THRS 3301 - Introduction to Comparative Religion

5 credit hours
This course will not only introduce students to global religious traditions, but will also introduce students to the skills necessary for religious studies as a discipline. For each tradition included in the course, students will learn about sacred texts, hermeneutical traditions, history, ethics, culture, ritual, and demography. We will employ academic disciplines such as historical-critical methodologies, literary criticism, sociological and anthropological methodologies, and cultural criticism. Students will also explore disparate approaches to theology and spirituality. Students will develop skills in the discipline of religious studies; the course content will include examinations of religious communities in multiple global locations (including but not limited to the United States, Europe, India, Southeast Asia, China, the Middle East, and Africa); students will examine the impact of global diversity on the development of religious traditions; students will have the opportunity to explore difference in the realms of theology and spirituality; students will explore religious traditions different from their own; students will discover and examine diversity within individual religious traditions (Ashkenazic vs. Sephardic Judaism; Chinese vs. SE Asian Buddhism; etc.); students will learn about and engage in interreligious dialogue as well as methods for comparative analysis; direct experience of the religious traditions under examination will be facilitated via site visits (according to student schedules); and the examination of religious ethics in each traditions will further students’ understanding of the role of religion in facing global challenges such as environmental degradation, socio-economic injustice, and the subjugation of women. WR