Ways of Understanding Religion
Religion 361
Prof. Laura Ammon
Office: Platner 120
Ext.: 4339
Office hours: To Be Announced
Or by appointment
email: LauraAmmon@linkline.com
Course home pages can be found here: www.trickster.org/basilicaThe course syllabus can be found here: http://www.linkline.com/personal/rwreed/wur/wursyll.htm
The course internet resource page can be found here: http://www.linkline.com/personal/rwreed/wur/wurres.htm
Final project guidelines: http://www.linkline.com/personal/rwreed/wur/final.htm
Citing an etext? Look here for guidelines:
http://library.byu.edu/~rdh/eurodocs/cite.htmlCourse Description and Goals
This course is designed to introduce students to various scholarly tools for understanding religious movements and groups. Students will understand several approaches to the study of religion
a. historical
b. theological
c. psychological
d. anthropological/sociologicalStudents will examine the relationship between religion and various theories from the above categories and the implications of that analysis for both society and the scholarly community. The result will be that students will be able to apply theoretical models and understandings to historical and contemporary religious communities. The class will create a forum in which the students can begin critically to analyze the social- political implications of religion in their own contexts.
The course will introduce the methods of academic conversation about religion and religious communities, enabling students to formulate responses within that conversation. We will focus on the construction of academic discourse - what is the thesis of the article/book, how are the points presented and argued, as well as what constitutes evidence and interpretation. Using those skills discussed in class, students will formulate their own analysis of religion through argument and presentation. Theories are tools and students will begin to use those tools in a constructive manner to explain an aspect of a religious movement.
Course Requirements
Attendance is required. This course will be primarily a discussion course, we will all discuss the various books and their themes and contrasts. In order for each of us to get the most from this experience, each person must come to class prepared. Look around this room. These people are your colleagues. Treat them with respect, listen carefully to what they have to say and respond thoughtfully. Dialog, especially about topics like religion, is the best way to come to mutual understanding. Bearing that in mind, do not miss the presentations of your colleagues work. You will be docked a letter grade for missing a presentation day.
Reading assignments: This class is what you make it. Please come prepared to discuss the readings. This class will function like a seminar. This means that you are expected to come to class not only having done the readings but prepared to discuss issues raised by the material you have read. The quality of this class is dependent on you almost exclusively. This class will be very interactive — you need to come to each class prepared to TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU HAVE READ! Sometimes I will lecture to provide background and context and lead the discussion. But the operative word here is discussion.
Writing assignments
a. Reviews. You will write two 4-5 page reviews of material we have discussed in class.
b. Various short response papers. These papers are not graded, though you get points for handing them in. They are to give you a space to think about what you are reading and write about those thoughts. These papers can be used to organize your thoughts for comments in class. (In other words you can talk about what you wrote in your response paper. The only condition is that those response papers be written prior to class and they must be handed in the day they are due NO EXCEPTIONS.)
c. Presentation. For your final paper you will combine your research on a religious community with one of the theories we have examined in class. Combining (hopefully) work from your reviews and your research with a theory, you will present an analysis of your community in class. (This may be done with a partner.) The paper should be 10-12 pages in length. The font should not exceed 12 points and the margins should be 1” top and bottom, left and right. If you use an internet source that is not from the course homepage you must put the URL in the footnote. This is very important. I have prepared an internet resource page specifically for the topics in this class. Please utilize that resource.
Required Texts
David Chidester, Salvation and Suicide
Dorothee Soelle, On Earth As In Heaven
Brian Turner, Religion and Social Theory
Michael Carroll, Cult of the Virgin Mary
Various readings on reserve in Wardman Library.