Studia Catholica

Catholic Studies Program, St. Francis Xavier University

2006-2011: 15 YEARS OF CATHOLIC STUDIES AT StFX

Volume 5 www.stfx.ca/academic/catholic-studies Fall 2011

From the Coordinator. . . Since the last Newsletter there have been several changes in the Catholic Studies Program. Dr Steven Baldner, Professor of Philosophy, has returned to the advising faculty and to the Program following 4 years service as Dean of Arts. Dr William Sweet has returned to StFX after 2 years as Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Religious Studies at St Thomas University in Fredericton. Dr Angie Thompson of the Department of Human Kinetics has joined the advising faculty. Other members of the advising faculty are Dr Sharon Gregory (Art), Dr Robert Kennedy (Religious Studies), Dr Joseph Khoury (English), Dr J. G. Lalande (History), and Dr Louis Groarke (Philosophy). This year we are pleased, as well, to have courses taught by 2 ‘new’ professors: Dr Suzanne Stewart and Prof. Greg Melchin. Prof. Melchin has returned to StFX after receiving his MA in Religious Studies from Concordia University; this year he will be teaching the course on Catholic Social teaching in the second semester, along with a year-long course in Religious Studies. Dr Stewart has been appointed this year as Assistant Professor in Catholic Studies and in English Literature. She is returning to StFX after a year of teaching at Mt Allison University, and will be teaching Catholic Studies 100. On February 3, 2011 the Catholic Studies Program welcomed its Visiting Lecturer for 2010-11, Dr. Michael W. Higgins, vice president for Mission and Catholic Identity at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut. Dr Higgins gave a presentation related to his extensive work on the Christian spiritual writer, Henri Nouwen. In his talk, titled “Henri Nouwen – an icon of spiritual unity,” Dr Higgins led the audience through some of the life and work of Nouwen, noting some of the struggles that Nouwen had in his own life, and remarking on how Nouwen, who had worked and taught at the Menninger Clinic, Notre Dame, Yale and Harvard, gave this up to live at the L'Arche community in Toronto, called Daybreak. Dr. Higgins offered a personal glimpse into the man and the mystery; the audience raised several questions regarding Nouwen’s work. During the year, the Program also co-sponsored a public lecture by Prof. Sean Freyne, Professor of Theology (Emeritus), in the School of Religions and Theology, Trinity College, Dublin, entitled “Jesus, Prayer and Politics: Contemplative Action for Justice.” Last spring, two new courses in Catholic Studies were approved by the University Senate: CATH 100 “Introduction to Catholic Traditions and Culture” and CATH 344 “Education in the Catholic Tradition.” Both courses are being offered in 2011-12, in addition to CATH 341 “Catholic Social Teaching.” Finally, I would like to remind students that there are presently several generous bursaries available each year to students in, or interested in, Catholic Studies and related disciplines (such as philosophy and religious studies). (For how to apply next year, see page 2!) The Catholic Studies Programme is grateful to members of the community who have provided funds for bursaries and awards to students who are in Catholic Studies or who exhibit an interest in theological, philosophical or religious studies, and a commitment to the issues that form the core of the Catholic Studies programme.

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Courses for 2011-12

Interested in having an informed, adult-level understanding of the Catholic Church's beliefs, traditions, and contributions to contemporary culture? Try An Introduction to Catholic Traditions and Culture (CATH 100)!

This course examines major themes, institutions, and practices in Catholicism, providing an interdisciplinary overview of Catholic traditions and culture. Topics include: Catholic perspectives on reading the Bible; the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth; institutions and change in the Catholic Church, including the history of the papacy; Catholicism and modern science; and Catholic teaching on ethics and social justice. Each unit will include an historical overview, illustrating themes through art, music, lm, and other media. Six credits

Contemplating a further degree in Education and/or hoping to teach in Catholic schools in Canada? Try Education in the Catholic Tradition: History, Theories, and Practices (CATH 344) – first term

This course provides an historical overview of models of education in the Catholic tradition, of debates on the purposes and structure of education, and of texts that have inuenced Catholic education and its applications. Three credits.

Interested in international development and development studies, social justice, ethics, and philosophy? Try Catholic Social Teaching (CATH 341) – second term

Rooted in scripture, philosophy, and theology, Catholic social teaching proposes principles of justice that emphasize the dignity of the person, the value of economic and political institutions, and the importance of a common good. This course explores these principles and their application to contemporary social, political, and economic issues with reference to ofcial documents of the Catholic Church. Prerequisite: CATH 100 or 200 or permission of the instructor or third-year standing. Three credits.

Awards and Bursaries available to Students in / interested in Catholic Studies

Catholic Studies adjudicates or recommends students for the Rev. Bernard A. MacDonald Memorial Bursary and The Catherine and Archie MacPhee Award. As well, it may nominate students for the Sisters of St. Martha - Centennial Diocesan Bursary for Women. During the 2010-11 academic year, The Catholic Studies Programme was able to provide bursaries and awards to 10 students. The Catholic Studies Coordinating Committee and StFX Chaplains strongly encourage applicants for the 2011-12 awards and bursaries. (The deadlines are normally in early March.) Please access the Catholic Studies Web Page <http://www.stfx.ca/academic/catholic-studies/> and the link to Scholarships and Bursaries for further information.

C & A MacPhee Memorial Award at Convocation - 2011 Laurel (Muffy) MacIntyre

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Recipients of the Rev. Bernard A. MacDonald Memorial Bursary (2010-11) Jacqueline Vosman Myles Chisholm Colleen Duggan

Emma Davis Laura Jurgens Paul Niesobedzki

C & A MacPhee Memorial Award (2010-11) Courtney Kehoe Hannah MacDonald Dylan MacKenzie

Congratulations to all!

Faculty Updates

Dr Suzanne Stewart is an Assistant Professor of Catholic Studies and English Literature. Her specialization is the Romantic period, particularly poetry and relationships between literature and visual art. Recently, she has pursued her Christian (primarily Catholic) interests, writing papers on William Wordsworth’s poetry in relation to St. Francis of Assisi and to the monastic tradition. Her current project is a (collaboratively-written) book, Literature Transfigured: Judeo-Christian Perspectives

on Reading and Criticism. In addition to teaching CATH 100 this year, Professor Stewart is designing CATH 330: Catholicism and the Arts. Her recent conversion to the Catholic Church, after many years as a devoted Protestant, has ignited a deep and fervent adherence to all aspects of Catholicism, a relationship that she is delighted to enrich through the Programme in Catholic Studies. She believes firmly, with T.S. Eliot, that literature is inherently “ethical and theological”—it “affects us wholly, as

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human beings”—and she aspires to share that timeless insight through writing and teaching. Dr William Sweet, Coordinator of the Program in Catholic Studies, specializes in the philosophy of religion, the philosophy of the French Catholic philosopher Jacques Maritain, and political and moral philosophy. He is the recent recipient of a SSHRC Grant for “Migrating Texts and Traditions.” In the past year, Dr. Sweet has participated in meetings in Rome, Manila, Taipei, Croatia, and Ottawa, speaking on J.H. Newman, cross-cultural ethics, Jacques Maritain, and religion and culture. The past year saw the publication of his Encyclopedia of British Idealism, Intercultural Dialogue and Human Rights (a collection of scholarly essays), and Responses to the Enlightenment: an Exchange on Faith Foundations and Community. Books forthcoming this year include Before and After Democracy: Philosophy, Religion, and Politics and Migrating Texts and Traditions. This year Dr. Sweet has also authored articles that have appeared in Science et esprit, Collingwood and British Idealism Studies, the South African Journal of Philosophy, and Philosophy, Culture, and Traditions. He has been invited next summer to give series of lectures at the John Paul II University of Lublin, Poland, and at Satya Nilayam, the Jesuit theological faculty in Chennai, India. Dr. Robert Kennedy, Chair of the Religious Studies Department, is a specialist in the thought of St. Augustine. In May 2010, he attended the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences in Montreal (Concordia University) and gave a paper on “Augustine and Anselm on the Cause of the Angelic Fall.” This is part of a larger project of reading Anselm back through Augustine and forward through contemporary debates in ethical theory. In October 2010, his article on Augustine’s theory of biblical interpretation, “A Text with Teeth,” appeared in Studies in Religion. Much of the past summer was spent developing a new course, Education in the Catholic Tradition, and preparing financial reports for the Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion, of which he is the treasurer. In May 2011 Dr. Kennedy gave a paper on social justice in Augustine's ascetical works, and he is currently doing research on the importance of these works for Augustine’s ethics. Dr. Joseph Khoury received his BA in Political Science, with a concentration in Political Philosophy, and his PhD in Comparative Literary Studies. He has varied literary and philosophical interests, and specializes in Machiavelli, Marlowe, Shakespeare, and

the contemporary Arabic novel. Professor Khoury continues his interests in political philosophy, and recently published an article on Machiavelli and terrorism. He regularly teaches English 100 (Introductory Survey of Literature in English), English 340 (Shakespeare), and English 240 (Literature of the Middle East). He is also actively involved in the Humanities Colloquium Program. Dr. Sharon Gregory obtained her PhD in Art History from the Courtauld Institute of Art, London, England, and holds the Erasmus Canada Research Chair in Renaissance Humanism. She teaches courses in the Department of Art on Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque Art History. Her primary research interest is Italian Renaissance Art. In the past year, she has presented conference papers and guest lectures at the University Art Association of Canada annual conference (Halifax), the University of Guelph, and the University of St Andrews, Scotland. Her recent research deals with the theme of imitation in Giorgio Vasari’s biography of Jacopo Pontormo, and on Caravaggio’s interest in Vasari’s Lives. During 2011-12, she is on sabbatical leave. Dr Angela (Angie) Thompson holds a PhD in Kinesiology from the University of Saskatchewan and is Associate Professor of Human Kinetics. She received the Outstanding Teacher Award from StFX in 2005, the Distiguished Teaching Award from the Association of Atlantic Universities in 2007, and a 3M Teaching Fellowship in 2010. The author of research on physical activity, physical fitness, and health in children and youth, she has been active on the StFX Service Learning Advisory Committee and Research Ethics Board, Nova Scotia Alliance for Healthy Eating and Physical Activity, and the Active Kids, Healthy Kids strategy. She is also the author of several textbooks on Health Education. Dr Guy Lalande is an Associate Professor of History. He received his Master of Arts from Laval University and his PhD from McGill University. His main areas of scholarly interest are Eastern European and Russian History, as well as the History of the First World War. Dr. Steven Baldner, Professor of Philosophy, was educated at the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies in Toronto where he specialized in mediaeval philosophy. His main academic interest is the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, especially Aquinas’ natural philosophy and the problem of creation. Dr Baldner likes to publish articles on various saints: Thomas Aquinas, Albert the Great (Thomas’

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teacher), Bonaventure, and Anselm. In 1996, he designed and proposed the Program in Catholic Studies; he currently coordinates the Humanities Colloquium, which he helped to inaugurate in 2008, and, as a temporal punishment for his sins, served as Dean of Arts, 2006-10. He has taught at StFX since 1992, having taught previously at St. Thomas More College in Saskatoon. He is personally shifting his interest from middle ages to old ages. Dr Louis Groarke has taught in the Philosophy Department at St. Francis Xavier for the past seven years. Although his research focuses on ethics and political philosophy, he has also written on aesthetics, philosophy of religion, argumentation theory, and philosophy of science. He has a particular interest in Aristotle and the ancient Greeks. Books include: The Good Rebel (2001), An Aristotelian Account of Induction: Creating Something from Nothing (2010), and Moral Reasoning (2011).

Professor Groarke believes in the value of a liberal arts education, and sees Catholic Studies as an integral component of a broader approach to education that respects and critically engages with the Western intellectual tradition and the history of ideas. The Judeo-Christian tradition generally formulates answers to philosophical, theological, moral, political and even artistic questions in a unique way that deserves close scrutiny. Focusing on Catholicism and on challenges to Catholicism provides for a useful and challenging course of study. Prof. Greg Melchin received an MA in Theological Studies from Concordia University following his BA in Religious Studies from St. Francis Xavier University. His main interests are the religious characteristics of contemporary politics, culture, and the arts, and the philosophy of Charles Taylor. This is his second year teaching at St. Francis Xavier.

Catholic Studies Annual Lecture on “Henri Nouwen – an icon of spiritual unity” by Dr Michael W. Higgins (Sacred Heart University, CT)

Dr. Michael Higgins in conversation, following his lecture on Henri Nouwen.

Dr William Sweet, Bishop Brian Dunn, Dr Michael Higgins, and Dr Robert Kennedy, following Dr Higgins’ lecture on Henri Nouwen.

Prof. Sean Freyne, Professor of Theology (Emeritus), in the School of Religions and Theology, Trinity College, Dublin, gave a public lecture at StFX on October 18, entitled “Jesus, Prayer and Politics: Contemplative Action for Justice.” This lecture was co-sponsored by Catholic Studies and the Department of Religious Studies.

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People just love to talk about the Catholic Church...

The problem is, sometimes they don't know enough about it.

You don't have to be like that.

Catholic Studies courses are for anybody who wants to have an informed, adult-level understanding of the Catholic Church's beliefs, traditions, and contributions to

contemporary culture.

They aren't just for Catholics.

Degree Programs and Career Options

1. Catholic studies courses are of interest to anyone who wants to learn more about Catholicism. Try them as electives.

2. Some students find Catholic Studies courses a good subject for a course pair (see the Calendar for more information).

3. If you're a little more interested than that, try a Catholic Studies minor.

4. Some reasons for going all the way and doing a Catholic Studies major:

• you'd like a well-rounded, liberal arts education • you want to teach in a Catholic school system • you want to pursue a career in pastoral work or religious social work • you want to do graduate work in theology • you want to enter a religious community or seminary

5. From time to time we also offer some of our core Catholic courses in distance education format (or part-time study at home). Send us an e-mail to find out what offerings we will have in the future.

Studia Catholica is the newsletter of the Catholic Studies Program.

Contributions, new information on research and other scholarly activities in Catholic Studies, etc., are always

welcome. Please address all correspondence to the Coordinator:

Dr. William Sweet, Coordinator

Catholic Studies

Office: Nicholson Tower 707

Phone: 867-2341

Fax: 902-867-3243

E-mail: wsweet@stfx.ca