The Catholic Imagination

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This course introduces the theological foundations of Christian vocation through considering the Eucharistic transformation of human communion and of our understanding, memory, and will by means of the imagination. The Catholic imagination recognizes all things—the world, the self, creativity, the past, the present, vocation, suffering, death—in relation to the communion which is God’s very nature, life, and gift to us. The first part of the course therefore contemplates the Trinitarian communion, received in Jesus Christ and the Church which is his Body, through alternating doctrinal studies and literary considerations. The first part also seeks to understand the world, in its giftedness, brokenness, and renewal, through the lens of communion. The second part seeks to remember a life through the same lens of communion, and the third part seeks to intend a life toward this communion. Thus, this course considers the central images of Christian salvation history from creation to eschatology as well as how these images may be appropriated in the lived experience of Christian spirituality. This course is designed to assist Notre Dame undergraduates who are preparing to work as “Mentors-in-Faith” within Notre Dame Vision.