COURSE DESCRIPTION
This class uses the primary source materials of our native saints as a guide through American History. We will discuss each period’s particular challenges in turn and then use the saints’ lives to show how Catholics in the state of grace rose to meet those challenges.
Though history is often taught as a series of chronological facts, at heart it really tells a story. Thomas Cole’s “Course of Empire” paintings will contrast classical historiography and progressivism, and both will be then subjected to the Augustinian/Catholic view of the cities of God and man. In this light, each era of American History will be considered in turn: who were the first inhabitants of America, and what were Europeans seeking in their voyages across the ocean? From there, we will examine the interplay between these peoples and others, and then gradually trace the development of the American Republic through its agrarian beginnings to the commercial and industrial Empire of the Space Age.
The main themes of each era will be distilled down to a particular set of challenges that faced the saints as individual human beings trying to respond to problems they saw before them, including any apparent successes and failures within their lifetimes and beyond. At the end of the course, students will be able to write a basic outline of American History and write a short saint's biography (of their choosing) in the style of the Roman Martyrology.
Course Details
When it launches (January 2026) this self-paced course will be available to individuals ("independent study")and co-ops and classes ("co-teaching").
Win a FREE class for your high school co-op! Sign up for the waitlist for details!
Ages:
- 14 and up (recommended)
Course Duration:
- 14 weeks (recommended)
Course Components:
- Weekly reading assignment (primary source materials -- course text sold separately)
- Study Guide (hard copy, comes with course, includes discussion questions)
- Weekly video lecture
- Weekly quiz
Teacher-Student Interaction:
- Mr. Salvucci will not be available to students taking the self-paced course.
- Mr. Salvucci will be available to provide limited consulting for the on-site teacher in a co-teaching arrangement.
How to Take This Course:
- Please sign up for the waitlist. We'll be in touch with you as soon as the course is ready. Expected January 2026!
Questions? Email
LECTURER/CO-TEACHER
Claudio Salvucci specializes in traditional American Catholicism and has authored numerous books including The American Martyrology, The Roman Rite in the Algonquian and Iroquoian Missions, The Annals of Colonial North America series, and the American Language Reprint series. His research on American liturgies and devotional traditions have appeared in the New Liturgical Movement, Liturgical Arts Journal, and Latin Mass Magazine, and he currently serves as the Communications Director for the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter in North America.
What is Co-Teaching?
Co-Teaching allows your co-op or class to enroll in Mr. Salvucci's course with a group discount. Your students get the benefit of Mr. Salvucci's teaching and expertise, and your on-site teacher gets the benefit of learning the material too! Your on-site teacher then decides how best to use class time and does any additional assigning or grading that might be required. We are looking for one, high school, homeschool co-op to pilot this as a co-teaching course before the official launch in January. Sign up for the waitlist for details!
COURSE TEXT
Mr. Salvucci is hard at work compiling the primary source material for this class into a book.
The book will be sold separately.
Details to come!
Saint Katharine Drexel
Venerable Augustus Tolton
The North American Martyrs
Saint Francis Xavier Cabrini
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton
