www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology Professor Alex and others I need your help

Friends,

I've been hoping for this day and have even suggested it in the past. The head of the Department of Theology and Philosophy has asked me to offer a class on Eastern Christianity at the University of St. Francis. The tentative title is "Mysteries of the Eastern Church".

I have several ideas but now that I have this opportunity I really need more ideas. Help.

CDL

I have a suggestion. Have them attend a Catholic Divine Liturgy and write of their experience.

Yes, indeed. I do that with all of my classes now. Here are some of the sections I will cover:

1. Divine Liturgy and what it expresses including the different empahases between the Mystical Supper and the Eucharist.

2. Iconography and its development.

3. A study of some of the Eastern Fathers especially: St. Anthanasius, the Cappadocian Fathers, Maximos the Confessor, Gregory Palamas, etc.

4. Spirituality which in itself is bottomless.

5. Use "Orientale Lumen" and other papal writings as a template.

6. I plan some trips as well. The Chicago areas offer all kinds of examples of Eastern and Oriental Churches both in communion with and not in communion with Rome.

I take this as a wonderful opportunity. Besides your ideas I need your prayers.

Dan L

Indeed it is a wonderful opportunity. I will definitely include this intention in my prayers. Will this class start in the Fall?

CDL,
Exciting. Where is St. Francis University please. Also, what is your background in regards to being asked to teach this session? The Byzantine Seminary Press has several very well done booklets on the Eastern rite and they may be very helpful in an introductory manner. I have shared with several of my friends who had no idea there was anything but "Roman Catholic" and they were enlightening

Thank you for your prayers. The University of St. Francis is in Joliet, Illinois. I am adjunct faculty which means I don't make much but I get to teach. "The Way of the Pilgrim" will also be included someway along with the "Philokalia". What do you think of Father Raya's, Fr. Taft's, and Fr. Meyendorf's works?

CDL

Dan, this a great news and a real testament to your witness there as an Eastern Catholic! Congratulations!

Father Raya's The Face of God is a classic that I would definitely recommend using. (That may have been the one you had in mind when you mentioned his name."

Joan Roccasalvo's The Eastern Catholic Churches: An Introduction to their Worship and Spirituality is also a very good introductory resource.

Some additional ones to consider would be:

Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh; An Introduction to Eastern Christian Spirituality by Father George Maloney

For the Life of the World: Sacraments and Orthodoxy by Father Alexander Schmemann (a classic!)

Ages of the Spiritual Life by Paul Evdokimov

Partakers of Divine Nature by Archimandrite Chrisoforos Stavropoulos

The Roots of Christian Mysticism by Olivier Clement (great patristic quotations that are masterfully woven together to present the beautiful mosaic of easrly Christian spirituality!)

Light Through Darkness: The Orthodox Tradition by John Chryssavgis (anything by him is excellent, I've found!)

Standing in God's Holy Fire: The Byzantine Tradition by John Anthony McGuckin

Abundance of Love: The Incarnation and the Byzantine Tradition by Raya (excellent!)

Praying with Icons by Jom Forest

Light for Life: The Mystery Celebrated a great explanation of our worship (good to read before and after a visit to one of our parishes)

Faith in the Byzantine World by Mary Cunningham (A pretty good undergraduate intro to the Byzantine Church - great format and pictures; Published by InterVarsity Press)

Poustinia and Sobornost by Catherine Doherty are also excellent introductions. Plus she was a great eastern Catholic woman and (I believe) a saint!

You might also consider Dennis Billy's recent reader's guide with text of The Way of a Pilgrim which is a great way to convey our spirituality through a powerful yet simple narrative. (Those post-moderns really go for the stories...)

I've run across a few recent titles introducing Western Christians to Eastern Iconography. I saw one that looked very good at Light and Life recently. I'll visit them again (a VERY dangerous prospect for my pocketbook) and get the title for you if you are interested.

If you have to narrow the texts down (since I assume it is an undergraduate theology course and they don't have to read over 1500 pages like I do right now for my Scott Hahn "Theological Foundations" course) I would narrow it down to:

Raya's Face of God and Abundance of Love
Clement's Roots of Christian Mysticism
Stavropoulos' Partakers of Divine Nature (on theosis)
Roccasalvo's The Eastern Catholic Churches
Schmemann's For the Life of the World
Cunningham's Faith in the Byzantine World
The Mystery Celebrated
Forest's Praying with Icons
Doehrty's Poustinia
The Way of a Pilgrim (even if they forget everything else, my experience is that they will forever remember this story - and I personally like the one introduced by Walter Cisek better - Image/Doubleday publishes it)

The other good thing is that the Melkite Eparchy of Newton has study guides for Raya's Face of God and for Stavropoulos' Partakers. That might be helpful as you build your curriculum.

I know I missed a few things, but those are some of my initial thought. You might consider contacting Holy Apostles Seminary in Cromwell, CT. They have a course taught by a Byzantine deacon on the Eastern Catholic Churches. (They are a small Latin Catholic seminary, which specializes in late vocations to the priesthood.) Their web address is www.holyapostles.edu [holyapostles.edu] .

God bless and keep us posted!

Gordo

PS: An interesting site which you may find useful - or not!

Jewish Roots of Eastern Christian Mysticism
http://www.marquette.edu/maqom/

Gordon,

Thank you so much for those recommendations. I can see I have much reading ahead of me.

CDL

Now that sounds like a class I'd like to take!

Dear Professor Daniel,

I think you have this by the horns!

It is precisely the sense of awe and the "mysterium tremendum" of the Eastern Church that is what your students will savour in your course!

Everything else is up to you!

Alex

Don't forget the melody of praise.