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In this course, you will learn :
- With a large cast of characters, we explore the dynamic and diverse character of religion. We will meet men and women who will tell us about their faith as well as their experiences with violence, suppression, and division.
- Explore the stunning beauty of the Book of Kells, which was meticulously prepared by monks as Vikings terrorised England's coast. We will be immersed in the blue light of Chartres' windows and ponder the opening questions of Thomas Aquinas' great Summa.
- We will read from the fifteenth-century Gutenberg Bible, which heralded the printing press's revolution. We'll travel from Calvin's Geneva to Elizabeth's England, then to Trent, where a Catholic Council convened to establish a modern, missionary Catholic church.
Syllabus :
1. Introduction: From Persecution to Empire
- The Great Church (180 - 313)
- Diversity in the Year 200: Dura Europos (c. 240), with Dr. Lisa Brody [Yale University Art Gallery]
- The Conversion of Constantine
- The Arian-Nicene Controversy
- The Nature of Christ
- The Rise of Rome
2. Augustine and the North African Church
- Alexandria
- North African Christianity
- Martyrdom and Persecution
- The Martyrdom of Perpetua (with Max & Nazanin)
- Augustine
- Islamic Invasion of North Africa
3. Monastic Lives: Desert Fathers to Celtic Christianity
- Desert Monasticism
- Saint Catherine’s (with Max)
- Saint Benedict
- Irish Monasticism
- The Viking Age (with Nazanin)
- Venerable Bede, Saint Cuthbert, and Northumbria
- Alcuin and the Carolingian Renaissance
4. Reformers and Crusaders
- The Medieval World (Yale University Art Gallery)
- Feudalism
- Christian Reform
- Bernard of Clairvaux (with Max)
- Divided Christianity
- Crusades
- Innocent III
- Cathar Heresy (with Nazanin)
5. Learning and Light
- Mendicant Orders
- Saint Clare of Assisi (with Nazanin)
- Rise of Universities
- Abelard & Heloise (with Max)
- Thomas Aquinas
- Cathedrals and Theology of Light
- Mysticism
6. Three Religions: Christians, Jews & Muslims in Medieval Spain
- Jews and Muslims in Iberia
- Convivencia
- The Alhambra of Granada (with Nazanin)
- Maimonides and Averroes
- Inquisition and Expulsion
- Christians, Jews, and Muslims: Discussion
7. Medieval Devotion
- The Isenheim Altar
- Introduction
- Sacraments
- Saints & Relics
- Joan of Arc (with Nazanin)
- Pilgrimages
- Rome and the Papacy
- Avignon Papacy (with Max)
- Heresy and Dissent
8. Luther's Reformation
- The Early Modern World (Yale University Art Gallery)
- Young Luther
- Break with Rome
- Katharina von Bora (Nazanin)
- Opponents & Opposition
- Theology
- Luther and the Jews (Max)
- Reformation Church
- Discussion
9. Fragmenting Reformation
- Radical Visions
- Anabaptist Kingdom of Münster (Max)
- Zwingli
- John Calvin: Life
- Calvinism
- English Reformation
- Foxe's Book of Martyrs (with Nazanin)
- Fragmenting Reformation: Discussion
10. Catholic Reform
- Erasmus and his Legacy
- Pre-Trent Catholic Reform
- The Council of Trent
- Catholic vs. Counter Reformation (Max and Nazanin)
- Catholic Bibles
- Teresa of Avila & Spanish Mysticism
- El Escorial (Nazanin)
11. Jesuits and Missions
- The Founding of the Jesuits
- Ignatius of Loyola (Nazanin)
- Francis Xavier
- Mateo Ricci & China
- Brazil
- Closing words from Bruce, Nazanin, and Max
