Theology

Students in 9th and 10th grades take the following required year-long courses.

Open to: 9th Grade

Course Length: Two Semesters

Teacher approval?  N/A 

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This course will orient the freshmen student to one of the most vital parts of the Profile of the Jesuit High School Graduate at Graduation: “Religious” (SH 1.2). The course will invite students to experience a wide range of religious expression while developing knowledge through study and spiritual practice. This course is grounded in encountering Christ through our community and learning. Specifically, this year long course will introduce the student to the study of Theology, the Catholic Mass, Stages of Faith, World Religions, Hebrew Scripture, Christian Scripture, the person of Jesus, Ethics, Sacraments and Ignatian Spirituality. This course fulfills the 9th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 10th Grade

Course Length: Two Semesters

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This full-year course will introduce the student to a survey of the Bible, focusing on major themes and people of the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures, with special emphasis given to Jesus’ birth, ministry, passion, death, and resurrection. This course in Hebrew and Christian Scriptures will direct students to encounter the Bible from various perspectives: historical, cultural, theological, and personal. In doing so, the course will provide a basic understanding of practical, foundational uses of the Bible. It will encourage in students a reverent appreciation of Scripture as the source of the great heroic stories, wisdom, and revelation of the Judeo-Christian tradition. This course will also seek to develop an awareness of the integral connection and common messages of the two testaments. Finally, it will help students apply Scripture to their daily lives. This course fulfills the 10th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Length: Special 65-hour Project

Teacher approval?  Yes

Course and Grade Prerequisites:  Completion of two-week orientation (during English and Health classes in Semester II of Sophomore year); taken in conjunction with Peace and Justice

*Service Learning is part of the Christian Service program at Jesuit, and does not fulfill the Theology graduation requirements. It will be officially taken in the semester closest to the completion of the service project. The Christian Service program is designed to teach students about social justice through relationships with people who are marginalized by wider society. Each student will volunteer a minimum of 65 hours working directly with people who have disabilities, are elderly, homeless, immigrants, youth at risk, or others. Work must be done outside of school hours. The service work is graded, along with a written journal reflection and a final paper. These components, together with individual guidance and a classroom orientation completed in the spring of Sophomore year, help students synthesize what they learned and apply these lessons to their lives. Students must complete Christian Service site hours, journal, and paper by the agreed-upon deadline in order to receive academic credit. This course fulfills the requirement for Christian Service.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: Taken in conjunction with Service Learning

*Unlike other Junior/Senior theology options, Peace and Justice is required for graduation. This course is designed to help students consider the unjust as well as the life-giving aspects of modern culture and social structures in light of the student’s service experience and Catholic social teachings. After an overview of scriptural and theological justice principles, students will be guided through an educational process of context, social analysis, theological reflection, and pastoral action. These tools will then be applied to such issues as poverty, discrimination, homelessness, just-war theory, pacifism, and other issues of human rights. Jesus Christ’s call to reform the injustices of society in fulfillment of the Reign of God as expressed in scriptures and the social teachings of the Catholic Church will be the focus. This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th Grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Description 

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

World Religions involves the study of major world religions, examining key beliefs, practices, festivals/rituals, and historical developments of Primal Religions, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This course is offered every other academic year. The next offering is in 2024-25.

This course examines the philosophical and theological ideas behind ethical behaviors in our world today. Taught from a Catholic perspective, this course will introduce students to the reasoning behind ethical action. Students will cover modern ethical issues in the areas of integrity, sexuality, the biomedical fields, business, and the global political arena. Students will be challenged to explore modern ethical issues in light of Christ’s call as found in the Gospels. This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This course is offered every other academic year. The next offering is in 2024-25.

Sacraments and Prayer is designed for students who wish to explore their lives as Christians and to explore the value of prayer. Students will participate in concrete methods and exercises of prayer and examine how Christians (especially Catholics) engage the sacraments to ritualize their experience of God. The focus of the course is to develop a relationship with God through prayer and reflection in the Ignatian tradition. This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This course is offered every other academic year. The next offering is in 2024-25.

Christian Relationships examines the many vocational opportunities and lifestyles open to students. A theological and personal examination of marriage, single life, and communal religious life will be presented. An examination of sexuality, dating, and interpersonal skills, such as effective communication and conflict resolution, will also be covered. This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Description

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This course is offered every other academic year. The next offering is in 2025-26.

This course tackles many of the basic existential problems adults struggle within their faith lives, especially regarding religious or spiritual faith: What is reality? Can I be sure about anything: What is faith and how do I know if I have it? Do I have faith experiences that are not religious or spiritual? Can I know if God exists? Does God communicate with the world and with me individually? Why is there evil and suffering in the world? What happens to me after I die? What are the essential beliefs of Catholic Christianity? Why do we find politics, rules, and even hypocrisy in organized religion? Do I have to belong to a religion to have religious faith? This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Description

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This course is offered every other academic year. The next offering is in 2025-26.

This course seeks to understand the distinctiveness and importance of Catholicism amidst contemporary cultural tensions. Students will study and consider intelligent, reasoned theological principles as tools to address the realities of our contemporary culture, as they are portrayed in movies, music, and literature, and especially current events. Ultimately, the course seeks to define a Catholic identity within our contemporary culture, and articulate why that identity is an option people see as a choice worth living today. This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th grade requirement for Theology.

Open to: 11th and 12th Grade

Course Length: One semester

Teacher approval?  None

Course and Grade Prerequisites: None

This course is offered every other academic year. The next offering is in 2025-26.

Prophetic voices challenge people to transform the world by courageously embracing the Kingdom of God.  This Junior/Senior semester elective deepens students’ understanding of biblical, historical and current prophets as messengers of God. Prophetic voices called and continue to call people into God’s Kingdom of justice on behalf of those who are marginalized in society. The prophets were and are deeply rooted in their faith and personal integrity, standing firm in the face of opposition on behalf of the status quo. This course also examines where in our modern world the prophetic voice is needed. This course fulfills one of the four-semester 11th/12th grade requirement for Theology.