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Undergraduate
Courses
For information on the Undergraduate program, or
questions about this document,
please contact Doug Burgess ( dougburgess@virginia.edu
)
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Course information
contained within this document should be verified
with the ONLINE COD*
(Course Offering Directory). As you may know from
previous enrollment procedures, the online COD is
updated daily. Listed
meeting times are subject to change.
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RELG 101 Introduction to Western Religions
Heather Warren (haw6w@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 92483 plus
discussion section Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
An historical survey of the origins and development
of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Subjects include the
origins of monotheism, the rise of Israel as a nation, early
Christianity, the rise of Islam in the Middle Ages, the
Protestant Reformation, Christianity during the Enlightenment,
and the influence of modern science and industrialism on
19th and 20th century religious life. Requirements: Weekly
readings, a mid-term, and a final.
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- RELJ 111 Introduction to Biblical
Hebrew
Martien Halvorson-Taylor
( mah3uh@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 92418 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course and its sequel (RELJ 112) will
introduce students to the basics of Biblical Hebrew
vocabulary and grammar, for the express purpose of reading
the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament in its original language.
An inductive approach, employing biblical verses to
illustrate grammatical points, will allow exposure to
the canonical writings themselves from the start. Midway
through the semester, we will begin reading longer prose
passages directly from the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament.
There will also be discussion of important Hebrew terms
and concepts from the biblical readings.
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RELC 121/ RELJ 121 Old Testament/ Hebrew
Scriptures
Martien Halvorson-Taylor
( mah3uh@virginia.edu )
Schedule# RELC: 90066/ RELJ: 90215 , plus
discussion section Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course will examine a particular body of literature,
known to Jews as Tanakh and to Christians as the Old Testament.
These texts are the main source of information on the life,
history and religion of ancient Israel. These texts are also
authoritative (in varying and complicated ways) for present-day
Christians and Jews. In this course we will attempt to put
the Hebrew Scriptures in historical context, thinking critically
about their witness to ancient ideas and events. We will also
consider the continuing life of this literature, how it has
been read, how it has left its mark on diverse communities
and cultures, including that of present-day America.
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RELJ 203 Judaic Tradition
Vanessa Ochs( vlo4n@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 90804
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
An introduction to Judaism as it is practiced
as a living tradition. We will survey the central Jewish
beliefs that undergird the Jewish tradition and examine
the ritual context in which these beliefs are manifest:
sacred text study, prayer, holy day practices and life cycle
passages (e.g. birth, marriage, death). We will explore
the ancient sources from which so much of the Jewish tradition
derives and observe the ever-changing ways tradition is
manifest in contemporary Jewish life. We will draw on film,
sacred text study and anthropological observation of Jewish
life in Charlottesville today. |
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RELC 205 History of Christianity I
Robert Wilken ( rlw2w@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 93464 plus discussion section
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
How did Christianity evolve from a small Jewish
sect in Palestine into a church that embraced the Mediterranean
world, Europe, the middle East, Byzantium and the Slavic
peoples? How did the teachings of Jesus and the events
of his life become the foundation for a complex system
of belief (e.g. Trinity), ethics (e.g. marriage), worship?
What was the origin and development of Christian institutions
and practices, e.g. bishops and clergy, the papacy, monasticism,
Baptism, Communion, et al. How did the Bible take its
present form? How was this faith understood and explained
in rational terms? These are the broader questions addressed
in a survey of the first thousand years of Christian history.
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RELI 207 Classical Islam
Aziz Sachedina ( sachedina@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 90178 plus discussion section
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
A historical and topical survey of the origins
and development of Islamic religion. Special attention
will be given to the life and career of the Prophet Muhammad,
the teachings of the Qur'an, the development of the Muslim
community and its principal institutions, theological
and legal schools, philosophical and mystical developments,
to about 1300 A.D. Readings will include the following:
M. G. S. Hodgson, Venture of Islam, Volume I; Fazlur Rahman,
Major Themes of the Qur'an; John Renard, Seven Doors to
Islam Course Requirements: Hour Test and Final Examination.
Two short papers on selected topics (4-5 pages). Participation
in a field trip to the Islamic Center in Washington DC
and the Freer Gallery of Art. No prerequisite.
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RELB 210 Introduction to Buddhism
Karen Lang
(klang@virginia.edu)
Schedule# 91254 plus discussion
section Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course is an introduction to Buddhism, beginning
with its origins in India, its spread throughout Asia to
the West. The course will examine the historical and cultural
contexts in which Buddhist beliefs and practices developed
and are still developing. We will explore a wide variety
of sources to understand the many ways in which Buddhists
have attempted to understand who the Buddha is, what he
and his followers have to say about karma and rebirth, the
practice of meditation and the pursuit of enlightenment.
We will also examine the views of contemporary Buddhist
teachers on these issues and on the challenges Buddhism
faces in the modern world. Two hourly examinations and a
final.
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RELJ 222 Jewish Nationalism
Asher Biemann ( ab5j@virginia.edu)
Schedule # 93414
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course will examine Jewish nationalism and
Zionism as cultural, intellectual, and political movements
within the context of modern Jewish and European history.
Focusing on primary sources, we will try to understand the
religious and secular origins of the Jewish national idea
and discuss its contemporary significance. |
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GREE 223 New Testament Greek (Intermediate
Greek)
Judith Kovacs ( jlk4n@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 91756 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
The aims of this course are to solidify your
knowledge of Hellenistic Greek grammar and vocabulary
and to gain speed and proficiency in reading and translating
the Greek New Testament. We will read passages from I
Corinthians and Romans, as well as some passages from
the Acts of the Apostles. We will also consider some of
the principles of New Testament textual criticism. Prerequisite:
Greek 101-102 or permission of the instructor. Graduate
students should consult instructor about registration.(Course
may count toward the Religious Studies major)
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RELC 233 History of Christian Ethics
Margaret Mohrmann ( mem7e@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 94224
plus discussion section Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course will survey the development of Christian
ethical thought and teaching from its beginnings through the
Reformation era. Major ethical themes will be traced through
the centuries, as the church's scripture, evolving doctrine,
and emerging tradition interact - in thought, word, and deed
- with secular society, politics, and philosophy. Readings
will be taken mostly from primary texts, such as the Bible
and the writings of selected Christian thinkers, but will
also include relevant historical and ethical analyses of the
developing church and its social milieu. Each class session
will include lecture and discussion.
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RELC 236 Elements of Christian Thought
Eugene Rogers (GRogers@virginia.edu)
Schedule# 92572 plus discussion section
Check the Web for time changes and room assignments
Everything you always wanted to know about Christianity
but were afraid to ask. This course investigates the overall
coherence of Christianity considering such critical questions
as the following: How do we study Christianity in Religious
Studies? How do human beings search for God? How do Christians
say God searches for human beings? Does God make choices (predestination)?
Who is in control of salvation (grace and free will)? What
is the trinity about? How do Christians explain how Jesus
saves? How does Christianity relate to Judaism? Why does a
good and almighty God permit evil? What is the body for? What
is salvation, anyway? Readings are arranged topically and
come from the greatest hits of the Christian tradition and
present rival views on most questions. Authors include Protestant,
Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Jewish, and secular thinkers,
such as Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Calvin,
Thomas Jefferson, C.S. Lewis, and Karl Barth. Requirements:
There are two options, both of which require regular participation
in a class newsgroup. The exam version requires two non-cumulative
tests. The writing version, which fulfills the Second Writing
Requirement, requires two papers and no tests.
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RELG 238 Faith and Doubt in the Modern
Age
Jamie Ferreira ( JamieF@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 94070 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Is belief in God based on wishful thinking; is
it a neurotic response to lie? How are fear and guilt related
to it? Is it a primitive stage in human intellectual development?
Is it inherently immoral? Can one be rational and a believer
at the same time? In this course we will consider questions
like these by looking at historically important examples of
such criticisms. We will study both the 'faith' which inspired
these critiques and the implications of such critiques for
believers. The class is a once-weekly seminar, by instructor
permission only.
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RELC 240 History of American Catholicism
(cross listed with HIEU 240)
Gerald Fogarty ( gfogarty@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 94225 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
The election of John Kennedy signified, on one level,
the acceptance of Catholics as Americans. The document
of religious liberty of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965)
seemed to ratify what had long been a cherished American
Catholic tradition. Proving to be loyal to the Catholicism
of Rome and the democracy of the United States had been
the dilemma of American Catholics. To understand this
dilemma, the course will treat the following themes: the
early Spanish and French settlements; the beginning of
English-speaking Catholicism in Maryland; the establishment
of the hierarchy under John Carroll and its early development;
immigration and nativism; American Catholic support of
religious liberty and conflict with the Vatican at the
end of the 19th century; and the American Catholic contribution
to Vatican II (1962-1965).
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RELB 245 Zen
Paul Groner ( psg3w@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 90419 plus
discussion section Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course is a study of the development and history
of the thought, practices, goals, and institutions of
Zen Buddhism as it has evolved in India, China, Japan,
and America. Among the topics discussed are meditation,
enlightenment, the role of Zen in the arts, life in a
Zen monastery, and the rhetoric used in Zen. The course
focuses on Zen, but developments in other forms of Buddhism
are also considered and contrasted with Zen.
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RELB 254 Tibetan
Buddhist Culture
Douglas Duckworth (dsd8g@virginia.edu)
Schedule# 94218 plus
discussion section Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course surveys Tibetan Buddhist religious culture
in terms of its history, biographical traditions, religious
communities, cultural patterns, ritual life, contemplative
traditions, and philosophical discourses. The focus will
be on how tantric Buddhism has historically functioned
in Tibet to relate these different dimensions together
as an identifiable cultural zone of vast geographical
terrain, despite never achieving any form of political
unity. These range from controversies over antinomian
practices pertaining to sexuality and violence, to Tibetıs
religo-political solution to tantraıs decentralized paradigm
of religious leaders understood to be Buddhas with local
mandalas of absolute authority. We will look into the
rise of the institution of reincarnate lamas that culminated
in the Dalai Lama, and address the theory that Tibetıs
lack of centralization led to the importance of so-called
"shamanic" trends of Buddhism. Finally we will also examine
at great depth Tibetan innovations in Buddhist philosophy,
ritual and yoga.
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RELG 265 Theology Ethics & Medicine
Jim Childress ( childress@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 90223 plus discussion section
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
An analysis of the ethical principles that should undergird
decisions in science, medicine, and health care. The lectures
readings, and discussions will focus on ethical principles
developed within different ethical traditions (such as
Protestantism, Catholicism, Judaism, and Humanism) and
on their implications for cases in abortion, death and
dying, research involving human subjects, artificial reproduction,
genetic engineering, cloning, and allocating resources.
Several films, videotapes, and cases will be used. Requirements:
Midterm, final examination, 4 brief papers (2 pages) and
participation in discussion.
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RELA 275 African Religions
Cynthia Hoehler-Fatton ( chh3a@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 93576 Plus
discussion section Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
An introductory survey of African religions. The course
concentrates on African traditional religions but Islam
and Christianity are also discussed. Topics include indigenous
mythologies and cosmologies, sacrifice, initiation, witchcraft,
artistic traditions and African religions in the New World.
Readings include: Ray, African Religions; Stoller & Olkes,
In Sorcery's Shadow; Soyinka, Death and the King's Horseman;
Ijimere, The Imprisonment of Obatala; Salih, The Wedding
of Zein; and a packet of readings. Requirements: regular
attendance and participation in discussion, two in-class
exams, and a cumulative final exam.
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RELC 303 / RELJ 303 Jesus As An Historical
Figure
Harry Gamble ( hgamble@virginia.edu
)
Schedule # 93968 / 93523 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course focuses on Jesus of Nazereth as an historical
figure, that is, as he is accessible to the historian by
means of historical methods applied to historical evidence.
Careful attention will be given to all the potentially useful
sources including the canonical Gospels, apocryphal Gospels,
and Jewish and Graeco-Roman sources, as well as to the problems
of dealing with them. A reconstruction of the activity and
teaching of Jesus will be attempted, with a view to determining
Jesus' place within ancient Judaism and the relation of
Jesus to the emergence of Christianity.
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RELC 305 Theologies of Liberation
Corey Walker ( cdw6e@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 94359 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Who is God to the oppressed? What does it mean to do
Christian theology from the underside? This course will critically
examine the ideas, methodologies, and orientations of different
theological orientations within the field of Liberation Theology,
including African-American, Gay/Lesbian, Latin American, Minjung,
Mujerista, and Womanist theologies of liberation. The course
will focus on theological method, modes of social and economic
analysis particularly those perspectives inspired by varieties
of critical theory and philosophies of liberation, and challenges
to traditional Christian theologies.
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RELJ 307 Jewish Theology and Beliefs
after the Holocaust
Peter Ochs ( plo3v@virginia.edu
)
Schedule # 93582 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This is not a course about the Holocaust, but about efforts
to restore and renew Judaism after the Holocaust. It is
about what it means, after such unimaginable destruction,
to have faith in God, to retain the Covenant between Israel
and God, to remain a Jew, to retain or to rebuild relations
with Christians and with Europeans, to have children,
to look with any hope to the future. Students should have
studied some history or literature about the Holocaust
before taking the class, so that they are prepared to
ask "what now?" Students should also have taken Introduction
to Judaism, or other basic courses in Judaism, before
taking this course. The course will include readings in
theology, philosophy, rabbinic and scriptural text study,
and literature. There will be regular writing.
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RELB 308 Buddhist Saints
Amy Miller ( aes5s@cms.mail.virginia.edu
)
Schedule # 93933 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This seminar examines Buddhist saintly figures from both
literary and historical perspectives. Beginning with the
life-narratives of the Buddha, we will consider the nature
and development of hagiographical writing within the Buddhist
literature of a variety of cultures. We will also discuss
cults of living saints in Buddhist history and in the
modern-day Buddhist cultural context.
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RELG 313 Idolatry
Asher Biemann ( ab5j@virginia.edu)
Schedule # 93398 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
To the monotheistic traditions, including Judaism, idolatry
represents one of the most abhorrent moral transgressions.
Permeating both the religious and the secular, the prohibition
against idol worship has become deeply ingrained in Western
culture delineating the boundaries between "true" and
"strange." Yet, while the religious significance of idolatry
seems to have vanished, the idol continues to remain in
the vocabulary of our everyday language. Beginning with
Biblical sources, covering a range from Mishnah to Marx,
and concluding with contemporary texts, this course will
examine the philosophical framework of casting idolatry
as an unspeakable sin: What is an idol, and why is idolatry
so objectionable? With an emphasis on Judaism, though
not exclusively, we will discuss idolatry in the context
of representation, election, otherness, emancipation,
nationalism, secularism, religious innovation, and messianism.
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RELC 324 Medieval Christian Mystics
Augustine Thompson ( AThompson@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 92006 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
The students of this seminar will read and discuss
representative Christian mystics from the period
10001600. Each meeting will focus on a particular
group of mystics. Students will prepare individual
oral reports on their particular readings and give
them during each session. After the reports the
rest of the time will be devoted to general discussion
and comparison of the texts. All students will also
write a research paper (15 to 20 pages50% of grade)
on the writings of a mystic chosen by them.
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RELC 342 The Christian
Vision of Hell
Charles Mathewes( ctm9d@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 92024
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This class will investigate the various ways
in which Christians have imagined Hell: the
idea of the place (or condition) of final
and possibly endless torment meted out to
those who were not redeemed by God from their
sin. We will investigate the idea of Hell
from a variety of positions (including those
who argue for and against the idea of Hell,
and those who argue for an empty Hell) and
using a variety of genres (including biblical
texts, philosophical and theological treatments,
and literary works). The ultimate aim of the
course will be to see what such a study illuminates
for us concerning the meaning of (1) punishment,
(2) time, and (3) the nature of--and relation
between--divine love and divine justice in
Christian thought.
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RELG 343 Ethics and Fiction
Jennifer Geddes ( jlg2u@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 93539
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
In this course we will consider the many
facets of the relationship between ethics and fiction,
including: narrative as a consitutive element of ethics,
ethical questions as raised by novels and short stories,
and fiction reading as a means of ethical development.
Readings will include novels, short stories, scriptures,
and ethical theory. |
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RELC 347 Religion and Science
John Portmann ( jep7a@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 92796
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Christian Europe gave rise to modern sciece,
yet Christianity and science have enjoyed
reputations as mutual enemies. Does science
undermine religious belief? Exploration of
the encounter between these two powerful cultural
forces. Study of the intellectual struggle
to locate and anchor God in the modern world
(specifically Giordano Bruno, Galileo, Newton,
Darwin, Freud, Einstein, and Feynman). Focus
on the 20th century: the discovery of radio
waves, x-rays, use of the first skyscraper,
automobiles, vaccine, psychoanalysis, rise
of the quantum theory of the atom, birth control
pill, "morning after pill," human genome,
and stem cell research. Final ten-page
paper, regular class participation, and three-hour
final examination
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RELJ 349 Jewish Culture and History
in Eastern Europe
Jeffrey Grossman ( jg2t@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 93707 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course is a comprehensive examination
of the culture and history of East European Jewry from
1750 to 1939 and is intended to acquaint students with
the study of East European Jewish culture and history
and assumes no prior training in the subject. Class
meetings will combine lecture and discussion. Most of
the reading assignments will come from primary sources
-novels, short stories, folktales, diaries, memoirs,
and interviews. In class we will also examine East European
Jewish music and visual arts. Course requirements will
include two 5-page essays and a 10-page term paper as
well as conscientious participation in class discussion.
This course will fulfill the second writing assignment.
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RELC 350 American Feminist Theology
Pam Cochran ( pdh3q@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 93457 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course analyzes contemporary theological models
for American feminists. Christianity is not new
to feminism; however, with few exceptions, feminist
attempts to reinterpret and recover theology by
and for women have arisen only with the advent of
contemporary feminism. The primary goal of the course
is to understand the various types of Christian
feminism that exist in America today and how these
theologies contribute to or challenge American feminism.
In order to come to this understanding, we will
begin by looking at the history of the women's movement
and an overview of contemporary feminism in its
various manifestations. Questions we will consider
include: How does each theological model account
for women's situation? How does each model account
for and construct traditional theological concepts
such as: sin, salvation, the nature of God, anthropology,
and biblical authority? How does each read the biblical
text? What are their strengths and limitations in
making these accountings?
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RELC 353 End of the World in
Christian Thought
Augustine Thompson ( AThompson@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 93985
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course will examine Christian speculation
on the End of the World from the first century
to the present. Special emphasis will be paid
to Biblical and apocryphal sources for such speculation,
ancient Christian millenarianism, medieval and
Reformation apocalypticism, nineteenth- and twentieth-century
dispensationalism, and contemporary images of
the End in literature and film. Required readings
will be taken from original sources. Written requirements
include a book report, mid-term, final exam, and
term paper (ca. 15 pages).
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RELC 356 In Defense of Sin
John Portmann (
portmann@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 94142 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Exploration of transgression in Judaism and Christianity
with a focus on the Ten Commandments and the seven deadly
sins. Reflection on who determines what is sinful and why.
Close reading of texts challenging the wrongfulness of acts
and attitudes long considered sinful, with critical attention
to the persuasiveness of religious rules. Does religious life
remain focused on pleasing God, or is it now principally a
matter of familial / ethnic obligation? Or has it perhaps
become simply a personal quest with indeterminate goals? What
does sin have to do with the modern world? Final ten-page
paper, regular class participation, and three-hour final examination
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RELC 369 The Gospel of John/Revelation
Judith Kovacs ( jlk4n@virginia.edu
)
Schedule # 92219 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course focuses on two New Testament books attributed
by Christian tradition to the apostle John and considers literary,
historical, and theological questions through a close reading
of the texts. Our study of Revelation will also emphasize reception
history, that is how this book has been interpreted through
the ages and how it has influenced theology, literature, politics,
and art. Some specific issues to be addressed are: What is distinctive
about the portrayal of Jesus in the Gospel of John, and why
was this gospel so important in the development of Christian
theology? How does this gospel use irony and other literary
techniques? What clues can we find in the text that help us
imagine the specific historical situation in which the gospel
was written? What are the reasons for, and implications of its
portrayal of "the Jews"? How do ancient Jewish works called
"apocalypses" help us understand the Revelation to John? How
are we to make sense of the bewildering array of symbols and
images this book contains? What is its primary message--does
it advocate vengeance, social justice, or a worldwide Christian
mission? Why has Revelation been particularly beloved by artists,
poets, and prophets? No prerequisite. Requirements: midterm,
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RELA 390 Islam in Africa / RELI 390
Islam in Africa
Cynthia Hoehler-Fatton ( H-Fatton@virginia.edu
)
Schedule # RELA: 94200 / RELC:94201 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course offers an historical and topical
introduction to Islam in Africa. After a brief overview
of the central features of the Muslim faith, our chronological
survey begins with the introduction of Islam to North
Africa in the 7th century. We will trace the transmission
of Islam via traders, clerics, and jihads to West Africa.
We shall consider the medieval Muslim kingdoms; the development
of Islamic scholarship and the reform tradition; the growth
of Sufi brotherhoods; and the impact of colonization and
de-colonization upon Islam. Our overview of the history
of Islam in East Africa will cover: the early Arab and
Asian mercantile settlements; the flowering of classical
Swahili courtly culture; the Omani sultanates and present-day
Swahili society as well as recent "Islamist" movements
in the Sudan and other parts of the East African interior.
Readings and classroom discussions provide a more in-depth
exploration of topics encountered in our historical survey.
Through the use of ethnographical and literary materials,
we will explore questions such as the translation and
transmission of the Qur'an, indigenization and religious
pluralism; the role of women in African Islam; and African
Islamic spirituality. Midterm, final, short paper,
participation in discussion.
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RELG 400a Majors Seminar: Death and the
Afterlife
Ben Ray ( BenRay@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 93766 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Restricted to 3rd and 4th year Religious
Studies Majors ONLY
The goal of this seminar is to develop an informed
and critical perspective on the study of religion through
the study of myths, rituals, and literature concerning
death and afterlife. The seminar does not intend to make
the case for any single definition of religion or to take
a particular theological perspective on death, but rather
to have participants develop critical skills necessary
for evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of a number
of scholarly approaches to the subject. Requirements:
Six short papers, approximately one every other week.
No mid-term and no final exam.
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RELG 400b Majors Seminar: Religion
and Drama
Larry Bouchard ( ldb4k@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 91522 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Restricted to 3rd and 4th year Religious Studies
Majors, and five 3rd or 4th year non-majors by permission
of the instructor
This edition of the Majors Seminar will look at several
ways of understanding (or interpreting) how theatrical
drama is linked with religious communities and some perspectives
on religion. We will be concerned with how theatre and
drama have been understood as elements within religion,
and with how views of religion have also provided perspectives
on drama As always, part of our time in the seminar will
be devoted to several definitions or approaches to the
study of religion. What meanings does the term "religion"
acquire? Can we speak of religion "in general," given
that religion is with us through particular traditions
of belief, practice, and experience? We will and pay special
to how ideas about society and psychology, culture and
identity, symbol and ritual, and ethics and theology figure
in some academic approaches to religion. At other times
we will examine a small selection of plays, performances,
and interpretations of theatre, asking how they might
further our understanding of religious practice and thought.
Reading and perhaps "performing" aloud in class-on a voluntary
basis-will probably figure in some of our sessions, as
may attendance at some locally available plays or performances.
Assignments: one or two short reaction papers, presentation
of these in class, an essay-style mid-term exam, and a
final paper on a course related topic.
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RELG 415 Salem Witch Trials in History
and Literature
Ben Ray ( BenRay@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 92461 plus lab Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Restricted to Majors in Religious
Studies, History, and English
Restricted to Majors in Religious Studies,
History, and English
This seminar will explore the rich range of historical
scholarship, literary fiction, and primary source materials
relating to the infamous witch trials of Salem Village
in 1692. How and why did the accusations begin? How
and why did they stop? Serious theories and wild speculations
abound, both then and now. Who were the heroes and villains
of this tragic episode? Some of the most gripping personal
stories may be found in the primary sources and literary
treatments. Explore the impact of this small-scale,
300 year-old event on the American cultural heritage
-- why has "Salem witchcraft" become part of the American
cultural imagination? In addition to two major historical
studies, Boyer & Nissenbaum, SALEM POSSESSED and Norton,
IN THE DEVIL'S SNARE, and a seminmal article by Rosenthal
on Tituba, we will read literary works by Hawthorne,
"Young Goodman Brown," Longfellow, GILES CORY OF SALEM
FARMS, and Miller's THE CRUCIBLE. The course will also
make extensive use of the Salem Witch Trials Documentary
Archive http://etext.virginia.edu/salem/witchcraft
which contains all the original court documents and
contemporary accounts. Using these resouces, students
will write original research essays on important people
and events related to the witch trials.
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RELG 422 American Religious Autobiography
Heather Warren ( hwarren@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 92750
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
A multidisciplinary examination of religious
self-perception in relation to the dominant values of
American life. Readings represent a variety of spiritual
traditions and autobiographical forms, among them Thomas
Merton's The Sign of Jonas; The Autobiography of Malcolm
X; Charles Colson's Born Again; and Kathleen Norris' Dakota:
A Spiritual Geography. Fulfills the majors seminar
requirement. Prerequisites: Courses in religious studies,
American history, or American literature. Requirements:
Two short papers (5-7 pp. each) and an autobiography (20
pp.). (Note to Religious Studies Majors: This course
fulfills the Majors Seminar requirement. )
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RELG 423 Bioethics Internship Seminar
Margaret Mohrmann ( mem7e@virginia.edu
)
Schedule # 93378 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course is designed
to provide students with experience in discerning and
analyzing ethical issues as they arise in particular clinical
settings. Each student will spend one half-day each week
in a clinic or other health-care-related setting (the
same setting throughout the semester) under the mentorship
of a health care professional engaged in that setting.
Seminar time will focus both on the role of the ethicist/observer
and on the particular issues that commonly arise in clinical
medicine. During the second half of the semester, students
will give presentations related to their specific areas
of observation. Students are expected to have some background
knowledge of bioethics methods and common questions. Admittance
to the course is by application; for details, see the
Undergraduate Bioethics Program Website at http://www.uva.edu/~bioethic/intern.htm.
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RELS 495 Independent Research
Instructor: Student's choice
Schedule # 91266
Schedule # 92380
Systematic readings in a selected topic under detailed
supervision. Prerequisite: Permission of departmental advisor
and instructor
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RELS 496 Distinguished Major Thesis
Instructor: Student's choice
Schedule # 90421
Thesis, directed by a member of the department, focusing
on a specific problem in the theoretical, historical or
philosophical study of religion or a specific religious
tradition. The thesis is based in part on at least three
hours of directred reading in the field of the thesis.
Prerequisite: Selection by faculty for Distinguished
Major Program.
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RELS 497 Fourth Year Essay
Instructor: Student's choice
Schedule # 93628
Studies selected topic in religious studies under
detailed supervision. The writing of an essay constitutes
a major portion of the work. Prerequisite: permission
of deparmental advisor and instructor.
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Graduate Courses
For information on the Graduate Program
please contact the graduate secretary, Sarah Adams, email: sea3n@virginia.edu
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RELG 507 Interpretation Theory
Larry Bouchard ( ldb4k@virginia.edu
)
Schedule # 93485 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
We will explore various approaches to interpretation
theory, with emphasis on the nature and problems of
interpretive activity in aesthetics, religion, and ethics.
We will take up hermeneutical considerations of figuralism
(e.g. Erich Auerbach), truth and understanding in encounters
with texts and others (e.g., Schleiermacher, Gadamer,
Ricoeur, Adam Zachary Newton), and reconsiderations
of the hermeneutical model in such figures as Bahktin
and Martha Nussbaum. Special attention may be given
this time to postmodern views of religious discourse
(e.g., in Derrida and some of his sympathizers and critics).
Requirements: Class participation of assigned materials,
a midterm take-home examination, and either a paper
or an essay final.
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RELB 533 Colloquial Tibetan III
Sonam Yangki Wang (
syw5r@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 91048 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
A continuation of the colloquial portion of Literary
and Spoken Tibetan II, this course uses multimedia programs
in Colloquial Tibetan to develop verbal fluency, acquire
vocabulary, and master advanced topics in spoken Tibetan.
Prerequisites: Tibetan II. Requirements: Class attendance,
participation, preparation of programs outside of class,
multiple exams and quizzes. This is a 2 credit course.
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RELB 535 Literary Tibetan III
Douglas
Duckworth (dsd8g@virginia.edu)
Schedule # 93520
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
A continuation of the literary portion of Literary
and Spoken Tibetan II, this course is designed to expose
students to a variety of styles/genres in Tibetan literature
and advanced Tibetan grammar. Prerequisites: Tibetan
II. Requirements: Class attendance and participation, three
exams, four translation assignments.
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RELI 540 Islamic Theology: Islamic
Biomedical Ethics
Aziz Sachedina ( aas@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 92948 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
The seminar will undertake to discuss the development
of a new subfield in Islamic legal and ethical studies.
Although there is a long history of legal theoretical studies
among Muslim legal scholars, the study of social ethics
and its various applications in research and biomedical
ethics is searching to define its methodology as well as
application in the growing awareness of the ethical issues
that confront both medical and legal professionals in the
Muslim world. The emergence of specifically Islamic approach
to the resolution of ethical problems in the health care
ethics indicates both casuistry and principle-based ethical
deliberations and rulings. The seminar will outline the
moral reasoning that Muslims have developed to provide ethical
guidelines in various areas of ethical problematic in research
as well as clinical settings. Selected readings in theological
ethics, legal methodology and application, and a growing
literature about the new rulings in bioethics will provide
students of Islam and comparative ethics an opportunity
to understand the underpinnings of Islamic theology and
legal-ethical methodology that guide public health and medical
research in Muslim countries around the world. Readings
will include: Abdel Rahim Omran: Family Planning in the
Legacy of Islam Munawar Ahmad Anees, Islam and Biological
Futures: Ethics, Gender and Technology Aziz Sheikh and
Abul Rashid Gatard, Caring for Muslim Patients Mohammad
Hashim Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jursiprudence.
Prerequisite: RELI 207 or RELI 208 |
RELB 542 Colloquial Tibetan V
Sonam Yangki Wang ( syw5r@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 93936 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
A continuation of the
Colloquial Tibetan IV, this course uses multimedia programs
in Colloquial Tibetan to develop verbal fluency, acquire vocabulary,
anhd master advanced topics in spoken Tibetan. This is a 2
credit course. Prerequisites: Tibetan IV. Requirements:
Class attendance, participation, preparation of programs outside
of class, multiple exams and quizzes. |
RELC 542 The Christian Vision of Hell
Charles Mathewes( ctm9d@virginia.edu )
Schedule # 92422 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This class will investigate the various ways in which
Christians have imagined Hell: the idea of the place (or
condition) of final and possibly endless torment meted out
to those who were not redeemed by God from their sin. We
will investigate the idea of Hell from a variety of positions
(including those who argue for and against the idea of Hell,
and those who argue for an empty Hell) and using a variety
of genres (including biblical texts, philosophical and theological
treatments, and literary works). The ultimate aim of the
course will be to see what such a study illuminates for
us concerning the meaning of (1) punishment, (2) time, and
(3) the nature of--and relation between--divine love and
divine justice in Christian thought.
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RELH 545 Social Vision in Hinduism
John Nemec ( @virginia.edu )
Schedule# 92839 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Much of Hinduism, and the study of Hinduism,
is concerned with the ways in which individuals, who
usually have renounced the world, acquire religious
merit, magical powers, and spiritual, liberating insight.
These subjects are crucial to our understanding of the
religion and religion in general, but the public dimensions
of Hinduism are often ignored in favor of looking at
these topics. This course will study just such public
and social dimensions of Hinduism. Topics will include
the relationship between religion and politics, the
role of religion in shaping social structures and hierarchies
(e.g.: caste), and the role of religiion in shaping
attitudes towards sexual and other personal relationships.
Question to be explored include: How does religion affect
and effect social order and social hierarchy (e.g. caste)?
What is the relationship between political structures
and religion? How does religion support Empire? What
kind of social movements has Hinduism inspired? What
is the relationship between personal religious commitment
negotiated in public space? We will read primary texts
in translation as well as relevant secondary sources.
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RELB 547 Literary Tibetan V
David Germano (dfg9w@virginia.edu)
Schedule# 91180
Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
A continuation of the literary portion of Literary
Tibetan IV, this course is designed for training in the literary
forms of the Tibetan language. Emphasis is on exposure to
a wide variety of styles/genres in Tibetan literature and
in-depth knowledge of Tibetan grammar. Prerequisites: RELB
534 or equivalent. Requirements: Class attendance and participation,
four exams, midterm, final, translation assignments.
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RELB 560 Intro to Pali
Karen Lang( kcl@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 91968 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
The course is an introduction to the reading
of Pali Buddhist texts. No prerequisites, though some
knowledge of Sanskrit could be helpful.
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RELB 566 Indian Buddhism
Karen Lang( kcl@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 91985 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
The focus of this seminar is on Indian Buddhism
from the time of Sakyamuni Buddha (6th cent. BCE) until
its decline in the twelfth century CE. We will explore
how divergent ideas on the nature of Buddhas and their
teachings developed through reading translations of
Indian Buddhist texts and the works of modern scholars.
We will explore various approaches to interpretation
of Indian Buddhism, including those of art history,
archeology, and ethics. Prerequisites: One 300 level
course in Buddhism. Undergraduates welcome. Requirements:
Active participation in class discussions, four short
interpretative essays (ca. 7 pgs) or, with instructor's
persmission, a final term paper (20-25 pgs).
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RELB 568 Pure Land Buddhism
Paul Groner( psg3w@virginia.edu )
Schedule# 93878 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course focuses on religious doctrines and
practices that surround the Buddha Amitabha and the bodhisattvas
associated with him, particularly Avalokiteshvara. The course
is divided into three parts. We begin with a consideration
of a set of Indian texts that would serve as the authoritative
source for the East Asian Pure Land tradition and attempt
to determine how these works might have fit into the Indian
Buddhist tradition. During the second third of the course,
developments in China are covered. Various issues that arose
as the Chinese interpreted these texts are considered, including
debates concerning the balance between meditation and recitation
of the Buddha$B!G(Bs name, the balance between faith and
works, whether Pure Land refers to a mental state or a place,
attempts to turn this world into a Pure Land, and the influence
of modern Japanese scholarship on our interpretations of
Chinese Buddhism. In addition, Buddhist teachings concerning
the end of Buddhism and the effect they had on Pure Land
beliefs are considered. During the last third, the course
moves to Japan where some of the more extreme interpretations
of Pure Land are considered. Among the topics considered
will be differences in the response to Pure Land teachings
by different social groups and the use of Pure Land ideology
in rebellions. If staffing allows, the course will conclude
with a section on Tibet and the use of Pure Land as an element
in Esoteric Buddhism.
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RELG 571 Western Christianity
Robert Wilken ( rlw2w@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 94030 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
Formation of a distinctively western Christian
tradition during the years after Augustine of Hippo.
Will read two recent works, Peter Brown's The Rise
of Western Christendom and Robert Fletcher's The
Barbarian Conversion and examine sources used in
these works. Will also read Henri Pirenne's Mohammad
and Charlemagne, and Christopher Dawson's Religion
and the Rise of Western Culture. Requirements: seminar
paper.
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RELG 573 Making and Unmaking
of Modern Identity
Bill May( wmay@smu.edu
)
Schedule# 94030 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This course will deal with crises in human
identity. It will begin with medical crises that
impose upon patients a break in their self-perception,
but then widen to examine the struggles not only
physicians but other professionals-lawyers, engineers,
business executives, politicians, teachers, and
religious leaders-face in coping with their double
identity as careerists earning a livelihood and
as wielders, cumulatively, of great power. Readings
from Charles Taylor and others will broaden the
canvas still further, throwing into relief the
identity crisis which political, educational,
and ecclesiastical institutions face today. Theological
reflection on these widening circles of inquiry
will need to attend to those recurrent myths (Flannery
O'Connor once observed that you know a people
by the stories they tell) that give people their
perceptions of their world and themselves and
that supply them with their cues for behavior.
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RELG 589 Readings in Critical
Theology
Corey Walker ( cdw6e@virginia.edu
)
Schedule # 93499 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
This graduate seminar is dedicated to exploring the
intersections between contemporary theology and various
theoretical orientations including critical theory,
cultural studies, feminist theory, postcolonial theory,
and psychoanalysis.
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RELG 728 Modern Religious Thought:
Self and Neighbor-Love
Jamie Ferreira ( JamieF@virginia.edu
)
Schedule# 92402 Check
the Web for time changes and room assignments
We will examine some classic texts addressing
the status of neighbor-love, or the relation between
self and other. Among them will be selections from
Aquinas, Kant, Sartre, Levinas, Badiou, and Kierkegaard.
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