Spring 2006 Course Descriptions
DVSC 622 30200 |
Introduction to Historical Studies in Religion |
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Klauck/Robinson |
M/W |
3:00-4:20 |
S106 |
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This is the third in a three-course sequence introducing M.A. students to the three academic committees of the Divinity School. The course will use an extended case study—the figure of Abraham in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—to explore issues and methods in the historical study of religion. The three main concerns of the course are (1) an examination of the Biblical text itself in light of modern critical scholarship (2) a history of the text’s reception by the “Abrahamic” religions, and (3) reflection upon historical and exegetic approaches to both text and tradition. |
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DVSC 622 45100 |
Reading Course: Special Topic |
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Staff |
ARR |
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ARR |
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Petition with bibliography signed by instructor; enter section from faculty list. |
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DVSC 622 49900 |
Exam Prep. |
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Staff |
ARR |
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Open only to Ph.D. students in quarter of qualifying exams; enter section from faculty list. |
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DVSC 622 50300 |
Research: Divinity |
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Staff |
ARR |
ARR |
ARR |
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Petition signed by instructor; enter section from faculty list. |
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DVSC 622 59900 |
Thesis Work: Divinity |
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Staff |
ARR |
ARR |
ARR |
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Petition signed by instructor; enter section from faculty list. |
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BIBL 603 30800 |
Introduction to the Hebrew Bible |
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Menn, Esther |
M/W |
10:00-11:20 |
S106 |
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BIBL 603 36300 |
Plutarch, Isis and Osiris |
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Martinez |
T/Th |
10:30-11:50 |
Cl. 26 |
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In Isis and Osiris Plutarch (c. AD 46-120) gives us one of the most important Greek texts on the history of religions during the early imperial period. For that reason it is often excerpted; it is, however, rarely read from cover to cover in the original (or even in translation). This course focuses on the reading and analysis of the Greek text of the treatise. We will also consider topics such as Isis and her cult in Greece and Rome, Plutarch’s philosophic and theological perspectives, allegorical interpretation, and the interpretatio Graeca of Egyptian religion. |
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BIBL 603 40100 |
Song of Songs III |
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Fishbane |
M |
9:00-11:50 |
S200 |
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PQ: Hebrew |
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BIBL 603 50400 |
Early Christian Rhetoric |
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Mitchell |
W |
1:30-4:20 |
S403 |
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An examination of the rhetorics (persuasive strategies) of early Christian literature, and how they were rooted in the ancient paideia (educational system) and forms of public life in the Greco-Roman world. We shall focus on significant points of intersection with the Greco-Roman rhetorical tradition in terms of genres and forms, style, invention, arrangement, and delivery, by triangulated close readings each week in Greek of selected early Christian writings, Greco-Roman rhetorical compositions, and samples of rhetorical theory. The early Christian texts will range from Paul to the fourth century, and may include: Galatians, 1 Corinthians, Athenagoras, legatio pro Christianis, Irenaeus, adversus haereses, Gregory of Nazianzus, funeral oration for his brother, Caesarius, and John Chrysostom, de laudibus sancti Pauli and de sacerdotio. |
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BIBL 603 51000 |
Papyrology and Early Christian Backgrounds |
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Martinez |
F |
2:00-4:50 |
S200 |
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Ident. NTEC 51000/CLAS 45200/GREK 45400 |
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BIBL 603 52300 |
Ruth and Jonah |
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Frymer-Kensky |
T |
1:30-4:20 |
S200 |
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An advanced exegesis seminar, this course requires a good working knowledge of Biblical Hebrew. We will read the books of Ruth and Jonah with an eye to understanding their literary characteristics, particular concerns and special religious and civic ideas. The course will require one short seminar paper (5 - 10 pages long) |
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THEO 604 31200 |
History of Theological Ethics II |
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Schweiker |
T/Th |
1:30-2:50 |
S106 |
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Ident. RETH 31200 |
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THEO 605 40501 |
What is Onto-Theology? Heidegger and the Case of Descartes |
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Marion |
Th |
3:00-5:50 |
S106 |
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Both for theology and history of philosophy, the concept of "onto-theology", coined by Kant and above all by Heidegger, seems at the same time controveresial and inescapable. In order to give a rational and steady account of it, we shall try to understand and test it using the precise example of Descartes' metaphysics. How far should Cartesian thought be framed by this constitution? Do some Cartesian doctrines resist or overlap this frame? How could we draw the limits? In return, what does this example teach about the overall pertinence of the onto-theological constitution of metaphysics as such? |
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THEO 604 40600 |
Black Theology: 2nd Generation |
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Hopkins |
W |
1:30-3:50 |
S208 |
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THEO 604 42300 |
Readings in Luther’s Theology |
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Schreiner |
M/W |
1:30-2:50 |
S204 |
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Ident. HCHR 42300 |
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THEO 604 43400 |
Theological Anthropology |
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Hopkins |
W |
9:00-11:50 |
S200 |
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THEO 604 43601 |
Modern Jewish Theology: Neo-Mystical Approaches |
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Fishbane |
Th |
1:00-3:20 |
S200 |
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This course will be an in-depth study of the mystical theology and thought of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, looking at materials from the various genres of his creativity (speculations and meditation, rules of spiritual conduct and self-development, diary entries, poetry). His type of cosmic theology will be compared with the Catholic theologian Teilhard de Chardin, and other features of his thought will be compared with the philosophers Bergson and Schopenhauer. |
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THEO 604 43901 |
Problems in Early Modern Thought |
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Schreiner |
M/W |
10:30-11:50 |
S204 |
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Ident. HCHR 43901 |
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THEO 604 45802 |
Understanding of God II |
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Tracy |
Th |
3:00-5:50 |
S204 |
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Ident. DVPR 45801 |
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THEO 604 48201 |
Theology of Culture |
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Schweiker/Tanner |
W |
1:30-4:20 |
S400 |
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THEO 604 51400 |
Augustine On the Trinity |
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Marion |
T |
3:00-5:50 |
S106 |
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Ident. PHIL 53410 |
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DVPR 605 40501 |
What is Onto-Theology? Heidegger and the Case of Descartes |
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Marion |
Th |
3:00-5:50 |
S106 |
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Both for theology and history of philosophy, the concept of "onto-theology", coined by Kant and above all by Heidegger, seems at the same time controveresial and inescapable. In order to give a rational and steady account of it, we shall try to understand and test it using the precise example of Descartes' metaphysics. How far should Cartesian thought be framed by this constitution? Do some Cartesian doctrines resist or overlap this frame? How could we draw the limits? In return, what does this example teach about the overall pertinence of the onto-theological constitution of metaphysics as such? |
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DVPR 605 45801 |
Understanding of God II |
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Tracy |
Th |
3:00-5:50 |
S204 |
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Ident. THEO 45802 |
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DVPR 605 50200 |
Buddhist Epistemology: The Philosophy of Dharma Kirti |
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Arnold |
F |
9:00-11:50 |
S204 |
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PQ: Two years of Sanskrit |
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CHRM 606 35500 |
Arts of Ministry: Worship |
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Tanner/Boden |
F |
10:00-12:50 |
S200 |
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CHRM 606 40800 |
The Practice of Ministry III |
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Piñon |
F |
1:00-3:50 |
S400 |
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CHRM 606 41200 |
Worship and Ethics: The Challenge of Cultural Pluralism |
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Shin, Joyce |
T/Th |
10:30-11:50 |
S400 |
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Given current dynamics of globalization, U.S. churches must deal increasingly with cultural pluralism. This seminar will address the question: how can we understand the integrity of worship within a culturally pluralistic society? We will examine this question with the help of theological ethical theories that highlight the emotional, aesthetic, and social dimensions of worship. In doing so, we will pay particular attention to integrative methods. |
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HIJD 625 40300 |
Song of Songs III |
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Fishbane |
M |
9:00-11:50 |
S200 |
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PQ: Hebrew |
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HIJD 625 50600 |
Soul, Intellect, and Immortality in Medieval Jewish Thought |
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Robinson |
T |
1:00-3:50 |
S403 |
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Ident. JWSG 40600, SCTH 50600 |
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HCHR 626 40600 |
Religion in Early National and Antebellum America |
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Brekus |
T |
1:30-4:20 |
S400 |
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Ident. HIST 63900 |
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HCHR 626 42300 |
Readings in Luther’s Theology |
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Schreiner |
M/W |
1:30-2:50 |
S204 |
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Ident. THEO 42300 |
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HCHR 626 43501 |
Spiritual Exercises: History and Practice |
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Fulton |
T/Th |
9:00-10:20 |
ARR |
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This course considers spiritual exercises from both Christian and non-Christian traditions as tools for the cultivation of physical, mental and emotional states associated in many traditions with the experience of ecstasy, enlightenment or "flow." Readings will be taken from both East and West; practices to be considered will include, among others, the recitation of the rosary and meditation on the life of Christ, yogic asanas and martial kata. The purpose of the course will be to situate such exercises both historically and practically, with particular emphasis on understanding the processes by which such exercises may contribute to the experience of prayer. |
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HCHR 626 43901 |
Problems in Early Modern Thought |
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Schreiner |
M/W |
10:30-11:50 |
S204 |
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Ident. THEO 43901 |
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HCHR 626 51200 |
Brauer Seminar: Religion and Violence in American Culture |
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Gilpin/Marty |
M |
1:00-3:50 |
MEM Sem. |
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PQ: The Brauer Seminar. Applications for admission will be received during the Winter Quarter. |
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HISL 627 35000 |
Comparative Mystical Literature |
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Sells |
M |
1:30-4:20 |
MEM Library |
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Ident NEHC 30684 |
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HISL 627 50100 |
Seminar in the Writing of Ibn al-‘Arabi |
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Sells |
W |
1:30-4:20 |
S200 |
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PQ: Reading knowledge of Arabic |
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HREL 628 33500 |
Herodotus |
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Lincoln |
M/W |
10:00-11:20 |
S208 |
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HREL 628 35200 |
Tibetan Buddhism |
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Wedemeyer |
T/Th |
1:00-2:20 |
S204 |
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This course is designed to serve as an introductory survey of the history, doctrines, and institutions, and practices of Buddhism in India from its origins through the end of the 20th century. Readings will be drawn both from primary sources (in translation) and secondary and tertiary scholarly research. |
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HREL 628 40100 |
Appropriations of Germanic Myth |
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Lincoln/von Schnurbein |
T/Th |
10:30-11:50 |
S208 |
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HREL 628 41100 |
Readings in the History of Religions: The Chicago School |
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Wedemeyer |
M |
2:00-4:50 |
S403 |
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This course will be devoted primarily to the close, critical reading of some representative works of the two most famous names associated with the History of Religions at the University of Chicago: Joachim Wach and Mircea Eliade. Attention will be paid to Wach's Habilitation thesis, entitled Religionswissenschaft, his Sociology of Religion, and Types of Religious Experience. We will also read and discuss Eliade's Myth of the Eternal Return, The Sacred and the Profane, and selections from Patterns in Comparative Religion. A selection of critical and interpretative essays will supplement these core texts, as we attempt to unpack and contextualize their arguments about religion and (especially) the academic study thereof. We will also look briefly at a few programmatic essays on the discipline by some later Chicagoans, including Joseph Kitagawa and Charles Long. Students will be encouraged to take advantage of the archival material related to these figures available in Regenstein Library, and at least one class will meet at the library to acquaint students with the collections. |
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RLIT 635 50500 |
The Satirist’s Art in Religion and Literature |
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Rosengarten |
W/F |
9:30-10:50 |
S403 |
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The discrepancy between appearance and reality is both a cliché and perennial fact of human life. Satire has been a common recourse to those who wish to give expression to their recognition of the discrepancy, aiming to diminish presumption and idolatry, to call attention to the man behind the curtain. This seminar will focus not on the satiric impulse per se (interesting as that is), but on instances when that impulse has sought sustained expression in art. Understood as rage that both seeks out yet is uneasy with form, satire is as ancient as Greek tragedy and as contemporary as last week’s issue of The Onion. We will explore various formal efforts to name the idols of particular days and ways through study of Rabelais and Swift, and to such media as political cartoons, formal portraiture, cinema, and the internet. In the context of its formal plasticity, we will also examine the hypothesis that satire is, paradoxically, uniform in its language, whether verbal or visual: i.e. that all satire is apophatic, that its concern with idolatry at the level is expressed by negation. |
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RETH 638 31200 |
History of Theological Ethics II |
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Schweiker |
T/Th |
1:30-2:50 |
S106 |
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Ident THEO 31200 |
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RETH 638 32401 |
Religion and Politics: Eric Voegelin |
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Mark Lilla |
T |
9:30-12:20 |
F505 |
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Ident. SCTH 32470 |
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RETH 638 45800 |
Politics, Ethics and Terror |
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Elshtain |
T |
10:30-1:20 |
S106 |
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An examination of three responses to three responses to 20th century totalitarianism: Arendt, Bonhoeffer and Camus. What ethical wellsprings were drawn upon to confront Nazism and Stalinism? What sorts of arguments about the function of ideology, the loss of limits, the transgression of "orders of being," metaphors of plague or other ravages got deployed and to what ends? What is the connection between explanation, understanding and action in the "dark times" through which our thinkers lived or in which they died? |
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RETH 638 52500 |
Advanced Seminar on Religion and Public Life |
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Elshtain |
M |
1:30-4:20 |
S200 |
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Open to graduate students who have successfully completed at least one previous seminar with Prof. Elshtain and for whom this area of scholarly endeavor is one they intend to pursue. There are a number of areas we will explore through concrete cases, including the matter of how persons with religious convictions engage civic life. What are the "languages" (so to speak) of civic engagement? Is a person or group treating religious conviction functionally, as a means to an end, with politics driving theological claims? Or, by contrast, does the person or group begin with theological commitments and go on to think about possible civic implications of those commitments? And so on. We will organize this seminar in such a way that each student will be required to go through a shared set of materials—yet to be determined—and, in addition, go on to develop an independent project on religious and public life. |
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AASR 607 41200 |
Asceticism |
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Riesebrodt |
Th |
9:30-12:20 |
S200 |
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Asceticism plays a major role in Nietzsche's "Genealogy of Morality" as well as Weber's "Economic Ethics of the World Religions." Starting with such theoretical perspectives the class explores the role of ascetic religious practices across cultures and history. What are their specific historical and cultural meanings? What kinds of subjects do these practices intend to shape? What is their role in the construction of religious authority? How do they relate to sacrifice on the one hand and ethics on the other? What, if anything, does the suppression of similar human needs and desires across cultures and history tell us about the human condition? Case studies will be taken from Christianity, Buddhism, Daosim and other traditions depending on the interests of the participants. |
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