Courses
REST-102C P2 Intro Roman Catholicism (3)
Roman Catholicism is one of the major branches of Christianity and the oldest institution in the Western world, tracing its origins and history to the life and work of Jesus Christ and the first Apostles. This course introduces students to the history, institutions, theologies and doctrines, vocations, forms of worship, and moral teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and considers the events, persons, and forces that are shaping its future in the world.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-117 Religions of the East (3)
This course will introduce students to Eastern religious traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Shintoism, etc. The origins and evolution of each religious tradition covered in the course will be examined in order to provide the proper cultural and historical contexts within which they emerged before examining core beliefs and practices, as well as other aspects of the traditions. The overarching goal of the course is to provide students with essential, fundamental knowledge of each religion considered and thereby promote cross-cultural understanding and greater religious tolerance.
Attributes: YLIBREST-123 P2 What is Religion? (3)
This course introduces religious studies and its auxiliary disciplines and explores the various aspects of religion in human experience. Topics studied include the nature and types of religious experience; religious texts and mythology; and religious ritual, doctrine, ethics, social organization, and development. Examples from various world religions will be employed to illustrate these dimensions of the sacred.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-132 P2 The Problem of Evil (3)
The course offers students an opportunity to explore and reflect upon the problem of evil in the world in a variety of contexts. Students will explore the different definitions and understandings of evil from religious, philosophical, and social scientific perspectives and examine how evil manifests itself both individually and collectively. Through selected readings from scriptural and non-scriptural texts and current events, students will consider what can be done about the problem of evil in the world.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-173D CC Religions of America (3)
The course explores the beliefs, teachings, practices, and institutions of several religious traditions in America from indigenous peoples, such as the Iroquois and the Pueblo, to uniquely American religions, such as the Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Unitarian Universalists, Scientology, and others. In exploring the religions of America, students will consider how religious and social cultures influence and shape each other and why American culture is particularly conducive to the development of religious expression and thought.
Attributes: AMHU CC YLIBREST-176C P2 Intro to Christianity (3)
An introduction to the academic study of the Christian tradition, this course is designed to acquaint students with Christianity’s relationship to Judaism, scholarly methods of study, and central biblical and theological concepts as these relate to, and are in dialogue with, philosophical, historical, and theological questions of value and commitment.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-183D P5 Church & Culture (3)
This course has as its goal to explore the interrelationship between Christianity and contemporary culture. Students examine the cultural changes that have shaped our understanding of ourselves and our world in light of the Second Vatican Council’s Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World and related documents. Students discover the causes of conflicts between Christian and secularist worldviews and learn to value the contribution of each perspective on human life in the 21st Century.
Attributes: P5 YLIBREST-190 Topics in ReligiousStudies (3)
This topics course introduces students to the academic study of religion through a comparative exploration of major religious figures and contemporary questions, issues, and themes from diverse religious traditions and faith communities. Topics will be determined by individual instructors; however, all sections of the course will emphasize interfaith dialogue, critical reflection, and experiential learning.
Fall 202309 Section 01 Topic: Jesus and Buddha
This course introduces students to the study of religion by exploring the narratives, teachings, lives and legacies of Jesus of Nazareth (for Christians, Jesus Christ) and Siddhartha Gautama (for Buddhists, the Buddha). The primary texts of each tradition will be studied, as will their rituals, histories, philosophies and spiritualities. Students will examine the differences and similarities in how Christianity and Buddhism address some of the great questions facing humanity: Why do we exist? How do we live a holy or noble life? Why is there evil in the world? Can we find meaning in suffering? What happens to us after we die?
Fall 202309 Section 02 Topic: Exploring Big Questions
In this course, students will examine the dynamic relationship between religion and science, comparing and contrasting their worldviews, methods of inquiry, and forms of knowledge, and considering their answers to some of the “Big Questions” of existence, such as Why is there something rather than nothing? How did the universe begin and how will it end? Does God exist? Does the universe have a purpose? How do we know what we know? Do miracles happen? What is the source of morality? Is science the only path and source of truth? How do religion and science understand the soul, death, and the afterlife? In engaging these questions, students will discover the power and limitations of both science and religion for understanding the facts and meanings of existence.
Attributes: YLIBREST-200 P5 Mideast:Relig&Politics (3)
What is the nature of the relationship that exists between religion and politics in the Middle East? This course will begin by examining the diverse religious landscape of the Middle East and regional political trends and ideologies of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, then consider the complex relationship that exists between religion and politics in this often volatile region of the globe.
Attributes: P5 YLIBREST-210 Sacred Places and Spaces (3)
The course explores the nature of sacred space among Eastern, Western, and Indigenous traditions. Students will analyze and compare the meaning, form, and function of sacred spaces and places of worship within religious communities, and the significance of pilgrimage to these sacred sites.
Attributes: YLIBREST-228C The Meaning of Church Today (3)
The course provides students with a sociological and theological framework for thinking about what Christians mean when they refer to their corporate life as “the church.” In exploring different models and approaches to ecclesiology, students will gain a critical understanding of the nature and role of the church as they explore questions of mission, church renewal, and the relationship between church and contemporary culture.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-235 P2 Catholics in America (3)
A history of the role that Roman Catholics played in the story of the United States (1492-present). The course will examine the religious perspectives which Roman Catholic explorers, immigrants, intellectuals, and the laity brought to a developing philosophy and social history in the New World.Cross-listed with AMST 235.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-250C P2 History of Papacy (3)
Concerns the development of the papacy and its role in world history. Examines the major historical, doctrinal, and theological justifications of the independent papacy in a global context from its origins with the pontificate of Leo I to that of John Paul II. Covers material from the late Roman and Medieval, Renaissance, Modern, and Contemporary periods.
Attributes: P2 YLIB
Cross-listed with HIST 250C.REST-255D P2 Women in Christianity (3)
Women were some of the most ardent supporters of Jesus and the early Jesus movement, but as the church developed, women found themselves increasingly marginalized and excluded from leadership roles. This course examines the cultural, political, and religious forces that led to women’s marginalization and their response to it, from biblical times to the present. Through readings, films, lectures, and classroom discussions, students will examine the status and role of women in the Christian tradition, the richness of women’s religious thought, and the ways in which women have contributed to and radically challenged Christianity in a variety of historical and theological contexts.
Attributes: P2 WGST YLIBREST-257D CC Religious Experiences (3)
This course examines the phenomenon of religious experience from interdisciplinary and cross-cultural perspectives with an eye toward comparing and contrasting these with the religious backgrounds and experiences of participants.
Attributes: CC YLIBREST-268C P5 Who is Jesus? (3)
An examination of the person Jesus through the eyes of first-century Christians as reflected in the New Testament and in the contemporary understanding of Jesus. This course seeks to engage the student in the process of understanding the Christian encounter with Jesus Christ.
Attributes: P5 YLIBREST-275C P2 Christian Sacraments (3)
This course approaches the Christian sacraments from a variety of standpoints, including the historical development of a sacramental ethos within Christian traditions; contemporary developments in sacramental theology; theological understandings surrounding the individual sacraments; the ritual context of sacramental celebrations, and pastoral issues affecting the sacraments today. The course employs an interactive approach which combines class discussion, student presentations, and instructor’s input.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-282P Black Church Issues (3)
Students explore views of the Black Church on contemporary social issues and challenges (homosexuality, gender equity, race relations) faced in reference to church doctrine, traditions, and beliefs.
Attributes: AMHU WGST YLIB
Cross-listed with AFAM 282P.REST-325 P5 Spirituality & Health (3)
Modern medicine and the healing professions are forging new partnerships within the fields of science, religion and spirituality. Medical science and religion can be partners when dealing with health issues, but are there also difficulties? What is spirituality? Can one’s spirituality affect one’s health? Can I explain my spirituality and use it to live a healthier life? How can I assist another (e.g., patient, client, friend) identify their needs and find the necessary tools to make responsible decisions about health issues? These are but a few questions the students will explore as they build their own partnerships between medical science and spirituality.
Attributes: P5 YLIBREST-338 P2 Morality in Leadership (3)
This course will encourage students to search for principles that can provide the foundations for making moral individual and systemic decisions. After a broad introduction to ethics and moral philosophy, the students will explore possible applications in workplaces locally and globally. It will particularly address the moral dimensions of leadership by combining a study of moral principles with case studies to illustrate their practical application.
Attributes: P2 YLIBREST-352D P5 Marriage&Sexuality (3)
The confrontation of man’s existential situation with traditional marital and sexual models and norms. Concentration is given to an analysis of current developments in the areas of monogamy, pre- and post-marital sexuality, divorce and remarriage, homosexuality, contraception, abortion, sterilization, and the family.
Attributes: P5 WGST YLIB
Restrictions: Including: -Class: Junior, Sophomore, SeniorREST-386D Morality in Business (3)
A study of the moral dimensions of the economic and business professions. The course is designed to combine a study of moral principles with case studies to illustrate their practical application. Special emphasis is focused on the basic rights and duties of management and labor in the private enterprise system and the role of government regulations in domestic and international economic life.
Attributes: YLIBREST-387D P2 Medical Ethics&Society (3)
This course examines religious and moral themes in medicine with emphasis on the difficult ethical questions facing today’s healthcare providers and patients. Among the issues considered are assisted reproduction, the end of life, genetic research, and the healthcare system.
Attributes: HHUM P2 YLIBREST-397 REST Seminar (3)
Special Topics: An occasional course dealing with topics of interest especially to Religious Studies majors and minors in consultation with relevant faculty.
Spring 2020 Topic: Land of the Bible:
Attributes: YLIB
The focus of the course is a study of the geography, history and politics of Israel/Palestine over the centuries with a special emphasis on the history and theology of the New Testament. An 8 day required visit to the land of the Bible is the course centerpiece. Some New Testament commentators refer to the experience of the Holy Land as the “Fifth Gospel” because it assists the pilgrim’s understanding of the times and stories of the other fours gospel narratives.REST-496 Independent Study (1 TO 3)
Reading and research projects in the broad areas of religious studies: general, biblical, historical, and theological. Under the direction of a department member, students will prepare and follow a schedule of readings, conferences, research, writing, and oral presentations. Completion of the Independent Study/Tutorial Authorization form is required.
Attributes: YLIB ZCAP ZCIV ZRES
Pre-requisites: GPA >=2.75REST-1033 Ireland:Saints/Poets/Rev (3)
The Celts moved across Europe to found a place of refuge in the land of Eire. This mysterious land was rich in traditions and stories that allowed the Celts to integrate their own culture with their new home. Later, when the Roman Catholic Church reached its shores, the people adopted some of the stories, myths, and customs to express the experience of the Gospel message. The Church’s prayer, liturgy, and rites found a treasure in the Irish culture. This course uses the tools of history, religion, and the arts to study this fascinating phenomenon. Emphasis is on early history, but an overview of more recent events situates contemporary spirituality.
Attributes: LC YLIB
Restrictions: Including: -Class: Freshman -Attribute: New Core 20-21REST-1299 Research-based Writing (3)
Students study and practice skills central to academic and professional research through the development of independent, inquiry-based projects. In their projects, students assert, support, and integrate their own positions into scholarly conversation based in research. Students develop competency in the location, evaluation, analysis and documentation of sources that represent a range of different perspectives on important issues.
Attributes: RW YLIB ZRES
Restrictions: Including: -Class: Freshman, Sophomore -Attribute: New Core 20-21REST-2150 The Bible in America (3)
The Bible has enjoyed a significant place throughout the history of the United States. For many people in America, the Bible is a scripture, but it is also an important political and cultural text. REST 2150 The Bible in America explores the relationship between the American people and the Bible and how the Bible’s status as scripture impacts its role as a cultural and political text. The course provides students with the knowledge and skills they need to contribute as religiously-informed citizens in a diverse and complex society.
Attributes: CCE YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2220 Death & the Afterlife (3)
At some point in their lives, all human beings confront the reality of death. From the beginning of human history, religious traditions have developed myths and rituals about death and the possibility of an afterlife. In this course, students will explore how different religious traditions have approached the reality of death, how their beliefs, myths, and practices have developed and changed over time, and the significance of death and the afterlife for human well-being. Through their study, students will prepare themselves to engage, in an informed and respectful manner, with the reality and meaning of death in a multicultural, multireligious society.
Attributes: CIA YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2230 Islam in America (3)
Islam is the second largest religion in the world today and the fastest growing religion in North America. Currently there are 3.5 million Muslims in the United States, with an additional 1.2 million Muslims in Canada. By 2040, it is expected that Islam will supplant Judaism as the second largest religious tradition in the United States. Despite all of this, most Americans admit that they know very little about Islam. In this course, students will explore the basic tenets of Islam, the history of Islam in America, the varieties of American Islamic thought and practice, and the many contributions American Muslims make to our culture and society.
Attributes: CIA YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2240 Reading the New Testament (3)
This course explores the Christian New Testament as an historical, cultural, and religious text. Using multiple literary and historical methods of analysis, students will examine the New Testament texts in their ancient cultural contexts, how Christians ritualized and canonized the texts as scripture, and how contemporary Christian communities interpret and use the New Testament as scripture.
Attributes: CIA YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2260 Reading the Old Testament (3)
This course explores the Christian Old Testament and Jewish Tanakh. It will investigate the texts in the cultural contexts out of which they emerged. The course will also look at how different religious traditions ritualize the texts as a scripture. It will also look at how contemporary communities interpret and use the Old Testament and Jewish Tanakh.
Attributes: CIA YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2352 Exploring World Religions (3)
This course introduces students to various religious traditions from around the world, from primal religions and the Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, to the Eastern traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism. Both historical information and the major tenets of each religion are presented and discussed so that students learn and understand the historical and cultural contexts within which various religions have emerged, the role that religion has played in the human narrative, and how religion continues to remain relevant in the twenty-first century.
Attributes: DEI YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2372 Martin and Malcolm (3)
Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were prominent religious advocates of social justice and Black Liberation. Their names, beliefs, and ideals still inspire and motivate countless Americans and many others from around the globe. Students will learn about their lives and religious formation, read some of their most influential texts, and consider the relevance of their work for addressing contemporary social issues.
Attributes: DEI YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2376 World Christianities (3)
This course will introduce students to diverse forms of Christianity as they are practiced around the globe. Students will examine the origins and evolution of the various and unique Christian traditions within their cultural and historical contexts before examining core beliefs and practices of the traditions. The overarching goal of the course is to provide students with essential, fundamental knowledge of world Christianities in order to promote cross-cultural understanding and greater religious literacy.
Attributes: DEI YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2378 Discovering Judaism (3)
Judaism is one of the most geopolitically important religions in the world and a socially significant religion in America. Currently, there are nearly 7.5 million Jews living in the U.S. and yet many Americans are unaware or ill-informed about Judaism, its peoples, histories, cultures, and religious diversity. In this course students will discover a variety of ways Jewish communities have developed their identities and practiced their religious traditions in a variety of historical and cultural contexts. By looking at key elements of Judaism, students will learn how Jews have lived, developed, endured, and thrived in diverse and often hostile environments while retaining their sense of Jewishness. The course thus provides students with an opportunity to increase their religious literacy and cross-cultural understanding of one of the world’s great religious traditions.
Attributes: DEI YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2379 Exploring Islam (3)
This course examines the development and evolution of Islam from its beginnings in Arabia in the seventh century A.D. through the Umayyad and ‘Abbasid caliphates to its expansion in Europe and America. The goal of the course is to help students acquire a more comprehensive understanding of and appreciation for Islam and for the diverse peoples who call themselves Muslims.
Attributes: DEI YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2430 Thinking Ethically (3)
This course provides students with a solid foundation of ethical values, standards, obligations, and norms as well as the fundamentals of ethical and moral reasoning and problem solving. Students analyze ethical issues and dilemmas in case studies, films, and current events, identify the values and standards at stake, and propose justifiable positions and recommendations for moral action.
Attributes: ER YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2450 Info Rights & Wrongs (3)
This course provides students with the foundational understanding of information ethics. Information and information technologies are essential to our social, economic, religious, cultural, and political lives. Students will explore the value questions that arise in the creation, control, and access to information, as well as the ethical standards and moral codes governing human conduct in society. Through case studies and current events, students will examine how information and misinformation inform and shape our individual and collective realities.
Attributes: ER YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2460 Ecocentric Ethics (3)
REST 2460 Ecocentric Ethics explores the scientific, religious, indigenous, and political and philosophical sources for ecocentric thinking, its approaches to ethical decision making and problem solving, and how students can apply ecocentric ethics in their personal, professional, and civic lives.
Attributes: ER YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-2477 Transformational Leadership (3)
Leadership is about envisioning a future for ourselves and others and working with them to make that vision a reality. Values are religious, aesthetic, legal, economic, and political goods that inform and shape our past, present, and future. Religion is a fundamental human activity that links values to ways of life that can either help or hinder human flourishing—depending upon how it’s interpreted and applied. This course is designed to help students understand the relationships between values, leaders, and religion through an in-depth exploration of religious and social leaders.
Attributes: ER YLIB
Restrictions: Excluding: -Class: Freshman, SeniorREST-3990 Adv Research-Based Writing (3)
In this course, students will develop an inquiry-based project by conducting in-depth research using discipline-specific practices that result in research and writing skills that are transferable. Students will build on the critical thinking and writing competencies they have previously acquired to engage topics and ideas in the field. Students will formulate important questions or problems, identify and examine appropriate sources, and use evidence in order to substantiate their own claims. They will acknowledge and address alternative explanations in scholarly conversations and revise their work accordingly. Outcomes of the project will be communicated in both written and oral forms or other media platforms.
Attributes: AWC YLIB
Restrictions: Including: -Class: Junior, Senior -Attribute: New Core 20-21