Courses in Spiritual Theology often focus on classic texts about the life of prayer such as The Ascent of Mount Carmel or The Imitation of Christ. This course takes a different approach. We learn about conversion, prayer, discernment, and union with God through the lives of the saints.

The saints show us spirituality in “real time.” We will follow the stories of flesh-and-blood human beings, with their own traumas, struggles, and sins, and discover what happens when they encounter Jesus Christ and this relationship becomes the meaning of their lives.

Each class will consider a different saint. We will learn from the “first monk,” the founder of the Jesuits, two Carmelite nuns, a young laywoman who is imprisoned with her infant son, and a modern scientist who survives an atomic bomb blast. Each one will help us discover new paths for our own spiritual lives.