Course Description: Join us for a contemplative exploration of selected passages from sixteenth-century Spanish Carmelite mystic and reformer Teresa of Avila’s spiritual and theological masterpiece, The Interior Castle. As we read, we will draw attention to foundational metaphors in Teresa’s writing and consider their significance for the spiritual life today.
Our study will be enriched through perspectives from conceptual metaphor theory, which holds that metaphors are rooted in our earliest embodied experiences, embedded in language, and integral to understanding. Embodied knowing shapes how we think about the world and make sense of experiences, including spiritual experiences.
Students will read passages from Teresa’s writings and post reflections and responses weekly on the Discussion Board. Students are invited to engage a metaphor encountered in Teresa’s writings through the visual arts as an expression of and focus for prayer. We will gather two times on Zoom for a Tuesday evening “fireside chat.”
This course is open to anyone. Those desiring credit toward the
Certificate in Spiritual Formation can expect to participate fully and submit a final integration paper at the end of the course. All are welcome to do so regardless of status in the program.
Location: Online
With: Elizabeth Ford Friend is a scholar of Christian spirituality and contemplative practice. She holds a PhD in Christian spirituality from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California. Her areas of academic research include conceptual metaphor analysis of religious texts, narratives of spiritual autobiography, interpretation theory, and Ignatian spirituality.
A Senior Lecturer and Advisor in the Doctoral Programs at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA, Dr. Friend has also enjoyed teaching at the Washington Theological Union, Georgetown University, the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University, and San Francisco Theological Seminary.
A graduate of Davidson College (B.A.), Union Presbyterian Seminary (M.Div.), and the Institut Protestant de Theologie (Lic), Dr. Friend is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA). She has been active in pastoral ministry in suburban Philadelphia, the San Francisco Bay area and, Virginia.
Schedule:
September 26, 2022 Course begins
September 27 7-8:30 pm Fireside chat
October 25 7-8:30 pm Fireside chat
October 28 Course ends
December 5 Integration paper due
This is an asynchronous course; participants will not be required to log on at specific times.