57 courses with the subject REL, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
REL 110What Is Religion4
Students will attemp to arrive at their own “thick descriptions” regarding the nature, meaning, and phenomenon of religion(s) and religious experience. Introduction to psychological,l theological, sociological, and anthropological methods in exploring the ways religion functions in the lives of individuals as well as in the construction, maintenance, and daily life of societies. Engagement in cross-cultural comparison and contrast. (M4) (PTK - GLO) (Equity and Inclusion)
This course will tackle the question of how the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament was written and what its original meanings were, using the tools of historical criticism, archaeology, and religious history. The diverse religious perspectives within the text will be explored. Knowledge of the Hebrew language is not expected. (M3)(PtK:HUM)(Ethical Deliberation)(Critical Reading)
The Bible has a large amount of legal material, and these laws are foundational to Western civilization, morality, ethics, and modern law. In this course we will study some of the oldest law codes such as the Code of Hammurabi and see how they compare with biblical laws. We will explore the different types of biblical laws and what they teach. The Jewish religion in particular attempts to maintain biblical laws into the present, but biblical laws require interpretation to make them functional. So, we will explore the fascinating tradition of Jewish legal interpretation, particularly in the great masterpiece of Jewish jurisprudence, the Talmud. No prior background in Judaism is needed; all you would need in included in this course.
This course will study what we can know historically about the life and activities of Jesus. Comparison of the four gospels of the Christian New Testament, so that their separate messages and emphases can be discerned. Gospels that present different views of Jesus and his teachings but were not included in the Christian Bible will also be studied. (M3) (PTK - HUM) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)(Critical Reading)
The historical background within which the Qur’an appeared. Characteristic features of Qur’anic worldview. Topics of study include Qur’anic views of God, God- human relation, God-world relation, and ethico- religious concepts. The course addresses different approaches and methods of interpretation in the tradition of Qur’anic exegesis. Lastly, the course explores various challenges the Qur’an faces in the modern era, such as feminist challenges, and the issue of violence and human rights. (M3)
Movement of earliest Palestinian Christianity into the Hellenistic world, studied through a focus on the Book of Acts and on the life and letters of the Apostle Paul. Historical methods for study of the Bible as a whole. (M3)(PtK:HUM)(Ethical Deliberation)(Critical Reading)
An introduction to the Roman Catholic expression of Christianity. Use of historical, sociological, theological and ethical methods to explore the development of the Roman Catholic Church, its social structures such as the Magisterium, its ecclesiology, doctrines, rituals, and body of social teaching. The focus will especially address the concerns, experience, and practices of contemporary U.S. Catholics. (M3)
An introduction to the basic beliefs and practices of Hinduism and Indian Buddhism through the study of primary sources. Secondary sources will be used to examine popular Hinduism and contemporary South Asian Buddhism. (M5) (PTK - GLO)(Critical Reading) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)
A study of the Confucian, Daoist/Taoist, and Buddhhist traditions and their contribution to the intellectual, ethical, and spiritual life in East Asian cultures. Local traditions will also be discussed. (M5) (PTK - GLO)(Critical Reading)(Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)
The course is a survey of the ideals and practices of Islam across its history. It includes ritual, theological, philosophical, mystical, ethical and political dimensions of Islam. Special attention is given to Islam’s primary message and its implementation in the life of Muslims. (M3) (PTK - GLO) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)
This course will provide an introduction to Jewish religion, culture, and history. The course will explore major Jewish textual resources (the Jewish Bible, rabbinic commentaries, philosophy, and mysticism) as well as Jewish religious liefways such as worship and holidays. The diversity of Jewish cultures and languages, Jewish political nationalism (Zionism), as well as the complex and ever-changing question of Jewish identity will also be studied. (M3) (PTK - HUM) (Equity and Inclusion)(Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)
How does healing go beyond the physical to include the emotion and spiritual? What are the boundaries between medicine and religion? This course investigates these questions by turning to Indian and Chinese religious-philosophical traditions. We will example Chinese medical arts such as acupuncture and qigong, Indian Ayurveda medicine and its relationship to Yoga, and the contemporary discourse on Buddhist-based meditation practices-including Mindfulness-for health. (PTK - SCI) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)(Critical Reading)
This course exposes students to Hinduism, Yoga, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, Shugendo, Chinese divination and geomancy, and contemporary expressions of Asian religions. Students learn not just from the content and narrative of film, but also about its meta-narrative, or narration in form and structure, including editing, lighting, musical arrangement, and implicit ideologies. Students will watch clips and short films in class, and feature-length films before class. ( PTK: CRE) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)(Equity and Inclusion)
Introduction to the pluralism of Christian images, metaphors, and theories of salvation. Students will read ancient and modern theological texts, as well as learn from visual art, film, and literature. In addition to theological investigation, students are encouraged to explore the social and historical underpinnings of various salvation metaphors as they occur in various cultures and epochs. (M3)
Asian American history is American history. Why, then, does the history of Asian Pacific Islander Desi Americans continue to be underrepresented across the curriculum? This course engages with the religious experiences of APA or AAPI populations in order to understand Asian American history in the United States. We will begin by asking how to understand APA identities and the history of immigration and exclusion-including how Buddhist identities of Japanese Americans were used to argue against their identity as Americans. Then, we turn to APA experiences of healing and medicine against the backdrop of xenophobic metaphors for disease and contagion and how that fueled anti-Asian violence and sentiment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, we examine the hypersexualization of Asian/American women in the media and how this contributed to the narratives around the March 2021 Atlanta-area shootings. (PTK - SS)(Ethical Deliberation)(Equity and Inclusion)
Traditional myths, rituals, and life-cycle ceremonies of native American peoples, representing several geo-cultural regions of North America. Attention will also be paid to issues of medicine and healing, gender relations, ecological values, and indigenous responses to threats of physical and cultural genocide.(M5)
Students explore how films appropriate religion in the service of the cultural production of images of women and women’s lives; and investigate the ways the creation and viewing of film might share similarities with the construction and practice of religion. (M3) (PTK -GLO) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)
This introductory course invites students to explore the concept of God and related philosophical and theological issues across various religious traditions. Through the lens of one or more great religious thinkers-such as Aquinas in Christianity, Ibn Sina (Avicenna) in Islam, Shankara in Hinduism, or Maimonides in Judaism-students will examine how different traditions have conceptualized the divine, addressing questions such as: What is the nature of God? How can humans understand or relate to the divine? What are the implications of belief in God for ethics, human purpose, and the meaning of life? This course may be repeated as long as the topics differ. (PTK - HUM)
Students will study, and find and create spaces in which to think and see more freely in order to identify and analyze (in)justice in our own lives, communities, and world. We also will use the contemplative practices of memoir (drawing from the Moravian tradition of Lebenslaufe) and walking as resources for critical thinking. A majority of the course will involve students developing individual responses to (in)justice (“interventions”) through various projects that reflect students’ own passion and design, including academic, artistic, political, religious, social, service-oriented, and personal responses. Students submit a portfolio comprising their best work from the semester to demonstrate that they have met the learning goals of the course, and include their memoir. (M3) (PtK:SS)(Ethical Deliberation)Good morning Carly! Since HHUM 252 is cross-listed with ENGL 252, you will need to reach out to the course instructor to request authorization for ENGL 252 as well. Thanks
A careful reading and discussion of representative texts in Christian ethics, with particular emphasis upon the distinctiveness of Christian ethics, Christian faith and social responsibility, the relation between Christian ethics and Christian theology, and the diversity of Christian ethics among the various Protestant and Catholic traditions.(U2)
JUNIOR OR SENIOR CLASS STANDING Credit Type Code: Letter Grade
REL 211Christian Ethics & War4
How should humans respond to the perennial human problem of war? This course provides an introduction to ethics from Christian perspective through foucs on this social issue. Students will be exposed to a wide spectrum of responses, including pacifism, nonviolent direct action, just war theory, Christian realism, warrior ethics and more; and will develop their own ethic as their final project for the semester. (U2)
An exploration of the long history of “materialism” as a philosophical, scientific, and practical/technological orientation toward “the world.” Students examine the thesis that the history of materialism as a philosophical and scientific orientation among Western societies is identical with the gradual secularization of these societies. Particular attention is given to the irony that materialism’s roots are deep in the soil of the very religions that are now made so anxious in the face of the sciences, technocracy, and secularized social orders. (U1)
JUNIOR OR SENIOR CLASS STANDING Credit Type Code: Letter Grade
REL 215Christian Theology4
Major issues within mainstream Christian faith, with attention to God; the nature of Christ; death and the ultimate Christian hope; and C. S. Lewis’s Perelandra, a science-fiction novel about Creation and the Fall. Fall, alternate years.
REL 112 OR REL 114 OR REL 116 Credit Type Code: Letter Grade
REL 217Paul Jewish & Christian Eyes4
An introduction to the complex, perilous and fascinating world of New Testament biblical interpretation through focus on the writings of Paul of Tarsus. We will explore the robustly debated topic of how to understand Paul, his letters, and his theology through study of the history of Christian antijudaism and antisemitism, exposure to contemporary biblical criticism, archeology, and other scientifi c fi ndings, and via service learning. (M3)
What is mindfulness? Does it improve health? Why are mindfulness-based programs being increasingly introduced into big corporations, startups, churches, public schools, hospitals, prisons, law enforcement, and the military? This course will explore: 1) the relationship between Buddhist traditions and mindfulness; 2) scientific research on the effects of mindfulness; and 3) the ethical debate on the commodification of mindfulness. (U1)
This course will provide students with the opportunity to study and reflect on the relationship between Christian thought and (post)modern life. We will look at the way supposedly “secular culture” makes reference to “signals of transcendence,” and expresses longing for spiritual meaning, focusing on the changing nature of “pilgrimage” and its relationship to religious authority, theology, spiritual conviction, tourism and movement, and the role of culture. Students will embark upon their own pilgrimage as a part of their class work, in addition to studying diverse sites and pathways of pilgrimage (secular and religious) in the U.S. and world. (M3).
REL 112 OR REL 114 OR REL 116 Credit Type Code: Letter Grade
REL 226From Prophecy to Apocalyptic4
An exploration of the phenomenon of prophecy as a social institution as known in the ancient Near East as well as prophetic literature in biblical texts. The development of apocalyptic thought in Judaism and Christianity will be studied, up to the book of Revelation. (M3)
A study of the religions of the ancient Near East, this course will explore the myths and rituals of the peoples of Mesopotamia, Anatolia, Syria-Palestine, and Egypt before the Roman era. Foundational to western civilization in general, these religions also form the cultural context and background for the sacred scriptures of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. (PTK - HUM) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies)(Critical Reading)
Atheism is the belief that there is no God or gods. This course is a systematic and sympathetic examination and critical evaluation of atheism. It is primarily focused upon understanding contemporary arguments against theism, such as arguments from evil and divine hiddenness, and sociological and psychological theories about the origin of religion (e.g. Freud and Durkheim), and the implications fo atheism with respect to the questions of moral values, the meaning of life, and the possibility of immortality. (U2)
Introduction to theological feminist theory, comparing and contrasting Jewish and Christian women theologians/ethicists on themes such as images of the divine, sacred text, halakhah, community, sexuality, ritual, etc. In addition, students will learn from the lives of women in our own community.(U2)
JUNIOR OR SENIOR CLASS STANDING Credit Type Code: Letter Grade
REL 244What Is Peace?4
Students explore the nature, meaning and discipline of peace studies from different traditions, theories and perspectives. They investigate case studies of peace movements in recent times, and develop their own visions of peace through a research project they present for peer review. This final project will take the shape of a paper, film, or other modality according to student interest. (M3)
What is “civil religion”? This course examines the relationship between religious ideas and values, and political structures, decision-making and culture. Topics include the historical background of civil religion in the U.S., church-state relations and the First Amendment, the role of religion in politics post 9/11, the intersection of politics, religion and race, and other current issues. (U2)
JUNIOR OR SENIOR CLASS STANDING Credit Type Code: Letter Grade
REL 246War & Peace in Biblical World4
This course will explore ideologies of warfare and other forms of sanctioned mass violence, as well as ancient hopes and expectation for peace. Ancient Near Eastern texts and practices will be studied in addition to biblical texts. (U2)
How the religious dimension of human experience is expressed and interpreted in literature, with focus on a particular author, group of writers, theme, or school of critical interpretation. Identification and evaluation of the way human religious experience is articulared through the literary imagination, whether classical, modern, or contemporary.
Traditional myths, rituals, and life-cycle ceremonies of native American peoples, representing several geo-cultural regions of North America. Attention will also be paid to issues of medicine and healing, gender relations, ecological values, and indigenous responses to threats of physical and cultural genocide. (M5)
Modern Judaism exists in a wide spectrum of beliefs and practices, from ultra-traditionalism to secular humanism. This course will explore both the making of modern Judaism and the religious “map” of Jewish life today. Topics will include Hasidic Judaism, Zionism, and contemporary North American trends in Judaism.
A philosophical examination of nature of religion and beliefs concerned with the existence, nature, and knowledge of God, with alternative positions to theism. (U2)
An introduction to philosophy within Judaism, a field that asks the question: is a religion based on faith and tradition also rational and logical? Specific topics addressed will be: Can or should God’s existence be proven? Is God’s power infinite or limited? What should we make of the biblical descriptions of God being human-like? Does God perform miracles? Does God care about the small details of our lives? How can people become close to God? What is the role of the Jewish people in the world? Why is the Jewish religion distinctive among religions? No background in Judaism is need for this course; sufficient background information will be provided. (M3)(PtK:L&R)(Intercultural &Linguistic Competencies)(Critical Reading)
Introduction to the study and practice of liberation theology in the Latin American context through classroom study of the history, method, and content of liberation theology. Our purpose will be to investigate how this movement emerged and the effects it continues to have culturally, politically, religiously, and personally. All students and professor will embark on a travel seminar during Spring Break to the border region between Mexico and Arizona. (M5)
Moral Injury has been defined as “the inevitable outcome of moral engagement with the reality of war and killing,” (Antal and Winings: 2015) and as “the result of participation in the moral distortion of the world created by war” (Denton-Borhaug: 2021). In this course participants will explore and analyze moral injury through multidisciplinary methods including public “whole” health, spiritual, philosophical and theological frameworks, the arts and humanities, as well as through diverse social and physical scientific paradigms/methods. Our aim will be to illuminate increased understanding of the individual experience of moral injury; analyze the relationship between moral injury and U.S. War-culture; and engage in reflective moral deliberation regarding what the phenomenon of moral injury requires of us as individuals, citizens, people with religious (or no-religious) identities, and members of diverse moral communities. (U2)(PtK:HUM)(Ethical Deliberation)
A course designed for students to explore issues related to the The course explores key notions and figures in Islamic philosophy, theology, and mysticism. Some issues embedded in the enormous body of scholarship in Muslim intellectual heritage are employed to examine current global issues such as the struggle for justice and peace and the fight against violence and absolutism. Special attention is given to the structure of Being, the notion of the truth, and the way to attain the truth in the three systems. (M5) (PTK - GLO) (Intercultural and Linguistic Competencies) (Critical Reading)
Did the Protestant work ethic contribute to capitalism? How are Chinese Buddhist institutions currently involved in the stock market? This course examines historical and contemporary engagement of religious institutions with various forms of capitalism. We will discuss how karma acts as a medium for the exchange of spiritual and material goods. We investigate arguments that characterize capitalism as a religion. (LinC M4)
Many forces and ideas shaped the civil rights movement. Through both a historical and a theological/philosophical lens, students will examine those forces and ideas and will consider how the power and depth of the movement continues to challenge us with its continued relevance today. The course includes in-close examinations of key events in the movement, such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Nashville sit-ins, in order to view the movement from the vantage of people involved in the movement. (Ethical Deliberation)
Is it (im)possible to hold religious beliefs and convictions, and simultaneously to be a modern person of science? This course will examine the interface between science and theology from a variety of perspectives. We will explore key questions and supposed conflicts between science and religion, emphasizing the interaction between the two, how science impacts religion and vice versa. A capstone paper, a Credo, will ask the student to reflect on how one’s understanding of scientific theories affects his/her beliefs about certain key religious ideas such as Creation or human nature.(U1) (PTK - SCI)
JUNIOR OR SENIOR CLASS STANDING MILE Requirement: SCI LinC Requirement: U1 Credit Type Code: Letter Grade TAGS Critical Reading
REL 265Sociology of Religion4
Historical, anthropological, sociological, psychological, comparative, and theological methods used in scholarly study of religion. Readings drawn from classical and contemporary interpreters of religion.
REL 112 OR REL 114 OR REL 116 Credit Type Code: Letter Grade
REL 266History of The Early 18th Century M4
This course explores the history of the Moravians as an 18th-century transatlantic community. Their communities are an interesting example of 18th-century intentional communities. How were their congregations organized? What did Moravians believe, and how does this relate to other religious groups? How did they perceive their own history, and how did Moravians record history? Eighteenth-century Moravians were highly controversial; we will take a look at some of the polemical writings. In the course we will also explore issues of gender, race and sexuality. (M1)
Zionism, the movement for the foundation and support of a sovereign Jewish state, is one of the most consequential and controversial political movements of modern times. In this course we will explore how why Zionism was created, what it was created to accomplish, and how it managed to overcome an initially skeptical Jewish public while founding a state that has become central in the lives of Jews worldwide. The purpose of this course is learn about this important movement from a relatively objective point of view. Thus, the course does not exist to advocate for Zionism nor to attack it, but rather to understand it in its complexity. So, the course will also study Zionism’s problems, as expressed by its Jewish and Arab/Muslim critics. In this course we will read the voices of Israeli and non-Israeli Jews as well as Palestinian Arabs and non-Palestinian Muslims.
How did the most popular Buddhist deity of worship transform from male (Avalokitesvara in India) to female (?? or Guanyin/Kannon/Gwan-eum in East Asia)? Does being born female indicate bad karma? How do goddesses and prostitutes use sex to help others? What are Buddhist and Hindu views on masturbation, sexual pleasure, homosexuality, gender fluidity, and queerness? This course investigates these questions through Asian religious images, narratives, and films.
Ethical discourse from Asia does not fit neatly into the major western categories of consequentialism (utilitarianism), rule-based deontology, or virtue ethics. There is lively debate on how to classify Confucian ethics and Buddhist ethics. This course explores this classification problem and then examines how Confucian and Buddhist insights can help illuminate contemporary issues. Possibilities include 1) lies, “alternative facts”, and theories of truth; 2) the ethics of artificial intelligence; 3) medical ethics, etc.
The course explores various issues on the nature of the world from theistic and non-theistic perspectives. Among the issues addressed in this course includes the question of the world’s origin (creation, emanation, the world’s eternity), the law of nature, freedom and predestination, ethics, religious devotion, and eschatology. While special attention is given to these issues in Islamic intellectual traditions, the course will also address them in a range of religious-philosophical traditions. (Spring 2008) Writing intensive.
A required course for religion majors. Students will select and conduct an individual research project under the direction of a faculty member. Ideally the student will have already taken REL 370. The first part of the course will be focused on methodology.
