School of Christian Formation … Online

Diocese of Palm Beach Participants: This is a combined course. Online students in the Diocese of Palm Beach will receive credit for both the SCF Old Testament Introduction and New Testament Introduction courses. This does not count as credit for the Introduction to the Bible course offered in the classroom side of the SCF.

Course Description: This course is designed to introduce learners to the Bible and help them understand, love, live by, and teach Scripture. It will help students understand:

• The meaning of inspiration, historical development, and literary criticism
• The primary themes and basic concepts in Scripture, including covenant, kingdom, creation, salvation, and conversion
• The scriptural foundations for Catholic moral teaching, conscience formation, and decision-making
• The use of Scripture in theological reflection
• God's revelation in Creation, the person of Jesus, and lived experience
• Jesus' life, mission, death, and Resurrection

Course Requirements:

• Complete the four online tutorials and submit the completed corresponding course materials to the Searchlight Virtual School.
• Purchase and read the required course text.
• Complete and submit the "Assessment" materials associated with the course text. The format for the Assessment is "open book."
• Since this is a combined course, all requirements must be met within a four month time frame.

Required Text:

Online Tutorial Links:

A Popular Guide to Reading the Bible

By Macrina Scott, O.S.F.

The Whole Bible at a Glance: It's 'Golden Thread' of Meaning

By Virginia Smith

Finding the Heart of Jesus' Life: Looking at Jesus in the Gospels

By Kenneth R. Overberg, S.J.

The Beatitudes: Finding Where Your Treasure Is

By Leonard Foley, O.F.M.

Scripture: Nourished by the Word 

Margaret Nutting Ralph, Ph.D.

Loyola Press

Purchase Text Online:

List Price: $7.95

Amazon.com

Loyola Press

The Searchlight Virtual School does not provide or distribute the texts associated with the courses. Each participant is responsible for obtaining the text. Texts can be ordered online or by special order through a local book store.

Order Course:

Course Description: This course is designed to help students develop the skills required to proclaim Christ in today's world. It will:

• Bring individuals to a clear knowledge of Jesus Christ as true God and true man
• Clarify the Church's teachings about the nature and life of Jesus Christ
• Help bring individuals into a personal relationship with the living Christ
• Help seekers understand why Jesus is the example and guide for their lives
• Help them worship the living God through Christ and in the Spirit

Course Requirements:

• Complete the two online tutorials and submit the completed corresponding course materials to the Searchlight Virtual School.
• Purchase and read the required course text.
• Complete and submit the "Assessment" materials associated with the course text. The format for the Assessment is "open book."
• Since this is a single course, all requirements must be met within a three month time frame.

Required Text:

Online Tutorial Links:

Who Is Jesus?

By Leonard Foley, O.F.M.

The Four Faces of Jesus

By Virginia Smith

Christology: True God, True Man

Matthias Neuman, O.S.B., S.T.D.

Loyola Press

Purchase Text Online:

List Price: $7.95

Amazon.com

Loyola Press

Order Course:

The Searchlight Virtual School does not provide or distribute the texts associated with the courses. Each participant is responsible for obtaining the text. Texts can be ordered online or by special order through a local book store.

Required Text:

Online Tutorial Links:

What Is 'The Kingdom of God'? A Theologian Explains the Key Image of the Gospel

By Richard P. McBrien

Mary of Nazareth: Jesus' Mother, Our Mother

By Alfred McBride, O. Praem.

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Course Description: The history of the Church is the story of faith handed on, of how fallible human people have struggled to live out the Gospel in the very concrete circumstances of their lives for two thousand years. This course will help students:

• Understand that the entire Church is responsible for the conservation and transmission of the Gospel message
• Examine the role that prayer, study of Scripture, and the teachings of the Church have played in the Christian story
• Learn from the insights and wisdom, as well as the mistakes and missteps, of those who have striven to live the Gospel message throughout the history of Christianity
• Understand why some knowledge of the depths and riches of the past help nourish the ministry of the Church today

Course Requirements:

• Complete the online tutorial and submit the completed corresponding course materials to the Searchlight Virtual School.
• Purchase and read the required course text.Complete and submit the "Assessment" materials associated with the course text. The format for the Assessment is "open book."
• Since this is a single course, all requirements must be met within a three month time frame.

Online Tutorial Link:

Required Text:

Church History: Faith Handed On

Kevin L. Hughes, Ph.D.

Loyola Press

Purchase Text Online:

List Price: $7.95

Amazon.com

Loyola Press

Ten 'Peak Moments' of Church History: From Pentecost to Vatican II

By Alfred McBride, O. Praem.

Order Course:

The Searchlight Virtual School does not provide or distribute the texts associated with the courses. Each participant is responsible for obtaining the text. Texts can be ordered online or by special order through a local book store.

Diocese of Palm Beach Participants: This is a combined course. Online students in the Diocese of Palm Beach will receive credit for two courses: Liturgy and Sacraments. In all other dioceses this is considered a single course.

Course Description: This course is an introduction to the history, theology, and pastoral practice of the Church's liturgy and her sacraments.  It will help students:

• Realize how the liturgy is understood as the work of the Church and the work of God
• Examine the sacraments as visible signs
• Understand how and why the sacraments confer the gift of grace
• Clarify the meaning of "the institution of the sacraments by Christ"
• Examine a brief history of the early development of each of the seven sacraments
• Grasp the importance of Baptism as the sacramental action of the Church that makes us Christian and Catholic
• Understand the history and theology of the Eucharist
• Examine the theological and pastoral implications of the Church's sacramental life 

Course Requirements:

• Complete the two online tutorials and submit the completed corresponding course materials to the Searchlight Virtual School.
• Purchase and read the required course text.Complete and submit the "Assessment" materials associated with the course text. The format for the Assessment is "open book."
• Since this is a combined course, all requirements must be met within a four month time frame.