NOTRE DAME SEMINARY GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY

Course Syllabus for MT 602 The Holy Praxis of and Family

Instructor: Dr. Jennifer E. Miller Semester: Spring 2015 Email: [email protected] Time: Wed. 6:30-8:20 Office Hours: SJ 109/Wed. 1:30-3:30 Place: Classroom 1 Phone: 866-7426, ext. 114

I. Course Description

This elective focuses on cultivating pastoral attentiveness to the practical living out of holiness in marriage and family. To this end, it will explore a rich variety of theological, hagiographical and pastoral sources in the Catholic Tradition, sitting at the feet of married saints and theological giants like St. Augustine and St. John Paul II. Special attention will be given to the developments emerging from the recent Synod on the Family.

II. Course Rationale

“In God's plan, all husbands and wives are called in marriage to holiness”. (Familaris Consortio, 34.) However, as married saints are few and far between, priests and families themselves often seem to be at loss in understanding what this means practically. What does a holy marriage look like? How is the holiness of a family different from priestly or religious holiness and specific to husbands, wives, and children? How can priests and those in pastoral ministry help to form and encourage holy families? By establishing the theological principles and then engaging both seminarians and the laity in discussion on the praxis, this course seeks to answer these questions as well as to penetrate more fully into the mystery of holiness as lived by families.

III. Course Goals/Intended Outcomes

 Seminarians will have the possibility to discuss what they have learned theoretically about the Sacrament of Marriage with married couples who are putting this teaching into practice.  Seminarians will acquire a knowledge and appreciation of the difference and complementarity of the call to holiness as lived in families.  Seminarians and laity working within pastoral ministry to families will begin to practice the priest-laity cooperation that is necessary in this ministry in the parish.  Laity in the community, by engaging in dialogue with married saints and blessed, will better understand how they can live to the call to holiness in the Sacrament that is specific to them and part of their essential the life of the Church and the world.

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IV. Instructional Methods

1) Lecture 2) Discussion 3) Socratic Question and Answer

V. Texts (Required)

To Buy:

1. Gottman, John M., and Nan Silver, The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work: A Practical Guide from the Country’s Foremost Relationship Expert, Harmony 2000 (abbreviated Principles). 2. Guerriero, Elio (ed.), The Journey of Our Love: The Letters of Saint Gianna Beretta and Pietro Molla, Pauline Books and Media, Boston 2014. 3. Martin, Blessed Zélie, and Blessed Louis Martin, A Call to a Deeper Love: The Family Correspondence of the Parents of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, 1864-1885, trans. by Ann Connors Hess, edited by Fr. Frances Renda, Society of St. Paul/Alba House 2011. 4. Wojtyla, St. Karol, The Jeweler’s Shop. A Meditation on the Sacrament of Matrimony, Passing on Occasion into Drama, trans. from the Polish, Boleslaw Taborski, Ignatius Press, San Francisco 1980.

Available online:

1. Canon Law Society of America, The Code of Canon Law, 1983 (abbreviated CIC). 2. St. John Paul II, Familaris Consortio, 1981. 3. St. John Paul II, Gratissmam Sane, Letter to Families, 1994. 4. Paul VI, , 1968. 5. Pius XI, Casti Connubii, 1930. 6. Pontifical Council for the Family, Preparation for the Sacrament of Marriage, 1996. 7. Pontifical Council for the Family, The Truth and Meaning of Human Sexuality, Guidelines for Education Within the Family, 1995. 8. Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, 2004. 9. USCCB, Marriage: Love and Life in the Divine Plan, 2009.

VI. Bibliography

St. Augustine, De Bono Coniugali (On the Good of Marriage).

Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est, 2005.

Dodaro, Robert (ed.), Remaining in the Truth of Christ: Marriage and Communion in the Catholic Church, Ignatius Press 2014.

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Fischer, Simcha, The Sinner’s Guide to Natural Family Planning, Our Sunday Visitor 2014.

St. John Paul II, Man and Woman He Created Them: A , trans. Michael Waldstein, Pauline Books & Media 2006.

St. John Paul II, , 1988.

Holbock, Ferdinand, Married Saints and Blesseds Through the Centuries, Ignatius Press 2002.

Leseur, Elisabeth, The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur: The Woman Whose Goodness Changed Her Husband From Atheist to Priest, Sophia Institute Press 2002.

"Relatio Synodi" of the III Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops: “Pastoral Challenges to the Family in the Context of Evangelization” (October 5-19, 2014) October 18, 2014.

Wojtyla, Karol, Love and Responsibility, trans. Grzegorz Ignatik, Pauline Books and Media, 2013.

Other relevant sources will be indicated in class.

VII. Professional Vocabulary

Casti Connubii: an written by Pius XI in 1930, presenting St. Augustine’s three goods of marriage and how to live these three goods in light of contemporary difficulties.

Goods of marriage: the good of the offspring (bonum prolis), the good of the faith (bonum fidei), the good of the sacrament (bonum sacramenti) (cfr. De bono coniugali; Casti connubii).

Familaris Consortio: an written by St. John Paul II after the 1980 Synod of Bishops on the theme, “Mission of the Christian Family in the Modern World”, which presents four general tasks of the family.

St. Gianna Beretta and Pietro Molla: an Italian couple married in 1955, which continually sought holiness in their marriage, their family, and their work. St. Gianna Beretta died shortly after childbirth in 1962, giving up her life for that of her daughter, Gianna Emanuela.

Gratissmam Sane: a letter to families written by St. John Paul II in 1994, the Year of the Family, which helps the family to understand itself as essential in the construction of, and dependent upon, the “civilization of love”.

Humanae Vitae: an encyclical written by Pope Paul VI in 1968, affirming the inseparability of the procreative and unitive meanings of the marital act.

3 Blessed Zélie and Louis Martin: a French couple married in 1858, better known as the parents of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus. They sought holiness in their relationship, their work, and their family, raising their daughters with the goal of sanctity constantly before them. They are one of the few married couples who are beatified due to their mutual sanctification in marriage.

VIII. Lecture, Presentation, and Reading Schedule

CLASS THEME READINGS Jan. 14 Introduction: Call to Sanctity Jan. 21 Principles: Defining the family/ USCCB, Marriage: Love and Life in the Goods of the family Divine Plan. [CIC §1055-1063.]1 Jan. 28 Principles: Tasks of the family Compendium on the Family, §209-254; Familaris Consortio on Spirituality.2 [Casti Connubii.] Feb. 4 Praxis: Spirituality of the family Gratissimam Sane. Feb. 11 The Jeweler’s Shop, 11-43; The Joy of Yes Forever.3 Feb. 25 St. Augustine’s Letter 262 to Ecdicia;4 Family Letters.5 March 4 Principles, 47-52; 61-68; 79-83; 99-117. March 11 Praxis: The Marital Act Synod witnesses.6 [Humanae Vitae] March 18 Family Letters March 25 Blog articles by Simcha Fisher7 April 8 Praxis: Educating children PCF, The Truth and Meaning of Human Sexuality. April 15 Family Letters April 22 Praxis: Family challenges and The Jeweler’s Shop, 47-91. conversions April 29 Principles, 129-140; 157-167; 187-193; 217-224; 243-251.

1 Readings found in brackets are obligatory only for MA students. 2 This reading will be provided in class. 3 This reading will be provided in class. 4 This reading will be provided in class. 5 Selected family letters will be indicated from Blessed Zélie Martin and Blessed Louis Martin, A Call to a Deeper Love: The Family Correspondence of the Parents of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, 1864-1885, Alba House 2011 and Elio Guerriero (ed.), The Journey of Our Love: The Letters of Saint Gianna Beretta and Pietro Molla, Pauline Books and Media 2014. 6 This reading will be provided in class. 7 This reading will be provided in class.

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IX. Course Requirements

 Read all assigned readings.  As a group, prepare a summary of an ecclesial document to be assigned on the theme of marriage and family.  Participate in class and maintain a good attendance record.  For MDiv students only: Moderate and present during one of the seminar discussions.  For MA students only: Elaborate a 6-page paper putting the readings and the class discussions into relationship with the Pontifical Council for the Family’s 1996 document, Preparation for the Sacrament of Marriage.

X. Important Dates

Quiz – February 11 Ecclesial Summary – April 26 Paper – June 1

All dates are subject to change if circumstances warrant them.

XI. Evaluation Criteria

Quiz: 30% Presentation & Moderation/Paper: 20% Ecclesial summary: 30% Participation: 20%

XII. Attendance Policy

Notre Dame Seminary observes the following policy regarding class attendance: Regular class attendance is expected and required of all students who intend to receive credit for course work in the graduate school. Inevitably, extraordinary circumstances will arise that make class attendance impossible on occasion; therefore, a formula for determining regular attendance has been established as policy for the convenience of both seminarians and instructors. A student is permitted to be absent from class no more than twice the number of times the class meets per week. (You are considered absent if you are not present when attendance is taken). Thus, if a student is absent for seven classes from a course that meets three times a week, the student is in violation of school policy in this regard. The normal penalty for such a violation is the grade FA (failure due to absence).

The number of absences includes those due to illness, late registration, or any other cause. Absence from class immediately before or after holidays and free weekends is considered a double cut. Only the Academic Dean may waive penalties for absence. In absences due to illness, you must inform the instructor and your formation advisor prior to the class.

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XIII. Academic Integrity

Seminarians of Notre Dame Seminary are required to commit themselves to responsible scholarship in every aspect of priestly formation, including academics. It is expected that every seminarian works and studies to the best of his ability for every course.

Seminarians also accept responsibilities and obligations as students, which include commitments to honesty, disciplined study, and integrity in their academic work. They will be expected to respect academic scholarship by giving proper credit to other people’s work, while at the same time preparing well for assigned materials and examinations in such a way that their academic integrity will never be questioned.

Those needing assistance with writing papers, or who would like tutoring, should contact the Academic Resource Center (ARC) for assistance. All students are encouraged to seek the direct assistance of their instructor whenever any questions arise regarding assignments, grading, course expectations, etc.

XIV. Disability Accommodation Policy

In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Notre Dame Seminary provides disability accommodations for students with identified and/or diagnosed disabilities. Students with disabilities need not inform their instructors about the nature of their disabilities, but they are responsible for contacting and providing appropriate documentation to the Academic Resources Center. Requests for accommodations must be made each semester for which the student wishes to receive service; the Academic Resources Center will then distribute a letter of accommodation to the faculty. It is the student’s responsibility to meet with each faculty member to discuss how his/her accommodation(s) may be met within each course. Notre Dame Seminary will attempt to meet reasonable accommodations requested. A reasonable accommodation is a modification to a non-essential aspect of a course, program, or facility which does not pose an undue burden and which enables a qualified student with a disability to have adequate opportunity to participate and to demonstrate his or her ability. Such accommodations are determined on an individual basis depending upon the nature and extent of the disability. For more information, contact the Academic Dean’s Office.

XV. Extension Policy

Instructors are never obligated to grant a student’s request for a due-date extension on a paper/project if they judge the request to be without sufficient merit or not in keeping with the fair requirements articulated in the course syllabus.

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For academic course audits at Notre Dame Seminary, the amount of work required of seminarians will be decided on a case by case basis by the instructor, the Academic Dean and the seminarian’s Formation Advisor.

XVII. Probation and Grading Policy

Passing grades for seminarians are A, B and C. A seminarian is put on academic probation for the following:

A seminarian who obtains a D+ or lower in any course is automatically placed on probationary status and must repeat the course in order to get credit for the course. Seminarians will be allowed to repeat a course only once and the course must be repeated at NDS. Seminarian status is then subject to review by the Dean.

A seminarian whose semester grade point average (GPA) in coursework is below a 2.30 at any time is placed on academic probation. Two or more consecutive semesters may subject the seminarian to be dismissed from academic formation at Notre Dame Seminary. To be removed from probationary status, the seminarian must complete a semester with a GPA of 2.30 or higher.

After each semester, the seminarian’s Bishop will receive a copy of his transcript and a review of the seminarians’ status.

If a seminarian fails to meet the passing grade point average requirement then he forfeits his eligibility for financial aid under Title IV Federal Regulations.

Letter Grade Quality Points Grade Scale Number

A 4.00 100 – 94 A- 3.70 93 – 90 B+ 3.30 89 – 88 B 3.00 87 – 84 B- 2.70 83 – 80 C+ 2.30 79 – 78 C 2.00 77 – 74 C- 1.70 73 – 70 D+ 1.30 69 – 68 D 1.00 67 – 64 D- .70 63 – 60 F 0.00 59 – 0

7 See Academic Catalog for Grading Guidelines Policy Narrative.

XVIII. Syllabus Contract

This syllabus obliges the student to adhere to all policy requirements and to fulfill all academic expectations herein stated; it also entitles the student to a reasonable opportunity to learn the material specified in the course description in order to accomplish for himself the educational goals of the course. In order to optimize the learning process the course instructor reserves the right to make reasonable adjustments to the syllabus requirements during the semester, in response to unforeseen developments or circumstances. All adjustments made must be communicated clearly to students.

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