Department of Religion | Fall 2003 Course Atlas

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Fall 2003 Course Atlas

REL 100: Introduction to Religions: Hinduism and Islam
Saunders, MWF 10:40-11:30, MAX: 30
Content: Hinduism and Islam structure the lives of a significant number of the world's population. Although both are religious traditions and share some characteristics, they approach fundamental issues of authority, tradition, practice, and belief in divergent ways. This course is designed for students who want to know more about Hinduism and Islam and the academic study of religion. We will use interpretive categories from within each tradition, noting similarities and differences, and then examine the ways each tradition has taken root and adjusted to life in the United States. Students will learn about the different approaches to studying religion (methodologies), their data, and the ways that religions are represented in various contexts. We will also emphasize the variety of experiences of any given tradition. Throughout the course we will focus on personal experiences of religion to grasp the ways that religion structures individual lives. This course will not only prepare you to make sense of the diversity around you but will also prepare you for additional academic religion courses.
Texts:

Denny, Frederick Mathewson. An Introduction to Islam

Eck, Diana. Darsan: Seeing the Divine Image in India

Flood, Gavin. An Introduction to Hinduism

Fluehr-Lobban, Carolyn. Islamic Society in Practice

Murthy, U.R. Anantha. Samskara

Salih, Tayeb. The Wedding of Zein and Other Stories

Particulars: Short writing assignments; visits to Hindu and Muslim sites in Atlanta; class participation; two mid-term and one final examination. Meets General Education Requirement V.C. (2/3 reserved for freshmen)

Although content is different in REL 100 courses, you may not repeat for credit.

REL 100: Introduction to Religion: Christian and Hindu Traditions
Bruehler, MWF 9:35-10:25, MAX: 30
Content: This course will open with a general orientation to the academic study of religion. We will then explore the following topics in both the Hindu and Christian religious traditions: Vocabulary & Varieties, Divine & Human, Worship, Sacred Texts, and Religion in the Contemporary World. In the final week, we will discuss the comparative study of religion in light of the Hindu and Christian traditions.

Texts:

Introduction to Hinduism by Gavin Flood

Introduction to Christianity by Mary Jo Weaver

Other selected and recommended texts

Particulars: (2/3 reserved for freshmen). Class lectures will be supplemented by weekly readings, in-class writings, videos, and discussions. Grading will be based on a student portfolio. This portfolio will include class notes, vocabulary lists, site visit reports, and other optional assignments to be selected by the student. The course will employ a Blackboard Web site for communication and course materials. This class meets General Education Requirement V.C.

Although content is different in REL 100 courses, you may not repeat for credit.

REL 100: Introduction to Religions: Christianity and Islam

Vishanoff, TTh 10:00-11:15, MAX: 30

Content: This course is designed to help students internalize basic historical and conceptual maps of Christianity and Islam, and then apply and deconstruct this knowledge through engagement with a variety of approaches to studying religions. In the first segment of the course, students will memorize a timeline of the Christian and Muslim traditions, which will be fleshed out through lectures and secondary texts, and applied in interpreting visual and verbal primary materials. In the second segment we will use primary texts and videos to study select Christian and Muslim doctrines (Christology, prophethood) and practices (the Eucharist, Friday prayer). In the third segment, differences within each tradition will be explored through student presentations on their field observations at different types of churches and mosques.

Texts: For the historical segment of the course we will use Justo Gonzalez, Church History: An Essential Guide, and Karen Armstrong, Islam: A Short History. Readings for the other two segments will come from a variety of sources.

Particulars: (2/3 reserved for freshmen) Requirements will include preparation, attendance, and participation; one oral and written report based on field observations; 2 quizzes; and a final exam. Meets General Education Requirement V.C.

Although content is different in REL 100 courses, you may not repeat for credit.

REL 190: Freshman Seminar: Women Saviors
Farley, TTh 11:30-12:45, MAX: 18
Content: This class will explore models of women saviors by looking at classical texts in Christianity and Buddhism as well as contemporary films. Beginning with films such as Chocolate, Babette's Feast, Rosa Parks, and Satya, we will discuss how these models compare with more traditional male ideals of saviors. Looking at the writings by women such as Teresa of Avilla, Julian of Norwich, Dorothy Day as well as folk tales, hagiographies, narratives we will investigate what women say about themselves and what others say about them regarding the kind of spiritual power that is available to women.

Texts: TBA

Particulars: TBA

REL 205: Biblical Literature

Buss, TTh 10:00-11:15, (same as JS 205), MAX: 15
Content: In this course, we will seek to understand the dynamics of various parts of the Jewish Bible, called "Old Testament" by Christians. This will involve questions such as the following: What is said? How is it said? What appears to be the aim? Insofar as there can be disagreement in regard to these questions, we will look at different answers, both as they have been given by others and as they are presented by members of the class.
Texts:

JPS, Tanakh

S. Sandmel, The Enjoyment of Scripture

C. Buchmann and C. Spiegel, eds., Out of the Garden

M. Buss, Manuscript

Particulars: Students will bring to each class an analysis of the text studied and will be ready to discuss their analyses orally in class. Students who have to miss class more than occasionally can turn their analyses into short papers and discuss them in an individual conference (which will normally cover two or three such papers covering the topics of two or three missed classes). There will be a midterm and a final. The course fulfills General Education Requirement IV.A (Humanities).

REL 209: History of Religions in America
Ted Smith, MWF 9:35-10:25, MAX: 30
Content: Histories of religions in the United States must be emphatically plural, reckoning in some way with the nation's huge variety of religious practices and beliefs. This course will not try to be comprehensive, but will instead try to offer careful, intriguing introductions to the United States history of a few traditions: African American Christian, Islamic, Jewish, Mormon, Protestant, and Roman Catholic. We will pay special attention to the art, music, and practices of these traditions. The history of religions in the United States is not just a story about difference. People from different traditions have wrestled with and created common realities. This course will consider some ways religious people have engaged individualism, separation of "church" and state, the rise of science, and the emergence of mass markets for religion. Working back and forth between different traditions and common themes, the course will try to understand the religious lives of people in the nation Abraham Lincoln called "almost chosen."

Texts: Possible texts include:

Catherine Albanese, America: Religion and Religions (1999)

E. Brooks Holifield, Theology in America (2003)

Jon Butler and Harry S. Stout, eds., Religion in American History: A Reader (1998)

Colleen McDannell, ed. Religions of the United States in Practice (2 vols.) (2001)

Selected readings, music, and images on reserve.

Particulars: This course meets General Education Requirement V.A. (United States history). Assignments will include close engagement with primary and secondary sources, two exams, a very brief essay, and class discussion.

REL 210: Classic Religious Texts: Apocalyptic Literature: Past and Present
Huber, TTh 11:30-12:45, MAX: 30
Content: Apocalyptic literature has proven to be one of the most consistently popular forms of sacred writings, capturing the imaginations of people from diverse religious, cultural, and historical contexts. This literature has also generated a correspondingly vast array of frequently conflicting, and always creative, interpretations. Because of this diversity, the history of the interpretation of apocalyptic literature raises a set of questions: How and why does one body of literature generate so many diverse interpretations? Are some interpretations more valid than others? If so, by what criteria does one decide valid from invalid interpretations? Do historical, cultural, and religious contexts affect interpretation? Ought they to? How do we, today, interpret apocalyptic literature? Throughout the semester, we will pose these questions as we examine biblical apocalyptic literature (Daniel 7-12 and Revelation) and some of its later (mostly American) interpreters, including William Miller, the Seventh Day Adventists, David Koresh, John Nelson Darby, Hal Lindsey, and the Left Behind series.

Texts:

Harper-Collins Study Bible

Tim F. LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, Left Behind: A Novel of the Earth’s Last Days (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale Publishers, 1995).

The bulk of the readings for this course will either be online and/or on reserve.

Particulars: Two tests, one class presentation, one short paper. Class preparation and participation will comprise a sizable portion of the student's grade. This course fulfills General Education Requirement IV.A (Humanities).

REL 210: Classic Religious Texts: Comparing the Birth and Death of Jesus in Early Christian Literature and the Qur'an
Von Thaden, MW 2:00-3:15, MAX: 30
Content: The figures of Jesus and his family play an important role in both early Christian texts (both canonical and extra-canonical) as well as in the Qur'an. Obviously, Christian and Muslim texts will make different claims about the significance of Jesus, but each tradition treats Jesus' birth and death (or lack thereof) in some depth. By exposing the student to a wide number of texts this course does not seek to arrive at one "correct" interpretation of the birth and death of Jesus, but rather seeks to compare these various texts on a rhetorical/literary/social level and to analyze how different traditions are related to and interact with each other. By employing a comparative and analytical methodology it is hoped that the student will leave this course both with an appreciation for the specific texts examined as well as the ability to speak intelligibly about the nature and relationship of these texts.

Texts:

The New Oxford Annotated Bible (Third Edition)

The Glorious Qur'an (translated by Muhammed M. Pickthall)

The Infancy Gospels of James and Thomas (translated by Ronald Hock)

Other selections from primary and secondary texts TBA

Particulars: This course fulfills General Education Requirement IV.A (Humanities).

REL 210S: Classic Religious Texts: Talmud
Berger, TTh 10:00-11:15, MAX: 18
Content: After the Bible, there is likely no text which has exerted as much influence on Jewish religion and culture as the Babylonian Talmud. Edited roughly 1500 years ago, it comprises the views and thoughts of almost five centuries of rabbinic scholars, who analyzed or commented on virtually every aspect of Jewish law and human existence. In this seminar-type course, we will take one chapter of the Babylonian Talmud and read it very closely in an English translation, trying first to understand the argument being made, and then to examine the nature and mindset of the authors and editors. The discussions we will read will also serve as a springboard for a general examination of the life and thought of Rabbinic Judaism. Depending on student interest, an optional additional hour (for credit) will be arranged during which the material will be studied in the original language.

Texts:

Course packet of talmudic material

Adin Steinsaltz, The Essential Talmud

Occasional articles, on reserve

Particulars: The class will be conducted in the style of the oral academies in which the Talmud evolved. Thus, students must be prepared to read and discuss the assignment for each class. Class participation is essential. The final exam will include both written and oral components. In addition to this class, students interested in studying the Talmud in the original may sign up for Rel 497R WITH THE INSTRUCTOR'S PERMISSION and take a directed reading with the professor for one credit. Tentatively, we plan to meet for the hour after the Monday class session.

This course fulfills General Education Requirement IV.A (Humanities).

REL 211: Western Religions: Judaism and Christianity
Gilders, MWF 2:00-2:50, MAX: 35
Content: Judaism and Christianity are two closely related religious traditions with a long and complex history of contact and conflict. This course provides an introduction to the historical and comparative study of Judaism and Christianity through a focused examination of key developments in the two traditions from Late Antiquity to the 19th century in Europe. Particular attention will be given to the ways in which Judaism and Christianity have affected and been affected by their larger cultural contexts. Lectures will provide background and context for the close study and discussion of significant primary documents from each tradition. The course is intended to provide both breadth of knowledge and some depth of understanding on key elements of the two traditions, and to serve as a basis for work in more focused and specialized courses on Judaism and Christianity. No prior study of either tradition is assumed or required.

Texts:

Michael A. Fishbane, Judaism (HarperCollins, 1987)

Brian Wilson, Christianity (Prentice Hall, 1999)

New Testament (TNIV translation)

Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures (Jewish Publication Society)

Reserve and On-line Materials

Particulars: Two tests; research paper (12 pages, approx.); short preparation exercises; regular attendance and active participation. This course meets General Education Requirement V.B. (Historical Perspectives on Western Culture).

REL 212: Asian Religious Traditions: China and Japan
Reinders, MWF 10:40-11:30,  (same as ASIA 212), MAX: 25
Content: This is an introduction to religious life in East Asia (mainly China and Japan). We will deal with the major religious traditions (Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, Shinto, Christianity), within the larger context of popular religious practices. Our themes will include: temples, sacred space, nature and the natural world, the miraculous, hermit culture and images of the holy man or woman.
Texts: texts may include: John K. Nelson, A Year in the Life of a Shinto Shrine; Bill Porter, Road to Heaven: Encounters with Chinese Hermits; Kathryn Ann Tsai, Lives of the Nuns; Ronald Knapp, China’s Living Houses; Fabio Rambelli, Vegetal Buddhas; and a selection of primary sources.
Particulars: Several short written pieces responding to the readings; a research paper or essay; attendance and participation; a creative project; one or two examinations. The course fulfills General Education Requirement V.C. (Nonwestern Cultures or Comparative and International Studies).

REL 212: Asian Religious Traditions: Hindu and Buddhist Practices of South Asia
Doyle, TTh 1:00-2:15,  (same as ASIA 212), MAX: 15, TPL
Content: This “theory-practice-learning” (TPL) class is an introduction to a number of prominent texts and associated religious practices found within the Hindu and Buddhist traditions of South Asia. Texts will include Vedic hymns, selections from the Upanishads, Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra, the Devi-mahatmya, medieval bhakti poetry, Ashvaghosa’s Buddha-carita, the Satipatthana Sutta, Shantideva’s Bodhicaryavatara, and selections from Buddhist tantras. In line with the TPL nature of this course, students will also witness important rituals and/or festivals at the Hindu Temple of Atlanta and Wat Buddha Bucha, study about and practice Hindu yoga and Buddhist meditation, and watch performances of Carnatic devotional music and Tibetan chanting. All these will be studied within historical and contemporary contexts, thus revealing both the continuity and innovativeness of these two major religious traditions.
Texts:

Coburn, Encountering the Goddess

Eck, Darsan

Shantideva, Way of the Bodhisattva

Thich Nhat Hanh, Heart of Understanding

photocopied sourcebook of articles

Particulars: Class participation (15%), three 3-5 page reflection papers (30%), mid-term exam (25%), and final exam (30%). Meets General Education Requirement V.C.

REL 300: Interpreting Religion: Theories and Methods of Religious Studies
Patterson, MWF 10:40-11:30, MAX: 30, (Majors Only or Instructor Approval)
Content: This course will introduce Religion majors to the history of the field and to basic methods and theories used in the interpretation of religion. The course will explore a variety of approaches to the study of religion, including history of religions, anthropology, sociology, psychology, theology, and cultural studies. Students will have the opportunity to directly apply the theories and methods examined in the course through a series of self-designed projects.
Texts: Readings will include: Wilfred Cantwell Smith, Abu Lughod, Mark C. Taylor, Katie Cannon, Bobby Paul, etc.
Particulars: Short focus papers and a final project proposal using methods studied in the class will be required. Class participation is emphasized.

REL 303: Modern Hinduism

Doyle, TTh 10:00-11:15, (same as ASIA 303), MAX: 15
Content: This course identifies and examines central themes and issues in the study of modern Hinduism. The primary focus wil be on contemporary Hindu practice, including ways in which Indian religious texts are received, adapted, performed, and experienced today. After an introduction to key concepts and orientations within the Hindu tradition, we will focus on five interrelated topics: 1) the creation and worship of religious images; 2) various dimensions of the Ramayana tradition; 3) saints, gurus, and healers; 4) pilgrimages; and 5) Hinduism as it is being transmitted and practiced abroad, especially here in the USA.
Texts:

Diana Eck, Darsan: Seeing the Divine Image

Ranchor Prime, Ramayana: A Journey

A xerox Sourcebook of articles

Particulars: Movie screenings (4-5 outside of class), field-trips to a local Hindu temple (1-2 times), four short-response papers, and a final paper (10-12 pages).

REL 306: Tibetan Buddhism: Psychology of Enlightenment
Negi, TTh 11:30-12:45, (same as ASIA 306), MAX: 15
Content: This course will present a portrait of Tibetan Buddhism as a living tradition. The spiritual techniques used by Tibetan Buddhist practitioners, as well as the philosophical and psychological perspectives of these methods, will be the focus of the classwork. The course will concentrate on the tradition known in Tibetan as Lam Rim or "Stages of the Path." Lam Rim is a living tradition for systematically transforming ordinary distorted states of consciousness into the enlightened experience. For purposes of contextualization, the course will begin with a brief survey of the basic terms and concepts that form the Buddhist worldview.
Texts: TBA
Particulars: All students are expected to attend all classes, read the assigned materials, make class presentations, and participate actively in class discussions. In-class quizzes, mid-term and final paper.

REL 308: Judaism

SORRY, this class has been CANCELLED.

REL 311: Early & Medieval Christianity
Rambo, MWF 3:00-3:50, MAX: 30
Content: This course provides an overview of the formation of Christianity through its beginnings in the Christian scriptures through the Patristic and early Medieval periods. We will examine carefully the pivotal texts, art, practices, and controversies that shaped Christianity. Using the passion narrative as a central lens for the course, we will engage questions of the role of violence, death, and suffering in the formation of the Christian religion.
Texts:

Athanasius, On the Incarnation

Augustine, Confessions

Justo Gonzalez, The Story of Christianity, Vol. 1

Gregory of Nyssa, On the Soul and Resurrection

Julian of Norwich, Showings

Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ

The Passion of the Holy Martyrs Perpetua and Felicitas

The Gospels According to Mark and John

Carol Lee Flinders, Enduring Grace: Living Portraits of Seven Women Mystics

Particulars: Class preparation, attendance, and participation required. Assignments will include two in-class writing exercises, a short critical reflection paper, and a final project.

REL 316S: Early and Medieval Islam

Devin Stewart, TTh 2:30-3:45, (same as MES 316S), MAX: 10
Content: An examination of the history of religious thought, practices, culture, and institutions characteristic of Islamic civilization from the time of the Prophet Muhammad in the seventh century to circa 1600. Course work includes a critical review of various scholarly approaches in the humanities and social sciences to the study of Islam. Topics covered will include the intellectual traditions of study of the Qur'an, hadith, theology, law, and mysticism, historical sectarian divisions within the Muslim community, and Islamic institutions such as the Caliphate and the madrasah or college of law.
Texts:

Abu Hamid al-Ghazali. Deliverance from Error.

Miraj Nameh. The Miraculous Journey of Mahomet.

Andrew Rippin. Muslims: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices, 2nd ed. Vol. I: The Formative Period.

Richard Martin. Islam: A History of Religions Approach.

Moojan Momen. Shiite Islam.

Maria Rosa Menocal. The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain.

Coursepack of additional readings.

Particulars: No prerequisites. Requirements: Preparation and participation in class discussion. Completion of regular short written assignments on prepared questions. Two in-class presentations. Three 5-7-page papers.

REL 323: Death and Dying
Laderman, TTh 1:00-2:15, MAX: 50
Content: Death is a universal fact of human life. Yet throughout history different cultures have responded to death, and the dead body, in a variety of ways. In this course we will explore human responses to mortality in a number of cultural settings, including the United States, examining the symbols, rituals, and meaning-systems people have used to make sense of the end of life.
Texts: Readings may include:

Philippe Aries, Western Attitudes Toward Death from the Middle Ages to the Present

Paul Barber, Vampires, Burial, and Death

Kenneth Kramer, The Sacred Art of Dying

Gary Laderman, Rest in Peace

David Moller, Confronting Death

Raymond Moody, Life after Life

Carol Zaleski, Otherworld Journeys

Particulars: Exams and papers; participation in discussions; field trips

REL 324: The Holocaust
Lipstadt, TTh 11:30-12:45, MAX: 40 (same as JS 324; HIST 385)
Content: This course will study the history of the Holocaust. Topics to be examined include: history of antisemitism which preceded the Holocaust, steps involved in the Nazi demonization of the Jews, the role of "ordinary" Germans in the killing process, evolution of the Final Solution and the establishment and operation of the death camps. We will also examine the role of the bystanders, including the Vatican, Protestant churches, Red Cross, Allied governments, media and public. We will explore the nature of Jewish resistance to the Holocaust and the role of the Christian rescuers who aided Jews in Europe. We will also examine the theological question, "Where was God during the Holocaust?" Students will have the opportunity to meet with and talk to survivors of the Holocaust.
On a select number of Wednesday evenings during the semester we will screen films on the Holocaust.
Texts:

Leni Yahil, The Holocaust

Elie Wiesel, Night

Raul Hilberg, The Destruction of European Jewry

Claude Lanzmann, Shoah

Primo Levi, Survival in Auschwitz

Art Spiegelman, Maus

Films:
     Shoah
Particulars: Midterms, Final.

REL 326: Spiritual Dynamics of Afro-America
Dianne Stewart, TTh 10:00-11:15, (same as AAS 326), MAX: 20
Content: This course explores the evolution of Black theology from its inception in the academy in 1969 to the present day. Students will examine the debates and controversies that have emerged within the discourse among Black theologians. Students will also examine themes and issues within the wider discipline of theology pertaining to the chief motifs and insights of Black theology. Some major themes considered are Black theology and theodicy; Black theology, the Black religious experience and the African heritage; the particular and universal in Black theology; womanist (Black feminist) challenges to Black theology; Black theology and the Black church; and praxis and reflection in Black theology. Two primary objectives of this course are to 1) critically analyze the motifs of violence and religious conflict in the African American experience and 2) understand the significance of Black theology within the history of Christian thought and to interrogate its claims in the light of our analysis of its sources and norms. Students will be encouraged to discover their own theological perspectives in conversation with those explored in the class.
Texts: Major texts:

Gayraud Wilmore, Black Religion and Black Radicalism: An Interpretation of the Religious History of African Americans

James Cone & Gayraud Wilmore, Black Theology: A Documentary History Volume One, 1966-1979

James Cone & Gayraud Wilmore, Black Theology: A Documentary History Volume Two, 1980-1992

James Cone, A Black Theology of Liberation

James Cone, God of the Oppressed

Josiah Young, A Pan African Theology: Providence and the Legacies of the Ancestors

Delores Williams, Sisters in the Wilderness: The Challenge of Womanist God-Talk

Renita Weems, Just a Sister Away: A Womanist Vision of Women’s Relationships in the Bible

Particulars: Course requirements: Two 8-page papers One take-home, mid-term examination (approx. 8 pages in length).

REL 328SWR: Women, Religion and Ethnography
Flueckiger, TTh 11:30-12:45, (same as ANT 328SWR and WS 328SWR), MAX: 8
Content: Primary sources in this course will be ethnographic studies that have paid particular attention to women's lives and voices. These women's traditions and expressions often expand the boundaries of what has traditionally "counted" in the study of religion. An underlying question of the course will be: how does the study of women and religion from the perspectives of ethnography and women's studies contribute to methodologies for the broader study of religion, particularly the religious experience of other subaltern groups? We will look not only at the content of the ethnographies we read, but we will also examine the ethnographic research and writing processes represented in each ethnography. The course fulfills the writing requirement.
Texts:
Texts May Include:

Lila Abu-Lughod, Writing Women's Lives: Bedouin Stories, 1993.

Laurel Kendall, The Life and Hard Times of a Korean Shaman: Of Tales and the Telling of Tales, 1988.

Maxine Hong Kingston, The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts, 1976.

Elaine Lawless, Handmaidens of the Lord: Pentecostal Women Preachers and Traditional Religion, 1988.

Kirin Narayan, Mondays on the Dark Night of the Moon: Himalayan Foothill Folktales, 1997.

Robert Orsi, Thank You, St Jude: Women's Devotion to the Patron Saint of Hopeless Causes, 1996.

Wynne Maggi, Our Women are Free: Gender and Ethnicity in the Hindukush, 2001.

Reading packet of articles.

Particulars: Four 2-3 page, informal response papers; final research paper (12-15 pages) and oral presentation.

REL 331: Culture of Buddhist Tibet
Negi, TTh 2:30-3:45, (same as ASIA 375), MAX: 15
Content: This course explores the fundamental cultural elements that have shaped the Tibetan Buddhist world, and that spread from Tibet throughout Central Asia to the north and the Himalayas to the south. It will draw from not only literary sources, but also some of the unique film documentation that has become available in recent years. The aim of this course is to examine how various values, belief-systems and rituals have produced a unique culture that sustained the peoples of Tibet for many centuries. The course will also look at the relevance of these cultural facets to the modern world.
Texts: TBA
Particulars: Students will be graded on class participation, presentations, response papers, and a final paper.

REL 333: Religion and the Body

Reinders, MWF 12:50-1:40, MAX: 20, TPL

Content: Investigation of selected issues related to the body in traditional Chinese culture, including yin-yang theory, birth and death, medicine, sex, diet, possession, and meditation. These topics provide a cultural context for the practice of Taiji (T’ai-chi). We will learn a complete, brief set of Taiji, so that you will not only think but experience the theoretical and cultural ideas of the course, and so that the cultural material will be in dialogue with your body practices. In addition, we will experiment with various other body practices, and reflect on the implications of a more embodied learning process. We will draw on some themes of current theory on the body and practice, such as the idea of the body as a “produced” object, the notion of “habitus” as “embodied culture,” and the bodily basis of language. This is a Theory-Practice Learning course.

Texts: Texts may include: Kristofer Schipper, The Taoist Body; Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, trans. D. C. Lau; Dogen, Dogen’s Pure Standards for the Zen Community: A Translation of the Eihei Shingi; Joy Hendry, Becoming Japanese: the World of the Pre-School Child; and a selection of theoretical writings and Chinese and Japanese fiction.

Particulars: Given the nature of this class, active participation is essential; Also, short written responses to readings throughout the semester; a more polished 10-page essay or research paper; other short tests on the reading as needed.

REL 353R: Jewish Mystical Tradition: The Zohar

Blumenthal, MW 3:00-4:15, (same as JS 353 and JS 541), MAX: 7
Content: The Zohar is the most secret and most central of Jewish mystical texts. Traditionally, one may not study it until one is 40 years of age and married. Nonetheless, we shall attempt to probe its depths, devoting an entire semester to this mysterious text. We will cover such topics as: God, the sefirot, the Shekhina, evil, humanity, sin, death, mystical conjugal life, mystical prayer, and repairing the universe.
Texts:

The Wisdom of the Zohar, ed. I Tishby (Littman Library)

Bible, any translation

reading questions (handed out in class)

Reserve: G. Scholem, Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism; D. Blumenthal, Understanding Jewish Mysticism; M. Idel, Kabbalah: New Persepctives; D. Matt, Zohar: The Book of Enlightenment

Particulars: We will read this central text closely and consider the nature of religious and mystical beliefs. Students should also consult the books on reserve during the course of the semester, as well as those parts of Tishby that we will not cover in class. Additional material on how to review and how to prepare will be distributed. Class participation is expected. One final paper.

REL 369: Religion and Film: India and the United States
Courtright, MWF 12:50-1:40, MAX: 30

Content: This course will explore the intesections of religion, culture, and film. Our focus will be comparative, investigating various religious themes and sensibilities informing films in two specific cultural settings: Bollywood and Hollywood. Students will be introduced to critical issues in the study of religion, including how increasing attention to globalization and popular culture is shaping the field, through thematic and historical comparisons of films produced in India and in the United States.

Texts: to be determined
Particulars: Students will be required to view films, participate in class discussions, take two exams, and write one short paper.

REL 380R: Internship
Patterson, Tuesday 2:30-5:00, MAX: 18, TPL

Content: Have you wished for a chance to test out ideas you've learned in class, in a local community organization, in a local religious community? Would you like to develop your analytical skills while working with others in service? Do you want to develop better communication skills and learn how to be part of a team? The Religion Internship course offers students opportunities to practice classroom theory in local settings with supervision. Students will choose their community partners from a list including the Food Bank, The DeKalb County Child Advocacy Unit, The Women's Resource Center, The Neighborhood Development Association, The Consulate General of Israel's Atlanta Office, etc. Emphasis will be on the development of interdisciplinary critical and synthetic thinking, problem-solving, and reflective judgment with relevancy to the discipline of Religious Studies.

Texts: Readings and methods of this course are from the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Some selections include: The Careless Society (McKnight); Call of Service (Robert Coles); The Demands of the Times and the American Research University (Ira Harkavy); Stages of an Internship (H.F. Sweitzer and Mary King); Common Fire (Daloz, Parks Keen); The Weight of the World (Bourdieu), and Building Communities From the Inside Out (an asset-based model).

Particulars: Students will meet weekly in a seminar class in addition to working in their placements. Each hour of credit requires 2 hours of work at a placement. Students may take this course for no less than 2 hours of credit and no more than 8 hours per semester. The course can be taken over several semesters, but cannot exceed a total of 12 hours of credit. Students should advise their supervisors that some weeks they will need to lessen their hours because of the academic requirements of the course. Students will present case studies of their work and keep a portfolio.

Non-Religion Majors are welcome. Permission of the Instructor is Required - Contact Dr. Patterson or the Religion Office. CLick HERE for more information.

REL 472R: Topics in Religion: Gogol, Kafka, Agnon: Theologies of the Grotesque
J. Robbins, MW 11:30-12:45, (same as CPLT 490), MAX: 7

Content: This course examines the intertwining of theological questions with the grotesque imagination in three writers. Nikolai Gogol, whose true subject is triviality, the falsely important, the mediocre, gives new meaning to the phrase "the Devil is in the details." Franz Kafka's preoccupation with transcendence and absence suggests to one reader a "Paulinism of the unredeemed," namely, a world from which grace has been eliminated. S. Y. Agnon offers a nightmarish dramatization of problems of loss, destruction and transmission of Jewish tradition.

Texts: Readings:

Gogol, The Collected Tales of Nikolai Gogol, trans. Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (Vintage Classics)
Kafka, The Metamorphosis, In the Penal Colony, and Other Stories, trans. Joachim Neugroschel (Scribner)
Kafka, The Trial: A New Translation Based on the Restored Text, trans. Breon Mitchell (Schocken)
Kafka, The Castle: A New Translation Based on the Restored Text, trans. Mark Harman (Schocken)
Agnon, A Book That Was Lost and Other Stories, ed. Alan Mintz and Anne Golomb Hoffman (Schocken).

REL 495R: Directed Reading (honors)

Faculty, (Permission of Instructor Required)

Content: Independent research for senior major and joint major students selected to participate in the department's Honors program. Readings on special topics in Religion as arranged between individual students and a specific member of the Department who consents to guide the student in her/his study, arrange requirements and appointments.

REL 497R: Directed Reading

Faculty, (Permission of Instructor Required)

Content: Readings on special topics in Religion as arranged between individual students and a specific member of the Department who consents to guide the student in her/his study, arrange requirements and appointments.

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