Methodological Seminars

• REL–R 661 Religion and Social Criticism (4 cr.) Track I Seminar. Religion and social practices, with emphasis on religion and rationality, religion and culture, and religion and the self. 

• REL–R 662 Cross-Cultural Study of Religions (4 cr.) Track II seminar. Historical survey of the development of cross-cultural studies of religious traditions and analysis of the intellectual issues entailed in such studies. 

• REL–R 663 History of Biblical Interpretation (4 cr.) Track III seminar. Chronological introduction to the most influential works of biblical interpretation, from antiquity to the present. Readings in Jewish, Christian, and esoteric sources will include both com­mentary and hermeneutic theory. 

• REL–R 664 Religious Historiography (4 cr.) Track IV seminar. Survey of significant approaches to the history of religious traditions.

• REL–R 665 Interpretations of Religion (4 cr.) Major theories and cur­rent problems. Required of all departmental graduate students. 

• REL–R 761 Religion and Social Criticism (3 cr.) Meets concurrently with R661, with additional reading and research assignments.

• REL–R 762 Cross-Cultural Study of Religion (4 cr.) Meets concur­rently with R662, with additional reading and research assignments. 

• REL–R 763 History of Biblical Interpretation (4 cr.) Meets concur­rently with R663, with additional reading and research assignments. 

• REL–R 764 Religious Historiography (4 cr.) Meets concurrently with R664, with additional reading and research assignments.

Religious Traditions West

• REL–R 511 Religion of Ancient Israel (3 cr.) Survey of scholarship related to specific subfield of ancient Israelite religion. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 521 Studies in Early Christianity (3 cr.) Study of the New Testament, early Christian history and thought, or the religious milieu of late antiquity, with special attention to issues of meth­odology and critical scholarship. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 531 Studies in Christian History (3 cr.) Study of primary and secondary sources in select eras of Western Christian history, such as the medieval, Renaissance, Reformation, and early modern periods. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 532 Studies of Religion in American Culture (3 cr.) Study of selected topics in the history of religious life and thought in America. May be repeated for credit when topics vary. 

• REL–R 533 Selected Topics in Modern Christian Thought (3 cr.) Topics on figures and movements: Barth, Berdyaev, Newman, Teilhard de Chardin, Niebuhr, and Tillich; Catholic modernism; Protestant liberalism and neo-orthodoxy; Vatican Council II and its aftermath; developments in Eastern Orthodoxy. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 535 Studies in Greco-Roman Religion (3 cr.) Study of Greek and Roman religious history and thought, with special attention to issues of methodology and source material. Topics may vary.

• REL–R 541 Studies in the Jewish Tradition (3 cr.) Study of various aspects of medieval and modern Jewish literature, religion, and thought.    May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 553 Studies in Islam (3 cr.) Selected topics in the history of Muslim society and institutions, sectarian developments, law, theology, mysticism, popular piety, and reform movements in medieval and modern contexts.  May be repeated when topics vary.

• REL–R 610 Studies in Biblical Literature and Religion (4 cr.) Issues in the literature, history, and religion of ancient Israel from its origins to the rise of rabbinic Judaism and Christianity.  May be repeated when topics vary.

• REL–R 615 The Bible in Literature Courses (4 cr.) The historical-cultural background of the biblical period, literary analysis of the Bible, and analysis of modern literature dependent on the Bible. Designed for teachers of English. 

• REL–R 620 Ancient and Medieval Christianity (4 cr.) Issues in the his­tory and literature of early Christianity, from its origins through the early medieval period.  May be repeated for credit when topic varies.

• REL–R 630 Historical Studies (4 cr.) Development of Western reli­gions in their cultural settings. May be repeated once for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 633 Colloquium in Ancient Religions (4 cr.) Themes and issues in the study of the religions of the ancient Mediterranean and Near East. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.

• REL–R 635 Colloquium on North American Religious History (4 cr.) Examination and discussion of selected historiography in the field of North American religious history. May be repeated for credit once when topics vary.

• REL–R 636 Evangelical and Charismatic Christianity in the Americas (4 cr.) Critical readings in the historical emergence and dramatic recent growth of evangelical and charismatic Christianity in the United States, with comparative attention to Canada and Latin America.

• REL–R 644 History and Culture in Islam (4 cr.) Selected topics focusing on critical approaches to Islamic historiography, canon formation, modes of religious authority, scriptural and other forms of textual interpretation, epistemology, and theological discourse. May be repeated once for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 652 Colloquium on Religion in the West (4 cr.) P: Consent of instructor. Readings and research on patterns of religious life and thought in the West: continuities, changes, and contemporary issues. May be repeated once for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 714 Studies in Jewish Thought and Culture (4 cr.) An exami­nation of various dimensions of Jewish thought and culture from the Middle Ages to the present. The course will focus on the development of philosophical and theological response to the medieval and/or modern period, paying attention to com­parative and cross-cultural questions.

• REL–R 733 Advanced Study in Ancient Religions (4 cr.) Meets concurrently with R633, with additional readings in primary languages.

• REL–R 736 Advanced Readings in Early Christian Religious Texts (1–4 cr.) Readings in primary language-Greek, Syriac, or other texts from early Christianity. May take the form of a seminar or of individually directed readings. May be repeated for credit when different texts are read and with consent of instructor.

Religious Traditions East

• REL–R 547 Meditation Traditions of India (3 cr.) Survey and analysis of the practice of meditation in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain tradi­tions of India. Focus on the philosophical and structural basis of meditation and the relation of meditation to the monastic traditions of India. The role of the holy person and importance of the guru-student relationship. 

• REL–R 551 Religions of South Asia (3 cr.) Study of the major reli­gious traditions of India: Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 552 Studies in Buddhism (3 cr.) Topics include the history of Buddhist thought, practice, literature, and institutions. Areas covered regularly include the Prajnaparamita and Ratnakuta literature, lay and monastic roles in Mahayana Buddhism, images of women in Buddhist literature, and aspects of early Buddhist thought. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 554 Religions of East Asia (3 cr.) Study of historical, interpre­tive, or philosophical issues in one period, genre, or aspect of an East Asian religion. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 649 Issues in the Study of Chinese Religions (3 cr.) Introduc­tion to bibliographic materials, research problems, history of the field, and current issues. Includes a condensed overview of Chinese religious history from the earliest records to the present. 

• REL–R 650 The Hindu Tradition (4 cr.) Selected topics in Hindu reli­gious history: sects, institutions, texts, doctrines, periods. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 651 South Asian Buddhism (4 cr.) topics in South and Southeast Asian Buddhism from the earliest to the modern period. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 653 The Confucian Tradition (4 cr.) Selected topics in Con­fucianism: history, philosophy, literature, authors. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 654 The Taoist Tradition (4 cr.) Selected topics in the Taoist tradition. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 655 East Asian Buddhism (4 cr.) Selected topics in the Bud­dhist traditions of East Asian countries. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 656 Buddhism in Central Asia (4 cr.) P: Graduate-level background in Buddhism or Central Asian studies or consent of instructor. Issues in the history of Buddhism in Central Asia (Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Xinjiang) from King Ashoka (third century B.C.E.) to the coming of the Mongols (thirteenth century C.E.). May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 657 Religion in Japan (4 cr.) Selected topics in Japanese reli­gious history. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 658 Materials and Methods in Buddhist Studies (4 cr.) Introduction to bibliographic materials, research methods, and current issues in the field of Buddhist studies. Includes a condensed overview of the history of Buddhism from its origins to the present. 

• REL–R 659 Religion and Society in Asia (4 cr.) Selected topics in the interaction between religion and society in Asian countries. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 749 Issues in the Study of Chinese Religions (4 cr.) Meets concurrently with R649. In addition, students will carry out research on appropriate Chinese materials in consultation with instructor. 

• REL–R 750 Advanced Readings in Asian Religious Texts (1–4 cr.) Readings in primary-language Chinese, Japanese, Mongolian, Pali, Sanskrit, Tibetan, or other texts. May take the form of a seminar or of individually directed readings. May be repeated for credit when different texts are read and with consent of instructor.

Critical Issues in Religious Studies

• REL–R 561 Social-Scientific Approaches to Religion (3 cr.) Study of various social-scientific disciplines (psychology, sociology, anthropology) as their methods and theories inform our under­standing of religious phenomena. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 563 Religion in Literature (3 cr.) Study of religious issues raised in literary works. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 571 Studies in Religious Ethics (3 cr.) Selected readings in re­ligious thought and morality. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 574 From Christian Ethics to Social Criticism I (3 cr.) Christian ethics from the early modern period through the twentieth century, followed by the emergence of comparative religious ethics. Readings include biblical sources and early Christian teachings, the patristic period, Augustine, Bernard of Clairvaux, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, radical reformers, and Enlightenment Christianity. 

• REL–R 755 From Christian Ethics to Social Criticism II (3 cr.) Christian ethics from the early modern period through the twentieth century, followed by the emergence of comparative religious ethics. Readings include Edwards, Schleiermacher, Kierkegaard, Barth, modern Catholics and Protestants, and various contribu­tors to the rise of religious ethics and social criticism.

• REL–R 581 Philosophical Approaches to Religion (3 cr.) Study of se­lected philosophers, philosophical movements, or philosophical themes as they relate to religious studies or theology.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 604 Seminar in Cross-Cultural Philosophy of Religion (3 cr.) Critical analysis of issues in the philosophy of religion in com­parative perspective. The manner in which philosophical issues are framed in Indian, European, Chinese-Japanese, and Middle Eastern thought. Attention to the critique of Orientalism and critical theory in recent comparative philosophy. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 670 History of Religious Ethics (3 cr.) Readings of major ethi­cal texts in key periods. Topics vary according to major religious traditions.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 672 Religious Thought and Ethics (3 cr.) Key figures, issues, and movements.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 673 Religion and Violence (4 cr.) Topics course on the relation between religious belief and practice and violence. Readings draw from ethics, history, and social theory. Topics include peace traditions; just-war tradition; religious sacrifice; and cul­tural order.  May be repeated with consent of instructor.

• REL–R 674 Ethics and Ethos (4 cr.) Exploration of the relation between ethics and ethos; that is, between human agency and the social, political, and religious conditions in which that agency is exercised. Introduction to currents in moral theory presupposed in subsequent ethics courses. 

• REL–R 675 Feminist Perspectives on Religious Traditions (4 cr.) Top­ics course that includes a focus on one or more of the follow­ing: goddess traditions; Western or Eastern feminist theology; comparative feminist theology; feminist encounters with American religions; recovering women’s contributions to Eastern or Western religions.  May be repeated for credit with permission of instructor.

• REL–R 680 Religion and the Problems of Modernity (4 cr.) Topics course on problems posed to religion by recent developments; e.g., disbelief, pluralism, secularization, technology, rapid socioeconomic and political change, class conflict, historical consciousness. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

Other

• REL–R 590 Directed Readings in Religious Studies (1–6 cr.)

• REL–R 600 Methods in Religious Studies (4 cr.)  Seminar in method­ology; e.g., historiography, interpretation theory, ethnography in the study of religion.  May be repeated when topics vary.

• REL–R 601 Historical Interactions of Religion (4 cr.) Study of sec­ondary and primary literature (in translation) on interaction between two or more religious cultures.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 602 Cross-Cultural Topics (4 cr.) Study of selected myths, ritu­als, institutions, or doctrines, in different cultural settings.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 603 Seminar in Comparative Mysticism (4 cr.) Critical and comparative analysis of selected mystical traditions from India, Europe, China-Japan, and the Middle East. Typologies of mysti­cism will be studied together with an attempt to formulate a critical definition of “mysticism.”  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 638 Religious Dissent (4 cr.) Selected topics in the study of dissenting religious traditions.  May be repeated once for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 660 Religion and Culture (4 cr.) Religious dimensions of cul­tural phenomena.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 698 Master’s Research Project (3–6 cr.) **These courses are eligible for a deferred grade. Study of religious texts. 

• REL–R 699 Thesis (M.A.) (1–6 cr.) **These courses are eligible for a deferred grade.

Doctoral

• REL–R 711 Religion and Scripture (3 cr.) Selected topics on the nature, function, and interpretation of scripture, both oral and written, within specific religious traditions or in cross-cultural perspective.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 713 Historical Studies in Western Religions (4 cr.) Selected topics in the histories of Judaism, Christianity, or Islam in the ancient and medieval periods, with study of primary sources in the original language(s).  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 735 North American Religions (4 cr.) Research on selected topics. May be repeated once for credit when topic changes.

• REL–R 738 Modern Religious History (4 cr.) An investigation of de­velopments in religion in the modern period (mid-seventeenth century to the present) in a variety of religious and cultural settings. Topics include Catholicism and modernity; modern Protestant Christianity; religious development in China, India, or Japan in the postcolonial period.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 744 Women and Religion (4 cr.) Research seminar on selected topics from ancient, medieval, or modern period in any reli­gious traditions, or in comparative religious traditions.  May be repeated once for credit when topic changes.

• REL–R 770 Social Ethics (4 cr.) Research seminar on selected topics, including subtraditions in religion, historical developments in a religious tradition, comparative religious ethics, medical ethics.  May be repeated with consent of instructor.

• REL–R 780 Topics in Religious Philosophy (4 cr.) A focus on selected authors (e.g., Plotinus, Augustine, Husserl, Patanjali, Shankara, Chu Hsi) and/or philosophical movements (e.g., German ideal­ism, existentialism, phenomenology, yoga, Madhyamika Bud­dhism, Vedanta) that are formative for religious or theological thought. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 790 Departmental Teaching Practicum (1 cr.) Preparation of syllabus, bibliography, assignments, and exams for undergradu­ate religion courses. 

• REL–R 791 Advanced Critical and Ethical Study (1–4 cr.) Individually directed reading and research for doctoral students in critical and ethical problems in religion. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 792 Advanced Cross-Cultural Study (1–4 cr.) Individually directed reading and research for doctoral students in cross-cultural study of religions. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 793 Advanced Biblical Study (1–4 cr.) Individually directed reading and research for doctoral students in biblical interpre­tation.  May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 794 Advanced Historical Study (1–4 cr.) Individually directed reading and research for doctoral students in historical study of religious traditions. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• REL–R 799 Ph.D. Thesis (1–30 cr.)

Cross Listed

• INST–I 580 Women in South Asian Religious Traditions (3 cr.) An historical view of the officially sanctioned roles for women in several religious traditions in South Asia, and women’s efforts to become agents and participants in the religious expressions of their own lives.