This course will include definitions of spirituality and a discussion of the relationship between spirituality and how we conduct ourselves through a myriad of life issues. The class will explore secular spirituality along with religious and personal issues. Through thoughtful discussions we will develop a better understanding about the importance of spirituality. The course will be broken down to give us a personal yet more profound understanding of spirituality by taking a salient look into some social issues that will include mental health and addiction issues. Finally, the class will help us understand why it is vital to integrate spirituality into our lives.

A parable from Frederick Nietzsche: A madman careens into a village marketplace shouting, God is dead, God is dead. The villagers, bemused and astonished, jeer and point to this bizarre figure. To them, the madman adds, and it is you who have killed our deity. It is clear: the madman is Nietzsche and we are the villagers. Today, we would be well advised to reflect on this. To Nietzsche’s charge, the great thinker Martin Heidegger responds, devoting a lifetime’s thought to “reconfigure” the divine to a godless Europe. How this came to be is the subject of this course. Come, then, and enter the thought of Heidegger and follow him as he works his way to the divine. Reading text: TBA and handouts. $5 copy fee.

This class will help you understand the timeline of the Old Testament characters, events, enemies and provide a historical perspective as too who may have written the Old Testament books, when written, and who may have made changes. You will also gain an understanding of all the other kingdoms surrounding ancient Israel via maps and archeological findings. "How could this be true" questions will be presented but not necessarily answered.

This class will help you understand the timeline of the New Testament and early Christian characters, events, various early Christian beliefs, and provide a historical perspective as to when the books may have written, and how the original copies may have been modified. Gospels will be compared, Paul's writings discussed, gospels not accepted in New Testament, and discussion of the major early Christian leaders and which ideas were accepted and which rejected leading up to the Council of Nicaea. Questions will be presented but not necessarily answered.

Ours is a technological age. It increasingly possesses us. A.I. looms, hinting at ominous future scenarios. Industry and agriculture pollute our air, soil, and water. The military/industrial complex peoples our world with lethal tools of destruction. The world warms and we argue about the cause. Why did no one warn us about this danger? Perhaps there were warnings that we ignored. Indeed, nearly a 100 years ago, Martin Heidegger, thinker and philosopher and theologian, did just that. He warned about unbridled voracious technology that even then was devouring the Western world. Let us, then, listen to this prophet, a Jeremiah for our time. Why? To see how we got here. To see if he proposes an exit strategy. To see if we can coexist with technology. Reading: Heidegger’s ‘The question concerning technology’ and additional handouts.

Meet the first Black Catholic slave of record to arrive on Texas soil in 1528, the enslaved layman who became New York's most beloved philanthropist. Discover the mixed-race brothers who became bishops while passing for white. Learn about the nuns who defied segregation and the activists who demanded the Church live up to its gospel. This course uncovers the remarkable—and largely forgotten—history of Black Catholics who challenged racism inside and outside the Church while creating vibrant spiritual communities. Powerful stories that will change how you see American history. Join us for eye-opening history that speaks directly to today's conversations about race, religion, and belonging.