TH 312 - Church History II: Modern Catholicism

• List the ways Church structures, especially the papacy and the episcopacy, evolved from the Middle Ages until the present
• Identify some of the ways (theological, political, social, and educational) in which the Church responded to the growth of nation states and the rise of modernity
• Trace in outline the evolving role of religious orders, especially the new congregations that were formed during the Catholic Reformation
• Summarize the cultural and theological background issues surrounding the Reformation and the Church’s response, especially in the Council of Trent
• Summarize the cultural and theological background issues surrounding the rise of the Enlightenment and the Church’s struggle to come to terms with Modernity
• Illustrate through historical examples the social and embodied nature of the Spirit-led Church as it extends the Incarnation of Christ in the world
• Evaluate and consult online reference and primary source materials that provide details of topics in Church history that go beyond the introductory level