This course covers the following topics: the meaning of the word ‘baptism’, the baptism of John, baptism and the cross, baptism and Jesus’ missionary life, baptism and incarnation, baptism in the Acts of the Apostles, baptism in the Epistles of St. Paul, baptism in the writings of St. John, the test of baptism in the first three centuries, the theology of baptism, the need for baptism, the historical evolution of baptism, baptism in the Sacrament of Baptism, the baptism of baptismal water, baptism and spiritual divinity, and baptism and the new Adam. Other topics include the prayer of thanksgiving on bread and wine, the offering bread in the Old Testament, the bread of heaven and the cup of salvation in the New Testament, the kiss of peace, the prayer of thanksgiving and praise through the song of “Holy”, the summoning of the Holy Spirit, requests, the Our Father prayer, conclusion and thanksgiving at the end of the liturgy, in addition to the interrelationship between the three mysteries of Jesus’ upbringing.

The course is presented through a liturgical, historical, and theological perspective. The first part considers the historical and liturgical development of the various parts of Mass across Eastern liturgies, and distinguishes between the Antiochian and the Alexandrian structure. The main parts of Holy Mass will be detailed with special mention for the anaphora.

This course covers the following topics: liturgy in the Sacrament of the Church, the sacrifice of salvation, the presence of Christ in the world, the purpose of liturgical action, liturgy as the peak of the Church’s life and fountain, liturgy and acts of piety, renewal of liturgy, the Liturgical Committee, and the source of liturgy. Oter topics include the Sacrament of the Eucharist, divine management, the Service of the Word section, the Sacrifice section (anaphoras/the Eucharist Prayer), secrets and quasi-secrets symbols, folk liturgy, the importance of sacramental liturgy, the primary purpose of the sacraments, permanent prayer, and the importance of compulsory prayer.

This course is an introduction to pastoral theology. If theology is considered as the search for intelligence in the Christian faith, the theological disciplines that offer theology students the keys to the broad “Science of God” and to the salvation in the world are numerous and various. These include, among others, pastoral theology, which is nonetheless more oriented towards Christian praxis that brings together the different aspects of =Christian faith and its various transmissions in communities, parishes, catechetic groups, or others. The Christian experience is understood at this point as a “response” to the Word of God as received by Revelation and “recovered” in the Christian tradition. This experience is obvious in pastoral theology wherein the Christian faith is smartly expressed. Pastoral discipline, as a discipline, covers the “empirical” and “applied” levels of thinking and research.

This course touches on the following topics: an introduction to the Old Testament: The Hebrew division of the Bible, the Old Testament, the Greek division, the Septuagint, the Catholic division of the Old Testament, the geographical and historical environment in which the Old Testament was created, the land of the Bible, the most important stages of Israel’s history, the Jewish community, the tradition of religious observance, the Elohim tradition, the historical and critical study of the Old Testament. Moving on to an introduction to the New Testament, the topics covered include the New Testament language and its 27 chapters, legal books, the books of the New Testament, interpretive, historical, literary, and defensive studies of the New Testament, the emergence of the Gospels and the meaning of differences in biblical texts. The role of the Holy Spirit in the inspiration of the four Evangelists, the religious parties (the Sadducees, the Pharisees, the Zealots, the Asians, the stages of writing the Gospels, and the Acts of the Apostles.

This course analyzes and comments on the famous saying: Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi, or “the law of prayer is the law of belief”, and offers a preliminary explanation of the meaning of “liturgy” followed by three illustrations of the aforementioned saying.

This course focuses on the liturgical community and how liturgy celebrates the faith of a community, as was the case for the early Christian communities. To the extent that the community is “liturgical” and alive, its liturgy will be meaningful and will be the “incarnation of the Church”. The celebration of the Paschal Mystery opens to communion and sharing, and makes the sanctifying Spirit active in the lives of Christians. There is, therefore, a logical relation between the Paschal Mystery, Christian worship, liturgical assembly, and Christian life leading to the establishment of the Church.

This course is an introduction to music in relation to liturgy. It includes general concepts on religion, music, philosophy, the sacred, and its rapport with music. The subjects tackled include the function of sacred music, the relationship between religion and music, tradition and renewal in sacred music, sacred music categories, forms and genres of sacred music, classification of sacred songs, the characteristics of sacred music, etc.

This course will consider the liturgical aspects of the Liturgy of the Hours and the history of its evolution, while highlighting the contribution of the Jewish heritage and the Christian signification of the Hours.

God has established marriage by “creating man and woman”, owing nothing to the state or to the Church. The natural institution of “customary marriage” is a union based on marriage and family more than on formalities. Even for the chosen people, marriage is an earthly reality. The Church, in turn, believes that “marriage has God as its author. It was from the beginning as a figure of the Incarnation of the Word of God” and the Vatican does not diverge from this biblical vision. This course examines the development of the celebration of marriage throughout history.

The Sacrament of Holy Orders completes the work of Christ in his Church to care for mankind and develop it through the service of the sacraments and through the functions of teaching, sanctification, and management. In times of weakness, sickness, pain, and even conflict, the Christian faith lights up a new flame of hope through the secret power of healing. Human beings are reminded that they are watched over by God, revealing the God of love and forgiveness that accepts men as they are. This Sacrament urges men to accept themselves with sincerity and humility, and to work with the ability to renew their lives. In the Sacrament of Penance, Christ touches the believer’s heart in order to transform it. The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick underscores the presence of the healing and sincere power of Christ, allowing the sick to feel the continuity of the love of Christ as represented by the presence of the Church by their side. Being sick does not negate the love of God to men; rather, it reveals this great mystery, making it clear that this love expresses the act of faith.

This course is a panoramic overview of the music and sacred dances of the world, which are closely related to religious and ritual celebrations and are an expression of faith and prayer.

The objective of this course is to pursue the scientific research of students through biblical and patristic sources and through the offices and celebrations of Holy Week, in order to raise awareness of the importance of this Holy Week as the culmination of the liturgical year.

This course examines the different concepts of time and its multiple dimensions with the purpose of writing the history of the origins of the liturgical calendar and seasons in general. It also presents the liturgical year in each Eastern rite along with its structure, its characteristics, and its spirituality.