Modern World History: Renaissance to Present (St. Therese Wednesdays Session C 10:40-11:25 a.m.) 9th-12th

Year long ($50 enrollment fee)

This course examines how the Modern World --- our world --- came to be.

It looks at the revolutionary ideas that created, first in Europe and then the entire world, an understanding of man and his relationship to God, his community, and the state that was in many respects radically different from the understanding of these things that prevailed in the Middle Ages. Ideas influence deeds, and thus the course examines historical events, showing how they flowed from the struggle between those who held to traditional conceptions and those who embraced the new ideas. Events influence ideas, and thus we study how the events of history helped modify and develop both the new ideas and the traditional vision of the world.

As we explore the Renaissance, Protestant ideas will be contrasted with Catholic theology throughout in order to give the course a philosophical dimension in addition to the historical context the people of the time period would have been acutely aware of. Students will see how the ideologies of Protestantism affected the various nations of Europe politically and how many of the attitudes and assumptions of modernity are rooted in 16th and 17th century developments. Then, as Europe recovers from the age of the religious wars, advances in science and the opening up of the New World will lead to new challenges that will first strain and then finally break the old order of Christendom. Finally, students will become acquainted with the people, movements and events that have contributed to the formation of Modern Europe, defined as the period of the French Revolution to the present. Economic, political, military and ideological trends will be examined with an aim of helping students understand the problems of contemporary Europe and those areas once under European control.

This class will be mainly lecture based. The students will take notes and I will encourage lively discussions. There are a few quizzes along the way to keep them on their toes.

Required Materials: Light to the Nations, Part II: The Making of the Modern World, Catholic Textbook Project -or- Honors (Primary Sources) Available upon request

Instructor: Jenn MacDonald (260) 445-3838 jennmacd@me.com

Check out this instructor's other classes at https://www.lifehs.net/category/jenn-macdonald

*** Significant discounts are available for full-day enrollment and co-op families. ***
Contact Jenn MacDonald for questions (260) 445-3838.

St. Therese Catholic Church, 2304 Lower Huntington Rd., Fort Wayne, IN

* If a student has special needs, please contact the teacher to discuss any accommodations that might be made.

** All classes require online family registration and enrollment. Year-long classes carry a $50 yearly enrollment fee. This enrolls your student in the class for the entire year. There is no need to re-enroll for 2nd semester. The cost of the class is due no later than the first day of each semester in an envelope labeled with your student's name & the class name with cash or a check made out to the teacher. Registration and Enrollment Fees are non-refundable.