I was delighted when Catholic Productions began to produce college-level courses, beginning with Dr. Brant Pitre. At that time, I was an undergrad in theology and I made it a habit to "beef-up" my coursework with audio materials from other speakers. While parish talks and conferences are helpful and should be utilized (and, indeed, I do utilize them), I find that, with rare exceptions, the college-level courses are more profitable for me.
This series on the Apostle Paul will not disappoint. Pitre closely follows the outline that is available online and covers a lot of ground. His approach is not book-by-book but rather, theme-by-theme. He begins with the concept of biblical theology itself and refers to the text by Father Ferdinand Prat, who provides a very lucid explanation of the three areas of theology: historical, dogmatic, and biblical and how they relate to one another. Then, he provides the key themes in St. Paul as well as the key to his theology (old creation/new creation). A brief biography of Paul is provided including his "conversion". A few of the included themes include Paul's eschatology, "theology of the body", The Mysteries of Sin, the Cross, the Law, the Angels, Christ and the Church and the New Jerusalem. He even covers the pastoral epistles of 1-2 Timothy and Titus as well as the epistle to the Hebrews. While I cannot say that no stone is left unturned, he provides a foundation and a roadmap for one's future Pauline studies.
But these classroom courses are not just for those who are actually taking classes but for the rank-and-file Catholics who want to grow in their knowledge and love of their Lord. Pitre's always-pleasant personality shines forth in these talks with his sense of humor and devotion. If you allow them to be, these classroom courses are also spiritually nourishing. With all theological study, they must become "metabolized" into one's person and bear fruit for heaven. But unlike Scott Hahn, Pitre does not overwhelm the liste...
