Is beauty simply "in the eye of the beholder," or is it something more objective? Is it possible that beauty is a way through which God reveals God's self in the created order? This course examines a variety of objective and subjective views of beauty from the works of philosophers and Christian theologians.
University of St. Thomas
Is beauty simply "in the eye of the beholder," or is it something more objective? Is it possible that beauty is a way through which God reveals God's self in the created order? This course examines a variety of objective and subjective views of beauty from the works of philosophers (e.g., Plato, Kant, and Weil) and Christian theologians (e.g., Augustine, John of Damascus, Thomas Aquinas, Tillich, Barth, and Balthasar). It also explores the implications of these insights about beauty for the arts. We will consider especially icons, medieval manuscript illustrations of Mary, documentary photographs, and films. As a final project, students will articulate their own theology of beauty through an interpretation of a selected work of art.
Click here to download the Syllabus: Theology-of-Beauty.pdf