A Free Resource to Take College-Level Classes in Catholicism
The Institute of Catholic Culture is a gem that offers free online classes that go in-depth on topics like theology, philosophy, the Church Fathers and more...
Are you ready to dive deeper into Catholicism? Maybe you’re a new convert on fire for the faith or you’re a longtime Catholic, who attends mass every week but who wants to know more about this faith of yours.
The Institute of Catholic Culture (ICC) is an amazing free resource that I discovered about four years ago that provided me with a more systematic way to grow my knowledge of Catholicism at a deeper level without having to incur the cost of college program. Ultimately, it led me to pursuing my master’s in theology, but it provided me with such a solid foundation to embark on journey toward a degree and I continue to take their classes alongside my master’s classes :).
I absolutely love their classes, events and professors, which I will tell you more about below. As a lifelong learner, I always thirst for more, and they fill my bucket in the most brilliant way!
What Is the Institute of Catholic Culture?
Here is the Institute’s Mission Statement, which I think sums it up well:
The Institute of Catholic Culture is an adult catechetical organization, faithful to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, and dedicated to the Church’s call for a new evangelization. The Institute seeks to fulfill its mission by offering educational programs structured upon the classical liberal arts and by offering opportunities in which authentic Catholic culture is experienced and lived.
Run by Father Hezekias Carnazzo, a Greek Catholic priest, the Institute offers online courses over many weeks, as well as one-off lectures and events on various topics and even “books clubs” where you read and learn about a particular book over a period of weeks.
The Institute operates on donations (so I encourage you to support them if you’re able), but there is never any cost to enroll in a class. They have tens of thousands of people from all over the world taking their classes, and they have some of the BEST professors from colleges like Christendom College, US seminaries and many others teaching the classes.
It is truly a free way to get a college-level education on different aspects in the Catholicism. This is ideal if you just want to learn more without pursuing a degree.
“I am convinced that in order to restore the Catholic Church to her former glory, we must begin by educating the faithful in the Church’s great inherited tradition and we must once again reach out an evangelical hand to those outside the Catholic Church, welcoming them to experience the fullness of the Kingdom of God on earth.” - Fr. Hezekias
The Institute’s Courses
I have personally thrived in the various courses they offer. They always have a live course going where the professor teaches once a week for an hour with time for questions.
You can arrive early to the lecture and request to show yourself on video during the lecture in order to have the opportunity to ask a question live at the conclusion. Though if you don’t arrive early and make the request, your video will not be on (you will be a viewer only) and you can submit a question through the online Q&A box.
Live courses are in the evenings during the week, usually at 8pm ET. You can take the course live, and if you can’t attend live or miss a class, you can watch the replay after.
All courses come with reading each week, usually ranging from a few pages up to 20 pages — not the level of a master’s course, which often gets up to 100+ pages per week :).
Additionally, once the live courses are complete, they are added to the Institute’s website where you can go through them at your own pace.
Lastly, you can choose to “audit” the class or go through it at the “certificate” level. There is no cost for either, but with the “certificate” level, you will have access to a quiz after each lecture and a final exam. Successful completion of these will grant you a certificate to demonstrate you have completed the class. I recommend Certificate level, because it will help you better retain the information.
My Favorite Institute of Catholic Culture Courses
Oh, there are so many of their courses I have loved!
First, I will recommend three of their professors who are absolutely outstanding! Not only are they extremely proficient in their fields, but they are ENTERTAINING to watch (not all professors are ;-)). They make learning fun!
They are:
Dr. John Pepino, professor of Greek, Latin, History and Patristics at Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, Nebraska
Dr. John Cuddeback, professor of Philosophy at Christendom College
Dr. Jared Staudt, Director of Content for Exodus 90 and instructor for the lay division of St. John Vianney Seminary
Anything you take from these three are AMAZING!
I want to share my favorite courses that I’ve taken through the ICC:
Church History 102: The Church from Christ to Today, Dr. Pepino (I am getting ready to go back and take this course AGAIN after a recent related course I took in the history of theology through Catholic International University) - This is the first course that I took from the ICC and I was hooked. It’s fantastic!!
Philosophy 101, Dr. Cuddeback - In this class, you read Plato and some other Greek philosophers and learn how much (not all!) of Greek philosophy helps us to understand God’s revelation. It’s amazing how far the Greeks got with reason alone.
Philosophy 102, Dr. Cuddeback - This one continues philosophical teaching, focusing on Aristotle, whom St. Thomas Aquinas used to help understand theology and God’s revelation.
Theology 101: Fundamentals of Catholic Doctrine, Dr. Staudt - Excellent course to understand the basics of topics like the Trinity, who God is, who Jesus is, the sacraments, the Eucharist and more!
Theology 102: The Development of Doctrine, Dr. Staudt - This course traces the development of Catholic doctrine through the Church Fathers and other important theologians in the Church’s history and introduces you to some of the different schools of thought like Scholasticism and Modernism.
The Cardinal Virtues: Keys to a Good Life, Dr. Cuddeback - Fantastic in-depth study of the cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, courage, temperance) and how to live them more effectively.
Patristics (Church Fathers) 101, Dr. Pepino - I’m just finishing this course right now, the online version of which just wrapped up. This is a deep dive into the Fathers of the Church. These are men who are not officially recognized (as Doctors of the Church are), but who contributed to the growth of the faith up to about 700-800 AD. It includes St. Justin Martyr (one of my favorites), St. Clement, St. Ignatius of Smyrna, the Letter to Diognetus (a true gem, which I’d never heard of!), the Didache, Origen and Tertullian (and where these two went wrong), St. Irenaeus and more.
STARTING AUGUST 1: Patristics 102, Dr. Pepino (though it may be too late to enroll, but you can try by emailing them) - Dr. Pepino continues through the Church Fathers, starting with St. Athanasius and including St. Jerome (another favorite of mine), St. John Chrysostom, St. Augustine, St. Ambrose and more with readings from each of these key figures.
There are many other courses besides these to choose from including on bioethics, different books of Scripture, Catholic political thought, the liturgy and more.
Events and Lectures
The ICC also has live events and lectures most weeks that are one-time events. They zoom in and cover fascinating topics in depth, including art, literature, history, song, liturgy and so many others. It might be a review of a Shakespeare play or a close look at a particular historical event or a painting.
They also host many events following the liturgical calendar, such as during Advent and Lent, with meditations and reflections on the season.
All of these are recorded and available for replay for free on their website.
How Do You Participate?
Simply go to their website at instituteofcatholicculture.org and sign up for a free account.
Start browsing their courses and events. You do need to sign up for the live courses (but they are still free!) and choose the audit or certificate track. You also need to sign up to attend the live events. Replays or self-paced courses (also free), however, you can watch at your leisure.
To find what you’re looking for, log into the site and choose from: live lectures, in-depth courses or gospel reflections to browse around. You can also use the search box at the top of the screen to search for a particular topic or professor.
The ICC has brought me so much joy and satisfaction in learning about my faith far beyond a superficial level. It feeds my continual desire to learn as much as I can about my faith and in an authentic and comprehensive way that I’ve never found anywhere else and gives me confidence when leading classes like RCIA or religious education.
I cannot recommend it highly enough. Kudos to Fr. Hezekias for creating a true fountain of wisdom to help spread the beauty of the Catholic faith!
I’d love to hear your experience with the ICC if you’ve participated in the past or if you start participating! Enjoy!