Course Number: PAS 985 Course Title: Pastoral Issues concerning Human Sexuality Term: Spring 2016 1. COURSE DESCRIPTION Professor Rev. Fr. Dominic Anaeto Email: danaeto@holyapostles.edu This course addresses the meaning of human sexuality, education and integration of emotion, sexual aberrations, relationship skills such as intra- and inter-personal skills, personal freedom skills, sexuality and spirituality, human sexuality and eschatology. 2. LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students at the completion of this course will be able to: Demonstrate that the ultimate meaning of sexuality is love Show that emotions can be educated to wait Master ways of controlling the passivity of emotion and develop appropriate appraisals Demonstrate a clear understanding of the Trinitarian foundation of Human love Show that sexual satisfaction must be achieved within natural, social and moral norms that govern sexual relations Demonstrate the intrinsic connection between sexuality and spirituality Show that both sexuality and celibacy are precious gift of God Show that motives and motivations ought to be considered for choosing any vocation Acquire necessary qualities for Affective Maturity Demonstrate that through pornography, the beauty and mystery of Human sexuality is reduced to body parts Show that clerical sex abuse has to be situated in the context of the pervasive moral crisis in the society. Demonstrate that the Eucharist is both the source and summit of sexuality and spirituality. 3. COURSE SCHEDULE The following schedule demonstrates how human sexuality as part of God s creation is a precious gift of God. It is that aspect of personhood that makes us capable of entering into loving relationship with others. Theology teaches that relationship-the gift of oneself to another is at the very heart of
God. In Catholic theology and spirituality, it is believed that God the Father and the Son give themselves totally to one another and the mutuality of their total response in love is the Holy Spirit, binding them together. Catholic spirituality puts sexuality which is good itself within the broader framework of love. This love must be conditioned by Divine love. Sexuality without love will devolve into self-absorption and manipulation. We honor God and become more like him when we create in our own lives the loving other-centered relationships which at the same time give us such human satisfaction and personal fulfilment. Our sexuality helps us achieve this when it is lived in a healthy way. Catholic spirituality holds that we are all called to live a chaste life. Chastity is a liberating virtue, one that liberates the heart for love whether in the priestly and religious life or as a lay member of the Mystical body of Christ. You will need to read the lecture summary for each week and the corresponding assigned texts when preparing for your discussion board posts and writing your papers. These are a simple foundation and guide for your further research and readings. Week 1- Lesson 1: True Meaning of Human Sexuality Fran Ferder and John Heagle, Your Sexual Self: Pathway to Authentic Intimacy, Ch. 1, Cosmic Allurement: Human Sexuality and the Origins of Love, pp. 10-20. Assignment: Amidst the various misconceptions of sexuality, how could you demonstrate that the ultimate meaning of sexuality is love? Week 2- Lesson 2: Three levels in human sexuality Karol Wojtyla, Love and Responsibility, Psychological Analysis of Love pp 101-118; Keith Clark, Being Sexual and Celibate, Ch. 2: Our Levels of Sexuality and Ch. 3: Intimacy is Personal Assignment: Sexual behavior has to be controlled by freedom and insight. Discuss. Week 3- Lesson 3: The Fullness of the Church s Teaching on Human Sexuality Read A No to a No is a Yes Suggested Reading Arnold, M. B & J. A. Gasson, The Human Person: An Approach to an Integral Theory of Personality Joyce Meyer, Living Beyond Your Feelings: Controlling Emotions so they Don t Control you, Faithwords Assignment: In terms of human sexuality, discuss the meaning of the Church s no s are so strong, because its yes is so ringing.
Week 4- Lesson 4: The Trinitarian Foundation for Human Relationship Robert Barron, Sermon 178 -The Holy Trinity John Navone, SJ, Self-giving and Sharing: The Trinity and Human Fulfillment, Ch. 3 The Real Self in Communion, pp. 19-34; Ch. 10 The Church: Icon of the Trinity, pp. 120-128. Assignment: Elaborate on the theological statement that the Holy Trinity is an authentic foundation for banishing all traces of self-centeredness. Week 5- Lesson 5: The dynamics of interpersonal relationships John Paul II, Theology of the Body, Blessed are the Pure of Heart, pp. 103-188; Norm of Humanae Vitae, pp. 388-389. E.F. Doherty, Vocation, Formation, Consecration and Vows: Theological and Psychological Considerations. Ch. 14, Psychosexual Problems. Pp. 161-172. Suggested Reading G. K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy, Ortho Publishing Assignment: Sexual satisfaction must take into consideration the natural, social and moral norms that govern sexual relation. Discuss. Week 6 - Lesson 6: Integrating the conscious and unconscious elements for Vocational Choice. L.M. Rulla, J. Ridick & Imoda, Entering and Leaving Vocation, Intrapsychic Dynamics, Chs. 4-6, and Ch. 10. E.F. Doherty, Vocation, Formation, Consecration and Vows: Theological and Psychological Considerations. Chs. 1 and 2, pp. 3-23. Suggested Reading: Becker, J.F & D.I. Donovan, Sexual Dynamics in Ministry Relationships in Human Development Assignments: The first paper is due at the end of week 6. Topic: Motives and Motivations ought to be considered for Vocational choice. What is the role of discernment in this process? Week 7- Lesson 7: Sexuality and Celibacy: Free Gifts E.F. Doherty, Vocation, Formation, Consecration and Vows: Theological and Psychological Considerations. Ch. 11 The Theology of Chastity, pp. 125-134.
Keith Clark, Being Sexual and Celibate, Ch. 11: Belonging Uniquely to God, 175-182. John Paul II, Theology of the Body, Virginity for the Sake of the Kingdom, pp. 262-303. Suggested Byrne, J., A life of Chastity for the kingdom of God: Problems and perspectives in Religious life Review, vol 21, #97,1982; Assignment: Personal commitment through internalization of values is necessary for an appreciation of sexuality and celibacy as free gifts. Discuss Week 8- Lesson 8: Human Sexuality And Spirituality: Any Connection? Fran Ferder and John Heagle, Your Sexual Self: Pathway to Authentic Intimacy, Ch. 10 I Call you Friend, pp. 153-170. Karol Wojtyla, Love and Responsibility, Chapter II The Person and Love: Metaphysical Analysis of Love, pp. 73-100. John Paul II, Theology of the Body, Life according to the Spirit, pp. 191-232. Assignment: Discuss elaborately the intrinsic connection between sexuality and spirituality. Week 9- Lesson 9: Sexuality at the service of Self-transcendent Love Required Readings L.M. Rulla, J. Ridick & Imoda, Entering and Leaving Vocation, Intrapsychic Dynamics, Ch. 1, pp. 9-15. John Navone, SJ, Self-giving and Sharing: The Trinity and Human Fulfillment, Ch. 7 The Good News for Communion, pp. 72-85. Karol Wojtyla, Love and Responsibility, Sexology and Ethics, pp. 265-288. Suggested Sammon, S. D., An Undivided Heart: Making Sense of Celibate Chastity, Create space Independent Publishing Platform, 2013, $9.86, ISBN-10:1481238477 SACRED CONGREGATION FOR CATHOLIC EDUCATION, Educational Guidance in Human love, Outlines for Sex Education, London, 1983, 32; Assignment: The focus of chastity should be on developing and pursuing ways of loving more rather than avoiding physical sexual relationship. Discuss. Week 10 - Lesson 10: Creative Aloneness and Loneliness in Sexuality Clark Keith, Being Sexual and Celibate, Ch. 4 To Be Human is to Be Lonely Sometimes, pp. 47-62.
Karol Wojtyla, Love and Responsibility, The Rehabilitation of Chastity, pp. 143-173, The Problems of Continence, pp. 194-210. Assignment: Elaborate on the distinct difference between Creative Aloneness and Loneliness in our sexual lives. Week 11 - Lesson 11: Affective Maturity and Appropriate ways of expressing sexual emotions Fran Ferder and John Heagle, Your Sexual Self: Pathway to Authentic Intimacy, Ch. 7 Coming into our Own: Psychosexual Development in Adulthood, pp. 101-112. E.F. O Doherty, Vocation and Formation, Psychological Aspects, Part II: Formation, pp. 25-115. Suggested Goldberg, A., On Waiting in: International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 1971, 418 Assignments: The second paper is due at the end of this week 11. Topic: Discuss two major characteristics of Affective Maturity with practical examples. Why do you consider those two more important than others? Week 12- Lesson 12: Celibacy/ Marriage: Two heads of the same coin John Paul II, The theology of the body: Human love in the divine plan, Virginity for the Sake of the Kingdom, pp. 262-303; The Sacramentality of Marriage, pp. 304-385. Assignment: Both celibacy and spousal covenant (marriage) point to the eschatology. Discuss. Week 13- Lesson 13: The danger of Pornography to the Dignity of Human Sexuality Karol Wojtyla, Love and Responsibility, Ch. 1: The Person and the Sexual Urge, pp. 21-44. John Paul II, The theology of the body: Human love in the divine plan, Art Must not Violate the Right to Privacy, pp. 223-229. Suggested Readings Andrew Apostoli, When God asks for an undivided heart, 2 nd ed. Basilica press, 2007, $11.66, ISBN-10:1930314108; Colleen Hammond, Dressing with dignity, 2 nd ed. Tan books, 2005, $9.00, ISBN-10:0895558009; Sebastian Mahfood, OP, Love and Responsibility: The Personalization Principle in Cyberspace, Seminary Journal, Winter, 2008. Sebastian Mahfood, OP, Sexual Ontology: Approaching the Sexual Act from the Perspective of the Order of Creation, Social Justice Review, Sept./Oct. 2010. Alice von Hildebrand, Privilege of being a Woman, The Catholic University of America Press, 2005,$17.08, ISBN-10:077061067X.
Assignment: Expound on the Pope John Paul II s statement that, pornography isn t wrong because it shows too much of the human being but because it shows too little. Week 14- Lesson 14: Sexual Scandal in the Church Read Wise Words from the Bishop of Rome; Read Reading the Scandal With Biblical Eyes Assignment: From your personal assessment, what gave rise to the sexual scandal in the Church? Offer some practical suggestions for the way forward. Week 15- Lesson 15: Sexuality on our Knees: The centrality of the Eucharist Benedict XVI, God is love, Deus caritas est. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter: Ecclesia De Eucharistia. Assignments: The third paper is due at the end of this week 15. Topic: The Eucharist is not only the way to discover how to live our sexuality, but it is also the most perfect way to discover sexuality on our knees. Discuss. Schedule a ten minutes Skype defense of your paper. My Skype name is ugodom 4. COURSE REQUIREMENTS Three Papers This course requires three papers to be presented. The final paper should be five pages and the two other papers will be three pages each. They will be presented at the end of weeks 6, 11 and 15. They are to be researched cum reflective papers. The papers should be double spaced, 12- point font of New Times Romans. Proper academic format should be used cognizant of footnotes and title page at the beginning. Please consult the HACS style sheet located in the shared folder of the files tab in Populi for proper citation. These papers should be emailed to me at danaeto@holyapostles.edu or ugodom2000@yahoo.com. Required Discussion Forum: In addition to the three papers, you should sign onto the Discussion Board and post your discussion utilizing the questions provided at the end of each week s lesson except for weeks 6, 11 and 15. You are also required to post a response to the discussion of at least one of your colleagues. The Discussion Board topics are listed under the Discussion tab, by week. If you do not receive a word from me that I received your paper within a few days of your sending it, I did not receive it. If you did not get the corrected paper back within a week, please let me know. If you cannot make the deadline, please inform me of the reason. This forum is for weekly assignment submissions. You are expected to write one page every week following the week s lesson and write a short response (not more than half a page) to your colleague s submission. This is for the purpose of fostering a community of learners. I will monitor and comment once on all the submissions and responses, and this should help you to orient your mind to the materials as you begin the process of writing your papers.
Discussion Forums: We have two discussion forums; General and Required forums. General Discussion forum: This is for course-related discussion. You may post questions about the materials and topics, thoughts and comments about the course concepts. Be sure to respond to the postings of your colleague the same as you would do in a traditional classroom. I will monitor this forum, but please do not expect me to comment on all postings. Do please use the General Discussion forum for all course-related questions that you would like to ask of me, for if you have a question, chances are some of your colleagues have the same question and will be able to join in the response. You may also contact me directly as I do not check the General Discussion every day. Specific personal questions regarding your grades, extensions for due dates and private matter should be sent to me in an email: ugodom2000@yahoo.com. I will do my best to respond to you within 48hours. If I will be out-of-range of Internet access for several days, I will communicate that prior to the time. 5. REQUIRED READINGS and RESOURCES: All the books should be available for purchase on the Internet using Amazon.com. John Paul II, The theology of the body: Human love in the divine plan, Pauline books and Media, 1997, $24.23, ISBN-10: 0819873942. Fran Ferder and John Heagle, Your Sexual Self: Pathway To Authentic Intimacy, Ave Maria Press, 1995. ISBN-10: 0877934797, $17.95 Clark Keith, Being Sexual and Celibate, Ave Maria Press, 1995. ISBN-10: 0877933294, $8.83 John Paul II, Love and Responsibility, Ignatius press, 1993, $16.95, ISBN-10: 0898704456. John Navone, Self-giving and Sharing: The Trinity and Human fulfilment, Liturgical press, 1989, $8, ISBN-10: 0814617743. E.F. O Doherty, Vocation and Formation, Psychological Aspects, Gill& Macmillian, 1972,, $39.50, ASIN: BOO8Q2KGHG; Rulla, L.M., J. Ridick & Imoda, Entering and Leaving Vocation, Intrapsychic Dynamics, Gregorian University Press, 1988, $27.00, ISBN-10:8876525939 6. SUGGESTED READINGS and RESOURCES: Arnold, M. B & J. A. Gasson, The Human Person: An Approach to an Integral Theory of Personality, Ulan Press, 2012, $29.55, ASIN: BOOAUAWIB4 Chesterton, G. K. Orthodoxy, Ortho Publishing, $6.76, ISBN-10: 1493508075 Joyce Meyer, Living Beyond Your Feelings: Controlling Emotions so they Don t Control you, Faithwords, 2014, $11.36, ISBN-10:1455549118 Becker, J.F & D.I. Donovan, Sexual Dynamics in Ministry Relationships in Human Development, Vol 16, #3,1995, 25 Kelsey, Morton, Sacrament of Sexuality, Element Books, 1993. ISBN-10: 1852302232, $10.00
Sammon, S. D., An Undivided Heart: Making Sense of Celibate Chastity, Create space Independent Publishing Platform, 2013, $9.86, ISBN-10:1481238477 E.F. O Doherty, Vocation and Formation, Psychological Aspects, Gill& Macmillian, 1972,, $39.50, ASIN: BOO8Q2KGHG Goldberg, A., On Waiting in: International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 1971, 418 Colleen Hammond, Dressing with dignity, 2 nd ed. Tan books, 2005, $9.00, ISBN- 10:0895558009; Alice von Hildebrand, Privilege of being a Woman, The Catholic University of America Press, 2005,$17.08, ISBN-10:077061067X. Benedict XVI, God is love, Deus caritas est, Ignatius Press, 2005, $11.46, ISBN-10:1586171631 John Paul II, Encyclical Letter: Ecclesia De Eucharistia, Catholic Truth Society, 2003, $1.89, ISBN-10:186082210X 7. EVALUATION: Three Papers: 40%, Skype Defense: 10% Discussions: 30%, Response to your colleague s discussions: 20%, GRADING SCALE: A 94-100; A- 90-93; B+ 87-89; B 84-86; B- 80-83; C+ 77-79; C 74-76; C- 70-73 D 60-69; F 59 and below 8. DISABILITIES ACCOMMODATIONS POLICY Holy Apostles College & Seminary is committed to the goal of achieving equal educational opportunities and full participation in higher education for persons with disabilities who qualify for admission to the College. Students enrolled in online courses who have documented disabilities requiring special accommodations should contact Bob Mish, the Director of Online Student Affairs, at rmish@holyapostles.edu or 860-632-3015. In all cases, reasonable accommodations will be made to ensure that all students with disabilities have access to course materials in a mode in which they can receive them. Students who have technological limitations (e.g., slow Internet connection speeds in convents) are asked to notify their instructors the first week of class for alternative means of delivery. 9. ACADEMIC HONESTY POLICY Students at Holy Apostles College & Seminary are expected to practice academic honesty. Avoiding Plagiarism In its broadest sense, plagiarism is using someone else's work or ideas, presented or claimed as your own. At this stage in your academic career, you should be fully conscious of what it means to plagiarize. This is an inherently unethical activity because it entails the uncredited use of someone else's expression of ideas for another's personal advancement; that is, it entails the use of a person merely as a means to another person s ends.
Students: Should identify the title, author, page number/webpage address, and publication date of works when directly quoting small portions of texts, articles, interviews, or websites. Students should not copy more than two paragraphs from any source as a major component of papers or projects. Should appropriately identify the source of information when paraphrasing (restating) ideas from texts, interviews, articles, or websites. Should follow the Holy Apostles College & Seminary Stylesheet (available on the Online Writing Lab s website at http://www.holyapostles.edu/owl/resources). Consequences of Academic Dishonesty: Because of the nature of this class, academic dishonesty is taken very seriously. Students participating in academic dishonesty may be removed from the course and from the program. 10. ATTENDANCE POLICY Even though you are not required to be logged in at any precise time or day, you are expected to login several times during each week. Because this class is being taught entirely in a technologymediated forum, it is important to actively participate each week in the course. In a traditional classroom setting for a 3-credit course, students would be required, per the federal standards, to be in class three 50-minute sessions (or 2.5 hours a week) and prepare for class discussions six 50- minute sessions (or 5 hours) a week. Expect to devote at least nine 50-minute sessions (or 7.5 quality hours) a week to this course. A failure on the student s part to actively participate in the life of the course may result in a reduction of the final grade. 11. INCOMPLETE POLICY An Incomplete is a temporary grade assigned at the discretion of the faculty member. It is typically allowed in situations in which the student has satisfactorily completed major components of the course and has the ability to finish the remaining work without re-enrolling, but has encountered extenuating circumstances, such as illness, that prevent his or her doing so prior to the last day of class. To request an incomplete, distance-learning students must first download a copy of the Incomplete Request Form. This document is located within the Shared folder of the Files tab in Populi. Secondly, students must fill in any necessary information directly within the PDF document. Lastly, students must send their form to their professor via email for approval. Approval should be understood as the professor responding to the student s email in favor of granting the Incomplete status of the student. Students receiving an Incomplete must submit the missing course work by the end of the sixth week following the semester in which they were enrolled. An incomplete grade (I) automatically turns into the grade of F if the course work is not completed. Students who have completed little or no work are ineligible for an incomplete and must receive the grade that they have earned. Students who feel they are in danger of failing the course due to an inability to complete course assignments should withdraw from the course. A W (Withdrawal) will appear on the student s permanent record for any course dropped after the end of the first week of a semester to the end of the third week. A WF (Withdrawal/Fail) will appear
on the student s permanent record for any course dropped after the end of the third week of a semester and on or before the Friday before the last week of the semester. 12. ABOUT YOUR PROFESSOR Fr. Dominic Anaeto is a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Nnewi in Nigeria. He holds a License in Spirituality from Gregorian University in Rome, a Doctorate in Pastoral Theology from the Lateran University also in Rome, and a diploma from the Christian Institute for the Study of Human Sexuality at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, Illinois. He is a certified counselor on topics related to Human Development and Human Sexuality. He functions as a director of spiritual life which involves giving spiritual conferences, moderating retreats, seminars and recollections. He offers pastoral counseling and spiritual direction to individuals and groups. Presently, he is a professor at Holy Apostles College & Seminary in Cromwell, Connecticut.