Welcome Carthage College Students! This is an online portal to RELI 100: Understandings of Religion (Jan '08).

This course will examine the religious dimension in the lives of individuals, communities, and cultures. Students will explore understandings of religion and the roles of religion, along with commonalities and differences in expressions of religion. This will be accomplished by examining topics such as God, scripture, ritual, values, ethical issues and cosmology, as expressed within several specific religious traditions, including Judaism and Christianity.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

This course is an introduction to the study of religion, and given the breadth of the topic and the brevity of our time, it can only be a very cursory introduction. Still, within these limitations, there are several specific objectives:

1. To increase students' awareness and appreciation of the religious dimensions in human experience, whether or not they are themselves people of faith;
2. To identify the influence and impact of religious beliefs on individuals and society, and the role that religion has played (and continues to play) in our world;
3. To become aware of sources of religious authority such as sacred texts and tradition;
4. To become aware of similarities and differences in the major world religions;
5. To explore how differing religious assumptions can generate conflict between believers;
6. To enable students to reflect more self-consciously on their own religious lives, in the context of an increasingly plural world.

Required Readings

• Carthage College, Understandings of Religion: A Reader.
• Eastman, Roger, Editor. The Ways of Religion.
• Esposito, John L., Darrell Fasching and Todd Lewis. World Religions Today.
• Johnson, William Courtland. "A Delusive Clothing: Christian Conversion in the Antebellum Slave Community." In Journal of Negro History 82:3 (Summer, 1997), 295-311.
• May, L. Carlyle. "A Survey of Glossolalia and Related Phenomena in Non-Christian Religions." In American Anthropologist 58:1 (Feb, 1956), 75-96.

Recommended Readings (for use in Group Presentations)

• Appiah, Kwame Anthony. "The Invention of Africa" In In My Father's House: Africa in the Philosophy of Culture. 3-27.
• Daly, Mary. Gyn/Ecology: The Metaethics of Radical Feminism. (Select one chapter, or, if chapter shorter than 20 pages, select two complete chapters.)
• Eliade, Mircea. "Human Existence and Sanctified Life." In The Sacred and The Profane: The Nature of Religion: The Significance of Religious Myth, Symbolism, and Ritual Within Life and Culture. 162-213. (Yes, the entire chapter!)
• Foucault, Michael. "Truth and Power." In Power/Knowledge: Selected Interviews & Other Writings: 1972-1977. 109-133.
• Friere, Paulo. "Education, Liberation and the Church." In The Politics of Education: Culture, Power, and Liberation. 120-142.
• Turner, Victor. The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure. (Select one chapter, or, if chapter shorter than 20 pages, select two complete chapters.)
• Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science (anything)

Media

• Borat.
• Life of Brian.
• Ushpizin.

Web Resources

• Carthage Calendar

• Common Errors in English

• Religious Movements - Group Profiles Page - Hadden @ Univ. Virginia

• Stunningly Brief Introduction to World Religions - Lochtefeld @ Carthage

Evaluation:

• Reading of assigned texts with discussion notes, which gives way to active and quality participation in class discussions, which requires attendance (40% of your course grade)
• Terms tests (10% total; each 5%)
• "Intro paper" (1000-1200 words) and oral presentation of findings (20%)
• Group Presentation (20%)
• Final exam (10%)

Schedule:

Session 1 - Jan 3
Reading - None
Course overview
Discussion - Prime, primal, primary, primitive (Esposito 36 vs. Eastman 450f)... does
     language matter?
Exploration - What is religion?
Lecture - "The Science of Religions"

Session 2 - Jan 4
Reading - Reader 1-37, 47-59
Discussion Note - Reader 47-59

     Sample Turabian citations for multiple authors in an anthology:

     Carthage College Department of Religion. Understandings of Religion: A Reader. Acton,
          MA: Copley, 2007. 47-59. (Include at top of page after byline but before
          summary/response. Notice, we do not list the three articles separately, but we list
          them as originating in a larger work.) Also,

     Hick writes, "I have argued that it is rational on the part of those..." (Reader, 47).
          (That is a sample of inline citations. I appreciate the use footnotes for deeper
          explorations--those that require outside sources or further explanation--but the
           footnotes do not count toward or against your total word count.)

Exploration - Exploring Values, Part 1
Lecture - Modernity; "Common Themes: Body"

Session 3 - Jan 7 (last day to drop/add)
Reading - Reader 61-110
Discussion Note - Esposito 2-33
Terms test - religion, cult, pagan, denomination, heathen, scripture, myth,
      metanarrative, faith, belief. spirituality, religious studies, theology, philosophy,
      modern, postmodern, via analogia, via negativa, god, deism, theism, monotheism,
      henotheism, polytheism, nontheism, atheism, pantheism, panentheism, Gnosticism,
      agnosticism, humanism, Animism, numinous, diaspora, Halakhah, Hasidism,
      Talmud, Torah, Kabbalah, Mishnah, Zionism
Exploration - Exploring Values, Part 2

Session 4 - Jan 8
Reading - Eastman 447-527 (read)
Discussion Note - Eastman 450-454
Exploration - Role of Children in Religion
Media - from Jesus Camp
Lecture - "How a writing becomes a scripture"

Session 5 - Jan 9
Reading - Eastman 287-335 (skim), Salient Points (read), Zarathustra (Life and
     Teachings) (read)
Discussion Note - TBA
Terms test - TBA (from Esposito 535-546)
Exploration - Purity Codes
Lecture - "Primitive Monotheisms"
     Africa/Asia 1: Judaism and Zoroastrianism

Session 6 - Jan 10 (last day to withdraw without failure)
Reading - Apostles' Creed, bonus creeds and faith statements, Eastman 447-486 (read)
Discussion Note - Reader 40-42; Eastman 326-335
Exploration - Why Do Bad Things Happen, Part 1
Media - from The Life of Brian
Lecture - "Africa: The Birthplace of Christianity."
     Africa/Asia 2: Christianity and African Traditional Religions

Session 7 - Jan 11
Reading - Bahá'u'lláh, Basic Teachings of Bahá'u'lláh, Eastman 397-445 (read)
Discussion Note - Reader 125-131, 180-187
Exploration - Why Do Bad Things Happen, Part 2
Lecture - Africa/Asia 3: Islam and Baha'i

Session 8 - Jan 14
Reading - Eastman 77-129
Discussion Note - Reader 94-105
Exploration - Service, Part 1
Lecture - "Nontheistic Religious Traditions in Eastern Philosophy"
     Asia 1: Buddhisms and the problem of Tibet

Session 9 - Jan 15
Reading - Eastman 13-75
Discussion Note - Reader 188-193
Exploration - Service, Part 2
Lecture - Asia 2: Hinduism

Session 10 - Jan 16
Reading - Eastman 163-285 (skim), Reader 201-208 (read)
Discussion Note - Reader 146-160
Exploration - Afterlife
Lecture - Asia 3: Confucianism, Daoism, Shinto

Session 11 - Jan 17
Reading - Eastman 337-395 (skim)
Discussion Note - Eastman 373-380
Exploration - Experience
Lecture - "Common Themes: Experience"
Media - Ushpizin. (entire film)

Session 12 - Jan 18
Reading - None
Discussion Note - Johnson article
Exploration - Conversion Experiences
Media - from Borat
Lecture - "Inquisition, Then and Now: a Portrait of Religion in North America"
     and "How Spain and Brittan 'Civilized' the World"

Jan 21 - Observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: Reflect; do not read.

Session 13 - Jan 22
Reading - Reader 111-164
Discussion Note - Is it likely that the myths of Dionysus and Isis + Horus (among others)
     influenced other religions?
Exploration - Ultimacy and Beliefs in the Transcendent
Lecture - Before the invention of monotheism: Rome, Greece, Egypt

Session 14 - Jan 23
Reading - Reader 165-214
Discussion Note - Select lyrics from one song that mentions a "religious" idea.
     Alternatively, you may also discuss patterns in musical composition that allude to
     religious themes (e.g., jazz trio throwing around melody reflects a Christian trinity.)
Exploration - Faith Statements in Music
Lecture - "Common Themes: Transformation"

Session 15 - Jan 24
"Intro Paper" Due
Colloquium - Intro Papers presented and discussed
Exploration - Earth-centered Traditions

Session 16 - Jan 25
Reading - Humanist Manifesto III, Unitarian Universalist Principles and Sources and
     Eastman 528-535
Discussion Note - Esposito 173-179
Presentation - Group 1
Lecture - Nontheistic Religious Traditions in Continental Philosophy and "Rationalism"

Session 17 - Jan 28
Reading - Eastman 223-226, 263-266, 504-510
Discussion Note - Inclusive language policy from Broadway UMC (Chicago)
Presentation - Group 2
Lecture - "Common Themes: Gender"

Session 18 - Jan 29
Reading - Acts 2:1-21 and Esposito 42-55
Discussion Note - May article
Presentation - Group 3
Lecture - "Common Themes: Clergy" and "Common Themes: Ecstasy/Sobriety"

Session 19 - Jan 30
Reading - TBA
Discussion Note - TBA
Presentation - Group 4
Lecture - Review main themes for exam

Session 20 - Jan 31
Presentation - Group 5
Essay Exam

Notes on Evaluation:

Discussion notes: Each student (including auditors) will be asked to circulate discussion notes for each class period.  These questions must be posted to the Blackboard Discussion Board 9 hours before the class period begins.  The discussion note will be no longer than 350 words (100 or less from summary and the remainder from response) and should find its prompt in the assigned reading, as announced.  The note shall be structured as follows: Section One (Summary) shall include a key-concepts summary that shall not exceed 100 words.  Section Two (Response) is a personal reflection.  It may include "I feel" and "I disagree" statements.  The student may wish to ask a series of questions, list a few areas that the student would like to study in greater depth, or the student may wish to channel their talents into critical response to the reading from the perspective of their chosen major.  For example, a Literature or Theatre major may wish to write their inquiry into Religious Studies in iambic pentameter.  The note must provoke discussion and should demonstrate the student’s best attempt at processing the text.

Group Presentation (10%): The instructor will divide the class into five groups, which shall present topics as directed. Presentations should last 50 minutes and should include these components: (1) information-giving, (2) discussion, (3) some media delivery (e.g., PowerPoint, movie clip, well-rehearsed live performance), (4) use of <topic> in pop culture or North American politics, (5) reference to current events, and (6) find its central theme in an assigned text.  The groups will present at least one chapter (of at least 20 pages in length; to receive instructor approval via email) from a title in the recommended reading list.  (If the college library does not have a copy of the text you wish to present, then it is your responsibility to secure a copy through interlibrary loan or other means.)  The presentation group will electronically furnish for their classmates and instructor an extensive outline of assigned material no later than 48 hours before the class period. 

Participating in discussion portion of others' presentations (10%): All comments and questions will reflect the preparedness and reflection of the student for class, and on that basis the instructor will grade each student.  Which is to say, when you are not presenting, but your classmates are, you must still participate actively in discussion and, prior to class, complete reading of chapter outline. 

Terms Tests: Twice during the semester, students will take a glossary quiz, to include relevant terms, as listed on the syllabus and described in class. The standard for these definitions include the Esposito Glossary (532-546), the Oxford English Dictionary (use OED.com through campus library), and notes of explanation provided through lectures.

Intro Paper: Students taking the course for credit are expected to submit an intro paper of 1000-1200 words by the beginning of the last class period. Students may propose a major-related project and submit a critical reflection of the project.  Use Kate Turabian’s Manual for Writers of Research Papers, MLA or Chicago.  All students must request instructor approval of their proposed topic (in question form) by submitting a short written description by no later than the end of Session 7.  During session 15, each student will present (1) question that needed to be explored and (2) key findings that address this question.

Essay Exam: The entire second half of class (no more than 100 minutes) shall be devoted to writing a response to the prompt. Ideally, the prompt will be a single question/quote, and the instructor will require the student to engage specific thinkers as dialogue partners.  Students should plan to use the entire 100 minutes to plan and implement their response.

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