Byzantine Catholic Seminary of Saints Cyril and Methodius · Courses
DT
16 courses with the subject DT, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
DT 100INTRODUCTION TO DOGMATICS
This introductory course will examine the foundations of Christian dogma. The course will explore divine revelation, the mystery of the Triune God, creation and anthropology, the person of Christ, the Holy Spirit, the nature and mission of the Church, the Church’s eschatological dimension, and the Church’s ethos as it encounters our civilization and relates its doctrinal beliefs to the world. Students will engage in the following: • The basic themes of dogmatic theology from Trinity, creation, and the incarnation, to grace, sacraments, and the last things. • The ranking and interrelationship among the various magisterial teachings of the Catholic Church, as well as the levels of solemnity among the dogmas and the doctrines within Eastern Orthodoxy. • The nature of the papacy and its function within the Catholic communion and according to Eastern Orthodox theories. • Infallibility and inerrancy as applied to Scripture, Church, and Fathers. • The manner or methods available for solving theological puzzles. • The nature of loci theologici or authoritative texts and teachers in relation to human reason and secular sciences. 3 hours; 1 semester
This course will concentrate on the texts and doctrines of the pre-Nicene Fathers, from the death of the apostles to Nicaea I and its aftermath. This course will provide an overview of both the theological thought of the Fathers of the Church (patristics in the strict sense) and their life and writings (patrology). The rich ethnic and cultural diversity of early Christian thought will be highlighted through study of primary sources. Students will learn the following: • Exegesis of primary texts from patristic authors representing a variety of themes, not to coincide with patristic readings in DT 100, 103, & 104. • Modes of interpreting patristic authors for contemporary purposes and within their own historical context. • A range of patristic concerns, from Biblical exegesis, hymnody, and liturgical compositions to dogmatic and moral treatises. • Familiarity with representative Fathers of the Greek Church, or Latin authors who exercised an influence on the Eastern Church. 2 hours, 1 semester 47 B.C.S. Academic Catalog – FINAL February 12, 2025
DT/LT/SS Focus Elective 3 DT/LT/SS Focus Elective 3 MT 104 Marriage, Sexuality, &Bioethical Problems 2 WR 201 Capstone Research and Writing 1 *C.P.E. can be at an approved hospital in the student’s geographical area or in Pittsburgh with seminarians. The Academic Advisor would assist with lodging for those M.A.T. students coming to Pittsburgh. There is no test-out option for the C.P.E. requirement. **no test-out option for these courses 17 B.C.S. Academic Catalog – FINAL February 12, 2025
This course will encompass the development of Triadology, Christology, and Pneumatology from the Council of Chalcedon to the modern era. Students will develop an understanding of doctrinal development with an eye to practical application that may be used, applied, and relied upon as a guide in the contemporary Christian experience. Students of this course will engage the following: • The ecclesiastical history in the aftermath of Chalcedon, especially the relevant works of Leontius of Byzantium and Leontius of Jerusalem. • The relevant works of Severus of Antioch and formation of the miaphysite doctrine of Christ. • The relevant works of Emperor Justinian I on Christology and the ecumenical councils from Constantinople II until Nicaea II. • The relevant works of Sophronius of Jerusalem and of Maximus the Confessor. • The principal works of the monothelites and dyothelites. • The history of the iconoclast conflict and readings in the iconodule works of Damascene, along with the Christology and Pneumatology of Damascene as received in the late Byzantine period. The history of reception of Damascene into Latin Scholasticism and Greek Palamism. • Modern problems in Triadology, Christology, and Pneumatology, including the essence & energies of God, knowledge of Christ and his beatific vision, and role of Holy Spirit in divinization. • The joint declarations of Orthodox and Catholic churches on Christology. 3 hours; 1 semester
This online course offers perspectives on Catholic-Orthodox/East-West relations in hopes, “that they all may be one” (John 17:21). Students enrolled in this class for credit will virtually prepare a paper in conjunction with faculty-led readings, including primary ecumenical statements as well as current publications highlighted in the lectures and discussions which focus on ecumenism. Students will learn the following: • Engagement with current state of Catholic-Orthodox dialogue. • Familiarity with primary ecumenical readings. • Critical thinking concerning modern ecumenical topics. • Modes of dialogue with significant theological issues from Catholic and Orthodox perspectives. 1 hour; 1 semester 49 B.C.S. Academic Catalog – FINAL February 12, 2025
DT 201DOCUMENTS OF VATICAN II, PART ONE: ECCLESIOLOGY
This course focuses on the ecclesiological implications of the Second Vatican Council, with special attention given to the implications for the Eastern Churches in union with Rome. The central ecclesiological notions expressed in Lumen gentium (Church as sacrament, communion, Mystical Body, and People of God) will be discussed in relation to their historical context of mid-Century Catholic theological discussions and in connection with Orthodox articulations of ecclesiology, emphasizing the connection between the theme of Church as sacrament and Church as communion. Sacrosanctum concilium will be considered primarily from the perspective of its ecclesiological importance, as evidenced in themes of the Liturgical Movement, especially those connected with efforts at Orthodox-Catholic dialogue encouraged by Pius XI’s Equidem verba. • Primary documents of Vatican II: Lumen Gentium, Orientalium Ecclesiarum, Sacrosanctum Concilium, Perfectae Caritatis, Christus Dominus, Presbyterorum Ordinis • Primary Pre-Conciliar Documents: Pastor aeternus, Mystici Corporis Christi, Mediator Dei,
This course focuses on the ecclesiological implications of the Second Vatican Council, with special attention given to its impact (both ecclesial and theological) on the Eastern Churches in union with Rome. The central ecclesiological notions expressed in Lumen Gentium (Church as sacrament, communion, Mystical Body, and People of God) will be discussed in relation to their historical context in mid-century Catholic theological discussions and in connection with Orthodox articulations of ecclesiology. Sacrosanctum Concilium, Dei Verbum, and Gaudium et Spes will be considered primarily in relation to the primary ecclesiological focus of this course. The question of theological pluralism will also be examined in relation to Eastern Catholic identity. By the end of this course, students shall be able to: • Outline the main themes of the following Vatican II documents: Lumen Gentium, Orientalium Ecclesiarum, Unitatis Redintegratio, Nostra Aetate, Sacrosanctum Concilium, Dei Verbum, and the first part of Gaudium et Spes. • Summarize and explain the pre-conciliar theological and magisterial context of the major themes discussed in the conciliar documents • Distinguish and examine pertinent Catholic and Orthodox theological sources related to various understandings of the Church (as society, sacrament, communion, Mystical Body, and People of God), with attention to themes of particular interest to the Christian East (Patriarchates, “Sister Churches,” etc.) and to the question concerning the dictum “No salvation outside the Church.” • Articulate and defend a thoughtful position regarding the nature of orthodox theological pluralism 3 hours; 1 semester
DT 204CHRISTIAN DOGMATICS IN THE BYZANTINE TRADITION
“Dogma is the doctrine that…the Church confesses as the truth that brings salvation to every human being.” (Metropolitan John Zizoulas). Dogmatic theology is therefore the disciplined study of the revealed and defined doctrines of the worshipping Christian Church which lead to salvation. Eastern Christians whose spiritual patrimony originates in Constantinople have historically drawn on the rich streams of biblical, patristic, liturgical, iconographical, catechetical and magisterial sources to create a lived doctrinal and doxological synthesis with local culture which we commonly refer to as “Byzantine.” This course will systematically explore the great unity in diversity that is known as the Byzantine Tradition in relationship to the dogmas expressed in the Faith, Worship, and Life of the Church both historically and today. 3 hours; 1 semester
This course presents students with a study of the thought of Gregory Palamas concerning grace and theosis. Topics covered include created vs. uncreated grace, the issue of God’s simplicity (in terms of Palamas’s distinction between God’s essence and energies), the role of philosophy in Byzantine theology, and contemporary comparisons of Palamism with Western thought. Students will engage with primary source material from Palamas as well as texts drawn from various forms of 51 B.C.S. Academic Catalog – FINAL February 12, 2025
Studies of particular themes, periods or texts in dogmatic theology may be offered as an elective of 1-3 credits depending on enrollment, students’ needs and interests, faculty availability and approval of the Dean.
This elective course intends to look at the Christian doctrines on the Theotokos from a broad ecumenical perspective. Catholic and Orthodox approaches will be explored. Students will investigate Scriptures and Tradition concerning Mary, especially as expressed by Byzantine Fathers and theologians. 2 hours; 1 semester
This elective course is to serve both as an introduction to the writers of the ancient Church and as a stimulus to the students to continue on their own to become more familiar with these Fathers. Major theological themes will be researched in the context of the perennially valid patristic contribution. 2 hours; 1 semester
Pioneers, adventurers of the Spirit, eccentric and radically orthodox, the Desert Monastics continue to hold popular and scholarly imagination because of their lives, wise sayings, and living legacy. In the sayings and stories collected, copied, and preserved, we find passionate devotion to God and a revolutionary answer to the call of the Gospel to leave all and follow Christ. These monastics lived in a time of great transition for the Roman Empire and the Christian Church. This course relies heavily upon both primary and secondary reading with lecture and discussion to allow students to enter a world that is stark, foreign and unforgiving and yet rich and relevant even today. 3 hours; 1 semester 52 B.C.S. Academic Catalog – FINAL February 12, 2025
