Okay I have really strong opinions on this but I'll try to be objective. I went to college later in life (age 28-30) so by then my values were already formed and I was able to sit through all of their communist indoctrination and just roll my eyes. If you're in the same boat then the worst that'll happen is the worst offending classes you'll have to take will be cringe but they won't corrupt your values.
What kind of education are you pursuing? Are you looking at a future in academia? Maybe a writer, apologist, theologian, professor, etc? If anything of that nature maybe seeking a transfer to a Newman list college would be the best idea. For people who don't have any sort of career in mind I tend to suggest reconsidering college altogether. There are a lot of careers and trades out there that can be had without wasting tens of thousands of dollars and years of your life. After I got my current job I found out they didn't care at all about my bachelor's degree, they were more interested in and impressed by my work history. So unfortunately in hindsight I realized I could've ended up in the same place with a simple certificate that could've been had in 1/10 the time and for 1/300th the cost.
But I digress.
I think if I were you I would explore my transfer options from the Newman List of schools. Those are schools that you can be certain are properly Catholic, they're not gonna have any corrupt curricula and they're not going to be morally perverse.
As an aside, have you ever heard of the book Don't Go To College by Dr Michael Robillard and Timothy Gordon? You might find it interesting.
I am very firm in my faith, and am loving of all people even those who mock the faith, but mocking Our Lord, and especially Our Lady, doesn't sit right with me. Regardless, I dont really know what I want to pursue besides something in theology, I have thought about seminary but not for priesthood, and finding a career within the Church. Currently I'm going for an AA in Business Admin because I wanted to have a backup degree in case of me not wanting to pursue something in ministry. My concern is that because I am young and relatively inexperienced (I worked at a job for 1+ year, no writeups and a raise), they might need to see that I can take care of myself. Though I may just be overthinking it.
I wish I had known about the Newman list prior to signing up for my universities, it would have saved me so much time and effort
I will check out the websites for these universities when I am out of class. Ill also put that book in my saved for later, thank you!
I advise to withdraw from the class and get a new professor. If it's passed the withdrawal date, talk to your student affairs representative, tell them what you just told me, and have them deal with it. Most universities don't allow religious discrimination and harassment in instruction. The other students you can get no-contact orders against.
If that doesn't work, save your points of argument and wait for the essay. Ignore the bullying as much as possible and focus on the ideas and the reasons why Catholicism rejects them. You may find the book The Darkening Age by Catherine Nixie to be of use - it highlights the Christian/Catholic opposition to secular philosophy and the source of some of the bitter comments in class. They don't like us because we're better than them, and they are mad because we won. If you can remember that, it will serve as an emotional shield for you against some of the more ignorant and nasty behavior.
You all are giving me some good book recommendations! To my knowledge, it is past the deadline, so I unfortunately have to stick it out. Two "contrary opinions" he talked about were that Jesus is the child of Mary and a Roman soldier and that the EO believe Christ died on an X instead of a cross, which is what sparked my questioning (I know for a fact that is just untrue). I smiled and laughed and brushed off his "well, there's no proof of it besides what his buddies said" and "How do you know He's the Son of God?" and replied with "That's my faith" and brushed it off. I, as a pacifist, won't be confrontational or angry, but I am very disappointed that he thinks that that is an acceptable way to teach the Christian faith...
I do appreciate the shield, and I do wish (what someone else said) that there were more than just me in the class trying to speak up and say "no, that's not what we/they believe".
Your professor sounds like a typical Baptist or maybe an atheist?
To my knowledge, an atheist who respects Nietzsche and has read Schopenhauer.
There are undoubtedly some allies to be found.
I know there is a club on my campus, I can maybe go to them for class scheduling so we can all do it together. I'll look into it next time I'm in the student office, thank you for reminding me about that!
Yeah it's sad but true that the institutions that were once bastions of Catholic higher education are now places to be wary of. I would never recommend a pious Catholic enroll at Marquette, Gonzaga, LMU, Georgetown, Fordham, or even Notre Dame. And that's just a handful of the Catholic universities out there that are corrupt. And the saddest part is their corruption in large part is owed to their athletic programs and Title IX funding. But I don't want to get in the weeds here.
@AveChristusRex of the colleges listed on the Newman List, the ones I personally know anything about (all second hand information from friends who attended) is that some of the best ones are Thomas Aquinas College, Christendom College, and Catholic University of America. Thomas Aquinas College is kind of on a tier of its own, and may actually be what you're looking for just judging by your previous posts. It offers one degree (a bachelors in liberal studies - philosophy and theology). It's incredibly rigorous, including a senior thesis that you must orally defend to the faculty. Their entire structure is also very unique, their classrooms are setup in roundtable format and everything is taught in Socratic form. The school itself has about 400-500 students so it's very small. Men and women dorms are entirely segregated, there's a dress code that includes men wearing ties and women wearing modest dresses or skirts to class. IMHO TAC is about as classical of a Catholic education one can get in the 21st century. And here's the thing: of the alumni I know and have met, these are some of the smartest people I've encountered anywhere. Even though their degree is focused on one thing, the way they go about getting it equips them to do and be anything. My friend works for a software developer, another is a winemaker, still others have gone on to the priesthood or religious life, some into politics.
I always wished I had gone there but it wasn't on my radar before because I only became Catholic in 2017, so I'm just its biggest non-alumni cheerleader and hope to send my kids there someday.
I will check out TAC, and so long as it is not too expensive, I'll email the faculty and see if I can get a tour! I really like the Socratic method of participation-based learning, but most people don't learn that way, so it's incredibly foreign to them, I really enjoy it, though.
You all have been so helpful in the advice you have given me, it has made me feel a lot better, God bless you all
