REL 104 – Asian Mythology

Introductory survey of the mythologies of India, China, and Japan.

• Professor Adam Newman • MW 10:00-10:50 • CRN 68127

REL 108 – Religion & Society in West I

Introduction to classic writers and texts in Western religious and social thought from antiquity to the Enlightenment, with emphasis on their social and historical contexts.

• Professor Stephanie Thurston • MWF 1:00-1:50 • CRN 68128

REL 110 - World Religions

Survey of the leading living religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; examination of basic texts and of philosophic theological elaborations of each religion.

• Professor Richard Layton • MW 9:00-9:50 • CRN 67741

REL 111 - Elementary Greek 

Introduces ancient Greek (both classical and koine), including the reading of simple prose.

• Professor Kirk Sanders • MWF 9:00-9:50 • CRN 37594

REL 120 – A History of Judaism

Examines the social, political, economic, and intellectual history of the Jews from Abraham to the present-day, with particular attention to Jewish thought and society.

• Professor Eli Rosenblatt • TR 12:00-1:20 • CRN 68210

REL 160 – Ancient Greek and Roman Religion

Study of Greek and Roman Paganism and the rise of Christianity within that context. Readings are confined to ancient sources in English translation.

• Professor Betsy Bevis • MWF 1:00-1:50 • CRN 68408

REL 200 – Classical & Koine Greek I

Readings in classical Greek prose, and narrative and epistolary New Testament texts.

  • Professor Dan Leon Ruiz • MWF 1:00-1:50 • CRN 69689

REL 234 – Black Religious Imaginations

Considers Black religious groups whose origins are linked to an attempt to jettison racial categories, such as "negro," that were constructed as cultural productions aimed at undermining the dignity of Black people. Examines Black religious movements like the Nation of Islam, Black Spiritual Movements, Hebrew-Israelite organizations, and the Black Coptic Church, that respond to the problem of race via a performance of imaginations that point to the possibility of other worlds and other futures.

• Professor Leonard McKinnis • MW 10:00-10:50 • CRN 80341

REL 251- Viking Mythology

Studies pre-Christian beliefs of the Germanic peoples as reflected primarily in medieval Icelandic prose and poetry (in translation).

• Professor Walker Horsfall • TR 12:30-1:20 • CRN 58533

REL 258- Muslims in America

REL 258 – Muslims in America

Introduction to the study of Muslims in the United States and broadly the history of Islam in the Americas. Using a comparative approach, we study how the historical narrative of African American and Latino Muslims relates to newer immigrant populations, primarily Arab American and South Asian American Muslim communities.

• Professor Junaid Rana • TR 12:30-1:50 • CRN 58913

REL 260-Mystics and Saints in Islam

Examines mystical concepts and practices in Islam through the ages, through the lives and writings of important mystics and Sufi holy men and women, as well as the integration of mysticism and the Sufi Orders into Muslim society and Islamic orthodoxy.

• Professor Mukhtar Ali • TR 1:00-2:50 • CRN 74064

REL 283 – Jewish Sacred Literature

Introduces students to the great literary works of the Jewish tradition from the Hebrew Bible to nineteenth-century Hassidism. The class will read and reflect upon a rich array of Jewish texts from several genres including biblical interpretation, rabbinic narratives, philosophical works, mystical texts (Kabbalah), poetry and law codes. Attention will be given not only to content and form, but also to the historical and social context that gave rise to these important masterpieces.

• Professor Dov Weiss • MWTR 9:00-9:50 POT B • CRN 67790

REL 308 – Psychology of Religion and Spirituality

Examines major topics in the psychology of religion and spirituality to promote reflection on how religion shapes attitudes, behavior, and contemporary U.S. society. Through the lens of psychology, we explore questions such as: Why are some people religious and spiritual? How do we study religion and spirituality from a psychological perspective? What do religion and spirituality look like across the lifespan? Does religion shape prejudice, morality, violence, or altruism? What is the role of religion in promoting health? Overall, we will examine these and other questions to promote greater understanding regarding the role of religion and spirituality in the lives of individuals and larger society.

• Professor Kimberly Rios • TR 12:30-1:50 • CRN 78467

REL 335 – Religion in Contemporary America

Examines the religious dynamics of the twenty-first century United States. Tasks will be to map the religious landscape of contemporary America, to learn something of the history of the many traditions being practiced and lived in our communities, and then to study a series of salient issues involving people of faith; the emergence of new religions, expressions of religious intolerance, religion and politics, race and religion, and religious interpretations of economics and the market.

• Professor Alexia Williams • TR 3:30-4:50 • CRN 67806

REL 418 – Afterlife in Early Judaism

Examines Israelite and Jewish attitudes to death and the afterlife from Ancient Israelite belief until the rise of Islam. Topics include death, divine judgement, immortality of the soul, resurrection, and hell. We will also selectively compare Jewish afterlife traditions to those found in early Christianity. Particular attention will be paid to the transformations of belief over time, and to the changing contexts that gave rise to new Jewish soteriologies and eschatologies.

• Professor Dov Weiss • TR 3:00-5:00 POT B • CRN 80343 & 80344

REL 485 – Karma of Words: Buddhism, Language and the Literary Arts of Japan

The relation between Buddhism, Language and the Literary Arts of Japan will be explored. After introducing the ideas, motifs, paradigms and images of the Buddhist tradition and reading Buddhist scriptural texts from a literary perspective, we will then analyze how Buddhism was re-expressed and reshaped in Japanese literature with additional focus on Buddhist theories of language and literature.

• Professor Christopher Callahan • F 1:00-3:50 • CRN 78363

REL 494 - Topics in Religious Thought

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• Professor Mukhtar Ali • TR 10:00-11:50 • CRNs 77451 & 77452

REL 495 - Topics in Asian Religions

This course serves as an introduction to Hindu epic and narrative literature. Through a close reading of the Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata, Purāṇas, and other classical Hindu narratives, we will engage with several important and guiding questions: what is the role of narrative in religious culture, in public and private life, and in constituting people’s cultural identities? How do religious narratives shape society, and how does society in turn shape religious narratives? By examining Hindu literature over the course of its development from the ancient into the modern period, special attention will be paid to the ways in which these narratives have been re-imagined through novels and public performance and still have meaning for Hindus today.

• Professor Anna Tosato and Adam Newman • W 2:00-4:30 • CRNs 71399 & 71400

REL 495 - Topics in Asian Religions

Everything you need to know about this ancient Indian religion. This course will teach you the basics of Jainism in a creative and interesting way. Non-violence, vegetarianism, asceticism, material culture, and more. We will learn about the ideas that shaped Jainism and made it so relevant in the ancient and contemporary world. No previous knowledge of the topic is required to take this class.

• Professor Anna Tosato • TR 12:30-1:50 • CRNs 79766 & 79767

REL 510 – Graduate Intro to Religion

Introduction for first semester graduate students to selected methods and techniques for conducting research in the area of Religion. Students will receive general guidance on strategies for conducting bibliographic research and designing research projects. Includes study of some currently salient issues and areas of inquiry in a number of disciplines pertaining to the study of religion. The course will be supervised by one professor and will offer a series of presentations on several methodologies and historical issues by experts in various fields.

• Professor Richard Layton • M 3:00-5:20 • CRN 67805

REL 535 – Historiography of Religion in America

Immerses students in major works of recent American religious history. Written from multiple disciplinary perspectives and wrestling with the knotty problems in which religion has been interwoven, these books will give the student a solid foundation in American religious history.

• Professor Alexia Williams • W 3:00-5:30 • CRN 79714