Monthly Subscription Starting at AED 99 + VAT

The Worldview of Thomas Berry: The Flourishing of the Earth Community
  • Level Foundation
  • Duration 25 hours
  • Course by Yale University
  • Offered by

About

Thomas Berry (1914-2009) was a historian of world religions and an early voice awakening moral sensibilities to the environmental crisis. He is known for articulating a “new story” of the universe that explores the implications of the evolutionary sciences and cultural traditions for creating a flourishing future. This course investigates Berry’s life and thought in relation to the Journey of the Universe project. It draws on his books, articles, and recorded lectures to examine such ideas as: the New Story, the Great Work, and the emerging Ecozoic era. The course explores Berry’s insights into cosmology as a context for locating the human in a dynamic unfolding universe and thus participating in the creative work of our times. In particular, we will examine Berry’s reflections on renewal and reform in the areas of ecology, economics, education, spirituality, and the arts. Course Rationale: Thomas Berry was an original, creative, and comprehensive thinker, especially regarding the critical nature of our global environmental crisis. His intellectual importance resides in his response to the ecological crisis by bringing together the humanities and science in an evolutionary narrative. In addition, he articulated the need for the moral participation of the world religions in addressing environmental issues. He came to this realization largely through his study of cosmologies embedded within religious traditions. Sensing the significance of these stories as “functional cosmologies” he explored the widespread influence that these stories transmitted through a tradition, for example, in rituals, ethics, and subsistence practices.

Modules

About This Course

    • 1 Videos
    • 2 Readings
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Course Introduction

2 Readings

  • Course Description
  • Pre-Course Survey

Meet Your Instructors and Peers!

    • 1 Readings
    • 1 Discussion
Show info about module content

1 Discussions

  • Introduce yourself!

1 Readings

  • Meet Your Instructional Team

Course Resources

    • 3 Readings
Show info about module content

3 Readings

  • Recommended Texts
  • Books of Thomas Berry
  • Additional Berry resources

The Worldview of Thomas Berry

    • 1 Videos
    • 1 Readings
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Dialogue: Tucker and Grim, “The Worldview of Thomas Berry”

1 Readings

  • “Life and Thought: Introduction,” by J Grim and ME Tucker

Thomas Berry Speaks

    • 1 Videos
    • 1 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Thomas Berry as a Cultural Historian

1 Videos

  • “Thomas Berry Speaks,” filmed by Marty Ostrow

1 Readings

  • Thomas Berry Website

Brian Swimme - Introduction to Berry

    • 1 Videos
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Brian Swimme's Thomas Berry intro

Check Your Understanding

    • 1 Discussion
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Introduction - Thomas Berry as Cultural Historian

1 Discussions

  • Discuss some of the early influences and struggles in Thomas Berry’s life and thought.

Thomas Berry and the Encounter with World Religions

    • 1 Videos
    • 2 Readings
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Tucker and Grim, “Thomas Berry and the Encounter with World Religions.

2 Readings

  • Forum on Religion and Ecology
  • Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community (Chapter 5)

“The Universe and Religion” by Thomas Berry

    • 4 Videos
    • 2 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Thomas Berry’s Study of World Cultures and Religions

4 Videos

  • (Part 1) “The Universe and Religion” by Thomas Berry
  • (Part 2) “The Universe and Religion” by Thomas Berry
  • (Part 3) “The Universe and Religion” by Thomas Berry
  • (Part 4) “The Universe and Religion” by Thomas Berry

2 Readings

  • Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community (Chapter 6)
  • Asian Art Highlights from Yale University Art Gallery

Brian Swimme - Thomas Berry and World Cultures

    • 1 Videos
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Thomas Berry, a Scholar of World Cultures

Check Your Understanding

    • 1 Discussion
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Thomas Berry’s Study of World Cultures and Religions

1 Discussions

  • Thomas expressed the need for dialogue between religious traditions and diverse cultures...

Thomas Berry on Teilhard de Chardin at the Cathedral of St John the Divine, NYCThomas Berry on Teilhard de Chardin at the Cathedral of St John the Divine, NYC

    • 2 Readings
Show info about module content

2 Readings

  • “Teilhard in the Ecological Age,” by Thomas Berry, in Teilhard in the 21st Century. Edited by Arthur Fabel and Donald St John, Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2003
  • Audio: Thomas Berry on Teilhard de Chardin at the Cathedral of St John the Divine, NYC.

Teilhard de Chardin in an Age of Ecology,” an interview of Thomas Berry with Jane Blewett

    • 2 Videos
    • 1 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Teilhard de Chardin in the Age of Ecology

2 Videos

  • (Part 1) Teilhard de Chardin in an Age of Ecology,” an interview of Thomas Berry with Jane Blewett
  • (Part 2) Teilhard de Chardin in an Age of Ecology,” an interview of Thomas Berry with Jane Blewett

1 Readings

  • Teilhard Association Websites

Brian Swimme - Teilhard de Chardin

    • 1 Videos
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Teilhard de Chardin's influence on Berry's thoughts

Check Your Understanding

    • 1 Discussion
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Influence of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

1 Discussions

  • Identify a major influence of Teilhard de Chardin on Berry

Thomas Berry's "New Story"

    • 2 Videos
    • 3 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Thomas Berry's New Story

2 Videos

  • (Part 1) “The New Story,” by Thomas Berry
  • (Part 2) “The New Story,” by Thomas Berry

3 Readings

  • "The New Story," by Thomas Berry, Teilhard Studies #1, Teilhard Association, Winter 1978.
  • Chapter 1 from Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • Journey of the Universe website

Brian Swimme - The New Story

    • 1 Videos
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Differentiation, Subjectivity, and Communion

Check Your Understanding

    • 1 Discussion
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • “The New Story”

1 Discussions

  • Why does Thomas Berry think we need a New Story?

The Historical Mission of Our Time

    • 2 Videos
    • 4 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Cosmology and Ecology

2 Videos

  • “The Historical Mission of Our Time,” (Part I) by Thomas Berry
  • “The Historical Mission of Our Time,” (Part II) by Thomas Berry

4 Readings

  • Chapter 2 in Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • Chapter 3 in Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • Chapter 12 in Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • The Age of Reptiles Mural at Yale Peabody Museum

Brian Swimme - Thomas Berry's notion of the human being as a derivitative of the Earth Community

    • 1 Videos
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Thomas Berry and the Earth Community

Check Your Understanding

    • 1 Discussion
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • Cosmology and Ecology

1 Discussions

  • What is your "meadow experience"?

Thomas Berry on "The Great Work"

    • 4 Videos
    • 6 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • The Great Work of the Ecozoic Era

4 Videos

  • (Part 1) “Thomas Berry Speaks on ‘The Great Work’”
  • (Part 2) “Thomas Berry Speaks on ‘The Great Work’”
  • (Part 3) “Thomas Berry Speaks on ‘The Great Work’”
  • Reflections on Capacity From Marrakech - Catherine Martini

6 Readings

  • Chapter 8 from Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • Chapter 9 from Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • Chapter 10 from Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • Chapter 11 from Thomas Berry: Selected Writings on the Earth Community
  • Emerging Earth Community
  • Special Issue on The Great Work, (in Worldviews: Environment, Culture, and Religion)

Brian Swimme - "the Great Work"

    • 1 Videos
    • 1 Readings
Show info about module content

1 Videos

  • Brian Swimme on "The Great Work"

1 Readings

  • Post-Course Survey

Check Your Understanding

    • 1 Discussion
    • 1 Assignment
Show info about module content

1 Assignment

  • The Great Work and the Ecozoic Era

1 Discussions

  • How does the “Great Work” capture affective reciprocity & engagement with Earth processes?

Auto Summary

Discover "The Worldview of Thomas Berry: The Flourishing of the Earth Community," a foundational course in Arts & Humanities led by Coursera. Delve into Berry's pioneering thoughts on environmental crises, integrating humanities and evolutionary sciences. Explore concepts like the New Story, the Great Work, and the Ecozoic era through his works. Over 1500 minutes, engage with his transformative insights on ecology, economics, education, spirituality, and arts. Ideal for learners seeking to understand the moral and cultural dimensions of environmental stewardship. Available through Starter and Professional subscriptions.

John Grim
Instructors

John Grim

Mary Evelyn Tucker
Instructors

Mary Evelyn Tucker