History of Christian Spirituality 1 SPRG 6702 Fall 2015 Thursdays, 7:00 8:50 PM

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1 History of Christian Spirituality 1 SPRG 6702 Fall 2015 Thursdays, 7:00 8:50 PM Fr. Francis X. McAloon, S.J., Ph.D. Associate Professor of Christian Spirituality Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education Fordham University Keating Hall, #303G 441 East Fordham Road Bronx, NY (718) fmcaloon@fordham.edu Available by appointment IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Please see the last page of this syllabus for required reading/writing assignments for our first two class sessions: September 3 rd and 10 th. DESCRIPTION This course provides a solid grounding in the history of Christian Spirituality, both east and west. This semester s course examines significant figures and themes from early church through the dawn of the Reformation/Renaissance. Readings draw from classical spiritual texts and relevant secondary literature. Concentrations include biblical, desert, patristic, Augustinian, Benedictine, Franciscan, Anchoritic, and Beguine spiritualties. This course fulfills requirements in the DMin and MA programs in Christian spirituality, as well as the certificate in spirituality. All students must complete weekly readings; however, class participation and written assignments are evaluated according to degree program STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES [SLO] 1. Students will demonstrate facility with methods of research in specific theological disciplines for post graduate and doctoral studies 2. Students will use tools of literary, cultural, historical, and social analysis in the interpretation of various cultures and their relationship to the Christian tradition 3. Students will demonstrate a well-rounded knowledge and critical appropriation of the Jesuit and Catholic theological tradition

2 REQUIRED MATERIALS Purchasing texts for this course is expensive. For this reason, arrangements have been made to have available all texts at the Rose Hill library Reserve desk. Students may read assignments there or make copies for themselves. For some the books below, we may only read selections from the text. Required Primary Texts Bernard of Clairvaux. Selected Works. G.R. Evans, trans., The Classics of Western Spirituality, John Farina, ed. (NY: Paulist Press, 1987). ISBN-10: Bonaventure: The Soul s Journey Into God, The Tree of Life, The Life of St. Francis. The Classics of Western Spirituality. Ewert Cousins, ed. NY: Paulist Press, ISBN-10: Gregory of Nyssa: The Life of Moses. Classics of Western Spirituality. A.J. Malherbe and E. Ferguson, trans. NY: Paulist Press, ISBN-10: Gregory Palamas: The Triads. The Classics of Western Spirituality. Nicholas Gendle, trans. NY: Classics of Western Spirituality, ISBN-10: Gregory the Great. The Book of Pastoral Rule. Popular Patristics Series, No 34. John Behr, ed. Yonkers, NY: St. Vladimir s Seminary Press, ISBN-10: Julian of Norwich: Showings. The Classics of Western Spirituality. Edmund Colledge and J. Walsh, trans. NY: Paulist Press, ISBN-10: Mechthild of Magdeburg: The Flowing Light of the Godhead. The Classics of Western Spirituality. Frank Tobin, trans. NY: Paulist Press, ISBN-10: Origin: The Song of Songs, Commentary and Homilies. Ancient Christian Writers, Book 26. R.P. Lawson, ed. NY: The Newman Press, ISBN-10: Pseudo Dionysius: The Complete Works. The Classics of Western Spirituality. Paul Rorem, trans. NY: Paulist Press, ISBN-10: RB 1980: The Rule of St. Benedict in English. Timothy Fry, OSB, ed. Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, ISBN-10: Saint Augustine: The Confessions. Henry Chadwick, Trans. Oxford World Classics. NY: Oxford University Press, 1998; ISBN-10: The Sayings of the Desert Fathers: The Alphabetical Collection. Benedicta Ward, SLG, trans. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Studies, 1975; ISBN: Required Secondary Texts Holder, Arthur, ed. Christian Spirituality: The Classics. NY: Routledge, ISBN-10: Sheldrake, Philip. Spirituality and History: Questions of Interpretation and Method. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, ISBN-10: Wiseman, James A. Spirituality and Mysticism: A Global View. Theology in Global Perspective Series. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2006 ISBN-10:

3 General Course Requirements Attendance is presumed for all class sessions. An unexcused absence results in a partial drop in a student's final grade, e.g., one's final grade of B+ is reduced to a B. When a student misses more than two classes, s/he should drop this class. Careful, critical, and spiritual reading of all required materials before class. Each class session also includes suggested readings, which students are encouraged to review. [SLO #2 & #3] Active and constructive participation in small and large group classroom discussions. [SLO #2 & #3] Weekly response papers. Submitted on Blackboard before each class session. Late submissions are subject to grade penalty. [SLO #2 & #3] Oral Presentations. Students sign-up for two class sessions in which to offer a 10-minute end-of-class presentation of two or more possible contemporary appropriations of the spirituality/ies represented in that class session s readings. [SLO #3] Course Capstone. Options include: Research Paper or Project; Three essays; Written Exam or Oral Exam. [SLO #1 & #2] Evaluation 30% Class participation and oral presentations 30% Written assignments 40% Capstone Weekly Response Papers: Before each class session, students are required to submit weekly response papers on Blackboard dealing with each week s required reading(s). Each response paper is the equivalent of only 1-page in length (+/- 500 words), single-spaced, 12 pt. font, 1 inch margins, left justified only, in essay form (no bullet points; no lengthy quotes; use parenthetical citations as needed), proofread for correct English spelling, usage, and the like. Weekly papers address each of the following questions: 1. What do you find interesting, helpful, or surprising in today s reading? 2. What do you find confusing, odd, or problematic? 3. In what ways might this week s reading contribute to a contemporary spirituality for you personally, your parish community, your religious community, or perhaps within a specific cultural, ecumenical, or inter-religious context? If the weekly spirituality offers little to nothing to contemporary spirituality, please explain. [Class Blog: You are welcome to add to the class blog anything pertinent to our weekly discussions. Appropriate submissions are considered "extra credit." Contributions are entirely at your initiative and are available to the entire class.] 3

4 Course Capstone Options FIRST OPTION: Final Research Paper or Project Either research paper or project is due December 15. This pages paper is graded on the basis of content, argument, and grammar. Content should be appropriate to your degree program. The distinction between these two papers is that a research paper requires a thesis statement and is supported by appropriate research of primary and secondary resources (see the syllabus for Methods in Christian Spirituality ), whereas a final project allows for greater flexibility in how to proceed with selected materials, for example, to compare and contrast various texts or spiritual traditions, drawing only upon required and suggested course readings, as well as classroom discussions. A DMin research paper or project should relate to the subject matter of your existing or potential DMin project. For example, if your DMin project investigates personal prayer practices among parishioners at a specific suburban parish, you might concentrate on specific prayer practices discussed in a number of this semester s texts. Please note that you must employ Turabian style (8 th ed.) with endnotes or footnotes, bibliography, and the like. Beginning in November, DMin students considering this capstone option begin ing with the professor concerning possible these for the topic of your final research paper/project. Even though we will not have completed our course readings by November 19, you must commit to your final paper's topic/thesis by November 19 with the understanding that your thesis statement may further develop as the semester concludes. With faculty consultation and approval, students also taking Methods in Christian Spirituality this semester may propose a single 20-pages paper to satisfy both course capstone requirements. Certificate students are free to propose a final research paper or project topic that is appropriate to your certificate agenda. For example, if you are concentrating in spiritual direction, you might focus upon Gregory the Great s recommendations to spiritual directors, i.e., pastors. Please note that all written materials must adhere to academic standards and Turabian (8 th ed.) stylebook. You must commit your final project thesis/topic by November 19 with the understanding that your thesis/topic statement may further develop as the semester concludes. With faculty consultation and approval, students also taking Methods in Christian Spirituality this semester may propose a single 20-pages paper to satisfy both course capstone requirements. MA students are free to propose a final research paper or project topic that will be evaluated at a MA level; however, the expectations for writing and Turabian (8 th ed.) stylebook are the same as above. Before November 19, MA students must have faculty approval for a final research topic/project with the understanding that upon further research and reflection, you may adjust your thesis/topic. With faculty consultation and approval, students also taking 4

5 Methods in Christian Spirituality this semester may propose a single 20- pages paper to satisfy both course capstone requirements. Please note that DMin and MACS students requesting a Research Readiness Review (RRR) of their research paper must inform the professor by November 19 and submit the appropriate form with their final paper. Possible Final Projects (+/- 15 pages, double spaced, 12-pt font; one inch margins, and submitted electronically): You might offer an analysis and reflection upon representative figures/texts from this semester, e.g., women mystics (Mechthild of Magdeburg and Julian of Norwich), monasticism (Desert, Benedict of Nursia, Julian of Norwich), or some other combination. Include a section in which you address the contemporary appropriation of each of the authors/texts you select. You might select one of this semester's schools of spirituality, e.g., Desert, Monastic, Patristic, Franciscan, Orthodox, or Devotio Moderna, and write an analysis/reflection on selected individuals/texts from this tradition. Include a section on contemporary appropriation of this tradition's spirituality. You may choose to concentrate on only one author/text, for example, the RB. Write an analysis/reflection of the selected figure/text and include a section in which you address the possibilities for a contemporary appropriation of your chosen spirituality. Include a bibliography of recent secondary resources available on your figure/text. Alternative proposals are welcome and must be submitted for faculty approval by November 19. SECOND OPTION: Three 5-pages Short Essays Students choosing this option critically engage the readings under consideration during the weeks prior to each due date. Students are free to focus their attention on various approaches to interpreting these historical classics of Christian spirituality; however, attention should be given to each of the following engagements with texts: (1) hermeneutical, (2) historicalcritical, and (3) ideological. Additionally, students should include a concluding paragraph wherein they reflect on possibilities for a contemporary appropriation of the spirituality or spiritualties under consideration. In each essay, students should draw from required and recommended readings included in each week s assignment. Additional research beyond these readings is not required for these essays. Each essay is 5-pages in length (bibliography and title page NOT included), composed in appropriate post-graduate, academic, American English, and formatted as follows: double spaced, 12-pt font, left-justified only, with oneinch margins on all four sides, and paginated. In lieu of foot/end notes, please use parenthetical notes. Note that each essay begins with an introductory paragraph, ends with a concluding paragraph, and, if appropriate, employs 5

6 appropriate subheadings throughout. The appropriate stylebook for this course is Turabian (8 th edition). Essays are due by 7pm on each of the following dates (to avoid double assignments on Thursday class nights, the following due dates include a weekend): o 10/12, covering Origin through Augustine; o 11/9, covering Pseudo-Dionysius through Bernard of Clairvaux; o 12/15, covering Mechthild of Magdeburg through Julian of Norwich. THIRD OPTION: Final (take home) Exam No later than the first of December, students must initiate an exchange with the professor, in which they propose the text for each of their five final exam questions. Students are free to collaborate with other students in crafting questions. Please keep in mind that when composing questions, you should consider various approaches to the course material, for example, thematic, chronological, ecclesiastical, ecumenical, anthropological, biblical, and contextual. On or before December 10 th, students submit to the professor their five separate exam questions, which have been previously vetted and approved by the professor. Sometime on December 11 th, the professor will each participating student, informing him/her of the three (3) questions that s/he is required to answer. Each student has until 9pm, December 15 th, to submit electronically his/her final exam answers. Each final exam answer is 5 pages (+/ words) in length, composed in appropriate post-graduate, academic, American English, and formatted as follows: double spaced, 12-pt font, left-justified only, with one-inch margins on all four sides, and paginated. Quotations should be kept to a minimum and, when referencing course readings, should be followed by parenthetical citation (NOT foot/end notes). For example, when quoting from Origin s Commentary on the Song of Songs, a direct quote from this text is cited as follows: (Origin, 173), which means the quote comes from page 173 of Origin s text. The same sort of parenthetical citations are appropriate when referencing any required or recommended course readings. There is no expectation that students will engage in additional research beyond readings required or recommended within the syllabus; however, if a student does use outside resources, these and ONLY these outside resources must appear in a separate works cited bibliography. Note that each final exam answer begins with an introductory paragraph, ends with a concluding paragraph, and, if appropriate, employs subheadings throughout. The appropriate stylebook for this course is Turabian (8 th edition). 6

7 General University and GSRRE Policies GSRRE Plagiarism Policy Plagiarism is a serious offense, and can be defined as literary theft when a student misrepresents the work of another as his or her own. One who intentionally plagiarizes the work of another in a course paper, project, or examination can expect to receive a failing grade for the assignment and potentially for the course. The decision will be made by the professor in consultation with the dean and/or assistant dean, and will be recorded in the student s file. Students who commit a second act of plagiarism while at GSRRE may be dismissed from the school. One who unintentionally misrepresents borrowed material as one s own original work, either resulting from carelessness and/or ignorance, will have his or her assignment returned with the opportunity to rewrite it in an acceptable form. The following guidelines apply to all written work: 1) Using the ideas, thoughts, words, and statements of another, including those quoted from the Internet, without crediting the source constitutes plagiarism. 2) If exact words of another are used, they must be put in quotation marks or indented, and acknowledged through footnotes, endnotes, parenthetical citations, and (unless otherwise indicated) bibliography. 3) If the thoughts or ideas, rather than the exact words of another are used, they must be acknowledged through footnotes, endnotes, parenthetical citations, and (unless otherwise indicated) bibliography. 4) If source material is paraphrased or rephrased, it must be acknowledged through a footnote, endnote, parenthetical citation, and (unless otherwise indicated) bibliography. If the paraphrased material includes exact words, phrases, and sentences, they must be put in quotation marks. 5) The underlying criterion for determining plagiarism is claiming as one s own original work the ideas, thoughts, words, and statements of another without crediting the source. GSRRE Grading System and Equivalents 4.0 Outstanding 95%> A 3.7 Excellent 90-94% A- 3.3 Very Good 87-89% B+ 3.0 Good 83-86% B 2.7 Above Average 80-82% B- 2.3 Average 77-79% C+ 2.0 Satisfactory 73-76% C 1.7 Passing but less 70-72% C- than Satisfactory 0.0 Failure <69% <6.9 F 7

8 Fordham University Disability Support Services Under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, all students, with or without disabilities, are entitled to equal access to the programs and activities of Fordham University. If you believe that you have a disabling condition that may interfere with your ability to participate in the activities, coursework, or assessment of the object of this course, you may be entitled to accommodations. Please schedule an appointment to speak with someone at the Office of Disability Services (Rose Hill - O Hare Hall, Lower Level, x0655 or Lincoln Center Room 207, x6282). Fordham University Writing Center GSRRE students enjoy free access to the university s writing center and are encouraged to make use of this valuable resource, especially if English is not their first language. See Fordham University Writing Center -- Assignments September 3 September 10 September 17 September 24 October 1 October 8 October 15 October 22 October 29 November 5 November 12 November 19 November 26 December 3 December 10 December 15 Introduction to the historical study of Christian Spirituality Biblical spiritualties Origin: Commentary on the Song of Songs Sayings of the Desert Fathers and Mothers Gregory of Nyssa: The Life of Moses Augustine of Hippo: The Confessions Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names; Mystical Theology Benedict of Nursia: Rule Gregory the Great: Book of Pastoral Rule Bernard of Clairvaux: On Loving God Mechthild of Magdeburg: The Flowing Light of the Godhead Bonaventure: The Soul s Journey into God, The Tree of Life No Class; Thanksgiving Break Gregory Palamas: Triads in Defense of the Holy Hesychasts Julian of Norwich: Showings (Capstone Requirement Due) 8

9 Initial Homework Assignments September 3 Syllabus and Intro to the Historical Study of Christian Spirituality Read chapters 1-4 of Sheldrake s Spirituality and History, pp Submit a weekly response paper on the course Blackboard site (see above for description). September 10 Exploring Biblical Spiritualties Read chapter 7-8 on "Interpreting Texts and Traditions" in Sheldrake s Spirituality and History (pages ). Read chapter 2 in Wiseman's Spirituality and Mysticism, pp Read Schneiders, "Scripture and Spirituality" in Christian Spirituality: Origins to the 12th Century, pp (available on reserve at Rose Hill library or posted on Blackboard). Submit a weekly response paper on Blackboard (see above for description), responding to any or all of tonight s readings: Sheldrake, Wiseman, and Schneiders. Subsequent homework assignments are posted on the course Blackboard site. 9