Welcome to Year 1 of Atrium!
OVERVIEW
This program is for Supernumeraries who have recently finished their initial formation. It is a five-year program that provides basic philosophical foundations, covering Introduction to Philosophy (Year 1), Philosophy of the Human Person (Year 2), Ethics (Year 3), History of Philosophy and Introduction to Theology (Year 4), Introduction to Sacred Scripture (Year 5).
The word philosophy means ‘love of wisdom’. In philosophy, human reason, drawing together and drawing on all rational knowledge, searches for the ultimate causes and meaning of things, the foundation of being. Philosophy provides the basic principles necessary to study Theology in later courses.
Year 1: Introduction to Philosophy (2022-2023)
The aim of this first subject is to introduce students to the nature of philosophical reflection, its working method, and basic philosophical principles. By the end of this course students will be able to:
- understand the importance of philosophical reflection and its relevance for life and culture
- understand basic principles of metaphysics
- explain the relationship between faith and reason
- demonstrate the existence of God using reason
- recognise the importance of Philosophy for Theology
SESSIONS
Session 1 | Introduction to Philosophy
Session 2 | Philosophy of Nature
Session 3 | Metaphysics
Session 4 | Natural Theology
Session 5 | Faith and Reason
1: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
Recommended Readings
What is philosophy? Why study philosophy? What are the big philosophical questions? Who are some of the greatest philosophers?
Constantinou, Menios, The Catholic Intellectual Tradition: Q&A with Professor Hayden Ramsay | VIEW
Emily Esfahani Smith, ‘There’s More to Life Than Being Happy’, The Atlantic, 10.1.2013. | VIEW
Sullivan, D.J., An Introduction to Philosophy: The Perennial Principles of the Classical Realist Tradition, (Rockford, Il, TAN, 1992).
- What is Philosophy? pp.1-6 | VIEW
- Philosophy as Knowledge pp. 247-54 | VIEW
- Definition of Philosophy pp. 258-9, 262-5 | VIEW
de Torre, J.M., Christian Philosophy, (Manila: Vera Reyes, 1980), pp. 41-47. | VIEW
Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et Ratio, 1998, nn. 1-6, 24-44. | VIEW
De Torre, J.M., ‘The Power of Christian Philosophy to Transform Man and Society: Contemporary Interpretations of Christian Philosophy’, in Fellowship of Catholic Scholars Newsletter, (Summer 1996): 11-15. | VIEW
Chronological List of Some Major Philosophers | VIEW
2: PHILOSOPHY OF NATURE
METAPHYSICS
Recommended Reading
Sullivan, D.J., An Introduction to Philosophy: The Perennial Principles of the Classical Realist Tradition, (Rockford, Il, TAN, 1992).
Mariano Artigas, Introduction to Philosophy, (Manila: Sinag-Tala, 2006), 41-50, 61, 68-69. | VIEW
Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter, Fides et Ratio, 1998, nn. 83-4, 95, 98. | VIEW
Randall Smith, Metaphysics and Theology, 7.5.2020. | VIEW
4: NATURAL THEOLOGY
Recommended Reading
Sullivan, D.J., An Introduction to Philosophy: The Perennial Principles of the Classical Realist Tradition, (Rockford, Il, TAN, 1992), pp. 231-44. | VIEW
de Torre, J.M., Christian Philosophy, (Manila: Vera Reyes, 1980), pp. 127-56. | VIEW
Thomas Aquinas’ Love for the Truth, 28.1.2020. | VIEW
Giulio Maspero, God’s Nature and Action. | VIEW
Catechism of the Catholic Church, nn. 142-167. | VIEW
Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, nn, 25-32. | VIEW
Further Reading
Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, The Existence of God. | VIEW
Catechism of the Catholic Church, 27-49. | VIEW
Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, nn. 1-5. | VIEW
Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Lodato Si, 24.5.2015, nn. 84-88. | VIEW
Peter Kreeft, Twenty Arguments for God’s Existence. | VIEW
Podcasts
Crash Course Catholicism: Episode 2 (Spotify) | VIEW
Pints with Aquinas: Episodes on the Existence of God | VIEW
Videos
Bishop Robert Barron, When Atheists Are Right That God Doesn’t Exist (3 mins) | VIEW
Bishop Robert Barron, The New Atheists (7 mins) | VIEW
Bishop Robert Barron, Where is the Evidence for God? (4.05 mins) | VIEW
Bishop Robert Barron, Thomas Aquinas and the Argument from Motion (10 mins) | VIEW
Bishop Robert Barron, Scientism and God’s Existence | VIEW
James Brent, Five Ways to Prove God Exists (8.53 mins) | VIEW
5: FAITH AND REASON
Recommended Reading
Sullivan, D.J., An Introduction to Philosophy: The Perennial Principles of the Classical Realist Tradition, (Rockford, Il, TAN, 1992), pp. 254-263. | VIEW
Further Reading
Faith and Reason: Six Key Texts of Pope Benedict XVI (ebook) | VIEW
Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et Ratio, 14.9.1998, nn. 16-35. | VIEW
Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter, Lumen Fidei, 29.6.2013, nn. 32-36. | VIEW
Pope Francis, Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium, 24.11.2013, nn. 242-243. | VIEW
Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes, 1965, nn. 4-22. | VIEW
Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et Ratio, 14.9.1998, nn. 16-35. | VIEW
Pope Benedict XVI, Encyclical Letter Spe salvi , 30.11.2007, nn. 4-12. | VIEW
Videos
Bishop Robert Barron, Faith and Reason | VIEW
Bishop Robert Barron, Where is the Evidence for God? | VIEW
5: LINKS TO FURTHER RESOURCES
Links
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy | VIEW
Interdisciplinary Encyclopedia of Religion and Science | VIEW
Pope Leo XIII, Encyclical Letter, Aeterni Patris, 1879. | VIEW
Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter, Fides et Ratio, 1998. | VIEW
St Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, trans. Fathers of the English Dominican Province, Benziger Bros., 1947. | VIEW