Download 410Origins2013

University of South Carolina
Department of Religious Studies
RELG410/PHIL370, Fall 2013
Tues/Thurs, 2:50-4:05pm
Prof. Roberts
Rutledge 331
[email protected]
Office hours by appointment
Origins of Western Morality
The course examines the ways that early Christians appropriated, adapted, and transmitted particular
moral teachings of ancient Greek, Jewish, Roman traditions. It focuses on the aspects of these traditions
that came to shape the moral language and social codes of Europe and America, with particular attention
to Hellenistic philosophy, the letters of Paul, the teachings attributed to Jesus, and early Christian figures
such as Augustine. Students will consider questions about the relationship between religion and morality,
and will critically examine the enduring impact that early Christian adaptation and transmission of ancient
Greek and Roman traditions has had upon contemporary American moral discourse about sexual,
familial, political, interpersonal, and psychological expectations.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of the course, successful students will be able to:
o
Explain the central concerns of ancient Greek and Roman morality and discuss how Judean and
Christian moralists appropriated and adapted them;
o
Think critically about ancient ethical theories and understand how these theories are related to
morality;
o
Evaluate the ways that religion functions as a means through which culturally-conditioned
expectations about moral human behavior are transmitted, and consider the implications of
pairing moral teachings with divine authority;
o
Identify the differences between ancient and modern morality and ethical theory, and evaluate the
viability of utilizing aspects of the ancient ideas in today’s world.
Textbooks
Jacques Berlinerblau. Thumpin’ It: The Use and Abuse of the Bible in Today’s Presidential Politics
(Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2008)
Kathy L. Gaca. The Making of Fornication: Eros, Ethics, and Political Reform in Greek Philosophy and
Early Christianity (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2003)
David Konstan. Before Forgiveness: The Origins of a Moral Idea (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 2010)
Nancy Sherman. Stoic Warriors: The Ancient Philosophy Behind the Military Mind (Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2005)
Other required readings will be posted on Blackboard.