Week 18 — January 28, 2027

Readings

• Math: Ch. XIV: On True Compound Interest and the Law of Organic Growth, printed pp. 150–166, through the differentiation examples involving exponentials and logarithms. Exercises XII: 1–8.
• Theology: The King confessed — Matthew 14–20: Peter’s confession, the transfiguration, the community discourse, and the road to Jerusalem; Orthodoxy Ch. III
• Literature: Odyssey, Books 19–21 (~49 pp.)
• Western Civilization: Document week (no new chapter) — sources from Chs. 11–12: Causes of the Black Death: Contemporary Views (p. 309); Boniface VIII’s Defense of Papal Supremacy — Unam Sanctam (p. 325); Dante’s Vision of Hell (p. 330); The Renaissance Prince: The Views of Machiavelli and Erasmus (p. 353); Pico della Mirandola and the Dignity of Man (p. 355)

Thesis & assignments

• ◆ Thesis: Major work write-up #2 due
• Assignment: In-class debate — whether Renaissance humanism served or undermined Christian faith; the full description is in the Writing Assignments part of this guide

Upcoming

• Week 20 (Feb 11): Paragraph #5 (Orthodoxy)
• Week 21 (Feb 18): ◆ Write-up #3 due (+ #4 if used)