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Honors 1392: From Empire to Christendom
Fr. Anthony Giampietro, Philosophy
Messenger of Grace and Mercy
("O Gentle and Compassionate One")
Office: Sullivan 207, 713.942.3447, giampietro@stthom.edu
Office Hours: M - F 10-11
Prof. Randall Smith, Theology
Lord of Grief and Aggravation
("O Angry and Thundrous One")
Office: Hughes 207, 713.942.5059, rsmith@stthom.edu
Office Hours: MWF 2:00-2:30, Hughes 206
MWF 2:30-4:00 Diedrich's Coffee Shop
T Th 11-12:15. O'Rourke 101
Goals of Course:
In the opening paragraph of his encyclical on "Faith and Reason" (Fides et Ratio), Pope John Paul II wrote the following:
“Know yourself”
In both East and West, we may trace a journey which has led humanity down the centuries to meet and engage truth more and more deeply. It is a journey which has unfolded -- as it must -- within the horizon of personal self-consciousness: the more human beings know reality and the world, the more they know themselves in their uniqueness, with the question of the meaning of things and of their very existence becoming ever more pressing. This is why all that is the object of our knowledge becomes a part of our life. The admonition Know thyself was carved on the temple portal at Delphi, as testimony to a basic truth to be adopted as a minimal norm by those who seek to set themselves apart from the rest of creation as “human beings,” that is, as those who “know themselves.”
“Moreover, a cursory glance at ancient history shows clearly how in different parts of the world, with their different cultures, there arise at the same time the fundamental questions which pervade human life: Who am I? Where have I come from and where am I going? Why is there evil? What is there after this life? These are questions which we find in the sacred writings of Israel, as also in the Veda and the Avesta; we find them in the writings of Confucius and Lao-Tze, and in the preaching of Tirthankara and Buddha; they appear in the poetry of Homer and in the tragedies of Euripides and Sophocles, as they do in the philosophical writings of Plato and Aristotle. They are questions which have their common source in the quest for meaning which has always compelled the human heart. In fact, the answer given to these questions decides the direction which people seek to give to their lives.”
The goal of this course, as with the University of St. Thomas as a whole, is to increase in our students the skills needed for this journey of self-discovery and self-knowledge. (The motto of the University, after all, is Crescamus in Christo: "Let us increase in Christ.") We your instructors believe that, as the Pope suggests, asking the fundamental questions constitutes the basic condition for living a truly human life, that this journey towards self-understanding is the key to human wisdom and human flourishing. If we are to become truly wise and fulfill the capacities inherent in our humanity, therefore, we must never cease to ask these fundamental questions that have always compelled the human heart, questions such as: Who am I? Where have I come from? Where am I going? What is the nature and destiny of the human person? What about free will, suffering, and death? And given all this, what is the meaning and purpose of human life?
The way we will be pursing that inquire in this class is by reading and reflecting on certain key texts from the Western intellectual tradition. With all due respect to the course instructors (however good or bad they may be), in the final analysis, one can have no better guides on one's journey than truly great thinkers and writers such as Cicero, Augustine, Bernard of Clairvaux, and Aquinas. Each of the works you will be reading this semester have inspired the lives and actions of thousands upon thousands of men and women over the centuries, each of whose journey was much like your own. Your own personal journey will of course be unique in its own ways. But that doesn't mean the wisdom of others, especially the wisdom of the some of the greatest thinkers in history, need be completely alien to you. Indeed, quite the contrary, you should welcome the chance to test your self-understanding against some of the best thinkers and writers history has to offer. You have nothing to lose but the chains of ignorance and small-mindedness. And perhaps a little sleep.
Requirements:
* In-class tests = 40 %.
(a) Midterm Exam (20%)
(b) Final Exam ( 20%).
* Written Work = 40%.
(a) Trial of Aeneas (20%): Verbal (5%), Paper (15%):
(b) Faith and Culture (20%): Web Discussion (5%), Paper (15%)
* Reading Quizzes and Class Participation = 20%
(a) Reading Quizzes (10%)
(b) Class attendance and participation (10%)
Assembly of the Gods |
Schedule of Class Meetings and Reading Assignments:
| Tu 23 Jan |
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Introduction to the Course: The Fundamental Questions
Introduction to Virgil's Aeneid
Evening Aeneid Festival! (You have to read it anyway. Come listen to it.)
See also: Guide to Aeneas and his wanderings
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| Th 25 Jan |
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Virgil, Aeneid , Bks. 1, 2, 4, and 5.
Second Evening Aeneid Festival. (Let's be serious: What kind of festival lasts only one night?) |
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| Tu 30 Jan |
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Virgil, Aeneid, Bks. 6, 7, 10, and 12
Introduction to Cicero |
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| Th 1 Feb |
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Cicero , On Duties, Bk III Reading Questions |
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| Sat 3 Feb |
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Oral presentations for the Trial of Aeneas |
| Tu 6 Feb |
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Writing an Effective Paper |
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| Th 8 Feb |
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The Beginnings of the Four Gospels: Mt Mk Lk Jn
Fr. Gerald Vann, "What Think Ye About Christ?" |
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| Tu 13 Feb |
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The Death and Resurrection of Christ: Mt Mk Lk Jn
Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, "The Eternal Pity" |
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| Th 15 Feb |
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Lk 10:25-37 (The Parable of the Good Samaritan: "Who is My Neighbor?")
"Reading the Parable of the Good Samaritan"
"Who is My Neighbor?" Pastoral Letter, U. S. Catholic Bishops |
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| Tu 20 Feb |
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Mt 19:16-26 (The Parable of the Rich Young Man: "What Good Must I Do?")
Pope John Paul II, Veritatis splendor, Bk I |
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| Th 22 Feb |
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Martyrs 1
Acts 6-7
Pliny-Trajan Correspondence
Martyrdom of Ss. Perpetua and Felicity
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| Tu 27 Feb |
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Martyrs 2
Acts 2, 1 Cor 11:17-26
Martyrdom of St. Polycarp
Ignatius, Letter to the Romans
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| Th 1 Mar |
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Mid-Term Exam
SPRING BREAK: (Spent reading Augustine's Confessions and contemplating the value of the virtue of temperance, so often un-appreciated.) |
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| Tu 13 Feb |
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Justin Martyr, The First Apology
Introduction to Augustine |
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| Th 15 Mar |
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Augustine, City of God (selections) |
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| Tu 20 Mar |
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Augustine, Confessions, Bks. 1-4 |
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| Th 22 Mar |
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Augustine, Confessions, Bks. 5-7 |
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| Tu 27 Mar |
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Augustine, Confessions 8-10
Beowulf Party (2½ hours: free pizza) |
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| Th 29 Mar |
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Beowulf
Introduction to Benedict's Rule |
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| Tu 3 Apr |
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Rule of St. Benedict
Introduction to Bernard of Clairvaux
Check out also:
Life of Benedict
Monte Cassino homepage |
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| Th 5 Apr |
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Easter Holiday |
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| Tu 10 Apr |
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Bernard of Clairvaux, The Steps of Humility and Pride
Introduction to Gothic Architecture |
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| Th 12 Apr |
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Gothic Architecture
Introduction to Francis of Assisi |
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| Tu 17 Apr |
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Francis of Assisi, "Earlier Rule (Regula non bullata)," "Canticle of Creatures" |
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| Th 19 Apr |
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Bonaventure, On the Reduction of the Arts to Theology
Wendell Barry, Life is a Miracle (selections)
E.O Wilson, Consilience (selections)
Introduction to the Summa of Theology |
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| Tu 24 Apr |
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Thomas Aquinas, Summa of Theology, I-II, Q.90 , Q. 91 , Q. 92 , and Q. 93 |
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| Th 26 Apr |
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Thomas Aquinas, Summa of Theology, I-II, Q. 94 |
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| Tu 1 May |
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Thomas Aquinas, Summa of Theology, I-II, Qq. 98, 99, 100 (selections) |
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| Th 3 May |
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Thomas Aquinas, Summa of Theology, 1-2,Qq. 95 - 97 |
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| Tu 8 May |
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Last Day of Class: Summary
Comprehensive Final Exam: |
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