lives and works of Greek and Latin writers of Christian antiquity from St. Clement to St. Gregory the Great. Emphasis will be placed upon their contribution to the development of Christian doctrine and life in the formative centuries of the Church.

This course provides an introduction to the history of the Catholic Church in the United States. The course will concentrate upon the creation and development of ecclesiastical structures within a democratic environment and the assimilation of the large immigrant population into the American Church. In addition, the course will emphasize the key social, political, ethical, and doctrinal issues observable in the development of the American Church.

An investigation of the variety of Catholic responses to the crises in Church and society caused by the French Revolution in Europe and the Americans. Theological and political developments involved with republicanism; freedom of the press, religion, and speech; legal equality; the temporal power; political democracy; scientific advances; economic justice; and the interfaith realities of the modern world. The struggle between "liberal Catholicism" and "Ultramontanism" in Europe and its counterpart in the United States. Economic injustice and the rise of the concept of Liberation Theology. The Nineteenth Century as the seedbed of Vatican Council II.

Study of the concepts and practices of the spiritual life of manastics, mendicants, and contemporary lay organizations in relationship to Christ and everyday life in the Church. Selected texts from the spiritual writings, with special emphasis on the role of the spirituality as a path to holiness in contemporary life for the laity and ordained ministry.

Teachings of the Modern Papacy focuses on the encounter of the recent papcies to issues within the Church and of the Church's responses to the modern world and its challenges. The major theological, intellectual, diplomatic, and moral developments are unfolded in the context of the papcies in modernity as well as accompanying political movements and regimes.

This course examines the development of the papacy through the major periods of church history. Special attention will be given to the modern papacy and to the papacy as an ecumenical issue.

Seminar on the life and writing of one of the principal architects of Western Catholic thought and culture, with special emphasis on a close reading of The Confessions.

This course will focus on the rich and varied growth of Christian iconograph (artistic meaning) from its beginnings ca. 200 AD in the catacombs until Renaissance period in the late 15th Century when considerable changes in Christian themes took place. The course is organized thematically and historically. We will study images of Christ, episodes from the life and passion of Jesus (e.g. the Nativity, the Descent from the Cross, the Pieta), and the iconography of the Virgin: Marian themes, etc.

Graduate seminar on the special role of Catholic school teachers and leaders in the spiritual development and total formation of the person through an exploration of Church teachings on education, rooted in the Sacred Scriptures and Tradition of the Church. In particular, the course provides a comprehensive overview of papal and ecclesial documents from the early 20th century to Pope Francis, seeking to instill appreciation of tradition and Catholic education while challenging students to investigate related contemporary issues.

Study of development of Christian iconography from 300 AD to today. Focus will be on earlier, rather than contemporary images. The course is organized thematically. The second part focuses on images of the Virgin Mary, symbols of virtue, and the iconography of architecture. While this course continues from "Iconography of Christian I, students are not required to have taken that course.

This course will (re)introduce students to the sociological perspective more broadly and to social-scientific methodology. It will engage major theoretical approaches to the sociological student of religion, historical and contemporary, and explore current sociological studies with special attention to the priesthood.