For those who wish to take part in our community of learning through distance education, our School puts forward a vision of live, synchronous engagement as the beating heart of our formational engagement with the mystery of God. We strive to provide you with a person-based experience of formation under the leadership of your professor and in the company of your classmates that will regularly impact you intellectually, spiritually, and emotionally.
St. Bernard’s exists to be a resource for formation in faith through graduate-level engagement of theology and philosophy. In this formation in faith, we “consciously grow in the life of Christ through experience, reflection, prayer and study” (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us: A Pastoral Plan for Adult Faith Formation in the United States).
But this formation is not simply the transfer of information or mere academic engagement: “formation is aimed at ‘transforming’ and ‘assimilating’ the heart in the image of the heart of Christ, who was sent by the Father to fulfill his loving plan” (Ratio fundamentalis, 89). Our School does not exist merely to transmit information, but rather to in-form our lives with the very form of the heart of Christ, under the power of the Holy Spirit.
The opportunity to be formed in faith should be available to every Christian. For this reason, St. Bernard’s offers programming for every adult, regardless of prior formation. St. Bernard’s likewise offers programming to everyone around the country and around the world, overcoming the problem of distance through online education technology.
While pre-recorded videos and passively-consumed content may be good enough for the transfer of information, St. Bernard’s believes that these methods are not good enough for our formation in faith. After all, “effective formation methods address the whole person: emotions, imagination, will, heart, and mind. It is the whole person who ministers [in the Church], so the whole person is the proper subject of formation" (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, “Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord: A Resource for Guiding the Development of Lay Ecclesial Ministry,” 33).
If your schedule makes it impossible for you to attend live classes, or if your time zone difference is too extreme, you are invited to take part in our offerings asynchronously at your own pace. Your asynchronous participation will still allow you to take part in a living community: you would be watching recordings of classes that occurred 12-24 hours before they are posted, which means class material will (a) never be outdated and (b) will be the live engagement of the current professor and the current students in your course.
Courses at St. Bernard’s have schedules that work well for busy lives, with classes usually taking place on weeknights either every other week or once a week throughout the semester. Whether you are able to attend in-person at our campus in Rochester, to join us live from wherever you are, or to engage our live courses asynchronously,, we welcome you to pursue integrated, transformative formation with us.
In-Class Instruction
Synchronous Video Conferencing
Asynchronous Online Instruction
Hybrid Instruction
In-class instruction occurs at our Rochester campus, with classes usually taking place on weeknights either every other week or once a week throughout the semester. We welcome you to pursue integrated, transformative formation with us.
Synchronous video conferencing through Zoom offers a way to attend classes live without leaving the comfort of one’s home. All of our in-person courses are available through synchronous video conferencing.
Asynchronous online instruction allows you to take part in a living community: you would be watching recordings of classes that occurred 12-24 hours before they are posted, which means class material will (a) never be outdated and (b) will be the live engagement of the current professor and the current students in your course. This option is available for those for whom it is impossible to attend live classes, or if your time zone difference is too extreme. You are invited to take part in our offerings asynchronously at your own pace.
Lastly, hybrid instruction uniquely combines the aforementioned modes of instruction in various ways to affect the teaching of a class.
