(1/2 credit)

Students in this class will advance in religious literacy by studying the ways in which religious adherents have understood and experienced their traditions, focusing particularly on the monotheistic traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Students survey religious teachings, texts, and practices through the different historical contexts in which the religions emerged and diversified. The dominant themes and emphases of each religion are traced from their inception up through contemporary times, paying attention to the variety of interpretations that scholars have offered. Students focus on developing the skills of careful reading, critical thinking, cross-cultural analysis, and expository writing.

(1/2 credit)

Students in this class will advance in religious literacy by studying the ways in which religious adherents have understood and experienced Asian traditions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Daoism. Students survey religious teachings, texts, and practices through the different historical contexts in which the religions emerged and diversified through contemporary times, paying attention to various interpretations. Students focus on developing skills of careful reading, critical thinking, and analytical writing.
Open to students in grades 10-12 who have completed the Foundations in World Religions course.

(1/2 credit)

Offered in alternating years.
The aim of all philosophy is to “think about thinking.” For upper school students it is a chance to step back and question the assumptions and underpinnings of all the knowledge received in other courses to date. This survey course is an introduction to some important thinkers in the history of western philosophy, beginning with those of Ancient Greece and proceeding through time to the philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment. Students will study philosophical topics pertaining to what fundamentally exists (metaphysics), what we can know (epistemology), as well as what we value (axiology). From this foundation in western philosophy, students will be exposed to historical philosophical thought in order to gain their own understanding of some of the perennial questions and some of the notable answers that have animated the human condition. Students focus on developing skills of careful reading, critical thinking, oral argument, and analytical writing.
Open only to students in grades 11-12.

(1/2 credit)

This course on Christianity utilizes an interdisciplinary approach, which means that students learn about the complex relationships between Christianity, area studies, textual studies and contemporary culture. This approach enables students to explore the internal diversity within Christianity as well as the ways in which Christianity influences and is influenced by culture and society. Students focus on developing the skills of careful reading, critical thinking, and analytic writing.
Open to students in grades 10-12 who have completed the Foundations in World Religions course.

(1/2 credit)

What is the basis for distinguishing right actions from wrong actions? How should a person in the 21st Century live? Students explore these questions through a combination of the academic study of moral philosophy and personal reflection. Students focus on developing the skills of careful reading, critical thinking, oral argument, and analytical writing.
Open to students in grades 11-12.

(1/2 credit)

This course will cover the concept of the Spiritual/Religious Journey and the idea of Pilgrimage through the centuries and today. Exploration will be made of how each person’s physical development is connected to one’s spiritual and emotional growth. The bulk of the course involves following the geographical travels of fictional and historical people such as Egeria who pilgrimaged to the Holy Land in the 4th century and characters “on the Canterbury Trail” in Western literature.
Open to students in grades 9-12 who have completed the Foundations in World Religions course.