Theology Department

Course Name: Theology 7, 1 year Grade Level: 7th

Students will be introduced to the Holy Trinity; a Father that created them out of love, a Son that suffered and died for their sins in order to bring them to everlasting life, and the Holy Spirit who dwells within them, guiding them in all that they do. Students will begin to develop an understanding of the teachings and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. They will obtain a baseline understanding of Catholicism and all that in which it encompasses. Each student will be invited to explore what this means to him or her personally, developing their own personal relationship with God and His Church. The course is centered on relationships and is based on Mark 12:30-31, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ”

Prerequisite: None Regents Exam: None

Course Name: Theology 8, 1 year Grade Level: 8th

Students will delve deeper into their knowledge and understanding of the Trinity, the Church, and how God is very much alive in our modern world. They will explore the Deposits of Faith; Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition, reflect on spirituality and mysticism, and tie it into their daily lives. They will continue to study ways in which we see our faith lived out every day in word and deed. Following Ignatian Spirituality, students will learn to see God in all things. A focus on relationships will continue to be a main theme of this course, which is based on Mark 12:30-31, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ”

Prerequisite: None Regents Exam: None

Course Name: Theology 9 (Jesus and Morality), 1 year, 1 credit Grade Level: 9th

Students will focus on their character development as Christians. The essential question posed throughout the course will be, “What kind of person am I becoming?” To aid in this endeavor, this course will be firmly rooted in the Church’s teaching of fundamental human dignity that flows from being created in God’s image and likeness and in the Christian vocation of being active disciples of Jesus Christ. Through the lens of using one’s intellect; looking to the law to guide one’s freedom; imitating Jesus; forming, informing, and following one’s conscience; repenting and seeking forgiveness when one sins; loving God above all; loving oneself and loving others, this course will seek to teach the importance of not only believing the right things but also putting them into practice. Sacred Scripture will be the basis for all moral teachings as well as Pope John Paul’s, “Theology of the Body” .

Prerequisite: None Regents Exam: None

Course Name: Theology 10 (Jesus and the Church), 1 year, 1 credit Grade Level: 10th

The purpose of this course is to teach students that Jesus Christ is alive and truly present in the Catholic Church. The course builds on information about Salvation History, Christ’s life and mission on Earth, and the saving events of the Paschal Mystery to point students to the place where they can continue to develop an ongoing friendship with Christ. That place is within the Body of Christ, The Church. Christ gives us many gifts within the Church including Sacred Scripture, Liturgy, Mass, and the Sacraments. Through their study of the Church and its history, students will come to a deeper appreciation of their own roles as a member of the Body of Christ.

Prerequisite: None Regents Exam: None

Course Name: Theology 11, 1 year, 1 credit Grade Level: 11th

This course is a broad survey of the New Testament. Students will learn the structure and major themes of the books of the New Testament, especially the Gospels, in the context of the formation of the early Christian communities of faith. They will see God revealing Himself through His Word, learn how to apply the Scriptures to their own lives, and appreciate the broader historical and cultural context that is relevant to the New Testament. In addition, students will learn and explore more about the political, social, and family life of Jesus Christ and understand more clearly His Passion, Death, and Resurrection.

Prerequisite: None Regents Exam: None

Course Name: Theology 12, 1 year, 1 credit Grade Level: 12th

Students will further develop their prayer lives and spirituality through prayerful reflection and by reviewing, exploring, and discussing the principles of social justice as taught through the Deposit of Faith, Sacred Scripture, and Sacred Tradition, as well as the teachings of the Catholic Church through the study of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Church Documents, Popes’ Encyclicals, and the teachings of the Magisterium. Students will seek practical ways to respond to the call of social justice in their lives while forming their personal goals for the future. There will also be a focus on awakening in each student his or her personal contribution and gift to this world, as we are called to live in the image of Christ.

Prerequisite: None Regents Exam: None