<p>Dear Generalgao : Please become familiar with the material about the Boston College core in general as this might well help you in your quest to understand more about the university’s education. The following link will provide some insight for you :</p>
<p>[Undergraduate</a> Program - Boston College](<a href=“http://www.bc.edu/offices/stserv/academic/schools/cas/th/undergrad.html#univcore]Undergraduate”>http://www.bc.edu/offices/stserv/academic/schools/cas/th/undergrad.html#univcore)</p>
<p>Note that the specific details covering the theology requirement are expressed below.</p>
<p>Core Options</p>
<p>Two-semester sequence or a 6-credit [Class of 2014]. Students must take both semesters ([or 6 credits] of the same Core course (preferably with the same instructor) to fulfill the requirement and receive Core credit. Students shall select one 2-course sequence [or one 6-credit sequence] from the following:</p>
<p>TH 001-002 Biblical Heritage I and II
TH 016-017 Introduction to Christian Theology I and II
TH 023-024 Exploring Catholicism: Tradition and Transformation
TH 161-162 The Religious Quest I and II </p>
<p>Twelve-credit courses. Students may take these courses to fulfill the Theology requirement. There are two of these Philosophy/Theology courses: PL/TH 090-091 Perspectives on Western Culture (for freshmen only) and PL/TH 088-089 Person and Social Responsibility (for PULSE Program students only).</p>
<p>Now, for some personal responses to your questions which extend beyond the grasp of Theology and more towards education in general : you can certainly partake in courses to complete the theology requirement which will be less rigorous about specific religious traditions and more into the history and evolution of practice. As a Jesuit institution in addition to its Catholic Heritage, Boston College does tend to expand the boundaries of this discourse as opposed to non-Jesuit Catholic teaching institutions. Boston College embraces the notion of philosophy as being a major component of religious studies.</p>
<p>What concerns me personally about your response is that you are seeking a course focused on the “faults of religious philosophies”. It is important that you understand exactly why this comment is troublesome - and it is not based on religious doctrine.</p>
<p>When attending a university, the goal of your education is to expand your spheres of thought and influence, to explore areas which might become formative in your future life, and to bring a better understanding of others into your own understanding of self. In other words, the goal is to learn about more than just those things that you view as currently defining yourself as a High School senior or a later life college freshman.</p>
<p>At Boston College, you will be interacting with faculty, generally very gifted at teaching, who have spent a lifetime dedicated to understanding their respective teaching areas. Their dedication to their craft alone deserves respect and your greater understanding will come from partaking in their classes. Only with understanding and education can truly informed opinions and conclusions be drawn.</p>
<p>Entering Boston College with the premise of “faults of religious philosophies” is fine and you should be respected in that view provided that you have been well educated and truly understand “religious philosophies”. [We could easily apply these same arguments to a structured discussion of Nietzsche’s Theory of Religion or Schopenhauer’s Theory of Man.]</p>
<p>Would you be able to shelve your preconceived notions gathered during your eighteen years or do you have the courage to challenge your current thinking in an academically rigorous manner? Therein, more that anything else I can offer, will you find the answer as to whether you are “right for Boston College” as opposed to the other way around.</p>