The Religious Studies Program provides an integrating force in the academic program. Students explore the place of religion in daily life, the importance of an active relationship with God, and their role as members of a world community. God’s revelation is studied from the perspective of the Catholic Christian tradition. Students gain an understanding of the fundamental beliefs of the major world religions and engage in analysis of the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. They study, research, and discuss issues of social justice and personal ethics, as they are challenged to become critically discerning, socially conscious members of their community.
CLASS VIII: PERSONAL AND MORAL GROWTH
The experience of adolescence is one of searching, testing, discovering, and growing. The focus of this experience is the self and its relationship to others and to God. This course encourages students to consider the areas of human growth—physical, intellectual, moral, and spiritual—which they are experiencing as adolescents. It encourages them to seek answers to such questions as: Who am I called to be? What attributes of character do I need to develop? In what do I believe? What is important to me? How do I make decisions? How can I best care for others in the world? Each student is involved in processes of self-discovery that foster an awareness of God and others in one’s life. Students engage in experiential activities, analysis of life issues, scripture study, prayer, and reflection.
CLASS IX: WORLD RELIGIONS
This course considers the human response to the divine by exploring five major religious traditions of humankind. Through the comparative study of the beliefs, rituals, and communal practices of these religious traditions, students explore the universality of religious experience and the human response to mystery as divine reality, or God. Assignments include analytical writing, oral presentation, and reflection as well as readings from the various traditions. The class visits places of worship and sites associated with three religious traditions..
CLASS X: SOCIAL JUSTICE/COMMUNITY SERVICE
Using the tools of social analysis and community service and site visits to social service agencies, the students raise their awareness both of the social situation in which they live and of their responsibility to work toward the just society mandated by the social teaching of the Catholic Church. Biblical and philosophical thought, as well as the insights and actions of “visionaries of justice,” ground the course. Current events are examined in light of the principles of Catholic Social Teaching, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Millennium Development Goals. Students engage in community service through established agencies dedicated to direct service and social change. Through the process of social analysis, students gain knowledge and a clearer understanding of the complexities of social situations. They also learn the fundamentals of philanthropy and ethical financial responsibility through participation in the Youth Philanthropy Initiative. The goal is to empower the students to take action. Requirements include forty hours of community service, a journal recording the experience, and an interdisciplinary presentation on an important social issue.
CLASS XI: THE HEBREW AND CHRISTIAN SCRIPTURES
The message of the Scriptures is proclaimed through the continual encounters between God and humans. In the first semester students engage the Hebrew patriarchs and matriarchs, kings and queens, judges and prophets, and the faithful followers of God in their study of The Law, The Prophets, and The Writings of the Hebrew Scriptures. The second semester study of the New Testament focuses on the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, and letters of Paul, all considered in their sociopolitical setting. Students discern how the Scriptures proclaim God’s word and have meaning for the believer today. The skills of textual analysis and theological interpretation are developed throughout the course. In addition to analytical papers and creative reflections, students assume responsibility for the design and leadership of a class in the second semester.
CLASS XII: ETHICS
Students explore a variety of ethical theories and their application to selected ethical dilemmas with the goal of establishing standards by which to identify, assess, and resolve ethical questions. Students first gain an ethical perspective through consideration of Christian ethical theories, Natural Law, and the philosophical thought of Aristotle, Kant, and others. The course includes the study of moral reasoning, conscience, values, ethical norms, and moral decision-making. Individual moral choice is studied within the context of the role of the bystander in the Holocaust. Research, reflection, creative expression, discussion, and debate are among the techniques used to examine issues.