How did the Catholic Church become one of the most influential institutions in the world - a force capable of moving armies, inspiring saints, and shaping the lives of a billion members? Explore these and other questions as you follow the development of this important institution in 36 informative, fascinating lectures. With Professor Cook by your side, you'll step into the world of the early church, witness the spread of Christendom, and learn about the origins of fundamental church institutions.
Your journey begins in the early years of the church, when Jesus's disciples developed the first communities of faith. You'll get a chance to delve into crucial ancient church documents and gain an intriguing glimpse into the lives of these early believers. From there, you'll trace the development and spread of this nascent religion throughout the world, covering crucial developments including the conversion of the Roman Empire to Catholicism, the schism between the Roman faith and the Greek Orthodox Church, and the Reformation. As you delve into this fascinating saga, you'll quickly see that the Catholic Church actually takes many forms. You'll trace the many variations of worship and belief that evolved as Christianity spread all over the Mediterranean, and you'll witness how Catholic practice and faith have been transformed by the cultures and peoples it has touched. Professor Cook brings an unparalleled intellectual rigor to his presentation, balanced by a deep appreciation of the church's legacy and impact. Join him on this epic journey through Catholic history, and experience how this small gathering of faithful became one of the most powerful forces on the world stage - the “one holy catholic and apostolic Church.”The Catholic Church: A History
Explore the vast and fascinating history of one of the most influential institutions in the world.
Rated 4 out of
5
by
Route 66 from
Religion and denial of reality
I don't recall mention of Julian of Norwich when discussing Medieval mystics, nor mention of the Filioque controversy when discussing the Great Schism between Orthodox and Latin rite churches. It is helpful to know that the linguistic differences between Latin and Greek could lead to misunderstandings, but this fact does not suffice to explain what occurred.
I would not have motivation to write a review based on these omissions alone. It is the assumption that Juan Diego can enter the historical record uncontested that is at issue. The Jesuit magazine AMERICA provided ten things to know about Juan Diego and the canonization process then in motion. One of them stated that there was no proof Juan Diego ever existed.
Since then the Vatican has settled the matter, apparently. This is that same Vatican JP II presided over when he endorsed Fr. Maciel Degollado as a role model and made Opus Dei his personal prelature. I will leave it to the reader to either know or find out why these two are less than ideal examples of Christian faith and practice.
The Spanish were known to use indigenous culture as a means to evangelize.. The image of Juan Diego used at his elevation to sainthood has him look more Spanish than mestizos. And of course, Juan came from a noble family One could opine that goddess worship is a Pagan holdover (there was an indigenous female deity, part of Nahuatl culture). Whatever the truth may be, it remains an unfortunate fact that the Vatican endorsing the reality of an event does not guarantee the authenticity of same. It would have been appropriate to mention the controversy that played out during and after the canonization process.
Thee have been clergy and scholars making the case that there was never a Juan Diego in profane history, and by analogy, sacred history either. And one must ask: is not the notion of chastity applicable to a married couple faithful to their vows? How, then, is it that Juan Diego and his wife heard a sermon on chastity and decided to live as brother and sister from then on? This bit of religious trivia is not found on this presentation but rather an addition found online to the stories and lore surrounding this purported saint, an instance to validate the skeptics view that the whole thing was made up.
One would have preferred some mention of the controversy rather than the tacit assumption that there never was such and the historicity of both Juan Diego and the apparitions are an uncontested fact. The truths of the Christian faith, writ large, are too important to trivialize the witness of the first apostles and people of faith through time with such arcane digressions into superstition and idolatry.
Date published: 2025-06-30
Rated 5 out of
5
by
gloster from
Informative and appropriately critical
I approached this course with some trepidation since, as one baptized into the Church from an Irish-American family in the 1940s AND as one who has studied and lived in and with the Church since then, I am quite familiar with its many shortcomings. My concern was both about how "objective" the course's professor could be, but also about how objective "I" could be about what he had to say!
Since I have also studied much about the Church in the latter half of my long life (I am 82 years of age), as well as being a student of Scripture, I also must confess that I have something of a love/"no way" relationship with the Catholic Church, especially since I think it has for centuries greatly erred in stressing the importance of human-derived "doctrines" over the teachings of Jesus, its alleged founder.
I use the word "alleged" advisedly! As another reviewer has pointed out, there are portions of the Gospels that must be regarded as somewhat suspicious since they appear to be reflections/insertions from the later Church; and there is probably none more central to the Church's claim to be "the institution Jesus intended to set up" than the sentence in Matthew where Jesus is said to have declared "You are Peter and upon this rock I build/found my church."
There are many other places in the Gospels were Jesus makes it quite clear that he had NO INTENTION of diminishing or removing any portion of "The Law." So, laying my cards on the table, I view Jesus as yet another of the "reform prophets" who wished to re-purify the teachings of the Covenant of Moses rather than someone who intended to break away and found another institution.
That said, I really enjoyed this course, in great measure because I reveled in Professor Cook's undoubted enthusiasm for the subject matter. He is a fine lecturer, and I think did a tremendous job of "covering" -- as best one can -- an institution now over 2,000 years old.
One of the sections I found most informative was his discussion of how the early church evolved -- indeed, HAD to evolve -- after Christianity had become the official religion of the Roman Empire in the 4th century. Its sudden freedom from persecution AND the sweeping inclusion of residents of the empire under its wing as the "official" religion transformed the Christian communities from people who were FIRM Christians, so much so that they were willing to suffer and die for their fate, to communities where vast numbers of persons were only nominally "Christians" and who knew virtually nothing about the faith.
That was the first big change that led to momentous changes in the following centuries.
The second one was that as the Roman Empire in the West withered and then collapsed the Church found itself -- in the person of local bishops -- of having to attempt to "pick up the pieces" of administrative necessities without which communities cannot long survive, including such things as repairing roads and buildings, ensuring adequate food supplies, and defending their home cities against attack.
It is fascinating that what I most have deplored about "the Church" -- its often pompous and regal administrative and hierarchical structure -- was a consequence of the breakdown of the Roman empire. The Church didn't "grab" power, it gradually assumed secular authority in the midst of a vacuum.
Of course, these two things -- the inclusion of many who knew little to nothing about the faith AND the accumulation of secular authority and power -- over the following centuries transformed the original humble community of outsiders into an institution which, convinced of its "rightful" power both secular and religious, increasingly behaved in ways that had little to nothing to do with Jesus' teachings.
The course, above all, I think, gets across very successfully how our HUMAN failings have so inevitably infected what is, after all, a human institution.
Despite all of this, there have been countless numbers of true "saints" -- both acknowledged formally by the Church and recognized as such in their own time by those who knew them -- throughout the centuries, and they continue to be with us today. Now, as then, MOST of them have not been members of the hierarchy or clergy nor, indeed, popes, but rather those who took Jesus' teachings seriously and tried to live their lives accordingly.
I look forward to the Church have the courage and wisdom to enact those reforms so clearly needed in our own time when Jesus' message of love and peace to and for all is so widely ignored.
Date published: 2025-06-25
Rated 2 out of
5
by
Zapa from
The Catholic Church: A History
It is quite clear that he is a Catholic first, and a scholar second. He gushes over his personal faith a lot, and as a non-Christian, this made this lecture hard to get through. My advice, skip the JP2 fan boy section and it's somewhat tolerable.
Date published: 2025-01-09
Rated 4 out of
5
by
soren13 from
Informative and Objective
“The Catholic Church: A History,” by Prof. William Cook
Professor Cook is an ideal teacher for this course, because he is both an ardent Catholic as well as a scholar committed to objectivity. Cook brings immense learning and enthusiasm to the subject, which result in lively, often fascinating lectures. Trained as a medieval historian, his lectures are strongest on this era, and in particular on his research interest of St. Francis and the Franciscan Order. Cook seems happiest when discussing popes and saints. Cook’s final lecture, “One? Holy? Catholic? Apostolic?” is a tour de force, combining loyalty to Catholicism with scholarly objectivity, and reaching forward to a noble future.
The map in Lecture #5, which was about the conversion of Roman Emperor Constantine to Christianity in the 4th century showed a map of a Byzantine Empire that did not exist then or ever with the borders shown. Instead, there was a Roman Empire with a western capital at Rome and an eastern capital at Constantinople. The Byzantine Empire developed later out of the eastern part of the Roman Empire with land holdings mostly in the eastern Mediterranean area.
A lack of familiarity with modern history may have led to a modest factual error Lecture # 28, when he described the situation in Europe in 1648 as “Protestantism triumphant.” In reality, the end of religious wars in 1648 resulted in a bloody stalemate with neither Catholicism nor Protestantism able to effect a total victory and with both sides committed to ensuring there would be no more religious wars. This religious peace has largely held since then.
In the end, I decided on a score of 4 out of 5, subtracting a single star for an error of omission: the only intermittent analysis of church-state relations. Cook omitted the fact that Constantine, the first Christian emperor of the Roman Empire in the 4th century CE, brought together a tight alliance of church and state. This church-state alliance survived the fall of the Roman Empire, became particularly strong in the Middle Ages, and survived into the modern era as the ideal for the Church. At times, this close church-state relationship resulted in theocracy as was the case with the Papal States, which existed from 755 CE until 1870. Cook omits this information, as well as the fact that at Vatican Two, the Church finally rejected theocracy. Cook declined to mention that the ideal of a church-state alliance, if not theocracy, has survived among some Catholic traditionalists who, according to Catholic journalist Mary Jo McConahay, are now active in the United States in the movement known as Christian Nationalism.
Despite the above-listed omissions, this is an excellent course, and I learned a lot from it.
Date published: 2024-11-20
Rated 5 out of
5
by
JayneD from
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH: A HISTORY
I borrowed this CD set from the library and took all summer to listen to it. It was so insightful. Professor cook was absolutely amazing, easy to understand, so knowledgeable and may the teaching so interesting. He has to have been or maybe still is an outstanding professor. I have been a Catholic Christian for a long time and this set taught me so much.
Date published: 2024-10-02
Rated 5 out of
5
by
KT13 from
I binged on these lectures - so awesome
I've listened to Dr. Cook's lectures on Dante, St. Augustine and Great Christians, and I always feel he has something important to teach about humanity in these lectures. In these lectures he makes this very complex and massive subject understandable and engaging at the same time. He presents the sweeping history of the Catholic Church from its foundation to the present day (2009) in manageable size lectures. While he presents the complex political intrigues (as well as the human failings) of the institutional church, and the role of the Church in Western history, he also discusses the lives of men and women throughout the Church's history who sincerely sought to live out the Christian message. This history also gives context to the reasons why certain tenets of Catholicism exist in the way they do today. My favorite chapters were the lectures on 19th century Catholicism and Vatican II.
Date published: 2023-09-12
Rated 5 out of
5
by
nateriggs from
Deep content delivered by a great storyteller
I just finished this course and while it was a marathon, it's one that I will likely go back and listen to again. Dr. Cook has such passion for this topic and a unique ability to take thousands of years of history, organize it in a way that makes contextual sense and then deliver the information in a storytelling fashion that keeps you engaged and moving.
As someone who converted to Catholicism as an adult through marriage, taking this course has not only deepened my appreciate for the organization of the church, it has also helped me to see both the beauty and the ugliness of Catholicism as it has progressed through the ages. In particular, I took away from this course a new appreciate for the Saints and how their stories help guide Christians in their practice of the faith. I definitely recommend this course...
Date published: 2023-01-17
Rated 1 out of
5
by
hellabella from
before me there was you, before me there was nothing.....ps, lou wants his glasses back
Date published: 2022-12-01
Trailer
01: From Jesus to the Creation of the Church
In the earliest days of the Christian faith, there was no church—no single institution or practice to guide the followers of Jesus. Step into the world of the early church and investigate the roots of Christianity as found in ancient Jewish traditions and the gospel.
32 min
02: The First Christian Institutions
In the first centuries A.D., the followers of Christ evolved from a loose band of disciples into tight-knit communities of worship. Catch a glimpse of these communities in some of the earliest Christian documents, including the Acts of the Apostles and the letters of Paul.
31 min
03: Christianities in the Early Church
Christianity quickly spread all over the Mediterranean region in the first few centuries. Learn how believers adapted the practice of their faith to create a great diversity of worship in the early church.
32 min
04: Persecution and Saints
As the Christian church grew and spread, it quickly caught the attention of the Roman emperor, who viewed the faithful as a threat to imperial authority and Roman culture. Learn about the widespread persecution of Christians that followed and led to a new class of Christian heroes, the martyred saints.
32 min
05: Peace between Empire and Church
In 312 CE, Christianity gained a powerful ally when the Roman emperor Constantine adopted the faith of Jesus as his own. See how this shift affected Christian believers as the church went from being a persecuted minority to a privileged minority.
32 min
06: Institutional and Doctrinal Developments
Freed from Roman persecution, the church underwent an institutional revolution, developing an organizational structure and unified doctrine still recognizable into today's Catholic Church. Examine the origin and impact of these changes, from the development of a church hierarchy to the establishment of orthodox beliefs.
32 min
07: Latin Theology, Including Augustine
As Christianity became the chief religion of Rome, Latin overtook Greek in the West as the premiere language of the faith. Examine the rich developments of Latin church theology, from the earliest thinkers to the most important father of Christian theology, Augustine.
32 min
08: Popes and Bishops in the Early Middle Ages
Christian society was thrown into turmoil by the fall of Roman authority as civic structures collapsed and citizens were left prey to marauding bands of Germanic tribes. Learn how the church provided leadership in the chaos that followed, ultimately consolidating power for its chief officials, the pope and the bishops.
31 min
09: Monasticism—Benedict and His Rule
Starting in the 3rd century, some Christians began to seek a way to live more like Christ by dedicating themselves to a life of poverty and contemplation. Trace the development of this movement and examine the preeminent form of monasticism in the West.
32 min
10: Evangelizing Northern and Eastern Europe
While Christianity first took root in the Roman Empire, it eventually spread to the rest of Europe. Trace this expansion and survey the variations in worship that developed throughout the regions of modern-day Ireland, Iceland, Scandinavia, and Germany.
32 min
11: The Germanization of Christianity
Christianity changed the lives of its believers, but how did these new believers affect the shape of the faith? Here, investigate the many ways that Germanic culture left its mark on Christianity in ways that affect adherents of the faith to this day.
32 min
12: Charlemagne and the Church in Feudal Times
During the tumultuous Middle Ages, Charlemagne undertook the political, cultural, and religious unification of most of western Europe. Examine how these efforts ultimately collapsed but led to a major development: the establishment of the Papal States.
32 min
13: Monks and Hermits—New Forms of Monasticism
By the end of the 10th century, corruption and political unrest plagued the Catholic Church, leading to deep and lasting reforms in monastic practice. Learn about these reforms and the new monastic orders—the Carthusians and Cistercians—that were established in response.
32 min
14: Papal Reform and Church-State Controversies
The 11th century was a period of unsettlement, resulting in the tumultuous schism between the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. Investigate the causes and effects of this split as well as a reformation of the papacy known as the Gregorian Reform.
32 min
15: Crusade, Heresy, Inquisition
At the end of the 11th century, the church confronted two major challenges to its authority: the rise of Islam and the development of alternative heretical Christian doctrines. Learn how the church responded to these challenges through the Crusades and the Papal Inquisition.
32 min
16: The Papacy—Innocent III to Boniface VIII
The 13th century saw the rise of the papal monarchy as the church increasingly sought secular authority over lands in the Italian peninsula and beyond. Here, probe the complex political maneuvers that contributed to this move toward secular power and the ultimate collapse of the papal monarchy.
32 min
17: Francis, Dominic, and the Mendicants
With the rapid growth of cities in the 12th and 13th centuries, the church needed to respond to the problems and issues facing its urban followers. Learn how these answers were provided by new monastic orders established by two key figures: Francis of Assisi and Dominic de Guzman.
32 min
18: Flowering of Church Art in the Middle Ages
The 12th and 13th centuries also saw the rise of new expression through great works of religious art. Trace the development of church art from the gorgeous illustrated manuscripts of the early Middle Ages to the Gothic cathedrals, stained-glass windows, and painted frescoes of the high Middle Ages.
32 min
19: Scholastic Thought
Around the year 1000, a new kind of Christian scholarship and writing developed out of the study of logic. Learn about this new form of thought, called scholastic theology, and examine the works of some of its greatest practitioners, including Thomas Aquinas.
32 min
20: Medieval Mysticism
Although the Middle Ages is often associated with scholarly theologians such as Thomas Aquinas, it was also an era of the flowering of a more affective and contemplative body of Christian experience. Examine this trend in the lives of mystical writers, including Hildegard of Bingen, Bonaventure, and Thomas à Kempis.
32 min
21: The Great Schism and the Conciliar Age
The 14th century saw many tumultuous changes, including the transfer of the papacy to Avignon in France that led to a schism between the factions of the competing popes. Trace the struggles during this period and examine the efforts to reunify the church.
32 min
22: The Renaissance Church
The 15th century was a period of both artistic inspiration and political upheaval for the papacy. Explore some of the period's greatest achievements—such as the painting of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel—as well as its political debacles, including Pope Julius II's infamous deployment of troops against other Catholic Christians.
32 min
23: Luther, Calvin, and the Reformation
Riding the crest of the Renaissance was the Reformation, with its call for the rejection of corruption within the church and inferior levels of pastoral care. Examine the impact of two key figures of the Reformation, Martin Luther and John Calvin.
31 min
24: Catholic Responses—The Council of Trent
How did the Catholic Church respond to the protests of reformers like Luther and Calvin? Was the church's Counter-Reformation a new movement, or were there reform movements prior to the Reformation? Explore these questions and investigate the church's official response to the Protestant Reformation, the Council of Trent.
31 min
25: The Jesuits
With the establishment of the Society of Jesus in 1540, Ignatius Loyola sparked a new missionary zeal in the church that had an enormous impact. Learn about the origins of this influential order and see how the “Spiritual Exercises” of Ignatius Loyola still touches the lives of Catholics today.
31 min
26: Catholicism in Asia and the New World
As European explorers embarked on journeys to new territories, they took with them Christian missionaries dedicated to spreading their faith beyond the boundaries of Christendom. In this lecture, follow the path of Catholicism into Latin America, Africa, and Asia.
31 min
27: American Catholicism
Since 1521, when mass was first said in what is now Florida, Catholicism has been a constant force in American life. Take a tour of more than 400 years of Catholicism in America, from its early days in Spanish missions and French colonies to canonization of the first U.S.-born saint.
32 min
28: The Church in the Age of Reason
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Catholic Church faced increasing challenges to its authority from military and political conflicts to the rise of a new emphasis on science and Humanism. Explore these complications and the church's response in this lecture.
32 min
29: Pius IX and Papal Infallibility
In the wake of several centuries of unrest and challenges, the church formed a key doctrine designed to help consolidate its authority: the doctrine of papal infallibility. Learn about the conditions that led up to this declaration.
32 min
30: Leo XIII and the Modern World
With the ascent of Leo XIII, the church began to grapple with modern problems, as seen in this pope's landmark encyclical on the problem of labor and industrialization, “Rerum Novarum.” Explore the achievements of this influential church leader and his successors—Pius X, Pius XI, and Pius XII.
32 min
31: The Eastern Catholic Churches
Modern Catholicism includes a wide array of practices. Examine the great variety of these different forms of worship, together called the Eastern Catholic Churches, found mainly in eastern Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and India.
31 min
32: The Second Vatican Council
Between 1962 and 1965, the bishops of the Catholic Church held a historic series of meetings called the Second Vatican Council, or Vatican II. Study the achievements of this groundbreaking council and consider the ways it has changed life and worship for modern Catholics.
32 min
33: The Catholic Church Looks Outward
Since Vatican II, the Catholic Church has adopted a new stance of cooperation with other religions and has sought ways to reach out to those of other faiths. Examine this trend toward greater ecumenicalism in the church.
32 min
34: The Challenges of New Theologies
In addition to reforming liturgical practice, Vatican II also opened up a dialogue about Catholic theology to incorporate new points of view appropriate for the modern world. Explore these "new theologies," including the liberation theology of Gustavo Gutiérrez and Leonardo Boff.
32 min
35: John Paul II and the 21st-Century Church
With the election of Cardinal Karol Wojtyla as Pope John Paul II in 1978, the Catholic Church saw the rise of a remarkable and unforgettable leader. Review the career of this "rock star pope" and examine how his life and legacy continue to touch the lives of Catholics the world over.
31 min
36: One? Holy? Catholic? Apostolic?
Each Sunday at mass, Catholics recite the Nicene Creed, which includes the words: "We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church." In this final lecture, take a look at today's church and examine the ways in which it fulfills and fails this pledge to unify the adherents of this 2,000-year-old faith.
32 min
Overview Course No. 6640
About
Dr. William R. Cook is the Distinguished Teaching Professor of History at the State University of New York at Geneseo, where he has taught since 1970. He earned his bachelor's degree cum laude from Wabash College and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa there. He was then awarded Woodrow Wilson and Herbert Lehman fellowships to study medieval history at Cornell University, where he earned his Ph.D. Professor Cook teaches courses in ancient and medieval history, the Renaissance and Reformation periods, and the Bible and Christian thought. Since 1983 Professor Cook has directed 11 Seminars for School Teachers for the National Endowment for the Humanities. His books include Images of St. Francis of Assisi and Francis of Assisi: The Way of Poverty and Humility. Dr. Cook contributed to the Cambridge Companion to Giotto and edits and contributes to The Art of the Franciscan Order in Italy. Among his many awards, Professor Cook has received the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching. In 1992 the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education named him New York State's Professor of the Year. In 2003 he received the first-ever CARA Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Medieval Studies from the Medieval Academy of America.
