As mentioned here before, the beautiful ancient town of Norcia -- home of the traditional Benedictine monks famed for their Gregorian chant and artisanal beer -- will be the backdrop of the fifth annual Summer Theology Program of the Albertus Magnus Center for Scholastic Studies. The course runs from July 10–24, 2016 (the instructional part runs until July 22, with an optional weekend in Rome the last couple of days).
This year our theme is the Epistle to the Hebrews. With this short but inexhaustibly profound sacred text as the primary point of reference, participants will follow the great interpretive tradition of the Church, especially as found in St. Thomas Aquinas's unsurpassed commentary.
I am glad this year to be on the faculty, together with Fr. Thomas Crean, OP, Fr. Cassian Folsom, OSB, and other tutors.
The daily schedule will allow participants easy access to the rich liturgical life of the Benedictine monks -- daily Low Masses, High Mass, and the chanted Divine Office, celebrated at the birthplace of SS. Benedict & Scholastica. The schedule includes the town’s festive celebration of the Feast of St. Benedict on July 11th, pilgrimages to the nearby towns of Assisi and Cascia, and the aforementioned final weekend in Rome.
We are still accepting applications for this July. The total cost for tuition, room, half-board (a light breakfast and an authentic 5-course Italian dinner every day), and course materials, including a hardcover copy of Aquinas's Commentary on Hebrews, is 900 Euros (ca. $1,025). A background in academic theology is not required. Deadline for applications is May 16.
For full information and for registration, visit the summer program page at the AMCSS website.
The Albertus Magnus Center is dedicated to the revival of higher studies in theology, undertaken according to the mind and method of the great scholastics, above all, the Angelic Doctor -- in the heart of the Church, and at the foot of the altar.
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| In class |
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| SS. Thomas Aquinas & Augustine on one of the many churches in Norcia |
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| A stroll outside the town |
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| High Mass at the Monastery |
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| The Schola during High Mass |
