Religion
Head: Kenneth MacKendrick
Campus Address/General Office: 331 Fletcher Argue Building
Telephone: 204 474 6277
Email Address: religion@umanitoba.ca
Website: umanitoba.ca/religion
Program Information
We are a world religions department. Our approach is interdisciplinary and engages a wide range of human activity commonly deemed “religious,” seeking to understand how religions function, how religious discourse evolves, why certain religious perspectives gain prominence and how they are contested. We research and teach about a range of religions, past and present, from around the world, investigating the languages, ethical systems, practices, organizations, and institutions within which such religions are defined, refined, rejected, or renewed. Given the diversity of this study, such theoretical and methodological questions are viewed as central to the coherence of our courses, programs, and fields.
For entry, continuation and graduation requirements for the General Degree, Advanced Degree and Honours Degree, see Basic Faculty Regulations for the B.A. General, Advanced and Honours Degree Programs.
Major Program
For entry to the Major, the prerequisite is a grade of “C” or better in six credit hours in Religion.
A minimum "C" average in all courses that comprise the Major is required to graduate including the higher grade of repeated courses and excluding failed courses.
Minor (Concentration) Program
For entry to the Minor (Concentration), the prerequisite is a grade of “C” or better in six credit hours in Religion.
Honours Program
For entry to the Honours program, see Basic Faculty Regulations for the B.A. General, Advanced and Honours Degree Programs.
Other
In addition to courses numbered at the 1000-level, the Department of Religion offers a number of upper-level courses for which there are prerequisites; see course descriptions.
It is not necessary for students to enter the offerings in Religion by way of courses numbered at the 1000-level. Students in any year or program may register for any course in Religion provided they satisfy course and program prerequisites. With written permission of the department head students may take courses numbered at the 4000-level.
In cooperation with St. Paul’s College, the Department of Religion offers an arrangement of courses with special emphasis in Catholic studies as an option for students intending to Major or Minor in Religion. This special emphasis involves completing course RLGN 2850 and selecting relevant courses offered in the Faculty of Arts and the School of Art. Contact the Department of Religion prior to registration in order to select appropriate courses.
Programs
| Degree/Diploma | Years to Completion | Total Credit Hours | Has Co-op Option |
|---|---|---|---|
| Degree/Diploma Religion, B.A., Double Advanced Major | Years to Completion 4 | Total Credit Hours 120 | Has Co-op Option no |
| Degree/Diploma Religion, B.A. Double Honours | Years to Completion 4 | Total Credit Hours 96 | Has Co-op Option no |
| Degree/Diploma Religion, B.A. General | Years to Completion 3 | Total Credit Hours 90 | Has Co-op Option no |
| Degree/Diploma Religion, B.A. Single Advanced Major | Years to Completion 4 | Total Credit Hours 120 | Has Co-op Option no |
| Degree/Diploma Religion, B.A. Single Honours | Years to Completion 4 | Total Credit Hours 120 | Has Co-op Option no |
| Degree/Diploma Religion Minor (Concentration) | Total Credit Hours 18 | Has Co-op Option no |
Courses
Religion
RLGN 1120 Biblical Hebrew 6 cr
Equiv To: HEB 1120, SEM 1120
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1322 Introduction to Eastern Religions 3 cr
This course provides a general introduction to the origins, central teachings and practice, key developments and contemporary expressions of Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. Students may not hold credit for RLGN 1322 and any of: RLGN 1323 or the former RLGN 1320 or the former RLGN 1321.
Equiv To: RLGN 1323
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 1320, RLGN 1321
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1324 Introduction to Western Religions 3 cr
Equiv To: RLGN 1325
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 1320, RLGN 1321
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1350 The History of Eastern Christianity 6 cr
This course examines the general history of Eastern Christianity. It studies the doctrines and organization of the churches, their spirit and attitude to church unity.
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1390 Readings in Biblical Hebrew 1 3 cr
Reading and translation of selected prose portions of the Hebrew Bible. Vocabulary building and review of basic Hebrew grammar.
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1400 Readings in Biblical Hebrew 2 3 cr
Reading and translation of selected poetic portions of the Hebrew Bible. Vocabulary building and advanced grammar.
PR/CR: A minimum grade of C is required unless otherwise indicated.
Prerequisite: [RLGN 1390] or written consent of instructor or department head.
Prerequisite: [RLGN 1390] or written consent of instructor or department head.
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1410 Death and Concepts of the Future 3 cr
The course investigates theories, images, and rituals of death, dying and the afterlife in selected world religions.
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1420 Ethics in World Religions 3 cr
Examination of the ethical teachings of world religious traditions. Attention will be given to such questions as the nature of the good or virtue, the place of law or commandments, the relationship between religion and morality, the concepts of moral community and the moral self. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 1420 and RLGN 1421.
Equiv To: RLGN 1421
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1424 Religion and Sexuality 3 cr
An introduction to world religions through the lens of sexuality, exploring how sexual desires and practices are celebrated, regulated, imagined and constructed in different religions. Topics may include pleasure, procreation, sexual and gender identities, marriage, asceticism, erotic imagery of divine beings and divine-human relations.
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1430 Food: Religious Concepts and Practices 3 cr
This course explores the cultural (communal and social) dimensions of the major world religions through examination of food concepts and practices. Topics studied include: food symbols and rituals in the theory of religion; food proscripton and endorsments ("dietary laws"); food in ritual time and space ("menus" and "liturgies"); concepts of plenty and concepts of dearth (ethics of food distribution); food and communication; food and gender/food and the body; feasting and fasting; food, religion and "consumer culture."
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 1440 Evil in World Religions 3 cr
The course introduces students to perspectives on evil in selected world religions.
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses, Written English Requirement
RLGN 1450 Religion and the Media 3 cr
This course investigates representations of religion in popular media. Through study of a range of media, from newspapers to the internet, the course explores cultural stereotypes about religion, asking how religions are represented, and how they represent themselves, in popular culture.
Attributes: Humanities, Recommended Intro Courses
RLGN 2010 Introduction to Hinduism 3 cr
An overview of the rich and multi-faceted tradition of Hinduism, dealing with its history and development from ancient to modern times. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2010 and the former RLGN 2860.
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 2860
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2020 Introduction to Buddhism 3 cr
A general introduction to the beliefs, practices, and history of the main forms of Buddhism, including Indian Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, and Zen. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2020 and the former RLGN 2830.
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 2830
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2030 Psychology and Religion 3 cr
An examination of the late nineteenth century emergence of psychoanalysis in conjunction with the discovery of the unconscious. The course approaches psychoanalytic theories of the unconscious in the work of major theorists such as Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, Jacques Lacan, Melanie Klein, and Julia Kristeva, considering the implications the unconscious has for our
understanding of the self, embodiment, life death relations, language, writing, and the study of religion. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2030 and the former RLGN 2211.
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 2211
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2032 Introduction to the Study of Religion 3 cr
This course is an introduction to the academic study of religion, its history and theoretical approaches. Topics addressed may include texts, myths, rituals, symbols, and institutions. Several methodological approaches associated with religious studies, comparative religion, and the history of religion will also be discussed.
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2036 Introduction to Christianity 3 cr
This course provides an introduction to the history of Christianity from its earliest beginnings to the present. It will also focus on Christianity's main ideas and practices. Students will also be introduced to key concepts and debates in the study of religion using Christianity as a test case.
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2040 Early Modern Christianity in a Global Context 3 cr
This course explores the globalization of Christianity through the study of the historical events, teachings, and practices that shaped Western Christianity from the late Middle Ages to the 20th century, through the reformations of the sixteenth century, the Enlightenment, and the subsequent colonial enterprises. We explore the tumultuous events that led to the division of the Western Church into Protestant and Catholic and engendered a redefinition of "Christendom" which continued to evolve as missionaries and others travelled to new territories. The second part of the course focuses on the expansion of Christianity in Asia, Africa and the Americas and its effects on local populations.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2052 Conservative Christianity in the United States 3 cr
An introductory study of 20th and 21st century trends in conservative Christianity in the United States with an emphasis on the gospel of prosperity, the moral majority, and dominion theology. Themes include attitudes and practices concerning health, politics, capitalism, race, and sex/gender. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2052 and the former RLGN 2050.
Equiv To: RLGN 2050
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2060 Religion and Violence 3 cr
Violence of many kinds - physical and non-physical, by and against individuals, within and amongst religious groups - plays an integral role in all religious traditions and systems. This course explores this role within the framework of an historical approach to world religions. Themes covered may include: theories of religion and violence; sacrifice; martyrdom; symbolic violence; iconoclasm; blasphemy; heterodoxy and discipline; religious toleration; religious warfare; religion and cultural resistance; religion and domestic violence; religion and non-violence.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2072 Storytelling and Religion 3 cr
Storytelling is a way of making sense of, and transforming, the world: so is religion. This course explores story, imagination, and performance in the context of religion and spirituality. Course work may involve textual study, writing, and the practice of storytelling. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2072 and the former RLGN 3850.
Equiv To: RLGN 3850
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2090 Issues in Science and Religion 3 cr
A consideration of some of the major issues arising from the intersection of the concepts and interests of the natural sciences with those of the religions of the world.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2100 Approaches to the Qur'an 3 cr
An introduction to the main features, structure, and contents of the Qur'an as a text and to the manifold ways it has been received, understood, and interpreted by Muslims for over 1400 years.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2110 Religion and Healing 3 cr
A study of concepts of illness, health and healing, of therapeutic rituals, and of healing figures, in selected world religions.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2112 Medicine, Magic, and Miracle in the Ancient World 3 cr
This course introduces students to the world of healing in antiquity. It explores the full range of healing options available to people in the ancient world from approximately 500 BCE to 500CE, focusing in particular in the Greek and Roman Mediterranean. This range includes professional medicine and its many kinds of practitioners and sub-specialists, religious forms of healing, popular or folk remedies, and more "magical" approaches to healing such as spells, amulets, and other forms of ad hoc rituals. Futhermore, it presents students with evidence for the practices and social settings of ancient healthcare. This evidence includes medical and pharmacological texts, accounts of miraculous healing, manuals of natural science, ancient "magical" texts, as well as archaeological evidence such as site maps of healing shrines, votives, amulets, medical instrumentation, human remains, and inscriptions.
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2114 Monks, Mystics and Manuscripts in Medieval Christianity 3 cr
This course is an introduction to how people in the Middle Ages experienced and shaped Christianity in the Latin West. We examine the thoughts and actions of individuals profoundly affected by their understanding of the divine as manifested through Scripture, art and community. Through primary sources, we explore topics such as monasticism, university teaching, medicine, preaching and pilgrimage, while paying close attention to questions of authority, knowledge, and gender relations.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2116 Cognitive Science and Religion 3 cr
Survey of recent developments in the cognitive science of religion (including evolutionary and biocultural approaches). Topics include religion and cognition, supernatural concepts, the evolution of religion, religious ritual, mental time travel, and cognition and culture. Responses and rejoinders to the cognitive science of religion will also be examined.
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2120 Faith and Reason 3 cr
Can faith and reason coexist? This course examines religious and philosophical understandings of faith and reason, both historical and contemporary, giving students the tools to engage with contemporary debates on faith and reason in an informed way. Topics explored include proofs for God, science and reason, scripture and language, belief, agnosticism and atheism drawing on authors such as Aristotle, Maimonides, Aquinas,
Kierkegaard, Marx, Freud, A.J. Ayer, and Steven Cahn. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2120 and the former RLGN 2630.
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 2630
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2124 Religion and Music 3 cr
This course introduces students to the uses of music within various world religious and Indigenous traditions. Topics may include: music as a marker of religious identity, music and ritual efficacy, the classification of music as 'religious', uses of music as a mechanism of religious recruitment, politicization of sacred music, music and gender, and the intersection between sacred music and contemporary popular culture.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2130 Religion and Dance 3 cr
An examination of the role of movement and dance in world religions and of attempts to establish a theoretical framework for the study of movement within the discipline.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2140 Introduction to Judaism 3 cr
An exploration of Jewish religious experience: the rhythms of time, the sensory life, sacred texts, collective memory, rules and resistance to rules. The course will introduce Jewish ways of learning, and consider Judaism as a test case for concepts in religious studies, including "religion" itself.
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2160 Hebrew Bible (Tanakh/"Old Testament") 3 cr
An introduction to the ancient books known to the Jews as the Bible or Tanakh (Torah, Nevi'im and Ketuvim) and to Christians as the Old Testament. The course will explore traditional and modern ways of studying these texts, including midrashic and literary approaches. A previous introductory course in Judaism is recommended but not required. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2160 and RLGN 2161.
Equiv To: RLGN 2161
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2162 Great Jewish Books 3 cr
From bestselling authors of today back to the books of the Bible, Jews have been a people of writers and readers. This course is a survey of the kinds of literature that have shaped Jewish culture, highlighting the conversations of Jews with each other across the centuries. Students may not hold credit for RLGN 2162 and the former RLGN 2760.
Equiv To: RLGN 2760
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2170 Introduction to the New Testament 3 cr
Equiv To: RLGN 2171
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2180 Theory of Nature 3 cr
While the content of this course will vary year-to year, its constant purpose will be to introduce students to some of the many ways in which "nature" has been theorized. The course will explore historical and cultural contexts in which selected theories of nature have developed. It will also explore implications of different theories of nature for environmental ethics.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2200 Atheism 3 cr
An introduction to historical and contemporary varieties of atheism. The course may draw on textual, sociological, historical, philosophical, and psychological perspectives on atheisms as world-views, ideologies, and social movements.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2222 The Supernatural in Popular Culture 3 cr
This course provides a survey of the supernatural, superhuman, and paranormal in popular culture, focusing on non-institutionalized forms of religious thought and practice as well as in the popular media (comic books, movies, music, fantasy and science fiction novels, television). Topics may include phenomena such as divination, ghosts, and speaking with the dead as well as fascination with apocalypses, superheroes, time travel, vampires, and zombies. Emphasis will be given to religious expressions not usually recognized as "religious."
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2520 Eastern Christianity in North America 3 cr
A survey of the history and institutions of the major Eastern Christian bodies in North America. Particular reference will be made to the sociological and economic problems, the question of identity and survival, the problem of unity.
PR/CR: A minimum grade of C is required unless otherwise indicated.
Prerequisite: [RLGN 1350] or written consent of department head.
Prerequisite: [RLGN 1350] or written consent of department head.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2530 Eastern Christianity in the Contemporary World 3 cr
A study of some modern-day problems such as: politics, nationalism, geography, culture, secularization, and the question of unity. Particular reference will be made to the problem of the church in Eastern Europe.
PR/CR: A minimum grade of C is required unless otherwise indicated.
Prerequisite: [RLGN 1350] or written consent of department head.
Prerequisite: [RLGN 1350] or written consent of department head.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2570 Indian Religious Art and Architecture 3 cr
A survey of Major periods and themes in Indian art and architecture (Buddhist, Jain, Hindu); iconography, temples, canons of Indian art; life of Buddha, Rama-cycle and Krsna-complex; socioeconomic background.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2590 Religion and Social Issues 3 cr
Equiv To: RLGN 2591
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2610 Animals and Ethics 3 cr
This course surveys the emerging field of "critical animal studies." The course centers on questions of human and nonhuman animal difference as these have been debated in a number of religious and cultural traditions. It also engages traditional and contemporary approaches to animal ethics. Discussions will also focus on such pressing issues as global warming, species extinction, loss of biodiversity, pollution, and threats to population health – all of which can be traced to multinational industrialized breeding and marketing of animals and/or of experimentally developed animal "biocapital." Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 2610 and the former RLGN 2600.
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 2600
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2690 Women and Religion 2 3 cr
Content of this course may vary from year to year. It will address, through contemporary interpretive models, topics of current and ongoing interest in relation to the understanding and role of women in the world's religious traditions.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2700 Religions of China and Japan 6 cr
A study of the history, teachings and developments of Confucianism, Taoism, Shinto and Buddhism in China and Japan from their beginning to the present.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2770 Contemporary Judaism 3 cr
How does an ancient tradition work in today's world? Where is the energy of creativity, the energy of conflict, in contemporary Judaism? What approaches are scholars using as they try to understand current issues in Jewish life and thought? This course will respond to these questions in light of recent and current developments in various streams of Judaism, especially in the United States and Israel, centres of large Jewish populations. A previous introductory course in Judaism is recommended but not required.
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 2778 Introduction to Islam 3 cr
This course explores the question, "What is Islam?" It situates the study of Islam in the broader academic discipline of Religious Studies and provides an introduction to Islam's central beliefs, institutions, and practices. Topics to be examined include: the life of the Prophet Muhammad, the Qur'an, law, Shi'ism, gender, mysticism, art, and science in medieval, modern, and contemporary Muslim societies.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2790 Contemporary Islam 3 cr
A study of the responses of Islamic communities to the pressures of the modern world. Special note will be taken of the relation between Islam and power.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2840 The Second Vatican Council 3 cr
An historical and theological analysis of the Second Vatican Council, beginning with the situation of the Roman Catholic Church subsequent to the French Revolution. The course will include study of major Vatican II documents. Particular attention will be given to the legacy of Vatican II and to assessment of the Council's impact on the life of the Roman Catholic Church.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 2850 Contemporary Issues in Roman Catholicism 3 cr
A survey of major movements, thinkers, debates and issues in twentieth-century post-Vatican II Roman Catholicism. Particular attention will be given to the following: magisterium and dissent, social justice, women in the church, ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue, and emergent theologies.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3102 Myth and Mythmaking: Narrative, Ideology, Scholarship 3 cr
An intensive study of popular, scholarly, and critical conceptions of myth and mythmaking. Three approaches to myth will be examined: myth as universal estate of humanity, myth as object of scientific discourse, and myth as ideology in narrative form. Throughout, students will be encouraged to think about scholars studying myth as mythmakers themselves, thus opening the field to a more critical appraisal of the entwinement of narrative, ideology, and scholarship. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 3102 and the former RLGN 3110.
Equiv To: RLGN 3110
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 3112 Religion and the Imagination 3 cr
This course examines role of the imagination in the creation and transmission of social institutions. Students will learn about the evolutionary development of the imagination, its role in creating shared social identities through cooperation, and its generative power to assign status functions. Emphasis will be given to the role of the imagination in ritualization and mythmaking.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3120 Religion and Bioethics 3 cr
An examination of theoretical and practical bioethical issues and how these are engaged by various religious traditions.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3130 Religion and Modern Thought 3 cr
The idea that religion is a distinct and unique aspect of human activity is a defining feature of modern thought. This course explores aspects of this understanding of religion in various modern intellectual movements from the sixteenth century to the nineteenth century, considering these movements in their particular historical contexts. Topics covered may include: skepticism, northern humanism, religion and European expansion, atheism, religion and the nation state, religion and early modern science, enlightenment, religion and bourgeoisie, imperialism, religion and revolution, religion and evolution. Students may not hold credit for RLGN 3130 and any of: RLGN 3131 or RLGN 3251.
Equiv To: RLGN 3131
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 3251
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3150 Buddhism in East Asia 3 cr
An examination of the history and teachings of Buddhism in China and Japan, giving particular attention to processes of adaptation and transformation within the East Asian context.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3152 Buddhism in the West 3 cr
This course examines the development of Buddhism in the West, a process that began with Westerners encountering Buddhism in Asia, led to Asian Buddhists coming to propagate Buddhism in the West, and is now resulting in the development of new forms of Buddhism that are distinctly Western, so much so, in fact, that whether they continue to qualify as Buddhist is an open question. A key focus of the course will be specific teacher-student lineages spanning generations, which will help to throw some of the key factors in the historical development of Western Buddhism into relief. The course will also focus on some of the seminal texts of Western Buddhism. Here our concern will be the dynamic intellectual culture at work behind and with Western Buddhism, which has been highly influential even outside of Buddhist circles.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3160 Tibetan Religious Traditions 3 cr
A study of the religious traditions, particularly Buddhism, that have developed from antiquity in Tibet. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 3160 and the former 020.374.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3162 Buddhist Philosophy 3 cr
This course surveys Buddhist philosophy and its development from roughly the mid-second millennium to the present day. We will focus primarily on early Buddhist philosophy, abhidharma, Mahayana philosophy, including Madhyamaka and Yogacara, Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, and Zen.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3190 Images of the Prophet Muhammad: Classical and Contemporary Perspectives 3 cr
This course addresses the central place of the Prophet Muhammad in Muslim life and religious practice. It examines sources for the life of Muhammad, considers the Prophet as a model of piety, and gives careful attention to methodological approaches to the study of Islam.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3194 Islamic Philosophy 3 cr
This course explores the history of Islamic philosophy (falsafa) from the translation movement of Greek philosophical, scientific and medical texts under the Abbasid dynasty (8-9th Centuries), until the golden age of interdisciplinary intellectual, scientific and theological debates in the post-classical period of Islamic intellectual history.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3210 Indian Philosophy 3 cr
This course introduces some of the main philosophical schools of Hindu and Buddhist thought, emphasizing the living history of interaction and debate between the various traditions.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3220 Indian Religion and Society 3 cr
This course investigates selected topics in religion and society in the region of the Indian sub-continent. Topics will vary from year to year, ranging from a focus on marriage to a study of Buddhist monks and the politics of civil war in Sri Lanka.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3230 Gender, the Body, and Sexuality in Early Christianity 3 cr
This course focuses on the way in which gender, the body, and sexuality were culturally constructed in early Christian texts and practices. The first five centuries CE were a time in which new understandings of the body, sexual difference, and gender roles came into prominence among large portions of the ancient Mediterranean population. This course will explore these uniquely Christian understandings as well as it will investigate continuities between Christian constructions and those found in Greco-Roman and Jewish society at the time. In particular, the course will explore trends within early Christianity, such as the emphasis on extreme ascetic practices and sexual renunciation.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3260 Indian Buddhism 3 cr
A thematic and historical study of Indian Buddhism from its origin to its disappearance. Topics covered include early Buddhism, Buddhist doctrine and philosophy, and the development of Mahãyãna and Vajrayãna.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3266 Readings in Buddhist Texts 3 cr
This is a course intended for students interested in pursuing a more in-depth study of Buddhism. The course will investigate Buddhist texts and ethnographic case studies and material from a range of traditions and historical periods.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3270 Guru and Disciple 3 cr
A study of the role of the guru in India, and of the dynamic of guru and disciple, utilizing traditional Hindu sources as well as contemporary writings.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3280 Hasidism 3 cr
Hasidic Jews, known for their tales, melodies, distinctive garb and strict traditionalism, belong to one of the most successful modern Jewish religious movements. This course explores Hasidism, from its origins in eighteenth-century Ukraine to the present, through its own stories and spiritual teachings as well as scholarly perspectives.
Attributes: Humanities, Written English Requirement
RLGN 3290 Self-Transformation in Religion and Philosophy 3 cr
This course examines contemporary expressions of spiritual exercises by tracing their traditions across an array of western religious and philosophical schools. The course explores themes of death, asceticism, aestheticism, everydayness and community. In particular, it explores how dialogue, reading, and writing have constituted tools for the cultivation of mental, physical and emotional states leading to self-transformation. Also offered as PHIL 3290. May not be held with PHIL 3290.
Equiv To: PHIL 3290
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3400 Zionism: Religious Perspectives 3 cr
Zionism is a modern political and social movement which has a close but ambivalent relationship with the Jewish religious tradition. This course will explore topics such as secular adaptations of religious motifs; religious critiques of Zionism; religious Zionism as a new form of Judaism; and Christian approaches to Zionism and the State of Israel.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3530 Contemporary Issues 1 3 cr
Content of this course will vary from year to year but it will deal with some specific topic of current interest in religion, some aspect of methodology in the study of religion, or an analysis from a religious perspective of some problem of current public interest. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different. May not be held with RLGN 3531.
Equiv To: RLGN 3531
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3540 Contemporary Issues 2 3 cr
Content of this course will vary from year to year but it will deal with some specific topic of current interest in religion, some aspect of methodology in the study of religion, or an analysis from a religious perspective of some problem of current public interest. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different. May not be held with RLGN 3541.
Equiv To: RLGN 3541
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3560 Texts in Original Languages 3 cr
The subject matter of this course will vary from year to year. It will give students the opportunity to study texts in languages other than English and to develop reading skills in those languages. The emphasis may be on language learning or on working with texts in a language already studied. The course content may vary. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3640 Religion in the Hellenistic and Roman Mediterranean 3 cr
This course explores the wide variety of religious traditions, practices, and beliefs of the Mediterranean region in the Hellenistic and Roman period (c. 300 BCE to 300 CE). This period is exemplified by a great deal of continuity, but it was also a time of experimentation, innovation, and cultural entrepreneurship. Also offered by Classics as CLAS 3670. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 3640 and CLAS 3670.
Equiv To: CLAS 3670
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3750 Topics in Indian Religious Art and Architecture 3 cr
The course will focus on one or more of the religious dimensions of the following: selected motifs in Indian art, the art and architecture of a particular region or epoch, the theoretical assumptions underlying Indian art.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3800 Selected Old Testament Literature and Themes 6 cr
An intensive study of selected writings or themes of the Old Testament (the Tanach).
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3810 The Talmud: Judaism's challenging, controversial book of arguments 3 cr
The Talmud is as important as the Bible in Jewish life and thought. It is not simply a book to read; it has to be studied with other people. Students will learn the skills of studying this polyvocal text, and engage with scholarship on the Talmud's literary techniques, laws, folklore, gender politics, and theology. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 3810 and the former RLGN 2150.
Equiv To: RLGN 2150
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3824 Kabbalah: Magic, Mythology, Mysticism 3 cr
Kabbalah is a centuries-old stream of Jewish thought and practice which encompasses mysticism, ethics, spiritual practice and magic. Students will come away from this course with a working knowledge of the Zohar, the central text of Kabbalah, its radical theology and its mythical-symbolic mode of expression. The course also explores the influence of the Zohar within Judaism and beyond and related scholarly debates. Students may not hold credit for both RLGN 3824 and the former JUD 3390.
Mutually Exclusive: JUD 3390
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3830 The Bible as Story 3 cr
A study of the manner in which biblical storytellers present their tales and the ways in which these narratives have been retold ever since. Particular attention will be paid to Midrash, the tradition of creative retelling of biblical tales. May not be held with the former RLGN 3840.
Mutually Exclusive: RLGN 3840
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 3870 The Thought of Bernard Lonergan 3 cr
A study of the thought of the twentieth-century Canadian Jesuit, Bernard Lonergan, including his work on method in theology, on ways of knowing and on ethics.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4010 Advanced Topics in Buddhism 3 cr
An in-depth study of selected topics from the wide cultural and historical range of Buddhist traditions. The course content may vary. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4020 Advanced Topics in Islam 3 cr
An in-depth study of selected topics in Islamic philosophy and tradition. The course content may vary. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4030 Advanced Topics in Hinduism 3 cr
An in-depth study of selected topics in the philosophy, history, literature, and practices of Hinduism. The course content may vary. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4040 Religion and Democracy 3 cr
This course focuses on role of religion in democratic societies. Topics covered may include secular and post-secular, secularism; democracy, religion, and human rights; religion and the law; nationalism and religion, and so on. Disciplinary approaches to religion and democracy will be discussed: historical, political, feminist, sociological, and philosophical. Key thinkers may include Jurgen Habermnas, John Rawls, Charles Taylor, Seyla Benhabib, Nancy Fraser.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4050 Advanced Topics in Early Christianity 3 cr
This course will focus on selected topics pertaining to the first 500 years of Christianity. The course content may vary. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4060 The Yoga Tradition 3 cr
This course explores the rich, diverse, and highly complex Yoga tradition, emphasizing classical and medieval forms of Yoga philosophy and practice within Hinduism. As well as tracing historical development of the Yoga tradition, the course highlights the meaning and purpose of Yoga in its classical expression and considers the growing popularity and relevance of Yoga in the modern world.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4080 Critical Theory and Religion 3 cr
A selective study of the vast and varied field of theoretical and critical approaches that have come to play a central role in the study of religion since World War II, this course focuses on one or more of the following, its context and precursors: African American theory and criticism, colonialism and post-colonialism, cultural studies, deconstruction, feminist criticisms, Frankfurt School, hermeneutics, semiotics, psychoanalytic theory and criticism, structuralism and post-structuralism.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4110 Studies in Religion and Cultural Memory 3 cr
An examination of selected cultural memory and religion topics.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4160 Religion and Philosophy 3 cr
An examination of the relation between philosophical and religious thought through in-depth study of a selected thinker or thinkers.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4230 Studies in Body History 3 cr
A study in the religious-cultural history of the body, this course explores the multiple meanings given to the body, sexuality and sexual difference in historical and contemporary religious traditions. The course gives particular attention to theories of representation of body and includes study of both written and performative sources.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4282 Advanced Studies in Medieval Christianity 3 cr
This course will focus on topics pertaining to Medieval Christianity (c. 500 to c. 1500 CE). The course content may vary. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4290 Advanced Studies in Mysticism 3 cr
With religious traditions of focus varying year to year, this course considers current scholarly approaches to the understanding of mysticism and sainthood. It includes study of mystic texts and treatises; the mystic body; mystic communities; ascetic ritual and practice. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4300 Advanced Topics in Judaism 3 cr
An in-depth study of selected Jewish texts from the fields of halakhah, aggadah or spirituality, drawing on various theoretical perspectives. The course content may vary. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4310 Method and Theory: History of the Study of Religion 3 cr
An intensive overview of the history of the study of religion, with an emphasis on developments starting in the 18th and the 19th centuries. The contributions of numerous disciplines will be discussed in relation to the political and historical contexts that shape and give rise to the "world
religions" paradigm. In any given year, emphasis may be given to developments in a particular field (e.g., Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, etc.).
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4320 Theoretical Approaches to the Study of Religion 3 cr
This course will engage theoretical approaches to the study of religion in its historical and contemporary cultural contexts. Content of this course may vary from year to year, depending on the tradition(s) on which the course is focused (e.g., Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity).
Attributes: Humanities
RLGN 4430 Selected Topics in Religion 3 cr
An intensive study of specially selected topics in the field of religion. The subject matter of the course will vary from year to year. Students can earn multiple credits for this course only when the topic subtitle is different.
Attributes: Humanities