Loyola University Chicago

Institute of Pastoral Studies

Study in Rome

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“I loved every minute of our time in Italy. I learned so much from the people and places we visited. It was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. I will never forget it!”

    The IPS Summer Rome program provides a unique opportunity to experience firsthand the historical, cultural, and spiritual benefits of the Eternal City and the Vatican.  Led by faculty members with longstanding personal relationships with local academic and ecclesial leaders there, the program is designed for students of the IPS but is open to others.  Participants are able to draw upon the invaluable resources of Loyola’s half-century presence running a campus for students of various ages and degree programs who choose to study in the Eternal City.  International study scholarships and prorated payment plans make the cost feasible for full- and part-time IPS students. Often the richly diverse classes include non-degree seeking students interested in personal enrichment or those earning graduate degrees at other institutions as well.

Looking to make the most of your summer travels, while learning along the way? The IPS Rome program offers learning and cultural experiences that you can’t find in a classroom in Chicago. Join us one summer to:

  • Complete a core or elective course towards your degree
  • Reconnect with your spirituality while living in the Eternal City, Rome
  • Combine classroom lessons and adventures abroad

In addition to classes, students tour some of Rome's most famous landmarks and attractions, including the Colosseum, St. Peter's Square, and much more.

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The upcoming IPS Study Abroad Rome immersion trip

is planned to take place:

May 21-31 2024

2024 Program Fees: $2,950 (single room) and $2,450 (double)

REGISTER HERE

Courses Offered in summer 2024:

Taught by Prof. Daniel Rhodes

Apocalypse and empire: these two are tied together like rival twins. Where Empire seeks to order and dominate the world, Apocalyptic resists that imperial domination. Rather than a flight from reality or detachment from the real world, apocalyptic pokes holes in the empire’s claim to eternality, posing a theo-political vision that puts in question the imperial order and its rule.
Students will investigate apocalyptic literature and its theological outlook as a means of resistance to empire in a diptych manner—looking on one side to the Jewish and Christian apocalyptic discourses that emerged amid the hegemony of the Roman Empire and on the other side at apocalyptic theologies amid a new empire of global capitalism.
When visiting Rome, the Eternal City and the heart of the Roman Empire, we will encounter the vestiges of the old empire and visit sites of early Christianity. We will study ecclesial landmarks built during the Christian era after the Western Roman Empire’s fall to contemplate how the decline of apocalyptic views coincided with the Church’s establishment and emergence of this new, ecclesial order. Students will also study and reflect on theologies of resistance and transformation amid the contemporary, new empire of global capitalism, investigating how apocalyptic might function not as a discourse of doom and gloom but as a proclamation and praxis of hope. Instead of the end of the world, the apocalyptic may herald the renewal of the world by an end to the dominion of empire.

Course Objectives:
Students in this course will:

  1. Gain a basic understanding of and the tools for interpreting apocalyptic literature in Scripture within its context and the development of the genre;
  2. Develop a critical, theological analysis of empire from an apocalyptic outlook, drawing connections between these texts of Scripture and current events and structures;
  3. Experience and critically reflect upon the material ruins and the current structures of the ancient city, integrating both personal and spiritual consideration with theoretical analysis.

Taught by Prof. Michael Canaris

This course introduces some of the traditions, ideas, and people that have shaped the historical development of Christian doctrine from the first century to the present day, with special attention being given to the perennial issues and concerns that continue to drive the development of doctrines, their role and limits, and their connection to spirituality. The dynamics between the church's teaching voice and the reception (or non-reception) of its formulations will be tied to specific site visits, historical landmarks, and interpersonal dialogue with ongoing thought-partners and experts around the eternal city, which represents in many ways the beating heart of the universal Catholic church.


To view our introductory video for the Study Abroad program, please click here 

Registration site will be open soon! 

IPS students are also eligible to apply for the Rome Scholarship.

View the International_Study_Scholarship_Application for more details.

If you have questions about travel to another location before or after, flights, transfers from the airport, etc., the IPS has an unofficial and informal relationship with the following travel agent who is eager to help our students:

Stephanie Goldberg-Glazer
Owner, Live Well, Travel Often
855-940-1119, extension 1
Stephanie@livewelltraveloften.com
http://LiveWellTravelOften.com

If you have more questions, please contact your academic advisor.

 

Future Courses

2024

  • IPS 599 - Apocalypse and Empire: Theologies of Resistance in Imperial Rome and Amid Imperial Capitalism (elective) with Prof. Daniel Rhodes
  • IPS 531 - Christian Doctrine with Prof. Michael Canaris

2025 

  • Theology and Migration (elective)
  • Literature of Ancient Israel
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