International Catholic University : Welcome! Master's Degree Programs & Courses for self-study
Founded in 1994, the International Catholic University is dedicated to embodying the ideal of the Catholic university as set forth in Pope John Paul II's apostolic letter, From the Heart of the Church (1990). As the title of that document reminds us, the university as an institution was founded under the patronage of the Church. At the outset, it would have been redundant to speak of the Catholic university. As the German professor responded when asked to speak about the universe, "What else is there?"
The universities that were chartered from the beginning of the 13th century had their origins in the monastic and cathedral schools that preceded them, and the liberal education of these schools harked back to Roman imperial education in which Augustine had been involved, and even farther back to the schools of Athens. The university thus has its remote roots in pagan philosophy. The mark of medieval education was the living relation that was established between reason and Christian faith. The university was the institutional embodiment of the conviction that faith and reason are compatible and indeed reinforce one another.
In our time there is a widespread assumption that the university is by definition secular. Whatever the religious auspices under which it began, the university has evolved and matured into a thoroughly secular institution in which faith can play no integral role. The declension of many of the great universities of the United States from religious to secular institutions has been chronicled in recent years. Many have expressed the opinion that Catholic colleges and universities are on the same trajectory and must end in a state indistinguishable from that of their secular counterparts. The faith will be present in the worship of the community and in a keen sense of social responsibility, but the mind and imagination will be untouched by it. This is not a consummation devoutly or otherwise wished by the administrations of our colleges and universities; it would certainly not be recognized as the goal of their endeavors. Nonetheless, the growing distance of the faculties from the stated ideals of Catholic institutions makes the threat of complete secularization real.
Standing athwart this tendency is Ex corde ecclesiae, to say nothing of Newman's monumental Idea of a University. Reactions to the 1990 papal document, as well as the long sad history of theological dissent since 1968, make it clear that Catholic campuses have become a battlefield where the ultimate issue is in doubt. Catholic scholars for whom the outlook of Ex corde ecclesiae is but simple common sense are no longer the majority in our faculties. Many are hostile, others indifferent, some seemingly unaware of the problem. It is no longer rare for a student in a Catholic institution to realize that his professor is questioning and opposing, rather than clarifying and explaining, the most fundamental tenets of the faith. A long twilight battle lies before us on the Catholic campus.
The International Catholic University grew out of the thought that, if one gathered the leading Catholic scholars onto one campus, the ideal of the Catholic university could be realized in a quince. The realization that this is not simply a dream, but a real possibility, arises from the electronic means that have given rise to so-called distance education. A few dozen telephone calls, a consultation with Mother Angelica at Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), and the ICU was launched. Within months, our lecturers began to appear on EWTN.
The aim of ICU is to make the Catholic intellectual, cultural and literary patrimony available to those unable to attend a traditional campus. It does what every Catholic college and university should be doing. The first effort was to make available the content of the Catholic patrimony. Now, forty courses of lectures are available on video and audio tape. Some of these have been viewed on EWTN.
The second phase upgrades many of these courses to a level where they can receive credit on the same basis as regular graduate-level college courses. The taped lectures become the core around which reading and writing assignments must be fulfilled and examinations taken. In cooperation with Holy Apostles College and Seminary, courses are available which lead to a master of arts degree in philosophy and a master of arts degree in theology.
Holy Apostles was founded in 1956 in Cromwell, Connecticut, by The Very Reverend Eusebe M. Menard, O.F.M., to provide a college-level program of education and formation especially for adults who sought to answer God's call to the priesthood later in life, with an academic and seminary environment suited to their age and background. Holy Apostles Seminary was then a college-level preparatory seminary, which Fr. Menard entrusted to the Missionaries of the Holy Apostles.
In 1972, in accordance with both the directives of Vatican Council II and its responsibilities in the larger Christian community, Holy Apostles broadened its purpose to include undergraduate degrees for men and women who were not seminarians. This began Holy Apostles College division.
In 1978 the focus of the seminary program was broadened to include a graduate degree program in addition to the undergraduate seminary program. For the first time, seminarians were able to earn the Master of Divinity degree and complete the entire program of priestly formation.
In 1982 the Missionaries of the Holy Apostles invited the bishops of Connecticut to serve on the Board of Directors with the Bishop of Norwich as Chancellor. This partnership, together with lay membership on the Board, allows episcopal guidance to blend with professional expertise and the traditions of the institution in a creative way benefitting faculty and students alike.