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Saint Xavier University Chicago Campus Residence Halls

Religious Studies Courses


Prerequisite/Corequisite Key

P = Course must be taken previously C = Course must be taken concurrently E = Course can be taken previously or concurrently
(RQ) = Required (RM) = Recommended  

RELST 220

Old Testament Religion

3 credit hours

This course is a study of the religion, history, and culture of ancient Israel based upon a critical examination of the Hebrew scriptures within the context of ancient Near Eastern civilizations. Attention is given to the contemporary relevance of Israel's faith to the Christian church.

RELST 221

New Testament Christianity

3 credit hours

This course is a study of the basic religious and cultural characteristics of early Christianity based upon a critical analysis of the New Testament as understood within the context of Jewish and Greco-Roman religious and literary traditions.

RELST 242

The Buddhist Tradition

3 credit hours

This course is an introduction to the Buddhist religious tradition. Attention will be given to its mythology, ritual practice, sacred texts and society. The course will begin with the origins of the Buddhist tradition in India and examine its development in various regions and periods up to the present day.

RELST 247

The Jewish Tradition

3 credit hours

This course is a survey of the ethnic and religious traditions and practices of Judaism from biblical to modern times. Students will examine major themes such as God, Torah, Chosen People, Messianism and the Diaspora.

RELST 249

The Islamic Tradition

3 credit hours

This course is an introduction to the religion of Islam. Attention will be given to its mythology, ritual practice, sacred texts and society. The course will focus on the origins of the Islamic tradition in Arabia, examine its spread through various regions, and culminate in an examination of more recent developments.

RELST 254

Catholic Social Teaching

3 credit hours

This course is an examination and evaluation of 20th-century Roman Catholic moral teaching on the social order. Includes a close reading of major documents issued by the hierarchy and the theological commentary on these documents. Focus on the themes of the freedom and dignity of human life, war and peace, and economic and political justice.

RELST 258

The Problem of Evil

3 credit hours

P: ENGL-120

An introduction to the history, functions and contemporary applications of theodicy, the effort to seek meaning and justice in the experience of human evil, natural disaster and the radical insufficiency of human existence.

RELST 261

Theology Informing Health-Care

3 credit hours

"Theology Informing Health-Care" will explore what the Christian/Catholic Tradition has to contribute to the understanding and practice of health-care. Although precise topics will vary depending on where the flashpoints are when it comes to the "proper" role of faith and theology, the course will explore birth control, abortion, end of life care, and assisted reproduction.

RELST 262

Christian Theology: God

3 credit hours

P: ENGL-120

This course will survey the development of the Christian doctrine of God, beginning with the scriptures and concluding with the present. Special attention will be given to post-Vatican II developments.

RELST 265

Christian Ethics

3 credit hours

This course is an introduction to ethics in the context of the Christian tradition. This course devotes attention to ethical theory and its application to contemporary issues.

RELST 266

Suffering and Death

3 credit hours

This course is a study of central themes, resources and methods employed in Christian theological reflection upon human suffering and death.

RELST 271

Jesus and the Gospels

3 credit hours

This course is a study of the life and teachings of Jesus based upon a critical analysis of both canonical and non-canonical Gospels together with an investigation of the ways in which the image of the historical Jesus was transmitted and transformed within the Christian communities that produced and utilized these gospels.

RELST 273

Women in the Bible

3 credit hours

This course is a study of the Bible (both Hebrew and Christian scriptures) with the specific aim of recovering the place and role of women in this tradition of thought. Such study will draw upon a multidisciplinary approach to critically selected texts in which women are explicitly remembered in a culture and tradition dominated by patriarchal values and systems.

RELST 292

Religion and Society

3 credit hours

This course examines the often-complex relationships between Christianity and American culture in the face of 21st-century challenges posed by religious pluralism, secularization, fundamentalism, alternative spiritualities and the media.

RELST 299

Issues in Religion

3 credit hours

This course includes religious issues that will vary from semester to semester.