Document Type
Syllabus
Publication Date
Spring 2024
Course Description
In this course, we begin an engaged examination of some of the major categories of analysis that are used in the academic study of religion and apply them to introductory surveys of a selection of case- studies of traditions from around the globe. The academic study of religion takes a comparative, global and pluralistic approach, looking at the idea of religion critically and analytically, with as much objectivity as possible, while also attempting to develop and maintain sensitivity to subtle levels of human meaning-making and behavior embodied by particular traditions. Throughout the term we will be examining the problem of classifying and defining “religion” (in theory and in practice) and exploring the utility of classical approaches to thinking about and critically analyzing religion as a human endeavor through historical, anthropological and sociological standpoints. In our surveys, we will try to get at a clearer and more critically informed understanding of ways of thinking about religion while looking at: some of the basic features of the worldviews of particular traditions; how various traditions give expression to similar forms of human behavior; how traditions have developed through history and reflect socio-historical conditions; some of the influences that these traditions have had on one another; and the social construction of individual belief and communities of practice. We will be moving quickly through vast and rich traditions, and we should bear in mind that there is much, much more to explore than our short sessions will allow. I hope that our surveys—by no means exhaustive—will open up windows to traditions you may not have been exposed to before, and that, after this course, you might revisit and spend more time in some of these places. I also hope that by the end of the course you will not only have learned certain details of this or that tradition but will have begun to appreciate complex sets of human phenomena on a more critical level and will have cultivated an ability to discern some of the ways in which our lives today shape and are shaped by their powerful influence.
Recommended Citation
Glessner, Justin, "REL 130B Introduction(s) to Religion(s) Glessner Spring 2024" (2024). All Course Syllabi. 604, Scholarly and Creative Work from DePauw University.
https://scholarship.depauw.edu/records_syllabi/604
Student Outcomes
This course is aligned with the following departmental student outcomes. By the end of the term, you will be able to… • Develop a solid foundation of credible knowledge about diverse religions and the concept of “religion”; • Cultivate a greater global and cultural awareness of self and other by engaging with peoples and cultures from around the globe; • Develop robust and responsible ways to think comparatively about religious similarities and differences.