RENEWING  MINDS          |         IGNITING HEARTS         |         INSPIRING LIVES

Plutarch once said that “the mind is not an empty vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled."  Saint Paul, taking the words of the great historian to a new level, said that to be a Christian is fundamentally about "the renewing of our minds.”  This is what Towers of Faith is all about. 

Who can join?

You don't need any formal background to participate in Towers of Faith.  If you want to spend a year reading the Great Books of history in company with other like-minded folk, then these are the only pre-requisites:

• Be willing to commit some time to reading.
• Attend an online Zoom lecture on Wednesday evenings. 
• Optional: Join a tutorial group later in the week, probably on Friday or Saturday.

  

30 Weeks of reading, Socratic-style lectures and tutorial discussion groups.

TOF’s programme of study is designed to address the spiritual and intellectual poverty in our current society, by recovering our sense of reverence and respect for the wisdom of the past. We have partnered with a number of big brains around the world to help guide us through the Great Books, Great Minds and Great Ideas of history.  The programme is designed to be highly challenging and you can expect to be as stretched academically as you would be in a traditional university setting.  

The Syllabus/Curriculum

A Year with the Masters

Imagine a year of study as a vibrant garden to grow in knowledge and virtue. Imagine it not as a place to sit and listen to lectures, but rather, a way of life and pursuit of most noble ends. Imagine it as an ongoing conversation about the most profound ideas of history: truth, justice, liberty, beauty, poetry, drama, God, and the afterlife to name a few. Imagine being taught by the greatest masters of the mind that walked on this earth: Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Dionysius, Dante, Dostoyevsky, Nietzsche, and more, who though dead, live on in Great Books. If you can imagine such a place, you've imagined a year with Towers of Faith.

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Who is Towers of Faith?

Fr Sam McNally-Cross is a parish priest in the Diocese of London, his studies have included an MA in Christian Spirituality focusing on monastic life and in particular the Work of Thomas Merton. He is currently undertaking a professional doctorate looking into the Promethean Theology of Thomas Merton. His other interests include pilgrimage and the theology of place, spiritual writing and the poetic expression of faith.  Everything Fr Sam knows, he learned from his training incumbent, Fr David Harris.

Fr Chris Phillips is the parish priest of the ancient shrine church of St Mary’s, Willesden, in the Diocese of London. He holds degrees from Durham and Oxford Universities, latterly in Theology where he developed a keen interest in St Augustine as well as a particular focus on eucharistic doctrine. More recent academic work has focused on Christology, divine impassibility and human psychology. A linguist by original training, he now tries to maintain his Latin and Greek to a sufficient level to read original sources.

Fr. Matthew Cashmore is the Assistant Curate of St. Mary-the-Virgin, Kenton in the Diocese of London. He trained for ministry at Ripon College Cuddesdon where he obtained a degree in Theology, Mission & Ministry from Durham University. Prior to Priesthood Fr. Matthew was the Digital Director at various publishers and retailers and continues to offer practical consultancy in Digital R&D to charities and small businesses. He is a Trustee at SPCK and has a passion for The Rosary – the subject of his next book.