Gods, Buddhas, and Gurus in South 亚洲 Cults of masculinity have been intrinsic to South 亚洲n culture for millennia. Whether in ancient Vedic literature, or in the heterodox traditions of Buddhism and Jainism and the Hindu epics that followed; whether in the ascetic traditions of yoga, the popular Puranas or the lives of modern-day saints -- the leading Man has been carefully fashioned to represent power, purity and prestige. This course examines such texts and traditions from diverse periods in 印度n history in order to identify and deconstruct the ideologies that divinize masculinity and masculinize divinity. Meets the Equity and Power: EPG requirement. 一个单位 -- Coleman.

Encounter the history of Christian m艺术yrdom and sainthood in Rome, Italy. Examines the beginnings of m艺术yrdom in the early church, p艺术icularly in the context of the Roman Empire, and the legacies of the apostles Peter and Paul as well as the emergence of later saints, especially in the Catholic tradition. Historical study is attentive to ways in which Christian communities construct and memorialize—through literature, 艺术, and space—m艺术yrs and saints.

Since 1492, religion has been central to the project of modern colonialism. Everywhere European conquerors went, they justified colonial rule in the name of Christianity, sponsored missionary projects of conversion, and regulated the traditions and practices of the colonized. 事实上, some scholars have argued that modern conceptions of religion (and its cognate, world religions) only emerged out of these colonial conquests. This course explores the constitutive relationship between colonialism and religion. Two broad questions will inform our inquiry: How did the colonial encounter shape modern knowledge of religion? How did colonial technologies of rule (law, education, the census, surveillance, welfare) effect transformations in the religious beliefs, traditions, and practices of both the colonizer and the colonized? Our readings will include materials from various modern empires in the Americas, 亚洲, 非洲, and the Middle East. We will explore how religion was constitutive of modern empires and how religion relates to other sites of social power including race, 性别, and nation. Themes for the course may include religious conversion and freedom of religion, religious institutions and reforms, textuality and interpretation, ritual and material cultures, and legal reforms and regulation.

This course explores the vexed relationship between the nation state and the lived experiences of religious minorities in 亚洲. We will read works on the historical and political processes that have contributed to the othering and racialization of minority religious communities in Sri Lanka, 印度, 中国, and Myanmar. Our aim will be to gain a deeper understanding of everyday forms of violence and discrimination experienced by religious minorities, of the limits and possibilities of the politics of recognition, and of how religious difference and anti-minority politics intersect with other axes of difference such as class, 性别, and sexuality.

Highlights the indispensable role that imagination holds for human societies in general and religions in p艺术icular. Our investigation of both religious and secular narratives from multiple traditions will reveal the power of creative imagination present in all aspects of culture that envision human flourishing

This course explores the growing field of queer studies in religion. Borrowing from the five common approaches to queer religious studies offered by Melissa M. Wilcox in her work, Queer Religiosities, this class seeks to—examine the lives of queer religious practitioners and the relevance of their faith for the field of religious studies, excavate how queerness is obscured and yet still shows up in religious rituals and sacred texts, explore the ways in which queer ways of being in the world might be understood as “religious,” discover how queerness serves to disrupt normative religious and theological claims, and study the ways that the fields of religious and queer studies inform each other. In addition, this course acquaints students with a few key figures (both historically and contemporarily) in the discourse, including but not limited to the work of Marcella Althaus-Reid, Elias Farajaje Jones, Melissa Wilcox, Robert Goss, Horace Griffin, Linn Tonstad, and others.

Students will explore the history of Christianity in Great Britain as they travel in England and Scotland. From the monastic missions of the 6th century to the Protestant Reformation of the 16th, including the subsequent English Civil War, the course traces Christianity's engagement in the politics and culture of Britain. It will be especially attentive to relations, both cooperative and conflicted, between the monarchy and the church, as well as the significant development of monastic culture during the medieval period. Students will spend time in London and Edinburgh, with excursions to Canterbury, 纽约, Lindisfarne, 和圣. Andrews (among other sites).

This course introduces students to the formation and varying historic trajectories of 非洲n American religious traditions in the U.S., with some brief engagement with 非洲n-derived religions in the Caribbean. Although some studies of 非洲n American religion begin with the period of slavery and the Christianization of diasporic 非洲ns, this course locates the origin of Black religion on the continent of 非洲. From this st艺术ing point, this course will examine West 非洲n religions, religions of the enslaved, the formation of Black Christian denominations, and the origin of Black Pentecostalism. Students will also be exposed to often overlooked historical periods and religious expressions including the arrival of Black religio-racial movements during the Harlem Renaissance, and the 非洲n-derived religions of Haitian Vodou and U.S. 伏都教.

Encounter the history of Christian m艺术yrdom and sainthood in Rome, Italy. Examines the beginnings of m艺术yrdom in the early church, p艺术icularly in the context of the Roman Empire, and the legacies of the apostles Peter and Paul as well as the emergence of later saints, especially in the Catholic tradition. Historical study is attentive to ways in which Christian communities construct and memorialize—through literature, 艺术, and space—m艺术yrs and saints.

Explores Buddhist approaches to topics such as: the nature of 'self'; relationships between mind and body; theories of karma; why reality is described as 'empty'; why ethical conduct is important; mechanics and goals of different meditation practices; and, why both critical inquiry and love are essential for a good life. Can be taken in addition to RE 170 Buddhism.

Highlights the indispensable role that imagination holds for human societies in general and religions in p艺术icular. Our investigation of both religious and secular narratives from multiple traditions will reveal the power of creative imagination present in all aspects of culture that envision human flourishing.