RLGN/JWST 173: Introducing Judaism

Alanna Cooper- MW 12:45-2:00

Judaism – like all religions – structures the way its adherents view the world and inhabit it. In this course we will explore five aspects of the human experience and interrogate the ways in which the religion provides a framework for navigating each one. TIME: How is time marked and measured? SPACE: What sort of cultural work is done to create religious and cultural home/s? THE DIVINE: How might God be described and understood? And what is the nature of the relationship between the Divine and humanity? TEXTS: What are the Jewish sacred texts? When did they appear and who authored them? How are they read, studied and understood? COMMUNITY: What are the contours of the “Jewish Community” and how are boundaries drawn between who is “in” and who is “out”?

RLGN 201: Interpreting Religion

Deepak Sarma-TR 11:30-12:45

Introduction to academic study of religion, exploring the history and development of the field, important theories and methodologies, and current issues, debates, and horizons of research. This course provides students with the opportunity to approach the global study of religion from an interdisciplinary perspective. It pays particular attention to how religious studies has approached the study of non-Western cultures and religions and provides students with the opportunity to reflect on their own assumptions about “religion” as a category. This course also engages students around comparative questions in relation to religions in Asia and Africa, in order to develop critical, yet empathetic approaches to the comparison of global religions through key terms in religious studies such as ritual, belief, myth, and authority.

The course is foundational for majors and minors in religious studies but also open to other interested students who may find it valuable for their work in other fields of study. Particular readings and other assignments will be determined by the designated instructor. Students are expected to attend class regularly, complete readings and other assignments, and participate actively in class discussions and other activities.

RLGN 212: Introduction to Christianity

Jonathan Tan-TR 10:00-11:15

This course introduces students to the emergence and historical developments of Christianity from its Jewish sectarian roots to a global religion, focusing on how the central doctrinal-theological and moral-ethical themes of the Christian tradition have emerged and developed in different ecclesial traditions of transnational Christianity — Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox, Catholic and Mainline Protestant, Evangelical and Renewal. It explores how the forces of cultural diversity and pluralism, historic colonialism and imperialism, globalization and migration, as well as contemporary postcolonial and transnational consciousness shape and challenge the trajectory of the growth and spread, as well as the socio-political transformation of Christianity from its Mediterranean roots across the globe over two millennia. It discusses the broader socio-cultural, philosophical-theological, moral-ethical, and political dimensions emerging from the Christian tradition generally, as well as evaluates the themes of community building, identity formation and constructions, moral-ethical codes, and social movements within the different ecclesial traditions of Christianity, their contributions on ongoing theological conversations and moral-ethical debates, as well as their contemporary significance and long term global and transnational implications of Christianity as a global religion.

RLGN/ASIA 217: Buddhism

Jue Liang- TR 1:00-2:15

From India to Indonesia, from Tibet to the United States, the reach of Buddhism has been pervasive and persistent throughout the past millennia. What makes Buddhism so popular? Why are there so many Buddhist traditions all over the world, and what are those? What makes them different, and what sets of core tenets do they share, if any?

In this course, we will explore together the basic teachings of Buddhism in its manifold emanations. Using Buddhism as an example, we will also begin to think about religion as a tool of social organization or resistance, as a cosmopolitan language to converse with other cultures, and as an integral part of human lives past and present.

RLGN 218: Faith and Politics in Islam

Ramez Islambouli- MW 3:20-4:35

An overview of the relationship between Islam as a religion and Islam as a political system and the effect of this relationship on Islamic society from its origin to the present time.

RLGN/PHIL 221: Indian Philosophy

Deepak Sarma- TR 1:00-2:15

We will survey the origins of Indian philosophical thought, with an emphasis on early Buddhist, Hindu and Jain literature. Our concern will be the methods, presuppositions, arguments, and goals of these schools and trajectories of thought. What were their theories on the nature of the person, the nature of reality, and the nature and process of knowing? What were the debates between the schools and the major points of controversy? And, most importantly, are the positions/arguments internally incoherent?

RLGN/ETHS 246: Food, Culture, Ethics, and Religion

Jonathan Tan- T 4:00-6:30

This interdisciplinary seminar explores the complex intersecting relationships between food, culture and ethnicity, ethics and religion, as well as society and globalization. It introduces students to the symbolic, socio-cultural, political and economic, as well as moral-ethical roles that food plays in shaping how peoples in different cultures and societies across history and geography have defined themselves through their foodways. It critically analyzes the multiple intersecting relationships between food, ethnicity and culture, ethics and morality, as well as the transnational forces of globalization in shaping contemporary food systems, food production and consumption in an increasingly diverse and pluralistic contemporary US society shaped by forces of ongoing transnational migration. It explores how food choices and preferences both influence, as well as influenced by intersecting socio-cultural, as well as moral-ethical forces arising from constructions of ethnicity, gender, class, nationality and national origin, as well as religion and human spiritualities. It will use historical and contemporary food practices as a lens through which we can understand the ongoing processes of globalization, intersecting dynamics of power, socio-economic class, ethnic identity, as well as the implications of colonialism, industrialization, and globalization on food in human cultures and societies.

RLGN/HUMN/COGS/ENGL/MUGN/PHIL 250: Responsible AI: Cultivating a Just and Sustainable Socio-technical Future through Data Citizenship

Timothy Beal- W 3:30-6:00

An introduction to the key issues that inform ethically responsible design, deployment, and use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, with particular focus on the impact of data practices. From generative language models to video surveillance and identity detection to facial recognition, AI is becoming more and more embedded in our everyday lives. These AI technologies are increasingly built on our data, whether we are aware of it or not. In this praxis-oriented course, we will explore how data is fundamental to the development of AI technologies and develop practices for increased awareness of and participation in this data ecosystem. As we interrogate AI systems in everyday life through hands-on engagement with AI tools and their data pipelines, we will begin to construct a data citizenship model that can help us reclaim the power of collective responsibility in order to build a more just and sustainable socio-technical future. Students will focus their individual and group projects on questions and issues directly related to the subject area of the offering they are enrolled in.

RLGN/WGST 252: Soul Murder: Religion and Sexual Abuse

Brian Clites- MW 12:45-2:00

“Soul murder” is a term that psychologists and survivors use to describe the way that clergy sexual abuse destroys a child’s network of relationships. In addition to sexual, developmental, and psychological harm, victims of religious abuse also experience intense theological, moral, and familial suffering. This course analyzes these topics through religious, legal, medical, and anthropological case studies. What are the cultural, racial, and gendered dynamics of religious abuse? How is it different than sexual assault in non-religious contexts? How has abuse shaped Christian and Hindu sexual ethics? These are some of the questions that you will be able to answer by the end of this seminar.

RLGN/HSTY/JWST/ETHS 254: The Holocaust

Jay Geller- TR 11:30-12:45

This class seeks to answer fundamental questions about the Holocaust, the German-led organized mass murder of nearly six million Jews and millions of other ethnic and religious minorities. It will investigate the origins and development of racism in modern European society, the manifestations of that racism, and responses to persecution. An additional focus of the course will be comparisons between different groups, different countries, and different phases during the Nazi era. The class concludes with an examination of the memory of the Holocaust.

RLGN/ENGL/HSTY/PHIL 270/WGST/SOCI 201: Introduction to Gender Studies

Justine Howe- TR 10:00-11:15

This course introduces women and men students to the methods and concepts of gender studies and feminist theory. An interdisciplinary course, it covers approaches used in literary criticism, history, philosophy, political science, sociology, anthropology, psychology, film studies, cultural studies, art history, and religion. It is the required introductory course for students taking the women’s and gender studies major.

RLGN/ASIA 346: Buddhism Goes to the Movies

Jue Liang- R 4:00-6:30

This seminar delves into the lively expressions of being Buddhist, “doing Buddhism,” or just thinking along Buddhist lines across the cinematic world. It also queries the rich emanations of Buddhist teachings and practices that inspired cinematic expressions beyond the those traditionally labeled as “films about Buddhism.” Taking seriously the claim that the practice of seeing brings about spiritual liberation and interpreting films as Buddhist scriptures, students will critically and creatively examine these visual contemplations on the Buddha, his teaching, Buddhist communities, history, practice, and stories of Buddhists in the many worlds they inhabit.

RLGN 399: Major/Minor Seminar

Alanna Cooper- M 3:30-6:00

Capstone course primarily for majors and minors in religious studies. Allows students to interact with peers and faculty, reflect critically, and integrate their learning experiences. Prepares students to continue their learning in the discipline and in the liberal arts. Subject matter varies according to student and faculty needs and perspectives. May be repeated once for up to six credit hours.