RELS INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGIONS. Dr. June McDaniel Spring, Text: Deming, Understanding the Religions of the World.

Transcription

1 1 RELS INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGIONS Dr. June McDaniel Spring, 2018 Office: 4 Glebe St, Room 101 Office hours: MW 2:00-4:00 PM Office phone: mcdanielj@cofc.edu Text: Deming, Understanding the Religions of the World. This class will give you skills in analyzing major elements in religion, in library research, and in fieldwork. When you finish, you should have a good idea of the various ways that religions have understood God or gods, the basic beliefs and ritual actions which are an important part of religions, the ethics and values by which societies live, and the ways that scholars have sought to understand these issues. Grading: Grades will be based upon 3 tests and 2 papers, each will be worth 1/5 of the total class grade. Test #3 will count as the final. Class participation and homework questions will be counted into your grade at the end (adding or subtracting two points from your total grade). Visit paper: 20% Term paper: 20% Test #1: 20% Test #2: 20% Test #3: 20% Tests: Papers: Tests will have short answer and essay questions. I give makeup tests only for emergencies, and they are harder than the original tests (there is no choice of essay questions). Papers should be based on ideas and approaches covered in class, and should be at least 8 full pages in length, typed (longer papers are fine, but shorter papers will have points deducted). Papers should have a title page with the paper title, your name, the class and section, and the date. Your Visit Paper should include descriptions of three religious sites that you visit: churches, temples, mosques, Buddhist meditation groups, etc. It should include the 8 elements: sacred text, doctrines, rituals, ethics, religious emotions, material culture, concepts of God or the sacred, and institutions of your three religions. Be sure to discuss the sacred text, which is the primary text for the religion.

2 2 Your Term Paper should focus upon a controversial belief or ritual within a particular religion, and have a bibliography of at least 3 books. I shall hand out a writing guide to help in the organization of the papers. You should discuss your topic with me in advance. If either paper is late, 10 points will be deducted per class late. All papers must be submitted in hard copy, no computer attachments will be accepted. The passing grade is D-, or 60. Grades are not curved. They range as: Paper #1- THE VISIT PAPER A 94 and over A B B B C C C D D D F below 60 In this paper, you will do ethnographic analysis of the different religious sites - churches, synagogues, mosques, Hindu temples, etc. At least one should be totally new to you. Do not do three sites with the same religion (three synagogues, three churches, etc). You can find places to visit online, and I will hand out a list of possible places to visit. They do not have to be in Charleston. You should analyze the religions you see into the 8 elements of religion. You should have a separate paragraph for each element of each religion. While you are there, ask people questions about the rituals, people s behavior, and the reasons for it. Observe the location, participants, and actions, and take notes. Paper #2- THE TERM PAPER, in which you study a religious disagreement or controversy, may be done in one of the following ways: Library research on a world religion Interview of members of the religion, combined with background library research. You should discuss different ways that the belief or ritual has been understood over time within the religion, and describe a specific argument or controversy over it. You should have a thesis which you are defending, which includes why this controversy is important. The first half of your term paper should describe the 8 elements. The second half of your term paper should describe the controversy.

3 3 The Visit Paper will be due on 2/2. The Term Paper will be due on 4/9. Discussion Days: For discussion days, you should bring in a thoughtful, written question or reflection based on the reading for that period, a question that is challenging and interesting. We will go over the questions in class, and discuss them. Questions will be collected and graded- PEOPLE WHO WRITE ORIGINAL QUESTIONS WHICH GENERATE CLASS DISCUSSION WILL BE GIVEN EXTRA CREDIT. Attendance: There will be FIVE allowed absences. On the FIFTH absence, I shall note a warning on the attendance roster, that one more missed class will cause a student to be dropped (that will be two weeks of work missed). If you have any excused absences (illness, emergency), please let me know and I will cross them off. An additional point is given on the total grade for perfect attendance. Academic Integrity and the Honor Code: There is a zero-tolerance policy toward plagiarism or any other form of academic dishonesty in this course. This means that anyone caught taking credit for work that is not his or her own, or cheating in any other way, will receive a failing grade for the course, which will show up on the transcript as an XF grade. Students are expected to abide by the Honor Code of the College. Disability: If you have a disability that qualifies you for academic accommodation, please present a letter from the Center for Disability Services at the beginning of the semester. For more information, please contact Center for Student Learning: Students can use the Center for Student Learning s (CSL) academic support services for assistance in study strategies, speaking & writing skills for presentations and papers. They offer tutoring, supplemental instruction and workshops. The services are available at no additional cost. For more information regarding these services please call (843) or visit the CSL website at This course will fulfill the General Education Student Learning Outcomes: SLO Outcome 1: Students analyze how ideas are represented, interpreted or valued in various expressions of human culture. SLO Outcome 2: Students examine relevant primary source materials as understood by the discipline and interpret the material in writing assignments. Students will fulfill the learning outcomes in the signature assignment Term Paper. ALL CELL PHONES MUST BE TURNED OFF DURING CLASS!

4 4 SYLLABUS Date Topic Assignment /8 Introduction, ancient religion 1/10 The study of religion Introduction How do we understand religion? 1/12 Magic, Shamanism 1/15 MLK Day (no class) 1/17 African religion Chap. 5 Native American religion 1/19 Polynesian religion, Hawaiian, Chap. 6 Australian 1/22 Hinduism- Vedas, Upanishads, Chap 1 Reincarnation, karma 1/24 Hinduism- Bhakti, Tantra 1/26 Hinduism, film 1/29 Yoga and meditation 1/31 Buddhism, Theravada Chap 2 and Mahayana 2/2 Vajrayana Buddhism VISIT PAPER DUE! 2/5 Buddhism, film 2/7 Discussion day Bring in a question 2/9 TEST #1 2/12 Chinese religions: Chap 3 Confucianism 2/14 Daoism Chap. 3

5 5 2/16 Daoism, film 2/19 Shinto, Japanese religion Chap. 4 2/21 Ancient Egyptian religion 2/23 Babylonian religion (Ancient Near East) 2/26 Zoroastrianism 2/28 Judaism, Hebrew Bible Chap. 7 3/2 Judaism, history and ritual 3/5 Judaism, film 3/7 Discussion day Bring in a question 3/9 TEST #2 3/12 Christianity, Christian Bible Chap. 8 3/14 Catholic Christianity 3/16 Orthodoxy- guest speaker 3/19 Spring break 3/21 Spring break 3/23 Spring break 3/26 Christianity- Protestant, Charismatic traditions 3/28 Mormons, beginning Islam Chap 9 3/30 Islam 4/2 Islam- guest speaker 4/4 New religions- Chap. 11 Rastafarianism 4/6 Bahai, Voodoo

6 6 4/9 Wicca, Neopaganism TERM PAPER DUE! 4/11 Scientology, and what is a religion? 4/13 South Carolina religion- Gullah and the Sea Islands 4/16 Discussion day Bring in a question 4/18 Test 3 4/20 Atheism, guest speaker 4/23 Religion, multiculturalism, Chapter 12 Some modern issues Personal Electronics Policy: As a courtesy to everyone else, please turn off all cell phones, pagers, watch alarms, radios, etc., before class. Also, laptops are not allowed in class. Students must use the old-fashioned method of taking notes by hand. No texting during class!