More than ever, Americans are reclaiming our national identity based on the fundamental principles of America's founding. In this enlightening course, you will explore what defines us as Americans by looking at our founding documents: The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. This is the course you always wish you had taken when you were an undergrad. An engaging and gifted teacher, Professor Jeffrey Sikkenga passionately explores the founding principles that make America a great nation.

Jesus comes to me and you through thousands of years of imagery and writing - a vast web of material that often does more to obscure than reveal. Now, one of America’s greatest living storytellers retells the greatest story ever told with unprecedented clarity and insight.

How, Dr. Kuhn asks his interlocutors, can consciousness be explained? How do the microscopic particles that make up our brains cause us to experience the tranquil beauty of a setting sun, the haunting strains of Mozart’s "Requiem", or the flush of romantic love? These interviews - with cosmologists, computer scientists, philosophers, paranormal researchers, and more - explore key questions such as these about the nature and mystery of consciousness.

Is time travel possible? What does it mean to say the universe is fine-tuned? Could our universe be fake? Or, if it is real, is it part of a multiverse? In an attempt to solve such mysteries, leading experts attempt to break the world down to its smallest particles and build it back up - to understand the universe by understanding the atom. In this compelling audio course, Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn, creator and host of the PBS series Closer to Truth, examines the riddles of the universe with 13 luminaries in physics, cosmology, astronomy, philosophy, mathematics, and chemistry.

In 24 absorbing lectures, you’ll discover many of the different cognitive, motivational, and emotional factors that underlie social behavior. Along the way, you’ll come to appreciate - and evaluate critically - research in the behavioral sciences, applying what you learn from social psychology research to events in the real world. At the end of this course, you will have clearer self-awareness, better tools to foster friendships and romantic relationships, and a more compassionate heart to become a better global citizen.

St. Francis of Assisi has for decades been depicted in illustrations, paintings, and even garden birdbaths as a saint with a love for animals. But he is not the only Christian saint associated with animals. In this series of lectures you will approach these stories as hagiography - that is, stories of the saints intended to edify, to communicate a spiritual meaning to their audience.

Capuchin Fr. Dan Crosby, master retreat leader, invites you to look anew at Jesus' call to discipleship, and at what that call means for us in our lives. Enjoy these talks and gain fresh insight into scripture and the Christian life.

Explore the transformative power of Buddhist philosophy with Dr. Douglas Gentile, renowned psychologist, celebrated professor, and Zen Buddhist monk.

America’s first settlements, founding documents, and most important traditions are replete with religious sentiment. Today, religion continues to play an important role in the lives of American people - nearly 80 percent are religiously affiliated - and institutions. These audio lectures bring you face to face with the fascinating people, movements, groups, beliefs, and practices that have made the US one of the most religiously diverse nations in the history of the world.

Across the nation, Americans are undergoing an intense period of self-examination. How are our identities and behaviors shaped by the groups to which we belong? How can we reach past our own biases to better understand others? The study of sociology can help us answer these questions, making us better citizens in the process.

Join Virginia Tech economics professor Michael Ellerbrock, the recipient of numerous teaching awards, for a comprehensive, jargon-free overview of the principles and applications of economics.

With a goal of expanding the minds of lifelong learners, celebrated philosophy professor Kevin Corcoran engages thinkers from Descartes to David Foster Wallace to help you discover truth and tackle the big questions of our existence. Through this compelling 15-lecture course, you’ll develop critical thinking skills that will bring clarity and focus to your daily life. Prof. Corcoran begins with Aristotle’s maxim that “philosophy begins in wonder.”

Join Roy Baumeister, celebrated psychologist and New York Times best-selling author, on a journey to answer the most important questions of our lives: Who am I? What am I? What might I become? In 15 audio lectures, Dr. Baumeister draws from his renowned research to explain the origin, importance, and impact of the human self: the source of our self-esteem, self-control, and decision making, as well as our capacity for self-deception and self-destructive patterns.

In this course, you will enrich your daily life with the timeless spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Your guide, Fr. Timothy M. Gallagher, OMV, STD, is a renowned Ignatian spiritual leader and brilliant teacher whose expertise will enlighten you.

St. John of the Cross is one of the most inspiring figures in the history of Christianity: a saint of profound faith, a compelling mystic, and an immensely gifted poet. Now, you can explore the life, teachings, writings, and reflections of St. John of the Cross.