Courses in Religious Studies

The format of this course is lecture and discussion. The usual enrollment in each section is twenty to twenty-five students. The course includes brief introductions to four or five major religious traditions, while exploring concepts and categories used in the study of religion, such as sacredness, myth, ritual, religious experience, and social dimensions of religion. Traditions such as Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Confucianism, Taoism, Hinduism, and Native American traditions are presented through their classic scriptures and traditional practices. Readings vary among sections, but typically include important primary sources on Hindu thought and practice (e.g., the Upanishads, the Bhagavad-gita), Buddhist thought and practice (The Questions of King Milinda, The Heart Sutra), Jewish life and thought (selections from the Hebrew Bible, The Sayings of the Fathers), Christian origins (one or more Gospels, selected Pauline letters), Islam (selections from the Qur'an and Sufi mystical poetry), Confucianism (the Analects), Taoism (the Tao Te Ching), and modern expressions of religion (e.g., Martin Buber's I and Thou). Many of the primary sources are studied in conjunction with relevant secondary sources (e.g., Rudolf Otto's The Idea of the Holy, important articles by anthropologists of religion). The Department of Religious Studies emphasizes writing, and several essays are assigned in this course. The course is open to all students. Offered fall and spring.

This course covers the same material as RLST 101 but is open only to first-year students and will be run in a seminar format.

This course presents an introduction to the study of religion, focusing particularly on women. A variety of religious traditions will be explored as we look into myths, rituals and practices particular to women. Traditions to be explored may include Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity and some Native American religions. Students will have a hand in shaping the syllabus in the last third of the semester, with the expectation that individual interests can be accommodated. Open only to first-year students.

This course aims at an in-depth exploration of controversial issues that marked turning points in Western religious history--issues that resulted in trials and/or significant national debates. Each offering of the course will engage some combination of the following: the trial of Galileo, the English Reformation, the trial of Anne Hutchinson in Puritan New England, the abolition debate leading up to the American Civil War, and contemporary controversies over abortion and same-sex marriage. (Other trials, debates, or controversies may be introduced from time to time.) The course is built upon the pedagogical approach called "Reacting to the Past," developed by Barnard College history professor Mark Carnes. Students are divided into at least two competing factions as well as a group of indeterminates (or persuadables). Each student is assigned a role based on a historical person or a composite of ideas that informed the particular issue. Students will assume, research, and reenact the roles of the various participants in these controversies. The goal is to persuade others, especially the indeterminates, to vote for the outcome that one's role specifies.

This course is an introduction to the literature of the New Testament. Primary texts in English translation will be read to understand the social, political, and religious concerns of Christian writers of the first and second centuries. Students will learn about canon formation, problems of historical criticism, and competing forms of Christianity within the ancient world (including differing views of Jesus within canonical and noncanonical writings). The course will also examine the relation between Christianity and the Roman Empire, the relation between Christianity and Judaism, the relation between Christianity and Gnosticism, and the placement of women within the New Testament. Methodologies currently practiced in biblical exegesis, including form criticism, redaction criticism, literary-criticism, and socio-historical criticism, are also introduced. Students are required to read assigned writings critically, analyzing structure, themes, and the narrative voices of the texts to discover the distinctive literary and religious difference among New Testament writings. No previous familiarity with the New Testament is required.

This course seeks to combine a survey of the history of African American religious experiences with an exploration of various themes emerging from that history. Special attention will fall on the social forces shaping such experiences; the influence of African Americans' religious commitments on their cultural, social, and political activities; and the diversity of religious experiences and expressions among African Americans. The survey will encompass African religious heritage and its relevance in America; the religious life of slaves on the plantations and the rise of independent African American churches in both the North and the South; the role of African American churches during the Reconstruction and Jim Crow eras; the emergence of diverse African American religious traditions and movements in the first half of the twentieth century; African American religion in the Civil Rights era; and current trends and issues in African American religion and spirituality. Some of the themes that will occupy our attention include religion and resistance; religion and cultural formation; African American Christian missions; the Back to Africa Movement; the aesthetics of worship in African American churches; class, gender, and social mobility; and religion and political activism. We will employ a combination of primary and secondary readings along with audio-visual materials in exploring the development of and issues in African American religious experiences. Offered fall semester every other year.

This course examines various religious perspectives on the meaning and value of the natural world and the relationship of human beings to nature. The focus will be on environmental ethics in comparative perspective. We will look at Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and Native American religions to see what conceptual resources they can offer to a contemporary understanding of a healthy relationship with the natural world. Prerequisite: any 100- or 200-level course in religious studies or permission of instructor. Offered every three years.

This is a survey intended to acquaint students with major theoretical approaches to the academic study of religion. The course will cover phenomenological, psychoanalytical, sociological, and anthropological approaches to religion. Authors to be discussed will include Frazer, Marx, Freud, Weber, Durkheim, Eliade, Levi-Strauss, Douglas, Geertz, and Turner. This course is required for religious studies majors. Offered every fall.

This course is designed as a capstone experience in religious studies for majors in the department. The theme of the seminar will vary according to the instructor. Past themes have included religious autobiography, religion and cinema and new religious movements. The course is required for, but not limited to, senior religious studies majors. Religious studies minors are encouraged to enroll, provided there is space. Non-majors should consult the instructor for permission to register for the course.Offered every fall. Required for all majors.

The department reserves individual studies to highly motivated students who are judged responsible and capable enough to work independently. Such courses might entail original research, but usually they are reading-oriented, allowing students to explore in depth topics that interest them or that supplement aspects of the major. Normally, students may pursue individual study only if they have taken all the courses offered by the department in that particular area of the curriculum. An individual study course cannot duplicate a course or topic being concurrently offered. Exceptions to this rule are at the discretion of the instructor and department chair.

To enroll, a student must seek permission of the instructor and department chair, ideally during the semester before the individual study is to take place. The instructor and student agree on the nature of the work expected (e.g., several short papers, one long paper, an in-depth project, a public presentation, a lengthy general outline and annotated bibliography). The level should be advanced, with work on a par with a 300- or 400-level course. The student and instructor should meet on a regular basis, with the schedule to be determined by the instructor in consultation with the student. Individual studies may be taken for .5 or .25 unit, at the discretion of the instructor. Prerequisite: GPA of at least 3.0. Exceptions (e.g., for languages not regularly taught at Kenyon) are granted at the discretion of the instructor, with the approval of the department chair.

Prerequisite: permission of department.

Prerequisite: permission of department.