Course Requirements

There will be no mid-term or final exams in this course. Instead your grade will be based on three things: 1) your individual blog entries, including both those assigned and those based on your own interests; 2) active informed participation (both in comments on others’ blogs and in class); and 3) your field research project.

1. Your Blog postings and assignments (worth 50% of your final grade).

Each of you is to create your own individual course blog using the free blog tool available at blogger.com and to email me the name and URL for that blog by September 11^th. Your blog will then be linked to the main class blog page so that other students and I can read it. You should also configure your blog in a way that allows anyone to comment and shows the comments (You’ll find the option in the settings section of Blogger.)

You are to make a minimum of 2 posts (each the equivalent of 3/4s to 1 1/2 pages of typing along with any relevant pictures, videos, etc.) a week on this site. At least one of these posts each week will be in answer to a weekly assignment that I post on the main course blog (relg109dfb.blogspot.com). Other posts may consist of: comments on assigned reading or from the class material; a link to an interesting and relevant webpage, video, book review, or article (along with an explanation of why you’ve chosen it); questions that you might have for me or other students in the class; a description of a conversation or experience you have during the semester that’s connected with the course content; suggestions for further reading or thinking; etc.

These blog postings are designed to elicit thoughts and comments from the rest of the class and should be as clearly written, interesting, and creative as possible. I expect them to reflect fundamentally sound writing and proper English grammar and spelling. To earn full credit for a blog posting, it must be completed and posted by the assigned deadline.

2. Informed class participation, both face-to-face and on the individual blogs of others in the class. Discussion will be one of the main learning styles used in this course. Class participation will count 25% of your course grade.

a. In the classroom, students are expected to participate frequently, voluntarily, and in a manner that reflects class preparation. This means that all assigned readings should be completed with care before the class during which the material will be discussed

b. Blog responses. Students are expected to respond to the thoughts and writings of other students. At least once a week, you should log onto the blogs of all classmates and read any new postings. You should then choose new entries from at least three of the blogs that strike you as intriguing and post substantive response comments. Here are some suggestions on how you might want to construct blog responses:

• Discuss what struck you about the student’s entry. Don’t just say “I really liked your discussion of Hindu temples.” Explain why this is so. Be as specific as you can.
• Look for weaknesses in the student’s position. Even a very good assignment answer can always be improved. Was something unclear? Was the student’s reasoning faulty? Could the author have used a better illustration or a different argument that would have improved the answer?
• Does the author’s response raise some interesting issues that were not addressed by the author? Is there an issue that could be further developed? Point this out and comment on how these issues are relevant to the topic the author selected.

3. Field Research Project: The student, either alone or with one classmate, is to engage in an independent three-part Field Research Project. It is to be on one of the of the five major world religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, or Christianity), focusing either on an unfamiliar religious tradition. (In other words, you may not do the field project on a religion you practice or in which you were raised.) The religion you’re working on must be approved by October 3^rd.

The three parts, all of which are to be on the same religion, include:

a. Observation of a religious ritual in that tradition (1 to 2 pages in length) due on your blog by November 7^th. This is to be written up as a descriptive analysis of the religious ritual you observed as well as the reason for the ritual. (The latter may require some independent background reading.)

b. At least one interview with a clergy person (or equivalent leader) of this religious tradition regarding the tradition’s beliefs, ethics, and ritual practices and how they are related to one another. The write up of the interview is due on your blog by December 5th.

c. A 20-minute class presentation that includes: (1) a basic survey of the tradition’s beliefs, ethics, and ritual practices you experienced. This should not repeat material we’ve already covered in class but should be a chance to present new material that you learned from your interviews and observances, supplemented if necessary by outside research; and (2) an interactive demonstration of one key ritual and exposition of what key beliefs and ethical values it conveys. Both components must actively involve the class in the presentation, and the ritual demonstration in particular should appeal to as many of the senses as possible; use of authentic dress, music, and foods is encouraged.

This requirement will count as 25 % of your final grade. N.B.: If you choose to do this project with a classmate, both of you must be present at the observation of the religious ritual and the interview and both of you must participate in the class presentation. I will not be saying anything more about this assignment, though I will be glad to answer any questions you may have about it. I will be assuming that you are working on this on your own and that you will have the work ready to submit by the appropriate dates listed above.

As an optional extra credit activity, you may participate in four hours of community service (neither proselytizing nor "outreach") within this religious community.

Attendance and Plagiarism

PLAGIARISM: Work that is obtained from sources such as persons, books, and articles and used in your writing assignments or field research project must be properly cited. This is true on all kinds of writing—your blog postings, your comments on others’ blog entries, and your field research project. Without such citations, use of materials is considered plagiarism and has serious consequences, including a failing grade and possible expulsion. Mercy College is subscribed to Turnitin.com, an online service that checks for plagiarism. A student who is found guilty of plagiarism will be reported to the Associate Dean for Academic Affair.

ATTENDANCE POLICY: Two unexcused absences are allowed. Further unexcused, undocumented absences will be penalized in the assignment of grades. For each unexcused absence after the second, your final grade will be lowered by one level (e.g. B to B-). Two latenesses of more than 15 minutes constitute one absence.

Course Outline

1. Introduction

· Why Study Religion?

· Approaches to the Study of Religion

· Types of Religion

2. Basic Religions—Past and Present

· Prehistoric Beginnings

· Animism, Magic, and Divination

· High Gods

· Spirit World

· Ancestors

· Death and Life After Death

· Native American and African Religions Today

3. Hinduism

· Vedic Traditions

· Postclassical Hinduism

· Modernization and Hindu Values

4. Buddhism

· Life and Teachings of the Buddha

· Theravada Buddhism

· Mahayana Buddhism: Contrasting Paths of Zen and Pure Land Sects

5. Jainism and Sikhism

· Mahavira

· Jain Sects

· Jainism Today

· Nanak’s Life and Teachings

· Religious Life

· Holy Days

6. Chinese Religions

· Yin and Yang

· Taoism

· Confucianism

7. Shinto

· Mythology

· State, Sectarian and Domestic Shinto

Japanese Festivals

8. Judaism

· The People of Israel: Origins, Exodus, and Land

· Torah, Prophets and Exile

· Religion in the Diaspora: Talmud, Synagogue and Survival

· Responses to Modernity

9. Christianity

· Teachings of Jesus and the Early Church

· East-West Schism and the Protestant Reformation

· Contemporary Christianity: Ecumenism and Pluralism

10. Islam

· Muhammad and the Qur’an

· Religious Institutions of Islam

· The Caliphate

· Variations within Islam: Diversity within the Muslim World

Conclusions

Course Description

An overview of the major religions of the East and West as well as of their role in world history and an introduction to some fundamental questions underlying the study of all religions: Where does religion come from? Were the religions of early civilizations "primitive"? Are there reasons for religious beliefs or is religion simply a matter of subjective feeling? How would one try to distinguish between religion and magic?