This seminar introduces a theory of ethics based on two ethics, the Unevolved and the Evolved Ethics, and how these ethics motivate all acts and behaviors. The seminar begins by recognizing the component parts that come together to form each ethic and discussion of the whole ethic. The seminar then looks at several related subjects, such as the impact of ethics on needs and wants, and the impact of the two ethics on relationships. It also covers developmental stages of the two ethics. Finally, it closes with a discussion of the impact of ethics on leadership.

Required Text: The Unevolved and Evolved Ethics.

The Intertestamental Period, spanning roughly 400 years before Jesus, bridges the Old and New Testaments. It is a blank page in many Bibles and often overlooked as the "silent years" or deuterocanonical era. This time shaped the world of Jesus and the early Church. This seminar explores the period's historical, cultural, religious, and political developments, diving into key figures, events, and movements that influenced the Second Temple Period and continue to resonate today. Students will experience a concise yet deep dive into this transformative era.

This seminar will provide a basic description of the Marianist charism and then focus on the method of growing into the life in Christ with Mary through use of the Marianist virtues. Participants are asked to download the short book "Marianist Pillars for Young Adults" by Fr. Ted Cassidy from the North American Center for Marianist Studies (NMCMS) and purchase the book "Growing in the Virtues of Jesus" by Quentin Hakenwerth, SM from NACMS. Participants are asked to reflect and pray with these virtues and part of the class time will be spent in small groups reflecting on the virtues.

Explore the rituals, beliefs, and writings of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam through a comparative lens. This course examines where these Abrahamic religions overlap and diverge, offering insights into their shared monotheistic roots and unique traditions. We will read key texts from each faith and gain a deeper understanding of how these religions shape meaning, practice, and identity.

Each presenter will tell their story of how they have lived their lives within the Marianist Family which is a global, diverse, and prayerful community of Catholic men and women who share a common charism and look to Mary as a model of faith and discipleship. It is made up of three primary branches: the Society of Mary (Marianist brothers and priests), the Daughters of Mary Immaculate (Marianist Sisters), and Lay Marianists, who are men and women committed to the Marianist charism and often form or join Marianist Lay Communities.

The author of the Fourth Gospel was a gifted writer, who proclaimed his message to others by way of his engaging stories. In this series, we will begin by discussing the role of stories in our lives: the ways that they tell us who we are as a people and shape our vision of ourselves and others. Then we will explore six of John’s stories, taking note of John’s use of literary and dramatic devices such as setting, symbolism, dual-meaning, misunderstanding leading to further explanation, and staging to communicate his unique vision of God’s Good News in Jesus. Most Christian churches – Catholic, Protestant, and Anglican - will be including these stories in their worship services on the Sundays of this coming Lent and Easter.

In Fall of 2022 nearly seventy UDOLLI members chose to enroll in what some later described as an emotional yet intellectually and morally challenging seminar. Participants were asked to listen with intentionality to a range of stark, up-close, and personal interviews with the homeless, the mentally-ill living on the streets, prostitutes, the drug and alcohol addicted, victims of domestic violence, sexual abuse and childhood trauma; and those who have experienced generational trauma within dysfunctional families. This was not an easy seminar, yet nearly every participant stayed until the end of the six weeks and with all having been challenged to reflect upon the human condition through a different moral and philosophical lens.

While this class will reprise a few interviews from the 2022 seminar, 90% of the earlier seminar is refreshed with new interviews conducted in the last year. Each interview has the visual ability to draw us deeply into the shared personal stories. Seminar participants will be invited to grapple with and perhaps better understand the basic humanity and turning points in life that led to these individuals’ circumstances.

Let’s be honest, many well-intentioned people even within our own families are prone to immediate judgment toward “those people” living on the fringes of our society. Yet our Judeo-Christian traditions proclaim a God who radically loves all people; a God that meets people in their present conditions. New Testament narratives confront us with a radical preacher named Jesus who was drawn -- not to the rich and well-positioned -- but to those marginalized and made invisible by society. Moreover, Biblical scholars tell us that this Jesus confronted and challenged conventional attitudes toward the broken and the lost. Together, the critical questions we will ask in his seminar are: How do we make sense of the human condition where so many among us are marginalized, unseen, broken, and often on a path to self-destruction? Where is God in all of this, if at all? Does God really care and do we really care? And as the late rock star Tina Turner once sang “what’s love got to do with it?” Seminar will be limited to 50 participants so as to encourage class conversation.