Session I
| Course | crn | Title | Instructor |
|---|---|---|---|
| RST 23 | 60897 | Introduction to Judaism | W. Terry |
| RST 60 | 59676 | Introduction to Islam | A. Iravani |
| RST 100 | 59677 | Issues and Methods | N. Janowitz |
| RST 102 | 60847 | Christian Origins | C. Chin |
Session II
| Course | crn | Title | Instructor |
|---|---|---|---|
| RST 1 | 80200 | Survey of Religion | W. Terry |
| RST 30 | 80201 | Religions of South Asia | A. Venkatesan |
| RST 40 | 79074 | New Testament | W. Terry |
| RST 170 | 80294 | Buddhism | M. Elmore |
EXPANDED COURSE DESCRIPTIONS - SESSION I
Religious Studies 23: Introduction to Judaism
(TR 11:00-1:30, 101 Olson) CRN 60897
Course Description: Using Jewish religious texts, philosophical treatises, and other works of cultural production, we will trace the evolution and transformation of a single set of Jewish rituals, those surrounding the Sabbath, as a lens through which to explore Jewish thought and practice in general. Throughout the course, we will examine the effects and limits of studying Judaism as a "religion." Reader responses, research paper. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div, and Wrt.
Course Format: Lecture/Discussion.
Prerequisite: None.
Texts:
- Eliezer Segal, Introducing Judaism
- A Course Reader
Religious Studies 60: Introduction to Islam
(MW 11:00-1:30, 101 Olson) CRN 59676
Course Description: This course aims to provide a comprehensive introduction to Islam, as both a religion and a tradition consisting of various schools of thought. After examining the origin of Islam and the history and themes of the Quran as a main source of Islam, this course will give a general view of almost every important Islamic Issues such as Islamic Philosophy Islamic Mysticism (Sufism), Islamic Theology, Islamic Law, and contemporary issues such as human rights, Fundamentalism and Jihad.
There will be a final exam (40%) and a 7-10 pages term paper (40%) and (20%) will count towards the engagement and participation. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div, and Wrt.
Professor Ahmad Iravani will be the Visiting Professor for Summer 09'. For any inquiries, please call 752-1219.
Course Format: Lecture/Discussion; Term Paper.
Prerequisite: None.
Texts:
- John L. Esposito, What Everyone Needs To Know About Islam
- Annemarie Schimmel, Islam: An Introduction
Religious Studies 100: Issues and Methods
(TR 2:10-4:40, 105 Olson) CRN 59677
Course description: In the wake of the Reformation, the Enlightenment, and the discovery of the new world, religion became a problem as never before. This class explores the development of this problem from the early modern period through the present, focusing on two wide-ranging narratives. The first concerns the declining authority of God and the reciprocal ascent of the individual as it develops through Luther's theology, Descartes' epistemology, and Locke's liberalism and finally arrives in the consumer technologies of contemporary cosmopolises. The second concerns the birth and growth of the academic study of religion alongside the disciplines of anthropology, psychology, and sociology.
This class unsettles many of the un-reflective conceptions of religion that circulate today, from new-age assumptions about the difference between religion and spirituality to those guiding our foreign and domestic policy. In a world where religion is both the guarantor of mass murder and unbounded generosity, such questions have rarely been more important.
Course Format: Lecture/Discussion; Term Paper.
Prerequisite: None.
Text:
- A Course Reader
Religious Studies 102: Christian Origins
(TWR 10:00-11:40, 105 Olson) CRN 60847
Course Description: This course is designed as an introduction to early Christian thought and practice for advanced undergraduates. It will focus on the intellectual and social issues that preoccupied Christian thinkers from approximately the year 100 to approximately the year 500, and will examine the ways in which early Christians thought about the content of the statement “I am a Christian.” These are the dominant questions behind the course:
- What were different Christian identities, and how did people claim them?
- How did Christian communities develop rituals and beliefs (and vice versa)?
- How and why did Christian identities change over the first five centuries?
These questions cannot be answered in a single quarter course. In order to begin to address them, this course takes just two major themes in early Christian thought - the idea of a social and ritual community, or church, and the idea of a set of fundamental identifying beliefs, or a creed—and introduces some of the diverse approaches that Christian writers took in thinking about them.
Course Format: Lecture/Discussion; Term Paper.
Prerequisite: course 40; course 23 recommended; consent of instructor
Texts:
- St. Augustine of Hippo, Confessions (Oxford University Press edition)
- Leslie William Barnard (trans.), St. Justin Martyr: The First and Second Apologies
- Paul L. Maler (trans.), Eusebius: The Church History
EXPANDED COURSE DESCRIPTIONS - SESSION II
Religious Studies 1: Survey of Religion
(MTWR 10:00-11:40, 101 Olson) CRN 80200
Course Descriptions: Basic concepts introduced through readings of the primary religious literature. Discussion of central ideas (creation, history, law, prophecy, suffering, mysticism, asceticism, karma, reincarnation, moksha, etc.); readings from the Bible, Bhagavad Gita, the Koran, selections from Plato and early Buddhist writings. GE credit: ArtHum, Div, and Wrt.
Course Format: Lecture/Discussion; Term Paper.
Prerequisite: None.
Text:
- A Course Reader
Religious Studies 30: Religions of South Asia
(MW 11:00-1:30, 105 Olson) CRN 80201
Course Description: The goal of this course is to introduce students to the vibrant religious traditions of South Asia. The course will examine Hindu, Buddhist, Islamic, Jain, and Sikh traditions as well as the ancient and modern contexts in which they are situated. In order to guide our inquiries we will focus the ways that various problems (material, intellectual, political) have served as catalysts for the formation and dissolution of communities of interpretation and practice.
One of the primary goals of this course is to reexamine the multiple pasts of South Asia without projecting modern categories onto those traditions. Accordingly, we will attempt to examine Upanisadic texts and the four noble truths as more than tenants of 'Hinduism' or 'Buddhism.' Throughout the course we will ask how appropriate these concepts are for understanding the pre-modern traditions of South Asia.
The class will include extensive use of visual resources in addition to traditional texts. Both of these will be made available electronically. GE Credit: ArtHum, Div, and Wrt.
Course Format: Lecture/Discussion; Term Paper.
Prerequisite: None.
Texts:
- Diane P. Mine & Sarah Lamb (eds.), Everyday Life in South Asia.
- Gita Mehta, A River Sutra.
- Kirin Narayan, Storytellers, Saints, and Scoundrels: Folk Narrative in Hindu Religious Teaching.
Religious Studies 40: The New Testament
(TWR 2:10-4:25, 101 Olson) CRN 79074
Course Description: Introduction to the global and comparative study of fundamentalism. This is a study of Historical origins, basic texts, cultural context of fundamentalist strains of Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Hinduism. Emphasis will be on fundamentalism and science, terrorism, politics and gender. GE credit: ArtHum, Div, and Wrt.
Course Format: Lecture; Discussion.
Prerequisite: None.
Texts:
- The Holy Bible (Oxford University Press)
- A Course Reader
Religious Studies 170: Buddhism NEW COURSE
(TR 11:00-1:30, 1060 Bainer) CRN 80294)
Course description: Buddhism in its pan-Asian manifestations, from its beginning in India to its development in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, Central Asia, China and Japan; teachings and practices, socio-political and cultural impact.
Course Format: Lecture/Discussion; Term Paper.
Prerequisite: None.
Texts:
TBA