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Religions of the World

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Prof. Joseph Molleur Office Hours
Prall House 101 Mon. and Thurs., 10-11 a.m.
Jmolleur@cornellcollege.edu Tues., Wed., and Fri., 3-4 p.m.
Office: 895-4237 Or by appointment.
Home: 895-8559 (Please, no calls after 9 p.m.)

REL. 222: Religions of the World

Aim of the Course

This course explores the religious dimension of human existence, by introducing students to eight of the world’s major religious traditions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The aim of the course (through readings, lectures, and discussions centered mainly on selections from each religion’s sacred scriptures) is to gain an appreciative understanding of the basic teachings and practices of the religions, as well as an insight into how they motivate and inspire their adherents. In a “survey” course such as this one, it is inevitable that breadth will be emphasized at the expense of depth. In an attempt to achieve at least some degree of depth, we will read one relatively short sacred text, Hinduism’s Bhagavad-Gita, in its entirety—a little bit each day, all throughout the course.

Prerequisite

There is no prerequisite for this course.

Course Requirements

1. Class Participation (20% of final grade). There are two components to this requirement, each constituting approximately 10% of your final grade. a) Your oral contributions to our class discussions. Formal study questions will be provided for each class session. Work on these questions carefully and thoroughly, as you prepare for class each day—this will facilitate informed participation in class discussion. b) Additionally, regular attendance at class meetings is required. More than one absence from class will progressively lower this portion of your grade.

2. Two Tests (25% each), which will take place on the second Wednesday and third Thursday of the term. The tests will contain short answer and short essay questions.

3. A Take-Home Final Exam (30%), which will be due by 1:00 p.m. on the fourth Wednesday of the term. An assignment handout will be distributed that Monday.

Class Meeting Times

Class meetings will be held on Monday through Friday, from 12:30 to 3:00 p.m.

Required Texts

1. Huston Smith, The World’s Religions.
2. Robert Ballou, ed., The Portable World Bible.
3. Barbara Miller, trans., The Bhagavad-Gita.

Students with Special Needs

Students who need accommodations for learning disabilities must provide documentation from a professional qualified to diagnose learning disabilities. For more information see cornellcollege.edu/disabilities/documentation/index.shtml. Students requesting services may schedule a meeting with the disabilities services coordinator as early as possible to discuss their needs and develop an individualized accommodation plan. Ideally, this meeting would take place well before the start of classes. At the beginning of each course, the student must notify the instructor within the first three days of the term of any accommodations needed for the duration of the course.

Academic Honesty

Cornell College expects all members of the Cornell community to act with academic integrity. An important aspect of academic integrity is respecting the work of others. A student is expected to explicitly acknowledge ideas, claims, observations, or data of others, unless generally known. When a piece of work is submitted for credit, a student is asserting that the submission is her or his work unless there is a citation of a specific source. If there is no appropriate acknowledgment of sources, whether intended or not, this may constitute a violation of the College's requirement for honesty in academic work and may be treated as a case of academic dishonesty. The procedures regarding how the College deals with cases of academic dishonesty appear in The Compass, our student handbook, under the heading “Academic Policies – Honesty in Academic Work.”

Course Calendar

Note: The reading assignments listed in this course calendar are to be completed PRIOR to that day’s meeting of the class.

WEEK 1

Monday Getting oriented

I. Major Eastern Religions

Tuesday HINDUISM 1 a) Huston Smith, The World’s Religions, pp. 12-26, 59-72. b) Robert Ballou, ed., The Portable World Bible, pp. 32-58. c) Barbara Miller, trans., The Bhagavad-Gita, Teaching 1.

Wednesday HINDUISM 2 a) Smith, pp. 26-41, 50-59, 72-75 (pp. 41-50 optional). b) Ballou, pp. 69-91. c) Miller, Teaching 2.

Thursday BUDDHISM 1 (a) Smith, pp. 82-112. (b) Ballou, pp. 113-134. (c) Miller, Teaching 3.

Friday BUDDHISM 2 a) Smith, pp. 112-149. b) Ballou, pp. 134-143, 152-159. c) Miller, Teachings 4 and 5.

WEEK 2

Monday CONFUCIANISM a) Smith, pp. 154-193. b) Ballou, pp. 498-514, 523-525, 528-529. c) Miller, Teaching 6.

Tuesday TAOISM a) Smith, pp. 196-218. b) Ballou, pp. 542-574. c) Miller, Teachings 7 and 8.

Wednesday TEST 1

II. Zoroastrianism

Thursday (a) Ballou, pp. 163-215. (b) Miller, Teaching 9.

III. Major Western Religions

Friday JUDAISM 1 a) Smith, pp. 271-293. b) Ballou, pp. 242-276. c) Miller, Teaching 10.
WEEK 3

Monday JUDAISM 2 a) Smith, pp. 293-315. b) Ballou, pp. 299-322, 333-345. c) Miller, Teaching 11.

Tuesday CHRISTIANITY 1 a) Smith, pp. 317-339. b) Ballou, pp. 354-385. c) Miller, Teachings 12 and 13.

Wednesday CHRISTIANITY 2 a) Smith, pp. 339-362. b) Ballou, pp. 385-419. c) Miller, Teachings 14 and 15.

Thursday TEST 2

Friday ISLAM 1 a) Smith, pp. 221-248. b) Ballou, pp. 451-469. c) Miller, Teachings 16 and 17.

WEEK 4

Monday ISLAM 2 a) Smith, pp. 248-268. b) Ballou, pp. 470-479. c) Miller, Teaching 18.

Tuesday No class—work on take-home final.

Wednesday TAKE-HOME FINAL DUE BY 12:30 PM.

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