REL105.001
Honors Introduction to Religious Studies

Instructor
Ms. Merinda Simmons
simmo045@bama.ua.edu

Office: Manly Hall
Office Phone:
Office Hour: TBA
Course Time: M 3:00-5:30
Location: Manly 207

About Online Readings

Some course readings are placed in a "secure" folder; you can only access these PDF files (Portable Document Format, that can be opened with the free Adobe Reader) by clicking each link and then entering your Bama User Name and Password. If you have difficulty accessing these readings, contact the instructor by email.

If you have forgotten your Bama ID, but know your Campus Wide ID (CWID), then go here.

Description

As the honors introduction to the academic study of religion, REL 105 examines in greater detail than REL 100 theories of the historic origin and contemporary social function of religion in relation to wider sets of human beliefs, social practices, institutions, and culture in general. We will approach these theories through analyses of "myth" and
"ritual" and a reading of Gloria Naylor's novel, Mama Day. Minimum 3.3 GPA required to register. Carries the Core Humanities
designation.

Note: This course is not an introduction to world religions; rather, it is an introduction to the study of religion and its tools, in which religion is conceived as an observable aspect of human culture and history.

Studying Religion in the University

The study of religion in the university is conducted along the same lines and for the same purposes as are all other forms of disciplined, methodical inquiry. The core premise of the academic study of religion is that religion, whatever else it may be, is a human activity, and is one element of the larger cultural creations of human beings. Within the context of the university, scholars of religion hold themselves to the same principles of reasoned argument from evidence as do all other scholars. We do not seek to teach people how to be religious, but to study religion as a human phenomenon which is commensurate with all other human phenomena. Our task is descriptive and analytical, not normative. We seek to explicate and understand a religious position, not interpret one religious position in terms of another.

Syllabus

Fall 2008 (PDF)

Books (required)

Smith, Jonathan Z.
The HarperCollins Dictionary of Religion
Harper San Francisco 1995
ISBN:0060675152

McCutcheon, Russell
Studying Religion: An Introduction
Equinox Press, (US Distributor David Brown Book Co)
ISBN: 1845530128

Naylor, Gloria
Mama Day
Vintage, 1989
ISBN: 0679721819

Online Readings

To be announced