A. Historical Religious Traditions I
10 Introduction to Eastern Religious Traditions. A historical study of major Eastern religious traditions, including major forms of Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism, Taoism, Confucianism, Shinto, and Buddhism in India, China, and Japan. Comparative methodology is used to examine a significant number of specific themes in all of these religious traditions. Ms. Humes.
11 Survey of Asian Religions. Surveys the religions of South and East Asia from ancient to modern times: Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, and Shinto. Examines the religions in terms of conceptions of ultimate reality, the relation of the human and the divine, religion and society, and religion and political power. Next offered 1996-97. Mr. Parker.
B. Historical Religious Traditions II
20 The Biblical Heritage. A critical introduction to the Bible, emphasizing comparative interpretation of the literature in its historical and religious context. Biblical text supplemented by secondary readings designed to illustrate different modes of interpretation. Lecture and discussion. Fall and spring semesters, Mr. Whedbee.
21 Introduction to Western Religious Traditions. A historical study of the major Western religious traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Comparative examination of specific themes in each religious tradition. Lecture and discussion. Not offered, 96-97.
22 Introduction to the Bible. This course studies the formation of the biblical canon and analyzes representative biblical texts, using historical and literary critical methods. It examines the diversity of religious assumptions about the nature and meaning of biblical texts in Jewish and Christian communities, and the ways in which the Bible is incorporated into the rituals of these communities.
C. Philosophy of Religion, Theology, and Ethics
40 Religious Ethics. How do various world religions accommodate moral reasoning to their fundamental understanding of the universe? What experiential factors and models of decision-making are at work in prescribing personal and social conduct? In asking such questions, what do we discover about our own ethical orientation, religious or secular? Lecture and discussion. Spring, Mr. Irish.
41 Morality and Religion. Introduction to moral theory, e.g., reasoning about moral obligation and the possibility of its justification, in which the arguments of selected Jewish and Christian religious ethicists are emphasized. Attention given to the questions of whether and how moral obligation is religious. Fall and spring semesters, Mr. Kucheman.
42 Gender Liberation
D. Contemporary and Women's Studies in Religion
60 Feminist Introduction to the Bible. Analysis of a wide selection of biblical texts, using feminist strategies of interpretation. Consideration of readings of these texts by and with women from different cultural and religious traditions. Artistic representations of biblical texts produced by men of the Western tradition provide a contrast to modern and contemporary feminist biblical interpretations. Fall and spring semesters, Ms. Wicker.
61 Religion in American Culture. The role of religion in shaping our self-consciousness as Americans in a pluralistic society. Emphasis on selected figures, movements, and texts illustrative of the rich variety of experience and forms of expression in American religious history from the 19th century to the present. Discussion and fieldwork. Spring, Ms. Dornish.
62 Possible Futures: Reflections on Century's End. Reflections on emerging trends in the humanistic disciplines with regard to possible futures. Identical to Philosophy 7. Spring, Mr. Erickson, Mr. Whedbee.
A. Historical Religious Traditions I
100 The World of Buddhism. A survey of the Buddhist religious tradition: its origins in India, its spread through Asia, and its expression in philosophy, literature, art, and living practice. Next offered 1996-97. Ms. Humes.
101 Sacred Traditions of India. The classic literature and history of religions in India, emphasizing Buddhist and Hindu life and thought from the Vedas to the emergence of Mahayana Buddhism. Lecture and discussion. Fall, Ms. Dornish.
102 Hinduism and Indian Culture. Explores the main ideas, practices, and cultural facets of Hinduism and Indian culture. Emphasis on the development of the major strands of Hinduism, the caste system, yoga, and Hindu relations with Sikhs, Muslims, and the West. Ms. Humes.
103 Sacred Traditions of China and Japan. The classic literature and history of religion in East Asia: indigenous traditions of Confucianism, Taoism, Shinto, and Chinese and Japanese forms of Mahayana Buddhism. Lecture and discussion. Spring, Ms. Dornish.
104 Religion in Chinese Culture and Society. A survey of Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism and their roles over time in relation to different socioeconomic classes. Topics include: the Book of Changes; Buddhist and Taoist cosmology and practice; religious poetry and painting; the symbolism and roles of women; society, wilderness, and chaos as sacred realms; Confucian political theory; syncretism; and responses to westernization. Next offered 1996-97. Mr. Parker.
105 Religion in Japanese Culture and Society. A survey of the ways in which religion has formed Japanese life and thought from prehistory to modern times. Examination of symbol systems, elite and popular traditions, religion and political power, and religion in ritual, pilgrimage, art, and literature. Next offered 1996-97. Mr. Parker.
106 Zen Buddhism. An examination of Zen Buddhism, not as a mystical cult, but as a mainstream intellectual and cultural movement in China, Japan, and also in the modern West. Next offered 1996-97. Mr. Parker.
117* Studies in Mahayana Buddhism. The thought and practice of the Mahayana tradition in India, China, and Japan. The claim of Zen Buddhism on the tradition is a special subject of study, and hermeneutical issues are addressed in the Buddhist concept of religion as "skillful means." Discussion. Spring, Ms. Dornish.
118* Hindu Goddess Worship. An historical and comparative treatment of devotion to Hindu goddesses from prehistory to the modern era. Topics include concepts of gender in the divine, textual and popular goddess worship, Shaktism, Tantra, spirit possession, female saints and renunciants, and the relation of human men and women to Hindu goddesses. Ms. Humes.
B. Historical Religious Traditions II
120 The Peoples of the Book. A study of the pivotal role of the Hebrew Bible in shaping the traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam with readings from the Mishnah, Talmud, New Testament, and the Qur'an. Lectures and discussion emphasize the emergence of rival claims on the biblical heritage and the evolution of different views concerning the function of sacred scripture. Mr. Whedbee.
121 The Pauline Tradition. An examination of the genuine letters of Paul in their social, cultural, and religious settings and later writings, both biblical and non-biblical, from early Christian literature claiming to represent the thought of Paul. Special attention given to women's role in Pauline communities and to the impact of Pauline theology on women's live and spiritual experiences. Ms. Wicker.
122 The New Testament and the History of Early Christianity. The origins of Christianity and its spiritual triumph over the Roman Empire. The New Testament and other early Christian literature compared with the civic, humanitarian, and spiritual ideals of imperial GrecoRoman society. Lecture and discussion. Next offered 1996-97. Mr. Whedbee.
123 Christianity in Africa. The inculturation of Christianity in Africa examined through selected studies of the history of Christianity in Africa, including the independent church movement, the development of African Christian theologies and biblical interpretations, and women's roles in African Christianity. Next offered 1996-97. Ms. Wicker.
124 History of the Early Middle Ages
125 History of the Later Middle Ages
126 Reformation and Counter-Reformation: Europe 1500-1648. The development of Protestant and Catholic orthodoxies and heresies in their cultural, institutional, and social contexts with special emphasis on the interaction of theology and politics. Fall, Mr. Geerken.
127 History of Christianity in the Latin West. A social history of the late antique medieval Latin church from the Roman persecutions to the Reformation. Identical to Scripps History 15.
128 The Religion of Islam. An introduction to the Islamic tradition: its scripture, beliefs, practices; development of Islamic law, theology, philosophy, and mysticism. Special attention will be paid to the emergence of Sunnism, Shi'ism, and Sufism as diverse expressions of Muslim interpretation and practice and to Islam in the modern world. Lecture and discussion. Fall, Ms. Kassam-Hann.
C. Philosophy of Religion, Theology, and Ethics
140 The Idea of God: Modern Theologies of Belief. An exploration and assessment of European and North American theology over the first two-thirds of the 20th century. What do we learn about the human condition from such thinkers as Barth, Buber, Tillich, Bonhoeffer, and the Niebuhrs? Do their ideas of God give expression to our beliefs, religious or secular? Discussion. Fall, Mr. Irish.
141 The Experience of God: Contemporary Theologies of Transformation. An exploration and assessment of African American, Asian, ecological, feminist, liberation, and process theologies. What do these theologies have in common? How do they differ? Do they speak from our experience? What insights do they have for our pluralistic, multicultural society? Discussion. Spring, Mr. Irish.
142 Studies in Religious Thought: Concepts of God Studies in Religious Thought: Concepts of God. Considers theistic and non-theistic concepts of historical thinkers such as Aquinas, Spinoza, Kant, Hegel, and Kiefkegaard, and contemporary thinkers such as Kung, Fackenheim, Herberg, Cobb, and Tillich. Mr. Kucheman. 1996-97.
143 Philosophy of Religion. Can God's existence be proved? Is religious faith ever rationally warranted? Are religious propositions cognitively meaningful? Can one believe in a good, omnipotent God in a world containing evil? Readings from historical and contemporary sources. Spring, Mr. Davis.
144 Life, Death, and Survival of Death. A study of philosophical and theological answers to questions about death and the meaning of life. Identical to CMC Philosophy 175. Spring, Mr. Davis.
145 Religion and Science. Examines the historical encounters between science and religion, and provides a systematic analysis of their present relationship. The goal is for the student to produce an appropriate synthesis of science and religion. Readings from ancient, modern, and contemporary science, philosophy of science, and theology. Evolution, mechanism, reductionism, indeterminacy, incompleteness, and the roles of faith and reason in science and religion. Spring, Mr. Henry.
146 The Holocaust. An interdisciplinary examination of the antecedents, realities, and implications of the Nazi attempt to exterminate the Jews. Identical to CMC Phil lO5. Next offered 1996-97. Mr. Roth.
147 Perspectives on the American Dream: Philosophical, Literary, Religious, Historical. An interdisciplinary examination of American ideals, past and present, as they appear in theory and in practice. Fiction and nonfiction readings by a variety of important historical and contemporary writers. Next offered 1996-97. Mr. Roth.
148 Nonviolence and Peace. An examination of nonviolence as a means of conflict resolution. Philosophical analyses of the concepts of violence, "just" war, peace, and pacifism, the practical limits of nonviolence, the relationship of nonviolence to spirituality in various religious traditions, and nonviolent practice in the lives of Thoreau, Gandhi, M. L. King, and others. Readings from classical and contemporary sources, eastern and western. Also CMC Philosophy 156. Mr. Smith.
149 Survey of Islamic Philosophy. A survey of the development of Islamic philosophy through a critical reading of the works of key Muslim philosophers from the early period to Ibn Rushd (Averroes). Lecture and discussion. Spring, Ms. Kassam-Hann.
155* Religion, Ethics, and Social Practice. How do our beliefs, models of moral reasoning, and communities of social interaction relate to one another? To what extent do factors such as class, culture, and ethnicity determine our assumptions about the human condition and the development of our own human sensibilities? Discussion and a six hour per week placement with poor or otherwise marginalized persons in the Pomona Valley. Fall, Mr. Irish.
156* Capitalism, Socialism, and Justice. An evaluation of capitalism and socialism from the point of view of social justice. Readings of economists as well as of religious and secular ethical theorists. Fall, Mr. Kucheman.
157* Hegel, Tillich, and Religious Socialism. A critical study of Paul Tillich's religious socialist thought and philosophical theology against the background of G. W. F. Hegel's philosophical system. Prerequisite: junior standing or permission of instructor. Also listed as CMC Philosophy 185. Mr. Kucheman.
D. Contemporary and Women's Studies of Religion
160 Feminist Perspectives on the Gospels. Analysis of both canonical and noncanonical gospels, using feminist methods of biblical interpretation including the reconstruction of early Christian women's history, literary criticism, hermeneutics, and theology. Feminist views of christology and new christologies. The biblical, theological, and hermeneutical interpretations of African, African American, Asian, and Latin American women. Next offered 1996-97. Ms. Wicker.
162 African Religions and Literary Representations. Identifies the varieties of religious traditions in Africa--traditional, Islamic, Christian, syncretic--and evaluates the role of religion in these cultures as it is reflected in contemporary literature and films from all of Africa and the diaspora. Fall, Ms. Wicker.
163 Sociology of Religion. Sociological aspects of religion and society. Emphasis on how social forces influence religion and how religious forces influence the behavior of persons and institutions. Contemporary religious issues and movements. Identical to Sociology 136. Fall, Mr. Cadena.
164 Engendering and Experience: Women in the Islamic Tradition. Exploration of normative bases of the roles and status of women and examination of Muslim women's experience in various parts of the Muslim world in order to understand the challenges facing Muslim women. Focal themes are the construction of gender, sexuality, seclusion, and spirituality. Lecture and discussion. Spring, Ms. Kassam-Hann.
167 Theory and Practice of Resistance to Monoculture: Gender, Spirituality, and Power. In this course we will examine theoretically and experientially models of historical and contemporary resistance to monocultural patterns of knowledge and social relations. This resistance historically has been and continues to be produced and/or molded in large measure by imperial and capitalist relations and by selected European scientific systems. Mr. Parker.
168 Gender, Spirituality and Ecology: Case Studies from the Third World
175* Visions of the Divine Feminine: An Exploration of the Goddess in World Religions from Ancient to Modern Times. Examines how different cultures have conceived of the Divine as gendered (e.g., as feminine). Study of numerous world myths, originating from ancient Sumeria to modern America. Main themes include the nature of myths and their relation to reality, the significance of myths for women's and men's role modeling, feminist theories of religion, including the patriarchal inversion of myths, and the role of historical change in interpreting mythical texts. Next offered 1997-98. Ms. Humes.
176* Women's Religious Experience in Early Christianity. Selected readings from early Christian literature through the fourth century examine the range of religious behaviors available to women in early Christianity. Special emphasis on texts written by women and texts that deal with the role ofthe physical body in spiritual experience. Next offered 1996-97. Ms. Wicker.
177* Canon and Legitimation in Religion and Ideology. This course surveys perspectives on the formation and change of canonical and sacred texts and collections of texts in religious and other cultural movements. We will reflect critically on the deployment of canons to produce and reinforce legitimacy, power, and even hegemony of particular social groups, and to deligitimate and at times oppress other social groups. Students will be introduced to the concepts of canon and legitimation, and then discuss forms of social relations and methods of writing which give legitimacy and power to heterogeneous voices and social groups. Prerequisite: an introductory course in religion, ethnic studies, and/or gender and feminist studies, or permission of the instructor. Mr. Parker.
E. Integrative Courses, Reading and Research Courses, and the Senior Thesis
180* Theories of Religion. Overview of historical and contemporary frameworks for interpreting and defining religious phenomena. Study of major figures from various academic disciplines, and analysis of texts. Emphasis on problems of racism, imperialism, classism, and sexism in the study of religion. Fall 1996, Ms. Humes.
190* Senior Seminar in Religious Studies. Advanced readings, discussion, and seminar presentations on a variety of areas and topics in the study of religion. Spring, Ms. Dornish and Ms. Wicker.
191* Required of all senior concentrators in Religious Studies, except for CMC Senior concentrators. Normally one course credit, based on one-half credit per semester. Fall and spring semesters, Ms. Dornish.
199. Independent Study. A reading program for juniors and seniors. Permission of instructor required. Course or half-course. Fall and spring semesters, Staff.
Classics 52a and 52b. Classical Hebrew. Fall and spring semesters, B. Whedbee (Pomona).
Classics 121. Classical Mythology. Spring, S. Glass (Pomona).
Classics 125. Greek Religion. Spring, H. Jackson (Pomona).
English 186. Poetry and the Bible. Fall, C. Walker (Scripps).
History 160a. History and Legal Thought: Ancient Law. Fall, Mr. Geerken (Scripps).
History 190. Jewish History: The Diaspora. Fall, Mr. Greenberger (Pitzer).
History of Ideas 122. Gnosticism and Occult Philosophy. Fall, R. Rubin (Pitzer).
Humanities 102. Women in Antiquity. Spring, Ms. Wicker (Scripps).
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