PhD in Theology

Program Overview

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This interdisciplinary program explores the relationship between faith and culture within the Catholic tradition. Students specialize in two theological subdisciplines and engage with other academic disciplines to analyze, articulate, and communicate faith impactfully. The program emphasizes the study of theology as lived experience and prepares students for advanced coursework and dissertation research.

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

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Objective:

• To prepare students to critically examine the relationship between faith and culture within the Catholic tradition.

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Description:

• Interdisciplinary and integrative program that emphasizes the study of theology as lived experience.
• Requires engagement with two theological subdisciplines and their exploration through the lens of other academic disciplines.
• Focuses on the ability to analyze, articulate, and communicate faith impactfully.

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Outline:

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Content:

• Biblical Interpretation
• Systematic and Constructive Theology
• Christian Spirituality
• Christian Ethics

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Structure:

• Students choose two areas of specialization for advanced coursework and dissertation research.

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Individual Modules with Descriptions:

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Biblical Interpretation:

• Focuses on the deep inner unity of the biblical narrative and the contributions of individual texts to this unity.
• Develops competency in analytical methods, critical approaches, and the analysis of literature, history, culture, and religion pertinent to the interpretation of Old and New Testament texts.
• Explores the theological dimensions of the scriptures and their reception in Christian history and thought.

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Systematic and Constructive Theology:

• Engages with culture through the exploration of the diverse layers of the Christian tradition.
• Brings the truths of the tradition to bear on the contemporary situation in language that finds a hearing in that situation.
• Applies the insights of other disciplines to reflect on the breadth of human experience.

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Christian Spirituality:

• Examines the plurality of modes in which the divine is known and experienced in human life.
• Explores the history, development, and practices of Christian spirituality, including contemplation, prayer, penance, liturgy, devotion, and asceticism.
• Investigates the role of emotions in religious growth and the integration of bodily existence into spirituality.

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Christian Ethics:

• Articulates the moral, social, political, and economic implications of Christian faith for both Christian disciples and the broader public sphere.
• Evaluates the positive influence of culture on Christian beliefs and practices, as well as develops critiques of culture in light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and Christian theological doctrines.