Is Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis theologically orthodox?

[Embertide]

Hi everyone,

My wife is thinking about applying for MA in theology at Aquinas Institute of Theology in St Louis, Missouri. She doesn’t have a Catholic Answers account, so I’m inquiring about this on her behalf.

She’s quite a “traditional” Catholic in the sense that she prefers theological expressions prior to Vatican II (especially in regard to scriptural interpretation) and the Extraordinary Form of the Mass and other devotional practices (First Friday Devotion, the brown scapular, etc.) that have fallen out of use in the past 60 years or so. She has no interest in liberation theology, feminist theology, multiculturalism, ecology, or other “social justice” related topics.

Her question is: Can anyone with experience at the Aquinas Institute of Theology speak on whether it would be a good fit for someone with her views?

She has looked into other graduate programs, but for financial and practical reasons, Aquinas seems to be the best option.

Thanks!

 

[DIERM]

She has no interest in liberation theology, feminist theology, multiculturalism, ecology, or other “social justice” related topics.

Her question is: Can anyone with experience at the Aquinas Institute of Theology speak on whether it would be a good fit for someone with her views?

Based on the first quote above, the answer might be no, but not specifically to the AI of T, but to a pursuit of an MA in theology anywhere.

Course work in theology is an academic pursuit, not just a spiritual one. To formulate cogent academic thought on the “traditional” theology she seems to want to exclusively study that singular view, and often it is important to study diverse topics.

Avoiding coursework on Liberation Theology, Feminist Theology, Multiculturalism, Ecology, or other “social justice” related topics will only weaken her ability to deal with what she is going to face in the real world, outside the university setting.

She might be better off taking deep scriptural studies a the parish or diocesan level. But, limiting exposure to topics one just doesn’t like pretty much dilutes the academic degree.

 

[Embertide]

It isn’t so much that she isn’t open to learning about new theological views, but those types of ideas made up 90% of what she learned in undergrad. She’s learned so much about the scriptural and theological underpinnings of those ideas but has yet to be taught good explanations of her own theological views.

I also should have mentioned that her reasons for pursuing the degree are both professional and for her own spiritual enrichment.