Fordham: Advanced Certificate in Jesuit Studies

The Advanced Certificate in Jesuit Studies is offered by Fordham’s Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education.

Ideal for anyone working at a Jesuit institution or with Jesuits in various ministries, this certificate follows an adult education model, where a student’s background and experience both inform and enhance each learning component of the program. Requiring only a bachelor’s degree of any sort, the ideal student for this certificate is anyone longing to know more about the Jesuit context within which they work, worship, or relax.

What are the career objectives?

• Jesuit middle, secondary, and higher education administrators and teachers.
• Jesuit parishes
• Jesuit social ministries
• Ignatian spiritual direction and retreat ministries
• Campus ministers
• Mission and Ministry positions
• Jesuit Boards of Directors

Among the course offerings:

SPGR 6703. History of Christian Spirituality II. (3 Credits)

This course provides a solid grounding in the historical-critical, hermeneutical, and theological engagements with Christian mysticism/spirituality from the 16th century through the mid-20th century. In addition to focusing upon representative Catholic, Protestant, Reform, and Orthodox traditions, we examine recent expressions of globally contextualized Christian spiritualities. Course readings draw from classical spiritual texts and relevant secondary literature. Authors and texts typically considered include Ignatius Loyola, Martin Luther, Teresa of Ávila, Madame Guyon, Francis de Sales, George Herbert, The Pilgrim’s Tale, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Howard Thurman, Gustavo Gutiérrez, C.S. Song, and Desmond Tutu, among others. Additionally, selected themes in Christian spirituality are considered, including feminist, ecological, and social justice spiritualities.

RLGR 6032. Church and Society. (3 Credits)

This course explores how the global Christian church emerged from Christ’s kerygma and developed in different historical and cultural contexts. The course covers the emergence of historical divisions in the Christian Church and of the ecumenical movement’s response. While the course focuses on Catholic ecclesiology, it also covers Orthodox and Protestant perspectives on key themes such as authority, governance, and practice. Throughout the course, there is an emphasis on the critiques and perspectives offered by liberation theology and feminism. It asks the students to imagine how the Christian Church can adapt to its contemporary context in the student’s ministerial or professional setting.