Ethics in the Anglican tradition draws on a rich history of discourse as we strive to engage with our faith, living it out in an imperfect world and Church. Whether we are struggling to justify sacramental liturgy and church hierarchy in the face of Puritan attack, or determining church policy on inclusion of women and LGBTQIA+ people, Anglicans have drawn on a wide array of ethical approaches ranging from teleological virtue ethics to relational theory (both pre-feminist and contemporary).
Ethical dilemmas continue to challenge lay and ordained leaders across the wide diversity of our church—frequently in our own parishes, where each of us engages our faith to face the challenges that surround us. In this course we’ll explore how thinkers as diverse as Plato (ancient Greece) and Marcella Althaus Reid (contemporary social justice and postcolonial liberation theorist) have helped people of faith make hard choices and live faithfully with the results. We’ll spend some time conversing with history (ancient Greece, Bible, Reformation), then dive into some of our “best” Anglican dilemmas both old and new as we explore the application of our rich tradition to real life issues in the church at home and around the world.
Instructor: The Rev. Dr. Austin Leininger
The Rev. Dr. Austin Leininger has been an Episcopal priest in the Diocese of Northern California since 2006, and currently serves as Priest-in-Charge at Calvary Episcopal Church in Santa Cruz. He completed his PhD in Ethics and Social Theory at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. He has been teaching in Anglican studies and Ethics for the past six years and teaches concurrently at CDSP and Iliff School of Theology’s Anglican Studies program in Denver, CO. He is husband to Jane, and papa to their three children.