SAS 110 Love and Creation
In a world of political, economic, and ideological differences (which all seem mediated by algorithms and screens) can we get real? That is, is there any way of coming to terms with what reality really is so we can better orient ourselves to our lives? For Christians (and Jews and Muslims) thinking about Creation is a way of imagining what reality is really like. In these traditions, Creation is a manifestation of God¿s love and ongoing care. If that¿s true, how are we supposed to love the world? How should we think about the relationship of our love of God to our love of His creatures? Do we have to choose one over the other? Do we have to educate our love of the world in certain ways to love God (and perhaps even to love the world) well? And if we want to love God, each other and the world in a human way, what does Christian faith teach us about how to do that day to day? In this one credit course that will meet an hour every week, we will begin with the question of reality and think about Creation as a way of imagining our world and our place in it. Then we will turn to the problem of love, focusing particularly on friendship and romantic love as human manifestations of God¿s creative power that is always calling us to deeper communion.