Religious Studies Curriculum

Grade: 11, 12
Credits: 5
Prerequisite: This class is restricted to students preparing to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation.
All incoming Junior and Senior students who want to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation at Presentation High School are required to take Christian Lifestyles. This one semester course is designed to help students better understand themselves through the eyes of their Creator and explore the different avenues of their life’s path as they transition into adulthood. Students will develop skills of self-awareness, reflection, and prayerful discernment to incorporate in both daily and long term decisions. The course will begin with learning about the universal vocation to love and holiness, and later explore the vocation to a state in life as understood by the Catholic Church (marriage, single life, religious life and ordained life) as well as the vocation to work/occupation, and ministry/service. Students will apply their learned skills of self reflection and discernment to more deeply examine their life path and gain a better understanding of who they are and who God is calling them to be in light of the grace of the Sacrament of Confirmation. 

Grade: 11, 12
Credits: 5
College Prep: CSU/UC “g” College-Preparatory Elective

Many people search for a spirituality to connect with in a deeply personal way. The saints of the Church wanted the same thing - a more meaningful relationship with God. This course is designed to introduce us to some of the saints and their ways of encountering God, and to help us learn how we might integrate their spirituality into everyday life and come to know God more. The course will use the primary writings of saints like St. Francis of Assisi, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Benedict, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Ignatius of Loyola, and many more. The primary aim of this course is for students to interact, read, reflect, and discuss the writings of extraordinary women and men who have built up the Church.
 

Grade: 11, 12
Credits: 5
College Prep: CSU/UC “g” College-Preparatory Elective

What do people mean when they say spirituality? What should my spiritual life look like? Should my personal relationship with God interact with Church teaching? What does that look like? The Catechism of the Catholic Church proclaims that “a distinct spirituality can arise at the point of convergence of liturgical and theological currents, bearing witness to the integration of the faith into a particular human environment.” This class aims at developing a spirituality based on modern liturgical styles (e.g. prayer) and modern theological concepts and applying them to our current lives. The twentieth century has produced a wealth of spiritual witnesses who have helped individuals converge their personal beliefs, modern society, and a distinctive modern spirituality with the Tradition of the Church into our current environment. This class seeks to explore some of these witnesses and how their distinctive Christological beliefs and prayer methods can help to form our own spiritual lives in both faith (belief) and prayer.
This class will read the fiction of C.S. Lewis and Flannery O’Connor as the medium for considering how other worlds and challenging characters view creation, sin, redemption, incarnation, forgiveness, death, the afterlife, asceticism, grace, and sacrifice.  The spiritual writings of Henri Nouwen will guide students in this course towards an integration of contemplation and prayer in contemporary society.   

These three spiritual witnesses offer a unique perspective on a tradition two thousand years old; each offering a look at how to incorporate the living work of the Holy Spirit into modern life.  How can the voices of the past influence and help to shape today’s personal spiritual lives?

Grade: 11, 12
Credits: 5
College Prep: CSU/UC “g” College-Preparatory Elective

Women play a vital role in the Church and their wisdom is necessary for the mission of the Church today. But who are they, why are they significant, and how much do we know of them? This course is designed to center women's voices, influence, and witness in the Church - women in the Hebrew Scriptures, like Hagar and Miriam, women in the Gospel, like Mary of Magdala, and contemporary women who are prophetic role models for today. This course will provide students with an opportunity to explore feminist theology, while experiencing the living spirit of faithful women in the Church, past and present. Together, students will grow as people of faith, inspired by the passion, courage, and leadership of these powerful women leaders.
 

Grade: 11, 12

Credits: 5

College Prep: CSU/UC “g” College-Preparatory Elective

In our diverse local and global communities, it is increasingly important to have an understanding of the religions of the world. Understanding and appreciation is especially necessary in light of the number of conflicts that involve religion. The richness of religious variety, customs and culture can broaden and strengthen our own faith. This course surveys the world’s great religions including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Zen Buddhism, Shintoism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It examines their history, literature, beliefs and personalities in a comparative way, so qualities, both unique and shared, may be discovered.