ST. CECILIA ACADEMY SR.PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT ataglance

Why will philosophy courses be offered beginning in 2023-24?

Perhaps never before has it been so important to provide our students with an intellectual formation that emphasizes confidence in the mind’s ability to know the truth, and offers tools to engage in reasoned discourse with logic and charity. The term “philosophy” comes from the Greek for “love of wisdom” As an academic discipline, philosophy aims at the acquisition of wisdom. Education is more than accumulation of facts and skills, and at SCA, we strive to seek wisdom by learning together how to seek the truth, pursue the good, and appreciate the beautiful.

Why offer both religion and philosophy classes?

In our pursuit of wisdom and true happiness, we need both the light of faith on which religion or theology is based, and the light of reason on which philosophy is based. As St. John Paul II wrote: “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth” (Fides et Ratio). Philosophy will help our students engage the relevant questions of life with a reasoned approach. They will be able to see, as did the Greek pagan Aristotle, that much can be known by reason alone. Since all people have this light of reason, it provides common ground in our dialogue with others of diverse faiths. Finally, studying both theology and philosophy shows how faith and reason harmonize.

What is required in the philosophy program?

Our current 9th, 10th, and 11th graders may opt to take a semester philosophy course as an elective starting next school year, 2023-2024, and may choose these courses as electives until they graduate. Beginning with next year’s freshmen, students will study philosophy for one of the two semesters per academic year. The courses are Philosophy of the Human Person, Introduction to Ethics, Bioethics and Culture: Reason Applied in Human Actions, and Senior Philosophy Seminar.

Students begin with a philosophical study of the human person, and then are introduced to foundational ethical principles which enable them to correctly evaluate specific ethical issues. They come to see that such judgments are not arbitrary based merely on a personal view but rather based on an objective standard accessible to all reasonable people. Once this foundation has been laid, students are ready to delve into current issues in courses on business ethics, bioethics, politics, and social issues.

What is the goal in studying the Philosophyof the Human Person? This course studies what it means that human beings are persons, i.e., beings endowed with freedom and an inner life, capable of knowing and loving. In this study, students come to grasp the profound dignity of every human person and how respecting this dignity leads to happiness.

How will Ethics build on this foundation? The study of ethics centers on the desire for happiness we all share. Relevant to the quest for happiness, topics studied include: freedom and the law, conscience and truth, human acts and morals acts, and how virtues assist us in pursuing the good unto lasting happiness.

How does Bioethics and Culture: Reason Applied in Human Actions extend this study? The basic principles related to knowing the truth and choosing the good will be applied to contemporary questions in bioethics, workplace ethics, and the ethical use of technology and social media.

How does Philosophy Seminar complete the philosophical program? By senior year, students are ready to engage some of the great thinkers and texts that have shaped the philosophical tradition. From the ancient Greeks to modern scholars, readings and seminars immerse students in deep consideration of the good, the true, and the beautiful.

What will colleges think of the philosophy courses taken by St. Cecilia Academy graduates? Admissions representatives from a sampling of public and private colleges and universities as well as administrators from high schools offering similar courses indicate that colleges recognize the academic value of philosophy courses and regard them as academic electives. High schools with similar philosophy departments include: St. John Paul the Great in Arlington, VA; Frassati Catholic in Houston, TX; Mount De Sales Academy in Baltimore, MD; and St. John Paul II in Phoenix, AZ.

How does Philosophy fit into the overall course of study at St. Cecilia Academy? These courses will hone our students’ skills in careful and critical thinking, applicable in every discipline and crucial for balanced engagement with the culture. These courses teach students not only to seek the truth, but that truth can be known with certainty.