From Augustine to Chesterton and Beyond: Great Spiritual Autobiographies

What would it be like to listen to great figures of our faith discuss their struggles, life lessons, and spiritual insights?

A number of remarkable Christians have bequeathed to us their autobiographies. Now, you can access their words and understand the contexts in which they lived with a master scholar and teacher as your guide.

In this course, you will explore fourteen inspiring writers who have revealed their spiritual yearnings and encounters with the transcendent. As you do so, you will find new intimacy with each writer, fresh perspectives, and horizons for discovery.

Starting with the Confessions of St. Augustine, you will move chronologically through the classics of the Christian tradition and modern spiritual masterpieces. You will explore Ignatius of Loyola and Teresa of Ávila, whose mystical autobiographies laid the foundations for their respective religious orders. Then, you will look at the moving spiritual relationship between Blaise Pascal and his sister Jacqueline, the intellectual vivacity of John Henry Newman, and the “Little Way” of Thérèse of Lisieux.

As you move into the twentieth century, you will encounter lay Catholic philosophers Jacques and Raïssa Maritain, beloved writer G. K. Chesterton, and the anguished genius of Simone Weil. Finally, you will look at two men executed in Nazi Germany: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Alfred Delp, S. J.

Join Dr. Higgins on this literary, spiritual, and altogether unforgettable odyssey today.

This course is part of the Learn25 collection.