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BTI Consortium | Last Updated November 14 - 9:00AM
Boston College Theology Department
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5016-01
Christians Reading the Quran
BTI Category
Semester
Scripture & Biblical Studies
SP25
This course examines various trends and methodological approaches by which Christians have interpreted the Qurn. The semester begins by surveying premodern trends, including Qurn translations, privileging primary sources when possible. Most of the course concentrates on 20th and 21st century engagement with Islams sacred text, including debates about orientalism and postcolonial theory. Theological questions include general discussions of whether and how Christians may consider the Qurn revealed and/or inspired along with focused discussions of particular passages of pertinence to Christian comparative theology. Knowledge of Arabic beneficial but not necessary; all required readings exist in English translation. Cross-listed in ICSP.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Welle, Jason
TR
10:30 AM - 11:45 AM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5258-01
How Israel Matters
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
Israel, both the people and the land, are central to Jewish theology as concrete manifestations of Gods covenants. This course will explore the evolving meanings of these concepts from the Bible to today, looking at themes like peoplehood, life in the land, exile from it, and (messianic) return. The second part of the course will focus specifically on the theologies of a range of modern Jewish thinkers, with the goal of helping students to understand aspects of contemporary Israel and its meaning to world Jewry.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Langer, Ruth
W
12:00 PM - 2:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5574-01
Ethics, Religion, and International Politics
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
An examination of the role of religion in international politics and of ethical approaches to international affairs. Special emphasis will be given to religion as a source of conflict, religious communities as transnational agents for justice, protection of human rights, and peace; the historical development and contemporary formulations of ethical norms for the use of force; and ethical and religious contributions to reconciliation and solidarity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Wambui, Nelly Wamaitha
TR
1:30 PM - 2:45 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5574-03
Ethics, Religion, and International Politics
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
An examination of the role of religion in international politics and of ethical approaches to international affairs. Special emphasis will be given to religion as a source of conflict, religious communities as transnational agents for justice, protection of human rights, and peace; the historical development and contemporary formulations of ethical norms for the use of force; and ethical and religious contributions to reconciliation and solidarity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Strouse, Ethan C
R
4:00 PM - 4:50 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
0
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5574-08
Ethics, Religion, and International Politics
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
An examination of the role of religion in international politics and of ethical approaches to international affairs. Special emphasis will be given to religion as a source of conflict, religious communities as transnational agents for justice, protection of human rights, and peace; the historical development and contemporary formulations of ethical norms for the use of force; and ethical and religious contributions to reconciliation and solidarity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Strouse, Ethan C
R
5:00 PM - 5:50 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
0
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5583-01
Introduction to Biblical Hebrew II
BTI Category
Semester
Languages
SP25
This course is a thorough introduction to Biblical Hebrew and its principal grammatical structures in preparation for translation of prose and poetic texts. Readings in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament begin the fall semester and increase in variety throughout the year.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Vanderhooft, David
TR
3:15 PM - 4:45 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5794-01
Philosophy and the Church Fathers
BTI Category
Semester
Church History/History of Religions
SP25
Introduction to the major Church Fathers and Christian schools of antiquity and their varying engagement with philosophy. Elements of opposition and areas of harmony between Greek and Christian ideals.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Schatkin, Margaret
M
3:00 PM - 5:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO7054-01
Science-Engaged Theology: Gender, Sin, Beauty
BTI Category
Semester
Systematic Theology & Philosophy (Western)
SP25
In 2018, Science-Engaged Theology (SET) emerged as a new model for doing work at the intersection of theology and the sciences. In this course, we will examine earlier models of interdisciplinary engagement that SET critiques and seeks to revise, the conditions under which SET arose, and the reception of SET since 2018. In addition to developing an understanding of the significance of SET as a new mindset for theologians, the course will also discuss recent examples of science-engaged theology, focusing in particular on theologies of gender, sin, and aesthetics that are in conversation with the sciences.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Ulishney, Megan Carol
R
10:00 AM - 12:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
N
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO7060-01
Symbols and Narratives of Redemption
BTI Category
Semester
Systematic Theology & Philosophy (Western)
SP25
Rethinking the sacramentality lived by the people of God in the context of the 21st century implies reviewing the theoretical framework of signs and symbols of human language, particularly Christian, in the midst of the debris of modern instrumental rationality.Following Wittgenstein and Austin with the linguistic turn, the theory of performativity makes more complex the analysis of the oral, visual and conceptual narratives by which the human condition is celebrated in diverse cultures as the site of divine redemption.This graduate course will explore, from fundamental Christian theology, the symbolism of the good (la symbolique du bien, proposed by Paul Ricoeur), incorporating the lens of critical and decolonial thought to think redemption as performativity of resistance and re-existence experienced by the survivors of systemic violence as a life of the Spirit that emerges from existential and systemic peripheries, with diverse forms of narratives and rituals of combative performativity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Mendoza-Alvarez, Carlos
T
12:00 PM - 2:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
N
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO7627-01
Late Medieval Mystical Traditions
BTI Category
Semester
Church History/History of Religions
SP25
This course will explore the influence of the Pseudo-Dionysian corpus on late medieval descriptions of the human-divine relationship. In particular, it will analyze in detail (in both the original Latin and in English translation) the use and interpretation of Dionysian mystical theology in the writings of Hugh of St. Victor, Thomas Gallus, Bonaventure, Hugh of Balma, and the author of the Cloud of Unknowing."
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Coolman, Boyd
R
10:30 AM - 1:00 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
Y
Notes
N
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO8822-01
Church and Theology in the New Testament Period
BTI Category
Semester
Church History/History of Religions
SP25
Doctoral seminar on the relationship between theology and the social institutions of Christianity in the New Testament and first three centuries with special attention to the diversity of Christianity in Rome. Topics to include: Christian churches and Judaism, Jesus and wandering disciples, churches and voluntary associations, church in Paul's letters, Luke-Acts and Revelation as well as the second and third century emergence of church authorities, special forms of Christian instruction as well as popular cults venerating martyrs.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Perkins, Pheme
M
12:00 PM - 2:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
Y
Notes
DOCTORAL
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5201-01
Christian-Jewish-Muslim Scriptural Reasoning
BTI Category
Semester
Scripture & Biblical Studies
SP25
Abrahamic Scriptural Reasoning (SR) is a practice of fellowship and study among Muslims, Jews, and Christians, practiced by dozens of groups in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, South Asia, and East Asia. While SR began in an academic setting, it expanded into a civic, community practice. In the course, we first address scriptural study and commentary in the individual traditions, with readings about biblical and quranic commentaries in their historical contexts. Then we study the history and methods of Abrahamic SR, readings in the Journal of Scriptural Reasoning and additional writings on the theory of SR. Each class begins with small-group studies in and across the borders of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim interpretive traditions. Toward the end of the semester, we ponder broader issues: What is Scripture? What is commentary? And what of tension and conflict among Abrahamic communities: does scripture play a role in inter-religious conflict? In its repair?
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Ochs, Peter
M
2:00 PM - 4:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5373-01
Patristic Greek II
BTI Category
Semester
Languages
SP25
This two-semester course is designed for the student with no previous knowledge of ancient Greek to develop reading and translating skills in Patristic Greek language by mastering the fundamental principles of Greek grammar and syntax and acquiring a basic reading vocabulary. The student becomes familiar with the meaning of Greek words, their forms and structure, and their customary arrangement in sentences. A secondary goal of this course is to serve as a foundation for further studies in Patristic Greek.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Schatkin, Margaret
W
12:00 PM -2:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
Y
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5574-02
Ethics, Religion, and International Politics
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
An examination of the role of religion in international politics and of ethical approaches to international affairs. Special emphasis will be given to religion as a source of conflict, religious communities as transnational agents for justice, protection of human rights, and peace; the historical development and contemporary formulations of ethical norms for the use of force; and ethical and religious contributions to reconciliation and solidarity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Strouse, Ethan C
R
3:00 PM - 3:50 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
0
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5574-07
Ethics, Religion, and International Politics
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
An examination of the role of religion in international politics and of ethical approaches to international affairs. Special emphasis will be given to religion as a source of conflict, religious communities as transnational agents for justice, protection of human rights, and peace; the historical development and contemporary formulations of ethical norms for the use of force; and ethical and religious contributions to reconciliation and solidarity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Wambui, Nelly Wamaitha
TR
10:30 AM - 11:45 AM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
0
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5574-09
Ethics, Religion, and International Politics
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
An examination of the role of religion in international politics and of ethical approaches to international affairs. Special emphasis will be given to religion as a source of conflict, religious communities as transnational agents for justice, protection of human rights, and peace; the historical development and contemporary formulations of ethical norms for the use of force; and ethical and religious contributions to reconciliation and solidarity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Strouse, Ethan C
R
6:00 PM - 6:50 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
0
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5599-01
A Theology of Food: Eating, Drinking and the Eucharist
BTI Category
Semester
Systematic Theology & Philosophy (Western)
SP25
Eating and drinking are primordial human experiences that nourish individuals, sustain communities and are at the heart of rituals in many religions. In the Judeo-Christian tradition meals play an important part in the unfolding dialog between God and humanity. Christians believe in a privileged encounter with the Lord Jesus in the Eucharistic meal of bread and wine. Eternal life is portrayed as a great banquet in God's presence. This course articulates a theology of the Eucharist that takes meal as its point of departure. It examines how this central Christian action both shapes the divine-human relationship and informs our response to contemporary issues such as creation and ecology, hunger and suffering, solidarity and exclusion, hope and eternity.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Bergin, William N
T
3:00 PM - 5:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
GRAD/UGRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO7051-01
Learning from Aquinas to be Virtuous
BTI Category
Semester
Systematic Theology & Philosophy (Western)
SP25
This will be a course where we will dedicate each class to one of 12 texts from Thomas Aquinas'Summa Theologiaethat help us to become virtuous. From questions on what Thomas means by virtue and how virtues are appropriatedor received, to what differentiates each of the seven virtues yet how they are connected, the course will see each class as giving particular attention to selected texts of theSummaas teaching guides to the virtuouslife.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Keenan, James F, SJ
T
2:00 PM - 4:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
N
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO7057-01
Cyril of Alexandria, Later Christology
BTI Category
Semester
Church History/History of Religions
SP25
The understanding of Christ in the early centuries of Christianity was an important expression of conviction and ecclesiology. In six weeks this course will examine how Christ was understood in the writings of St. Cyril of Alexandria, and then in a second six weeks we will examine Cyrils theological legacy in Churches that accepted the council of Chalcedon and in those that did not. Leontius, Severus, Maximus and John Damascene are the major writers to be examined in the later weeks. Methodologies will include intellectual history, social-critical analysis, and theological judgment with attention to normative dogmatics and ecumenism.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Magree, Michael C, SJ
T
4:30 PM - 6:50 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
N
Notes
N
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO7611-01
Hebrew Exegesis of the Dead Sea Scrolls
BTI Category
Semester
Scripture & Biblical Studies
SP25
This course begins with exegesis of the Hebrew text of the three "Rules" found in the Qumran caves and in the Cairo geniza: the Community Rule (1QS), the Rule for the Congregation (1QSa), and the Damascus Rule (CD). We will also survey passages from other sectarian texts devoted to interpretation of scripture and history, esp. the pesharim. Students with ability to read Aramaic will read selections from the Aramaic DSS that complement the Hebrew texts, and all will read the entire corpus of non-biblical mss. in English translation.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Gillihan, Yonder
R
1:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
Y
Notes
N
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO8270-01
From Just War to Peacebuilding
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
SP25
The focus of this course will be contemporary theological ethics and just war, and the recent peacebuilding trajectory. We will compare and assess different theological commitments grounding positions on war and peace, and on Christian political ethics generally. To be included are "just war" developments in the Augustinian and Thomistic traditions, and philosophical perspectives on forgiveness and restorative justice. We will consider nonviolent strategiesto resolve conflict, including perspectives from conflict zones and the global South. Specific problems such as women and war, humanitarian intervention, nuclear weapons, and land mines and cluster munitions will be addressed.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Pope, Stephen J Cahill, Lisa
W
12:00 PM - 2:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
Y
Notes
DOCTORAL
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO9670-01
Methods in Theology
BTI Category
Semester
Sociology/Ethnography/Research Methods
SP25
In the late 1960s, Karl Rahner asserted that theology's new partners in dialogue were the human and social sciences. Increasingly in answering new and perennial questions, contemporary theology has partnered with archaeology, sociology, cultural studies, psychology, world religions, and forms of critical theory. This course considers various methods in doing theology as well as some of theology's significant dialogue partners.
Professor
Class Day
Class Time
Wilkins, Jeremy
W
2:00 PM - 4:25 PM
Grading Option
Letter/PF/Aud
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites Req'd?
Y
Notes
DOCTORAL
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