RELIGIOUS STUDIES DEPARTMENT
INTRODUCTION
The graduation requirements at St. Ignatius College Preparatory include seven semesters of Religious Studies. The curriculum is designed to help students understand their relationship with God and their human brothers and sisters in light of the Scriptures and the teachings of the Catholic Church in the modern world.
COURSES
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 100 - TOWARD AN IGNATIAN VISION (8100)
- Grade Level - 9
- Length - One Semester
- Type of Course - Core lower division course required for graduation
- Prerequisite - None
- Criteria for Enrollment - All freshmen students must enroll
- Course Description - The students will be introduced to an overview of Catholicism by understanding humankind’s search for God (coming to an appreciation and respect for world religions) revealed through Judeo-Christian history and the sacramental practice of the Catholic Church. The students will become familiar with different models of the Church and sacraments as symbols and rituals, especially the sacraments of initiation (baptism and confirmation). Eucharist is the core of the course and its challenge to live as a growing community of believers. Special emphasis will be given to the students’ call to discipleship and their role in living out “church” in their lives.
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 200 - UNDERSTANDING SCRIPTURE (8200)
- Grade Level - 10
- Length - One Year
- Type of Course - Core lower division course required for graduation
- Prerequisite - Religious Studies 100
- Criteria for Enrollment - All students must enroll
- Course Description - This course will expose the student to the rich scriptural tradition of the Catholic Faith. It will include critical analysis, exegesis, personal, reflection on daily living and relationships, strategies for making choices consistent with the Gospel values of compassion, love and commitment.
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 300 - FUNDAMENTALS OF ETHICS, MORALITY AND JUSTICE (8300)
- Grade Level - 11
- Length - One Year
- Type of Course - Core upper division course required for graduation
- Prerequisites - Religious Studies 100, 200
- Criteria for Enrollment - All students must enroll
- Course Description - The foundation to this course is the call to uphold and promote the Gospel message of Jesus Christ. This two-semester course engages students in the broad philosophical and theological discussions of good and evil, right and wrong, freedom and duty, in and beyond the practical moral decisions of everyday life. The first semester establishes an understanding of human dignity, informed conscience, and emphasizes a spectrum of principles and virtues. The second semester introduces the tradition of social justice, Catholic social teaching, and the common good. Students will tackle some of the most compelling dilemmas and dreams of the human experience.
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 400 - THE PATH TO FAITH (8400)
- Grade Level - 12
- Length - One Semester
- Type of Course - Core upper division course required for graduation
- Prerequisites - Religious Studies 100, 200, 300
- Criteria for Enrollment - All seniors must enroll
- Course Description - "Finding God in all things." St. Ignatius taught that God is present in every aspect of our world and our lives. Each of our experiences unfolds for us God’s grace at work in the world and in our hearts. In this core course, students will come to deepen their understanding of and relationship to their God through a study of faith and spirituality, engaging the spiritual masters of the Christian tradition, especially Ignatius of Loyola. They will, through reading, writing, prayer, and discussion, interact with both these spiritual leaders and their peers toward their personal discernment of truth, faith, and “Finding God in all Things.”
SENIOR ELECTIVES
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 444 - LITURGY AND PRAYER (8444)
- Grade Level - 12
- Length - One Semester
- Type of Course - Elective meeting graduation requirement of seven semesters of Religious Studies.
- Prerequisite - Religious Studies 100, 200, 300
- Criteria for Enrollment - None
- Course Description - An exploration of the mystery of prayer and the Church’s liturgy, specifically the Mass. Through study and practical experience students will grow in a lived understanding of personal and universal meanings of worship and prayer. The course includes classroom work on the history, theology, liturgical music, and spirituality of prayer and worship. Students will develop practical and creative skills through preparation of and ministry within school liturgies.
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 447 - SPIRITUALITY EAST & WEST - THE WORLD'S WISDOM TRADITIONS (8447)
- Grade Level - 12
- Length - One Semester
- Type of Course - Elective meeting graduation requirement of seven semesters of Religious Studies.
- Prerequisite - Religious Studies 100, 200, 300
- Criteria for Enrollment - None
- Course Description - The goal of this course is to introduce students to the major religious traditions that exist today, “wisdom traditions” that have been with us for the past 6,000 years, shaping our culture and history. We will explore the major traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism and the indigenous cultures of the Native Americans and Aborigines. It is hoped that students will gain a better understanding of the variety of views that exist in our complex and diverse world, thus foster a genuine respect for these “other” traditions. The goal of these wisdom traditions is to help us human beings become better and more authentic people, and so, through this course, perhaps we can learn what it means to be a good and authentic human person. During the course we will also explore the practice of meditation and its implications for mindfulness in the world. Finally, we will discuss ways for creating peace in ourselves and in our world given what these traditions reveal to us.
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 456 - NATURE/NEXUS (8456)
- Grade Level - 12
- Length - One Semester of a yearlong course fulfilling 1 semester each English and Religious Studies requirement
- Type of Course - Elective meeting graduation requirement of seven semesters of Religious Studies
- Prerequisite - Religious Studies 100, 200, 300.
- Criteria for Enrollment - Concurrent enrollment in English counterpart course (English 456)
- Course Description -In conjunction with the corresponding section in English, this course will immerse students in the experiential study of nature. Students will write essays, keep a journal based on their own experience of nature, and participate in projects and group work to assist them in developing a deeper understanding of the four areas of student growth and learning for Religious Studies:
- Compassion: moved by the experience of nature, students will understand and appreciate ecology-based theology as a unique perspective and particular resource in the study of nature.
- Theological Analysis: students will understand how the Church, and other Christian and world religious traditions view creation, with a special focus on how ecological ethics is an application of Catholic Social Teaching and other moral perspectives to a variety of local, bio-regional and global issues of environmental degradation and conservation. Students will understand and articulate how ecology-based theology is a unique perspective and particular resource in the study of nature.
- Stewardship: as a response to the goodness of God's creation, students will engage in study and action that displays an understanding of call to act as good stewards of all creation.
- Spirituality/Prayer: students will engage in practices of meditative and contemplative interaction with nature, all with the goal of establishing and enhancing the bonds between humans and the rest of the natural world. The course includes a special focus on the themes of Ignatian spirituality, especially the desire to find God "in all things."
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 460 - HUMAN SEXUALITY (8460)
- Grade Level - 12
- Length - One Semester
- Type of Course - Elective meeting graduation requirement of one of seven semesters.
- Prerequisite - Religious Studies 100, 200, 300
- Criteria for Enrollment - None
- Course Description - This course is an exploration of the study of human sexuality as an all-embracing, all pervasive gift of God to each and every human being. Viewed from the physical (biological and psychological) and spiritual (moral) points of view, this class will treat sexuality as it is dealt with in modern science, contemporary society, the Word of God, and the teachings of the Church. Emphasis will be placed on helping students develop a healthy appreciation of their own sexuality and stress the importance of integrating values that promote selfrespect and integrity in both the way they reason and ultimately in the way they choose to live.
SACRED SYMBOLS (6130): Studio Art C/Sacred Symbols
- Grade Level - 12
- Type of Course - this will also fulfill the one semester senior elective Religious Studies requirement for graduation.
- See Course Description in the Fine Arts section