Layla A. Karst
Associate Professor of Liturgical Theology and Graduate Director Loyola Marymount University
Biography
Dr. Karst is a member of the Catholic Theological Society of America, the North American Academy of Liturgy, and the Catholic Academy of Liturgy, and has served on the Archbishop’s Liturgical Commission for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. She holds a PhD from Emory University and an MDiv from the University of Notre Dame.
Education
Whitworth College
B.A
2006
University of Notre Dame
M. Div.
2010
Emory University
Ph.D
Liturgical Theology/Religious Practice
2018
Areas of Expertise
Courses
THST/CATH 1020 American Catholicism
What does it mean to be American and Catholic…and who gets to decide?
This course will critically examine the American Catholic religious experience in the United States from its Spanish, French, and English origins to today’s culturally and theologically diverse contexts. Through the study of both primary and secondary texts and site visits to Catholic communities, students will examine different markers of Catholic identity including beliefs and teachings, community and belonging, religious practices, and participation in public life, and explore the ways Catholics have negotiated their religious identity and faith within the American experience.
THST 1050 In Search of a Way
This course will introduce students to the meaning and significance of spiritual practice in its Christian expression by a variety of practical spiritual traditions from their early historical roots to present-day practices. Over the semester, we will explore five spiritual ways: the way of discipline, the contemplative way, the way of practical action, the way of beauty, and the prophetic way. Together we will explore the relationship between religious experience, religious practice, and religious belief while exploring the tools Christians have employed on their spiritual journeys of transformation. We will engage these questions through the study both primary and secondary texts as well as by through practical experimentation and reflection.
FFYS 1000 First Year Seminar: Bad Catholics
The goal of this course is to explore the phenomenon of loyal dissent in the Catholic church. We will consider the role that dissent plays in the development of Catholic teaching and practice, as well as the tensions that often arise between religious belief and religious belonging. We will begin our semester together by studying the nature of dissent, as well as the role of power and authority in the Catholic Church. We will then explore four types of dissent in the contemporary Catholic Church: dissent from doctrine, dissent from norms, dissent from practices, and dissent from institutions. The course will conclude by considering the relationship between religious belief and religious belonging and the power of faithful dissent to shape religious communities.
THST 3231 Catholicism after Vatican II
The theologian Karl Rahner described Vatican II as the first time in history the Catholic Church met as a “world church.” This course will study Catholicism through the lens of “ecclesiology,” that is, the church’s understanding of itself and its relationship to the modern world that emerged from the Second Vatican Council. We will begin by exploring the history and texts of the Council, with special attention to the interplay between tradition and reform. Following the conciliar spirit of “dialogue” between the church and the modern world, we will consider the wisdom and limitations of the Council’s vision in the areas of scriptural interpretation, liturgical practice, authority and decision-making, ecumenical and inter-religious relations, and religious freedom. Then we will examine the Council’s interpretation and reception in the church today, especially in Pope Francis’s vision of social friendship and the “synodal church.”
THST 4090 Major Theological Thinker: Elizabeth Johnson
What is the right way to speak about God? This course will explore the ways we talk about God in light of the human experience, especially the experience of women, through the perspective and texts of one of the dominant theological voices of our time. We will explore the major themes and methods of Elizabeth Johnson’s theological writings in order to assess the theological significance of human experiences for our understanding of the nature of God, the work of salvation, and the mission and identity of the faith community. Students will also be invited to consider the vocation of the theologian and their own identity as theological thinkers and writers.
THST 6040 Liturgical Theology
This course will engage the dynamic relationship between praying and believing that constitutes the field of liturgical theology. It will introduce students to key texts, themes, and issues in theological reflection on and from Christian sacramental and liturgical practice. Students will learn to use historical, theological, and practical approaches to explore the rituals, symbols, texts, and performance of the Christian liturgy. We will also engage the Christian liturgies as theological sources and practices through which the church does theology and consider how our liturgies shape, express, and even critique Christian theology and practice.
THST 6075 Pastoral Liturgy
This course examines the role of liturgy in the lives of Christians and their communities. Rooting our conversation in the vision and norms for liturgical celebrations set forth by the Second Vatican Council, we will explore the tensions between liturgical norms and liturgy as practiced and experienced in both offline and online contexts. Our explorations of liturgical norms and practices will be conducted in the spirit of critical inquiry and intellectual generosity that seek to deepen our understanding of the richness and diversity of liturgical practice as it is both imagined and lived out in both spaces.
THST 6998 History and Theology of the Eucharist
This course will critically engage the historical, theological, and ethical dimensions of the Eucharist from an ecumenical perspective, with a particular emphasis on the Roman Catholic tradition. We will explore the development of the Christian Eucharist from the first century up to the present day, tracing the evolution of liturgical practice and the theological developments of real presence and sacrifice. The course will conclude with a consideration of contemporary questions in Eucharistic theology and practice.
THST 6078 Supervised Pastoral Field Education
Contextual field education is an integral component in pastoral theological education. This seminar addresses the integration of theological competence with pastoral skills through reflection on students’ concrete practices of ministerial leadership. Drawing on an interdisciplinary framework that is both theoretical and practical, students will explore two sets of foundational questions: (1) What is pastoral theological reflection and how is it done? (2) What does it mean to be a public pastoral minister? Student learning in this course happens in three distinct contexts: field work, mentoring, and a classroom seminar.
Articles
Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal Church
Lay Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal ChurchLayla A. Karst
“Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal Church,” in Lay Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal Church, edited by Gregory Heille, OP, (Liturgical Press, 2025): 85-112.
Caught in the Act: Karl Rahner, Brian Flanagan, and the Problem of Liturgical Failure
HorizonsLayla A. Karst
“Caught in the Act: Karl Rahner, Brian Flanagan, and the Problem of Liturgical Failure,” Horizons, 50:1 (June 2023), 32-61.
Mirror of the Church: Liturgy as Ecclesial Self-Recognition
Proceedings of the North American Academy of LiturgyLayla A. Karst
“Mirror of the Church: Liturgy as Ecclesial Self-Recognition,” Proceedings of the North American Academy of Liturgy, (2022): 71-83.
Liturgy of Lament
Black Catholic SourcebookKim Harris and Layla A. Karst
“Liturgy of Lament,” in In Spirit and Truth: Black Catholic Sourcebook. Ed. M. Roger Holland II. GIA Publications. (forthcoming)
A New Creation: Translating Lourdes in America
LiturgyLayla A. Karst
“A New Creation: Translating Lourdes in America,” Liturgy, 32, no. 3 (April 21, 2017): 29-37.
Itineraries
Practical MattersLayla A. Karst
“Itineraries,” Practical Matters, 9 (July 15, 2016): 1-4.
Sacred Spaces, Sacred Journeys
Practical Matters“Sacred Spaces, Sacred Journeys,” edited by Layla A. Karst and Sara Williams, Practical Matters, 9 (2016).
