Download C - USU Canvas

RELS 1010: INTRODUCTION TO RELIGIOUS STUDIES
Instructor: Dominic Sur ([email protected])
UTF:
Class time:
Location: Old Main Hill, 321M
Office Hours:
Phone: (435) 797-9058
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Religion produces and conserves, imparts and authorizes
structures of knowledge and practices that constitute culture and animate
society. As such, religion motivates some of humanity’s greatest
accomplishments—and some of our greatest grotesqueries. This course offers an
introduction to major religious traditions of the world and their respective
philosophical, social, and historical fields of production. That means, in addition
to being a survey of the world’s major organized religions, students will also
learn scholarly methods used to explore religion. During our term, we shall
investigate Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, among others.
Several questions drive our exploration. The term begins with the simple
question: “What is religion?” During the course we discuss the How, What, and
Why of religion. What, if anything is common to all religions? What, if anything,
is significant about religious difference? How does religion negotiate the
broader, more fundamentally humane issues at work in the lives of those who
use it?
This course neither promotes nor disrespects any particular religion. We
shall endeavor to understand the varieties of religion within a spirit of respect,
free inquiry and critical thinking. In short, prepare to leave preconceived
notions, prejudices and proselytizing at the classroom door.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES FOR THE COURSE: there are four general or basic objectives
for students completing this course. Such students should be able to:
1. Demonstrate a basic literacy concerning the major religious traditions of
the world
2. Understand the relationship between religion and culture, and think
critically about the influence of religious value systems on
individuals and societies
3. Read and analyze the sacred texts of different religious traditions
4. Pursue, if the student wishes, the advanced study of religion or related
fields
REQUIRED COURSE MATERIALS:

Huston Smith’s 1991 The World’s Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions (San
Francisco: HarperCollins)

Craig Martin’s 2012 A Critical Introduction to the Study of Religion (New York:
Routledge)

Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) (New York:
Penguin Publishing)

Additional readings—including the fundamental readings on most of the
world’s major organized religions—will be provided to you electronically (i.e.,
via Canvas)

4X6 index cards for various in-class purposes
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: four response papers (100 points each = 400 points), one
response to Siddhartha (150 points), mid-term exam (200 points), final exam (200
points), in-class reflections (totaling 50 points). Total points possible: 1,000.
Evaluation
Total points:
930 – 1000 A
900 – 929 A870 – 899 B+
830 – 869 B
800 – 829 B770 – 799 C+
730 – 769 C
700 – 729 C670 – 699 D+
630 – 669 D
600 – 620 D599 or less F
ATTENDANCE: Regular attendance is mandatory. You get 4 “free” absences for
things like travel, sports, family events, common illnesses, etc. Regular
attendance results in no lost points. If you have more than 4 absences, 100 points
will be deducted from your final grade. Chronic tardiness is not acceptable. It is
your responsibility to make sure that your presence has been marked at each
class. (If you attend a different section of RELS 1010 than your own, you will still
be marked absent.) For medical emergencies or chronic conditions that require
extended absences, please bring a doctor’s note and together we will make a plan
for the semester.
PARTICIPATION: At times, class lectures will be highly participatory in character
and thereby providing students with an opportunity to foster a critical
component of higher education: intelligent self-expression. This means
articulating your thoughts by asking relevant questions and making insightful
comments in class. This will help your comprehension of the material and also
help your classmates. Your regular and thoughtful engagement in class is highly
encouraged.
GROUND RULES FOR LECTURES:





Arrive on time.
Turn your phone off.
Use laptops only for legitimate class activities (note-taking, assigned tasks).
Do not leave class early with out okaying with the instructor or your UTF in
advance.
Ask questions if you are confused or would like to know more about the lecture
topic.
WRITING RESPONSE PAPERS 1-5: (4 out of 5 for a total of 400 points possible)
There are a total of six response papers given in this course. Students are
required to complete five. From response papers 1-5, students must complete
four; and all students must complete response number 6. The first five response
papers should be approximately 500 words.
From among response papers 1-5, I will grade four. I will definitely grade the first
paper you submit. You should carefully study the comments/corrections you
receive on the first paper, since this will help you improve your performance on
future papers. After this, I will randomly choose 3 more response papers at the end of
the semester to grade. Because I will choose the 2 papers randomly at the end of the
semester, be sure to do your best on all of them.
In these response papers, you are welcome to critically analyze or disagree with the
readings you treat, but you should not be disrespectful. Try to be specific in your
thoughts, and avoid generalities. (See Mark Damen’s writing guide and the writing
rubric, both given below).
Specific directions for each particular response paper is given below in the syllabus
with that week’s assignment. Generally, response papers would have two clearly
labeled parts:
1) An approximately 250 word summary of the reading you are focused on in
the response. Your summary should highlight the major themes, ideas, or
stories found in the reading.
2) An approximately 250 word response to the reading. You do not have to,
though you may wish to, respond to everything in that week’s reading.
Alternatively, you may choose a passage(s) from the reading(s) so that you
can respond with some depth. Here are some questions you might think
about while formulating your response:



Why is this important for practitioners of this religious tradition?
How does this passage compare with other readings from this
chapter?
How does this passage relate to what you have heard in class?
All response paper should be 2 double-spaced typed pages with 12 point font and 1inch margins. You should submit your response papers on Canvas, where they will
be checked for plagiarism through turnitin.com. No form of plagiarism or cheating
will be tolerated. This is a serious matter. If you do not know what constitutes
plagiarism and cheating, see:
http://catalog.usu.edu/content.php?catoid=3&navoid=265
RESPONSE PAPER 6:
(150 points)
Response paper is one double-spaced page longer than 1-5— approximately 750
words—and therefore worth more points.
Paper submission: Because you get to skip 1 response paper, there will be no
makeups for these assignments—and no late submissions will be accepted. If you
submit only 3 papers, you will automatically lose 100 points. If you submit only 2
papers, you will automatically lose all 200 points.
MID-TERM & FINAL EXAMS: (200 points each):
The in-class exams will consist of multiple choice (including vocabulary) and short
answer questions.
A STYLE MANUAL IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED: Much of your grade in this course
depends on your ability to write well. There is a world of difference between the
following sentences:


“Let’s eat, mom!”
“Let’s eat mom!”
The first is an invitation for mom to eat with us; the second suggests that we eat
mom. The comma makes all the difference. A writing guide by Professor Mark
Damen can be found at:
http://www.usu.edu/markdamen/WritingGuide/00intro.htm. If you need
additional help with your writing, please visit the university’s Writing Center
(http://writing.usu.edu).
The quality of English (grammar, proofreading, organization, etc.) will play a major
role in how I grade your response, so make sure you write well. Therefore, it is
strongly recommended that students in RELS 1010 get one of the following writing style
manuals:




Strunk & White’s Elements of Style (fourth edition). Amazon has used copies for
less than a dollar. This is the simplest writer’s manual. Knowledge and command
of its contents (i.e. correct comma use, etc.) are requisite for every first year
college student.
Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers (6th or 7th edition). This is an excellent guide
covering everything in Strunk & White, but with additional content on Academic
writing and research.
Kate Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations
(7th or 8th edition). This book should be purchased by students intending to do
work in the Humanities and Social Sciences such as History, English, Religious
Studies, etc.
If you are planning on pursuing a Masters Degree or Ph.D., then, in addition to
one of the above style manuals, I strongly recommend purchasing Booth,
Colomb, & Williams’ The Craft of Research (3rd edition).
* NOTE TO S.T.E.M. STUDENTS: Students planning on going into the so-called STEM
fields (i.e., science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) might think that the
particulars of writing are not essential for their fields—this is a mistake. People who are
successful in STEM spend a significant amount of time writing—e.g., grant proposals
(i.e. asking for money for their research). Thus, fluency in English composition is a must
for those going into STEM fields.
Several times during the term, students will be asked to write short reflections in
class on 4X6 index cards. Students are responsible for bringing index cards to
class for this purpose. There is no schedule for these reflections. They will be
given without prior notice to students.
Content
s
l
e
v
e
L
e
r
o
c
S
Writing Evaluation Rubric – Sur’s RELS 1010
Conventions
 Is well thought out and answers  No spelling, grammatical, or
the prompt
punctuation errors
 Reflects application of critical
thinking based on the readings
and lectures
A
 Has clear summary and
response to the reading content
 Consistent integration and
application of lecture material
 Implementation of vocabulary
from lectures—and Martin’s A
Critical Introduction to the
Study of Religion
 Proper citation of sources (see
Style Manual)
Organization
 Information is clearly focused
in an organized and thoughtful
manner
 Information is constructed in a
logical pattern to support the
solution
 Appropriately incorporates
evidence from sources by
accurate paraphrasing, citation,
and analysis.
 Is well thought out and
supports the solution
 Has application of critical
thinking that is apparent
B
 Has clear explanation of the
reading
 Integration and application of
lecture material
 Supports the solution
 Has application of critical
thinking that is apparent
C
 Has no clear explanation of the
reading
 Uses a few examples from the
reading
s
l
e
v
e
L
e
r
o
c
S
Content
Conventions
 Few (1 to 3) spelling,
grammatical, or punctuation
errors
 Information supports the
solution to the challenge or
question
 Good use of vocabulary and
word choice
 Proper citations are used
throughout the essay.
 All necessary citations are
included in-text
 Incorporates evidence from
sources by accurate
paraphrasing, quotation, and
analysis.
 Minimal (3 to 5) spelling,
grammatical, or punctuation
errors
 Project has a focus but might
stray from it at times
 Low-level use of vocabulary
and word choice
 Some errors in proper citation.
 Little use of lecture material
 Provides inconsistent
information for solution
 Has no apparent application of
critical thinking
D/ 
F
Has no clear explanation of the
reading
 Uses few to no examples
Organization
 More than 5 spelling,
grammatical, or punctuation
errors
 Poor use of vocabulary and
word choice
 Chronic errors in citation
 Information appears to have a
pattern, but the pattern is not
consistently carried out in the
project
 Information loosely supports
the solution
 Content is unfocused and
haphazard
 Information does not support
the solution to the challenge or
question
 Information has little to do with
the topic
 No use of lecture materials
Class Schedule & reading load: this course averages 50 pages per week.
WEEK 1: RELIGION?
August 31st, September 2nd
& 3rd
Martin, Preface, pp. xi-xv.
Martin, Chapter 1: “Studying Religion: Laying
the Groundwork,” pp. 1-18.
Total: 48 pages
Martin, Chapter 2, “How Society Works:
Classification,” pp. 19-44.
WEEK 2: BUDDHISM—THERAVADA
September 9th & 11th
No class Monday, 7th
“RELS 1010 Buddhism” pdf on Canvas. Read
through Buddhist Ethics, which ends on p. 167.
Selected readings from Walpola Rahula’s What
the Buddha Taught (pdf):

Total: 49
Chapter 1, “The Buddhist Attitude of
Mind,” pp. 1-15
Selections from Rahula on the Theravada
Teachings of the Buddha:
 “Setting in Motion the Wheel of Truth,”
pp. 92-94
 “The Fire Sermon,” pp. 95-97
 “Universal Love,” pp. 97-98
 “Blessings,” pp. 98-99
 “The Words of Truth,” pp. 125-136
 “The Last Words of the Buddha,” pp.
136-138
* Please look up words you do not
understand—such as bhikkhu, Tathagata, etc.—
in the dictionary or on Wikipedia. In fact, you
should look up every word that I use in class or
that you come across in readings that you do
not already know.
WEEK 3: BUDDHISM—MAHAYANA
September 14th, 16th, & 18th
Total: 55
Vv. 16-58 of “Mahayana 1—Bodhicaryavatara”
pdf, pp. 168-193
“Transforming Problems into the Dharma
Path,” pp. 1-50
Response paper #1: (Buddhism) due 18th at
midnite. There are three possible subjects for
your response:
(1) Compare and/or contrast the “Buddhist
Attitude of Mind” (Rahula, ch. 1) with a
Theravada teaching of the Buddha by
asking the following question: how is the
Buddhist attitude of mind expressed in this
Theravada teaching of the Buddha?
(2) Compare and/or contrast one section of
“Transforming Problems into the
Dharma Path” to Rahula’s “Buddhist
Attitude of Mind”
(3) Compare and/or contrast a Theravada
teaching of the Buddha with a section or
two of “Transforming Problems into the
Dharma Path”
WEEK 4: HINDUISM
September 21st, 23rd, 25th
RELS 1010 Hinduism pdf on Canvas. Do not
read “Hindu (temple art and architecture)” on
pages 446-448; but do read “Hinduism
(thought and ethics), which ends on page 452,
first column.
Selected from Smith:
 “Four Paths to the Goal,” pp 26-29
 “The Way to God through Knowledge,”
pp. 29-32
 “The Way to God through Love,” pp. 3236
 “Many Paths to the Same Summit,” pp.
72-75
Total: 43 pages
Selections from RELS 1010 Hinduism p2 pdf on
Canvas
 2.3.3.2 “Ramanuja dreams,” pp 42-45
 3.1.4 “Salvation and damnation in the
Bhagavad Gita,” pp. 56-57
 4.1.1 “How Brahma created the
universe,” pp. 65-68
WEEK 5: CONFUCIANISM
September 28th, 30th, &
October 2nd
Huston Smith’s The World’s Religions: Our Great
Wisdom Traditions, Chapter IV:
“Confucianism,” pp. 154-194
Total: 40 pages
Response paper #2: (Confucianism) due Oct
2nd:
 please provide a one page summary and
one page response contrasting this
reading to any previous reading.
WEEK 6: JUDAISM
October 5th, 7th, & 9th
Excerpts from RELS 1010 Judaism pdf on
Canvas. Please read the following in the
following order of the pdf (*Note that the page
numbers in this pdf are not in order.):
 Read “Judaism,” pp. 598-610.
o Do not read below “Current
Trend” (p. 610) or anything on p.
611.
 Read “Judaism (authoritative texts and
their interpretation),” pp 576-577.
o Do not read “festal cycle.”
 Read “Judaism (life cycle),” pp. 581-586.
o Do not read “Judaism
(mysticism)” (pp. 586-589).


Total: 55 pages
Read “Judaism (thought and ethics),”
pp. 589-594
Read “Judaism, God in,” pp. 594-595
Excerpt from Smith, ch. VII: Judaism, pp. 271299
W WEEK 7: CHRISTIANITY
October 12th, 14th… there is
no class on Friday, 16th!
—
Martin, ch. 5: How Religion Works:
Legitimation, pp. 93-116
RELS 1010 Christianity pdf on Canvas, pp.
240-264
Total: 47 pages
Response paper #3: (Christianity) due Oct
16th by midnight: please provide a one page
summary of Martin, ch. 5, and a one page
response to the following questions:
 How is legitimation used in
Christianity to maintain a social order?
 Who benefits from that?
WEEK 8: ISLAM
October 19th, 21st, &
23rd
RELS 1010 Islam pdf on Canvas, pp. 498-539. Read
everything except:
o Do not read “Translation of the Qur’an,”
pp. 517-518
o Do not read “Islam (ethics),” pp. 518-520.
o Do not read “Islamic Jihad,” p. 529
Excerpts from the Qu'ran:
 Qur’an, Suras 1 & 47. Available at:
http://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/source/koransel.asp
Total: 46 pages

Qur’an, Sura 2. See footnote below for google
book link to the text.1
In-class exam: October 23rd
WEEK 9: ISLAM, RELIGION, & AUTHORITY
October 26th, 28th, & 30th
Total: 46 pages
Martin, ch. 6: How Religion Works: Authority, pp.
117-143
Response paper #4: (Islam) due Oct 30th by
midnight:
 compare and/or contrast at least one
element from each of the following:
RELS 1010 Islam, excerpt from Qur’an:
Surah 47, and Martin chapters 5 or 6.
WEEK 10: “TRUE RELIGION”(?), ATHEISM, & ETHICS
November 2nd, 4th, & 6th
Martin, ch. 7: How Religion Works: Authenticity,
pp. 145-163
Total: 47
RELS 1010 Atheism pdf on Canvas, ch. 3:
Atheist Ethics, pp. 37-56
* In-class assignment: be prepared to write a
short comparison and/or contrast between
Atheist and ethics in class.
WEEK 11: HERMANN HESSE’S SIDDHARTHA
November 9th, 11th, & 13th
Siddhartha, pp. 3-65
Total: 62 pages
1
Ghai’s Selections From The Quran, pp. 37-44:
https://books.google.com/books?id=gir5IUOsIKUC&lpg=PP1&dq=sElections%20from%20Qur
'an&pg=PA37#v=onepage&q&f=false
WEEK 12: SIDDHARTHA (CONT.)
November 16th, 18th, & 20th
Siddhartha, pp. 67-132
Total: 65
Response paper #5: (Siddhartha) due Oct 20th by
midnight:
 Does Siddhartha’s story legitimate
Indian religious authority or challenge
it? How? Top grades will integrate
information from readings and lectures.
WEEK 13:
November 23rd
No classes on the 25th or
27th!
WEEK 14:
Nov 30th, Dec 2nd & 4th