RELIGIOUS STUDIES (AS) {RELS}

The Study of Religion in General

L/R 001. Religions of Asia. (C) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Staff. Introduction to the major religious traditions that originated in Asia, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and the religions of China and Japan. Attention to sacred scriptures, historical development, and modern expressions.

002. (JWST122) Religions of the West. (C) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Staff. Introduction to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the three major traditions that originated in the Middle East. Attention to sacred scriptures, historical development, and modern expressions.

L/R 003. (CLST242, COML242) Religion and Literature. (C) Arts & Letters Sector. All Classes. Matter. A consideration of how great works of literature from different cultural traditions have reclaimed and reinterpreted compelling religious themes. One religious tradition will be emphasized each time the course is taught.

L/R 005. (FOLK029, GSOC109) Women and Religion. (C) Humanities & Social Science Sector. Class of 2010 & beyond. Staff. Introduction to the role of women in major religious traditions, focusing on the relationship between religion and culture. Attention to views of women in sacred texts, and to recent feminist responses.

L/R 006. Religious Violence and Cults. (A) Society Sector. All classes. Staff. Since September 11, 2001, America has become more aware than ever that there is a connection between religion and violence. But what is it? Why do religious people embrace violence? Are all cults prone to violence? And do terrorists tend to belong to cults? This course will introduce students to representative terrorist groups from five different religious traditions and to cults that have taken the path of group suicide. We will examine a number of ways to understand religious terrorism, religious suicide, and cult affiliation in general.

007. (AFRC001, HIST007) Introduction to Africana Studies. (C) Humanities & Social Science Sector. Class of 2010 & beyond. Staff. The aim of this course is to provide an interdisciplinary examination of the complex array of African American and other African Diaspora social practices and experiences. This class will focus on both classic texts and modern works that provide an introduction to the dynamics of African American and African Diaspora thought and practice. Topics include: What is Afro-American Studies?; The History Before 1492; Creating the African Diaspora After 1500; The Challenge of Freedom; Race, Gender and Class in the 20th Century; From Black Studies to Africana Studies: The Future of Afro-American Studies.

SM 010. Religion in Public Life. (C) Staff. This seminar is an introduction to several aspects of the hotly debated relation between religion and public life in America. In the first half of the course we will study two books by law professors, one Jewish and the other Christian. Their debate will introduce us to the legal and historical background, and to the continuing challenges of church-state separation in America. The second half of the course will examine the claim that we now live in a "new religious America," one in which the increasing presence of Hindus, Buddhists and Muslims has created a new pluralism and a new set of challenges. We will then consider the argument of one historian that diversity and difference have characterized religious groups in America since at least the l9th century, and that this has resulted in a number of paradoxical social situaitons. Finally, we will close with a brief look at the claim that there exists in America a "civil religion," one that unites all citizens despite their other religious differences.

SM 012. (SAST051) India in the Traveller's Eye. (C) Behl. Historically, India has held a prominent yet paradoxical place in the Western imagination - as a land of ancient glories, a land of spiritual profundity, a land of poverty, social injustice and unreason. In this course, we examine these and other images of India as presented in European and American fiction, travel literature, news reportage, and film. We will consider the power and resonance of these images, how they have served Western interests, and how they may have affected Indian self-understanding.

014. (NELC046) Myths and Religions of the Ancient World. (B) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Tinney. This course will survey the religions of the ancient Middle East, situating each in its historical and socio-cultural context and focussing on the key issues of concern to humanity: creation, birth, the place of humans in the order of the universe, death and destruction. The course will cover not only the better known cultures from the area, such as Egypt and Mesopotamia, but also some lesser known traditions, such as those of the Hurrians, or of the ancient Mediterranean town of Ugarit. Religion will not be viewed merely as a separate, sealed-off element of the ancient societies, but rather as an element in various cultural contexts, for example the relationship between religion and magic, and the role of religion in politics will be recurring topics in the survey. Background readings for the lectures will be drawn not only from the modern scholarly literature, but also from the words of the ancients themselves in the form of their myths, rituals and liturgies.

015. (ENGL033) The Bible as Literature. (M) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Successive generations have found the Bible to be a text which requires--even demands-extensive interpretation. This course explores the Bible as literature, considering such matters as the artistic arrangement and stylistic qualities of individual episodes as well as the larger thematic patterns of both the Old and New Testaments and the Apocrypha. A good part of the course is spent looking at the place of the Bible in cultural and literary history and the influence of such biblical figures as Adam and Eve, David, and Susanna on writers of poetry, drama, and fiction in the English and American literary traditions.

101. Religion and Psychology. (C) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. An introduction to psychological interpretations of religious belief, experience, and behavior. Emphasis upon such major theorists as James, Freud, Jung and Allport. More recent investigations (e.g., psychohistory, stages of religious development, religious roots of psychoanalysis, transpersonal psychologies, parapsychological research) will occasionally be included. No prerequisites.

SM 102. Science and the Sacred. (C) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. An exploration of differences, similarities, and intersections between science and religion. Focus on the relation between scientific paradigms and religious myths; comparison of types of experience in religion and science; critical investigation of efforts to synthesize science and religion in psychology, biology, and physics.

SM 103. Approaches to the Study of Mysticism. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Introduction to "mysticism" as a subject of academic investigation and to selected representations in various religious traditions. Special attention to problems of definition and historical context.

L/R 104. Religion and the Search for Meaning. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Introduction to the study of religion through critical examination of contemporary accounts of personal experimentation with a variety of religious perspectives, e.g., the "Journey to the East" of Europeans and Americans, Islam in America, and efforts by Jews and Christians to find their roots in their respective traditions. Background readings in Huston Smith's THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS.

105.(CINE105) Religion and Film. (C) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Introduction to different ways in which religion is represented in film. Emphasis upon religious themes, but some attention to cinematic devices and strategies. Although most films studied will deal with only one of the major historical religious traditions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam), the selection will always include at least two of those traditions.

106.Modern Religious Thought. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Close examination of selected representative writings on religion by modern thinkers (such as Bertrand Russell, Erich Fromm, and Peter Berger), who have been influenced by major issues trends, and developments in twentieth-century philosophy and the social sciences.

SM 201. (SOCI239) Sociology of Religion. (M) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Collins. Classic theory of religion in Durkheim and Weber, as well as contemporary theories of religious movements. Topics include ritual, magic, and mystical experience; religious ethics and salvation beliefs; the dynamics of cults, sects and mainstream churches; origins, expansion and decline of religions; religions and social class; religions and politics. The spectrum of religions in the contemporary United States will be examined, as well as historical comparisons.

SM 202. Topics in Religion and Science. (M) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Examination of one or two of the areas of controversy in the religion and science debate: creation and evolution, religion and genetic research, creation and cosmology, theories of space and time, mysticism and mathematics, religion and medicine.

SM 204. (PHIL234) Philosophy of Religion. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Ross. Systematic examinations of the nature of religious experiences; proofs of the existence of God; the problem of evil; the relationships of faith and reason; and the possibility of religious knowledge.

L/R 205. (ANTH205, FOLK201) American Folklore. (C) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in History & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. American folklore encompasses an astonishing array of cultural groups and artistic forms: African-American oral poetry and Franco-American fiddle tunes, Irish-American songs and Italian-American food, Native American jokes and German-American quilts, ancient old-country recipes and the latest and most bizarre Urban Legend. In this course, we will survey some of the groups that we call "American" and some of the expressive traditions that we call "folklore." We will discuss how these traditions originate, how they develop over time, and especially how they become part of--or remain separate from--American popular culture. Along the way, we will raise important questions about the meanings that folklore holds for "Americans," for smaller cultural groups, and for individuals.

309. Honors Thesis Seminar. (B) Required of honors majors who choose the research option.

399. Directed Reading. (C) Students arrange with a faculty member to pursue a program of reading and writing on a suitable topic.

401. (PHIL434) Philosophy of Religion. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Ross. Systematic examinations of the nature of religious experiences; proofs of the existence of God; the problem of evil; the relationships of faith and reason; and the possibility of religious knowledge.

406. (FOLK406) Folklore and the Supernatural. (M) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Examination of folk beliefs, witchcraft, healing, divination, and spirit phenomena in the context of folkloristic, anthropological, psychological, and especially para-psychological explanations.

SM 500. (GRMN554) Theories of Religion. (M) Staff. A study of the various ways of interpreting religion as a phenomenon in human life. Analysis of the presuppositions involved in psychological, sociological, and phenomenological approaches. Authors include James, Weber, Freud, Otto, Eliade, and contemporary writers offering historical, anthropological, and philosophical perspectives.

SM 502. Science and the Sacred. (M) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. This course will be an intensive exploration of the differences, similarities, and intersections between science and religion.

SM 503. (FOLK512) Religion and Healing. (M) Staff. Survey of anthropological studies about healing practices, ancient medical texts (Western and Asian), and discourses about health in selected eastern and western religious traditions.

SM 505. (FOLK533, HSSC533) Folk and Unorthodox Health Systems. (B) Hufford. Examination of theories concerning the origin and function of folk beliefs, investigation ofAn e expression of folk beliefs in legend, folk art, om and ritual. and al is the focal genre for explanatory purposes, and introduction to custsocial symbolic approach to analysis and interpretation is primary for exploration and application.

SM 506. (ANTH505) Anthropology of Religion. (M) Staff. A critical survey of anthropology studies of religion.

SM 507. (FOLK510) Ethnography of Belief. (B) Hufford. This course will examine traditional systems of supernatural belief with an emphasis on the role of personal experience in their development and maintenance. The course will focus on subjects of belief generally conceived of as being "folk" in some sense (e.g., beliefs in ghosts), but will not exclude a consideration of popular and academic beliefs where appropriate (e.g., popular beliefs about UFO's and theological doctrines of the immortality of the soul). The course will be multidisciplinary in scope.

SM 601. (SAST701) Seminar on Methodology. (C) Staff. Careful examination of one topic (e.g., ritual) or thinker (e.g., Durkheim).

SM 603. (ANTH601, FOLK603) Food, Culture and Society. (C) Theophano. Behind a simple proverb like "You are what you eat" lies a great deal of food for thought. Human beings have always elaborated on the biological necessity of eating, and this course will explore the myriad ways in which people work, think and communicate with food. The course will survey the major approaches from folklore, anthropology and related fields toward the role of food, cookery, feasting and fasting in culture. Among the topies to be addressed are gender roles and differences in foodways, the significance of food in historical transformations, the transmission of foodways in writing and publishing, the relationship of foodways to ethnicity and region, the intimate relationship between food and religion, and foodways in the global market place. Short exercises and a term project will provide students with opportunities to research and write about foodways from different angles.

SM 605. (COML662, FOLK629, NELC683) Theories of Myth. (B) Ben-Amos. Theories of myth are the center of modern and post-modern, structural and post-structural thought. Myth has served as a vehicle and a metaphor for the formulation of a broad range of modern theories. In this course we will examine the theoretical foundations of these approaches to myth focusing on early thinkers such as Vico, and concluding with modern twentieth century scholars in several disciplines that make myth the central idea of their studies.

SM 609. (COML609, GREK609) Divination and Semiotics. (M) Struck. This course will trace a history of signs, using Greek divination as the primary focus. We will explore ancient and contemporary sign theories and their usefulness in illuninating ancient practices of divination--or the reading of signs thought to be embedded in the world. Participants in the seminar will be expected to contribute an expertise in one (or more) of three general areas: Greek literature, Greek and Roman religions, and contemporary theory in the humanities. The course is open to graduate students without Greek as well as classicists--though please register appropriately. The particular areas we cover will to some extent be determined by the interests of the participants, but will surely include: divination by dreams, entrails, and oracles as attested by literary and (to a lesser extent) archaeological evidence; Platonic, Aristotelian, Stoic and Neoplatonic theories of signs; and contemporary semiotics as articulated mainly by Saussure, Barthes, and Eco. Ancient authors will include: Homer, Xenophon, Sophocles, Cicero, Artemidorus, and Iamblichus.

999. Independent Study. (C) See department for section numbers.

Western Tradition in General, Religion in America

110. (ANCH110, ARTH110, CLST110) Greek and Roman Religion. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. A survey and analysis of the origins and development to ancient Greek and Roman religion from the Greek Bronze Age to the advent of Christianity. Students will read both primary and secondary literature.

SM 111. (AFRC111) Religion and Secular Values. (C) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. This course deals with the ways in which current standards for social and public order have been influenced by the interaction between American Jewish and Christian values and American secular and civil values. Issues treated include: racial and ethnic attitudes, sexual equality/morality, pornography, abortion, euthanasia, capital punishment, mental health, economic justice, and environmental issues.

112. Religious Ethics and Modern Society. (C) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. This course is designed to discover Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish ethics, their contribution to the values and practices of the citizenry, as they relate in creative tension, competitive values, or conflicts of interest with contemporary medical, legal, educational, and social questions bearing upon such personal, interpersonal, and social issues as sex, abortion, euthanasia, marriage, divorce. child abuse, civil rights, care of the dying, fetal research, test tube babies, political conscience, war and peace. Students will be able to work through their own understanding of a critical issue through the development of a problem-oriented paper bearing upon the perspectives and teachings of Jewish ethics in relation to an ethical issue, or on an individual Judeo-Christian ethicist in relation to a moral problem.

SM 113. (AFRC113, JWST113, GSOC113) Major Western Religious Thinkers. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Introduction to the writings of one or two significant western religious thinkers, designed for those who have no background in religious thought. Possible thinkers to be studied: Augustine, Maimonides, Spinoza, Luther, Teresa of Avila, Edwards, Mendelssohn, Kierkegaard, DuBois, Bonhoeffer, King.

114. (NELC166, NELC468) The Religion of Ancient Egypt. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Silverman/Wegner. Weekly lectures (some of which will be illustrated) and a field trip to the university Museum's Egyptian Section. The multifaceted approach to the subject matter covers such topics as funerary literature and religion, cults, magic religious art and architecture, and the religion of daily life.

SM 116. (FOLK025, HIST025, HSOC025, STSC028) Science, Magic, and Religion, 1500 to the present. (C) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Staff. Throughout human history, the relationships of science and religion, as well as of science and magic, have been complex and often surprising. This coursw will cover topics ranging from the links between magic and science in the seventeenth century to contemporary anti-science movements.

117.(AFRC117) African American Religion. (C) Staff. This course is intended as an introduction to movements and figures of African American religion from slavery to the present. Lectures, readings, and discussions will focus on themes related to content and methodology in the study of African American religious history. Guiding themes include the relationship between race and gender; the tension between piety and activism; the ambivalence between mainstream respectability and racial pride; and the interaction between Christianity, lived religions, and alternative traditions.

118.(AFRC118) Black Sects and Cults. (C) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Examination of selected non-traditional Black American religious and secular movements, their founders and leaders with close consideration of the contrasts between these groups and more traditional movements. Examples include suchcult leaders as "Daddy Grace," "Father Divine," and "The Reverend Ike" as compared with other religious and social leaders such as Martin Luther King and Jesse Jackson.

211. (AFST292) African Religion in America. (M) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. This survey course focuses on African Religous culture in Nigeria and in the African Diaspora. Students will be introduced to the ritual and philosophical foundations of Yoruba religion and culture. This course emphasizes the incorporative nature and heterogeneity of problematize essentialisms and stereotypes about these religious systems by paying close attention to the ethnographic details, historical contexts, philosophical underpinnings, and political developments of each religion in their region. Traditions we will be exploring are: Ifa Divination in Nigeria and Benin; Santeria and Regla de Ocha in Cuba and the United States; Vodoun in Haiti; Shango in Trinidad; Candomble and Umbanda in Brazil; and the American Yoruba Movement in the United States. Course readings will provide a theoretical and informative basis for dealing with the concepts of syncretism, creolization, and ethnicity.

213. (FOLK223) Folk Religion. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. This introductory course examines some of the basic cultural forms and claims of folk religion as they are practiced and as they have been studied from various academic positions. This course will sample, critique, and practice approaches to the ethnography of belief and the analysis and interpretation of the resulting descriptions. After the development of some basic concepts the course will proceed through major topics in belief. The emphasis will be on belief traditions found in the West during recent and current times. Discussion will be encouraged throughout the course, and in addition to lectures and the viewing of audio-visual materials, time will be set aside to discuss the assigned readings and students' own work.

215. (ANTH235, JWST251, NELC255) Archaeology and Society in the Holy Land 4,500 BCE - 500 BCE. (M) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in History & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. This course will survey the archaeological history of the southern Levant (Israel, West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, southern Lebanon and Syria) from the early complex societies of the Chalcolithic through the demise of the biblical states of the Iron Age. It will focus in particular on the changing organization of society through time, using excavated evidence from burials, houses, temples and places to track changes in heterogeneity, hierarchy and identity. In following the general themes of this course, students will have opportunity to familiarize themselves with the geographic features, major sites and important historical events of the southern Levant. Class material will be presented in illustrated lectures and supplemented by the study of artifacts in the University Museum's collections.

Anyone interested in a better understanding of the land that has given us both the "Old Testament"/TaNaK and so much of our daily news, should find much of interest in this course.

SM 310. (AFRC308, FOLK310, URBS310) Religious Diversity in America. (M) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. In the l950's America seemed to be a land of Protestant, Catholic, and Jew. Now it is clearly also a land of Muslims and Hindus, Buddhists and Taoists, Rastafarians and Neo-pagans and many more religious groups. This course will focus upon a variety of topics: religious diversity in West Philadelphia, Philadelphia and beyond; the politics of religious diversity; religion in American schools and cities; and conflicts and cooperation among diverse religious groups.

SM 311. (JWST335, NELC335) Muslim, Christian, and Jewish Relations in the Middle East and North Africa. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Sharkey. This class is a reading- and discussion-intenstive seminar that addresses several recurring questions with regard to the Middle East and North Africa. How have Islam, Judaism, and Christianity influenced each other in these regions historically? How have Jews, Christians, and Muslims fared as religious minorities? To what extent have communal relations been characterized by harmony and cooperation, or by strife and discord, and how have these relations changed in diffferent contexts over time? To what extent and under what circumstances have members of these communities converted, intermarried, formed business alliances, and adopted or developed similar customs? How has the emergence of the modern nation-state system affected communal relations as well as the legal or social status of religious minorities in particular countries? How important has religion been as one variable in social identity (along with sect, ethnicity, class, gender, etc.), and to what extent has religious identity figured into regional conflicts and wars? The focus of the class will be on the modern period (c. 1800-present) although we will read about some relevant trends in the early and middle Islamic periods as well. Students will also pursue individually tailored research to produce final papers.

SM 317. Approaches to Community Service. (M) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Community service has become a major part of many educational programs. This course will address such topics as: community service and moral development; the role of religion in community service; schools as agents of character formation and social change; the University of Pennsylvania as a community member; and the religious and social history of the University.

SM 318. Religion and Public Policy. (M) Staff. This is a topics course focussing on the study of cultural institutions and practices.

SM 412. (AFRC412) African American Spiritual Autobiography. (M) Staff. This seminar will enagage works of autobiography in the African American tradition with paricular attention to the spiritual and religious contexts of the authors. We will discuss recurring themes, scriptual motifs, and religious and social tensions expressed in the works. Gender, political ideology, social activism, and religious identification will also be explored.

SM 418. (COML556, JWST356, JWST555, NELC356) Ancient Interpretation of the Bible. (M) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Stern. The purpose of this course is two-fold: first, to study some of the more important ways in which the Bible was read and interpreted before the modern period; second, to consider the uses to which some contemporary literary theorists have put these ancient modes of interpretation as models and precursors for their own writing. The major portion of the course will be devoted to intensive readings of major ancient exegetes, Jewish and Christian, with a view to considering their exegetical approaches historically as well as from the perspective of contemporary critical and hermeneutical theory. Readings of primary sources will be accompanied by secondary readings that will be both historically oriented as well as theoretical with the latter including Hartman, Kermode, Todorov, and Bloom.

SM 419. (JWST419, NELC489) Jewish-Christian Relations Through the Ages. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Fishman. This is a Bi-directional course which explores attitudes toward, and perceptions of, the religious "Other", in different periods of history. Themes include legislation regulating interactions with the Other, polemics, popular beliefs about the Other, divergent approaches to scriptural interpretation, and cross-cultural influences, witting and unwitting. Different semesters may focus on Late Antiquity, the Middle Ages, Early Modern period, or contemporary times. May be repeated for credit.

SM 517. (AFRC518, FOLK517) Topics in American Religion. (M) Staff. The course will study a variety of topics in American religion.

519. (FOLK514, HSSC514) Human Diversity and the Cultures of Medicine. (M) Hufford. Over the past decade there has been a growing awareness of the importance of such basic aspects of human diversity as culture, (religion, language), ethnicity, economic status, gender, age and disability in health care as in other areas of life. This course will deal with (1) the social and cultural foundations of health care in the modern world and (2) the ways that diversity affects and is affected by health care. Because simplistic views of diversity reinforce stereotypes, the course necessarily recognizes that each individual belongs to more than one group--each person has a cultural background, a gender, an age, may have one or more disabilities, and so forth. And even within groups, the experiences and needs of each individual are unique. For example, there is no such person as "the African-American patient" or "the female patient." Proper attention to diversity can enhance both cultural and individually appropriate care for all persons. By dealing with these political, social and cultural aspects of diversity and health care, this course will introduce students to complex and basic issues of social construction ranging from cultural dimensions of medical ethics to the importance of differing health traditions (from folk medicine to foodways to such beliefs as the idea that AIDS is a genocidal government conspiracy).

610.Religion in Public Life. (C) Staff. This seminar is an introduction to six of the most debated areas involving religion in public life: diversity in American religions; church-state relations and the Constitution; issues in specific eastern and western religions; religious dimensions of contemporary ethical and social debates (abortion, euthanasia, minority and gender roles); religious symbolism in the public sphere; and the prevailing understandings of religion in the media and modern society. Teachers, school administrators, journalists, public policy specialists, social workers, lawyers, and health care professionals all encounter situations in which the religious sensitivities of "clients" (students, parents, readers, etc.) affect the ways in which they discharge their duties. This seminar serves as an introduction to the Religion in Public Life concentration within the Master of Liberal Arts Program, which is designed to provide professionals with an understanding of the many historical, social and legal issues that complicate discussions of religion in public situations.

611.Private vs. Public Religion in America. (M) Staff. Many Americans hold that religion is properly a matter engaged in by individuals, families and congregations within the confines of their own homes and places of worship. For others, it is both a constitutionally protected right and a religious duty to give public voice to their religious faith and identity. This seminar focuses on the tension in contemporary America between private and public expressions of religious belief and sentiment. Our readings will cover the development of private spirituality since the 1950s, the continuing conviction of some that religion and sports are closely linked, one example of the burgeoning effort to bring religion into the workplace, a sociological study of the public portrayals and private hopes of those in the growing Evangelical movement, and an eminent historian's view of "the mixing of sacred and secular in American history."

615. (ANTH635) Archaeology and Society in the Holyland. (M) Staff. This course will survey the archaeological history of the southern Levant (Israel, West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, southern Lebanon and Syria) from the early complex societies of the Chalcolithic through the demise of the biblical states of the Iron Age. It will focus in particular on the changing organization of society through time, using excavated evidence from burials, houses, temples and palaces to track changes in social heterogeneity, hierarchy and identity. In following the general themes of this course, students will have opportunity to familiarize themselves with the geographic features, major sites and important historical events of the southern Levant. Class material will be presented in illustrated lectures and supplemented by the study of artifacts in the University Museum's collections.

Jewish Studies

024. (ANTH124, JWST124, NELC155) Archaeology and the Bible; Conflict Insight Understanding. (M)History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Staff. The Hebrew Bible (Tanak) and archaeological research provide distinct, and at times conflicting, accounts of the origins and development of ancient Israel and its neighbors. Religion, culture and politics ensures that such accounts of the past have significant implications for the world we live in today. In this course we will discuss the latest archaeological research from Israel, the Palestinian Territories and Jordan as it relates to the Bible, moving from Creation to the Babylonian Exile. Students will critically engage the best of both biblical and archaeological scholarship, while being exposed to the interpretive traditions of Anthropology as an alternative approach to the available evidence. Open discussions of the religious, social and political implications of the material covered will be an important aspect of the course.

027. (COML057, JWST151, NELC156) Great Books of Judaism. (A) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Stern. The study of four paradigmatic classic Jewish texts so as to introduce students to the literature of classic Judaism. Each text will be studied historically--"excavated" for its sources and roots--and holistically, as a canonical document in

Jewish tradition. While each text will inevitably raise its own set of issues, we will deal throughout the semester with two basic questions: What makes a "Jewish" text? And how do these texts represent different aspects of Jewish identity? All readings will be in translation.

120. (HIST139, JWST156, NELC051, NELC451) History of Jewish Civilization I: From the Biblical Period to the Early Middle Ages. (B) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Dohrmann. A broad introduction to the history of Jewish civilization from its Biblical beginnings until the Middle Ages, with the main focus on the formative period of classical rabbinic Judaism and on the symbiotic relationship between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

121. (HIST140, JWST157, NELC052, NELC452) History of Jewish Civilization II: From the Early Middle Ages to the 17th Century. (A) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Ruderman. A broad introduction to the history of Jewish civilization from the early Middle Ages to the 17th Century. An overview of Jewish society and culture in its medieval and Renaissance settings.

L/R 122. (HIST141, JWST158, NELC053, NELC453) History of Jewish Civilization III. From the 17th Century to the Present. (B) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Wenger/Nathans. This course offers an intensive survey of the major currents in Jewish life from the early modern period to the present. We will trace the process by which the Jews gradually ceased to be a society unto themselves and confronted the sweeping transformations of the modern era, from the Enlightenment and the rise of a bourgeois middle class to projects of nation-building and revolutionary socialism. Within the evolving forms of Jewish religious experience, culture, and identity, we will explore such topics as emancipation, Jewish-gentile relations, the emergence of distinct denominations within Judaism, and the reestablishment of political sovereignty in modern Israel. Weekly readings include broad historical interpretations as well as primary sources such as memoirs, petitions, folklore, and works of literature. Curiosity about Jewish history and a willingness to explore its drama and complexity are the only prereguisits for this course. No prior knowledge of the subject is assumed.

SM 123. (JWST123, NELC283) Introduction to Judaism. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Fishman. Focusing on the festivals of the Jewish calendar and on Jewish life-cycle events, this course examines primary sources from various periods and places that illuminate changes in Jewish practice, in Jewish understandings of ritual, and in ritual's place in Jewish life.

124. (HIST150, JWST130) American Jewish Experience. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Wenger. This course offers a comprehensive survey of American Jewish history from the colonial period to the present. It will cover the different waves of Jewish immigration to the United States and examine the construction of Jewish political, cultural, and religious life in America. Topics will include: American Judaism, the Jewish labor movement, Jewish politics and popular culture, and the responses of American Jews to the Holocaust and the State of Israel.

125. (JWST150, NELC150) Introduction to the Bible (Old Testament). (A) Humanities & Social Science Sector. Class of 2010 & beyond. Tigay. An introduction to the major themes and ideas of the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament), with attention to the contributions of archaeology and modern Biblical scholarship, including Biblical criticism and the response to it in Judaism and Christianity. All readings are in English.

126. (JWST126, NELC186) Jewish Mysticism. (M) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Fishman. Survey of major periods of development of mystical speculation and experience within Judaism. Mystical symbolism as a basis for theosophical interpretations of Torah, Immanentist theologies, mystical ethics. Types of experiences and practices which were cultivated by Jewish mystics in order to achieve intimate communion with the Divine and to facilitate a sacred transformation of themselves and the world. Includes "Riders of the Chariot," The Zohar (Book of Splendor), Lurianic Kabbalah, Hasidism.

SM 127. (JWST152, NELC152) Jewish Law and Ethics. (A) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. An introduction to the literary and legal sources of Jewish law within an historical framework. Emphasis will be placed upon the development and dynamics of Jewish jurisprudence, and the relationship between Jewish law and social ethics.

128. (JWST128) Jews, Judaism, and Modernity. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. A survey of Jewish thinkers and movements of the modern period focusing on the historical, intellectual, and social foundations of modern Judaism. Through careful reading of primary sources in translation, students will be exposed to seminal writings that respond both to new challenges and the broader issues of religious continuity and discontinuity.

SM 129. (JWST100, NELC252, NELC552) Themes in the Jewish Tradition. (C) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Ben-Amos, Stern. Course topics will vary; have included The Binding of Isaac, Responses to Catastrophies in Jewish History, and Concepts of Jewishness from Biblical Israel to the Modern State.

220. (COML228, HEBR250, JWST256) Studies in the Hebrew Bible. (B) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Tigay. Prerequisite(s): Knowledge of biblical Hebrew and prior experience studying the Hebrew text of the Bible. Knowledge of Greek is not required. Language of instruction is English. The aim of this course is to introduce students to the critical methods and reference works used in the modern study of the Bible. To the extent possible, these methods will be illustrated as they apply to a single book of the Hebrew Bible that will serve as the main focus of the course.

221. (COML283, FOLK280, JWST260, NELC258) Jewish Folklore. (C) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in History & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Ben-Amos. The Jews are among the few nations and ethnic groups whose oral tradition occurs in literary and religious texts dating back more than two thousand years. This tradition changed and diversified over the years in terms of the migrations of Jews into different countries and the historical, social, and cultural changes that these countries underwent. The course attempts to capture the historical and ethnic diversity of Jewish folklore in a variety of oral literary forms. A basic book of Hasidic legends from the 18th century will serve as a key text to explore problems in Jewish folklore relating to both earlier and later periods.

SM 223. (COML257, JWST153, NELC158, NELC458) Jewish Literature in the Middle Ages. (C)Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Stern. An introduction to medieval Hebrew literature, with special attention to poetry, narrative, and the interpretation of the Bible, and to the varieties of Jewish experience that these literary works touch upon. All readings in translation.

SM 224. (COML380, JWST255, NELC250, NELC550) The Hebrew Bible in Translation. (C) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Tigay. Careful textual study of a book of the Hebrew Bible ("Old Testament") as a literary and religious work in the light of modern scholarship, ancient Near Eastern documents, and comparative literature and religion. The book varies from year to year.

SM 225. (JWST225, NELC251, NELC651) Introduction to the Dead Sea Scrolls. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Reed. Exploration of the issues relating to the identification and history of the people who produced and used these materials as well as the claims made about the inhabitants of the Qumran site near the caves in which the scrolls were discovered, with a focus on what can be known about the community depicted by some of the scrolls, its institutions and religious life, in relation to other known Jewish groups at that time (the beginning of the common era). This will involve detailed description and analysis of the writings found in the caves -- sectarian writings, "apocrypha" and "pseudepigrapha," biblical texts and interpretations.

SM 226. (HEBR257, JWST257) Studies in Rabbinic Literature. (D) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Prerequisite(s): Students must be able to read an unpointed Hebrew text. An introduction to the reading of classical Rabbinic literature. Focus will be on the Mishnah and Babylonian Talmud with parallel readings from Tosefta, Midreshei Halkhah, and the Palestinian Talmud. While traditional Rabbinic commentators will be utilized, the class will be introduced to modern methodologies of Talmudic textual research. Texts will be read mainly in Hebrew with supplementary English readings. Ability to read unvocalized Hebrew required.

SM 227. (JWST227) Modern Jewish Thought. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Through a reading of such thinkers as Martin Buber, Gershom Scholem and Franz Rosenzweig, the course will address some of the fundamental issues in modern Jewish thought and experience.

L/R 320. (HIST380, JWST380) Modern Jewish Intellectual and Cultural History. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Ruderman. An overview of Jewish intellectual and cultural history from the late 18th century until the present. The course considers the Jewish enlightenment Reform, Conservative and Neo-Orthodox Judaism, Zionist and Jewish Socialist thought, and Jewish thought in the 20th century, particularly in the context of the Holocaust. Readings of primary sources including Mendelsohn, Geiger, Hirsch, Herzl, Achad-ha-Am, Baeck, Buber, Kaplan, and others. No previous background is required.

327. (HEBR356, HEBR656) Talmudic/Midrashic Literature. (M) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Stern. An introduction to the reading of classical rabbinic literature. The topic will vary, ranging from Talmudic to Siddur. Readings will be in Hebrew with supplemental English works.

SM 426. (HEBR486, JWST426) Rabbinic Writers on Rabbinic Culture. (M) Fishman. Prerequisite(s): Reading knowledge of Hebrew. This course traces reflections on rabbinic culture produced within Jewish legal literature of the classic rabbinic period - - Midrash, Mishna, and Talmud - - and in later juridical gemres - - Talmudic commentary, codes and responsa. Attention will be paid to the mechanics of different genres, the role of the underlying prooftext, the inclusion or exclusion of variant opinions, the presence of non-legal information, attitudes toward predecessors, balance between precedent and innovation.

SM 429. (COML584, GRMN581, HIST490, JWST490) Topics In Jewish History. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Reading and discussion course on selected topics in Jewish history. The instructors are visiting scholars at the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies

SM 520. (JWST320, JWST520, NELC454, RELS321) Spirit and Law. (M) Fishman. While accepting "the yoke of the commandments", Jewish thinkers from antiquity onward have perennially sought to make the teachings of revelation more meaningful in their own lives. Additional impetus for this quest has come from overtly polemical challenges to the law, such as those leveled by Paul, medieval Aristotelians, Spinoza and Kant. This course explores both the critiques of Jewish Law, and Jewish reflections on the Law's meaning and purpose, by examining a range of primary sources within their intellectual and historical contexts. Texts (in English translation) include selections from Midrash, Talmud, medieval Jewish philosophy and biblical exegesis, kabbalah, Hasidic homilies, Jewish responses to the Enlightenment, and contemporary attempts to re-value and invent Jewish rituals.

SM 521. (HEBR550, JWST550) A Book of the Bible. (C) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Tigay. Prerequisite(s): Knowledge of biblical Hebrew and prior experience studying the Hebrew text of the Bible. Knowledge of Greek is not required. May be repeated for credit. Language of instruction is English. Qualified undergraduates are welcome but need permission from the instructor. The focus will be on the study of the Hebrew text of a book of the Bible. The book varies from year to year.

SM 523. (COML527, HEBR583, HIST523, JWST523) Studies in Medieval Jewish Culture. (C) Fishman. Prerequisite(s): Reading knowledge of Hebrew. Primary source readings from a broad array of medieval Jewish genres. Topic will vary from one semester to another, for example: custom, gender, dissent.

SM 525. (COML580, JWST525) Varieties of Judaism in the Greco-Roman Era. (H) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Reed. An examination of the varieties of Jewish Thought current from ca. 300 B.C.E. to ca. 200 C.E., and of the ways in which the early Christian church adapted and/or reacted to this Jewish heritage.

SM 529. (HIST550, JWST529) The Religious "Other" in Pre-Modern Jewish Culture. (M) Fishman. This "bi-directional" course explores the presence of the religious Other as it is refracted in Jewish literature of a particular time and place, and the presence of Jews and Judaism in contemporaneous non-Jewish writings, whether Hellenistic, Christian or Muslim. Attention will be paid to ways in which the belief systems and religious practices of the Other are perceived and portrayed, to internal policies regulating interactions with the Other, and to cross-cultural influences, whether or not these are acknowledged. Primary source readings will be available in English translation.

SM 620. (HEBR556, JWST650) Seminar in Biblical Studies. (A) Tigay. Prerequisite(s): Facility in Biblical Hebrew. In-depth study of a special topic or problem in Biblical studies.

Christianity

SM 133. An Introduction to Christianity. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Matter. A survey of the classical Christian Traditions (Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, Protestant groups). The basic perspective is phenomenological, but historical and folkloric considerations are also raised. Topics include the symbols of Christian faiths, perspectives on human nature, and views of evil.

135. Christian Origins. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Reed. Christianity did not begin in a vacuum - indeed it emerged from the complex Jewish world of which we catch a glimpse in the "Dead Sea Scrolls" and it blossomed into various forms among the "mystery religions" of the Greco-Roman world around the Mediterranean Sea and farther east. In this course we will explore those developments in the first two centuries of the Common Era, with special focus on the evidence preserved in the earliest surviving Christian writings, including the "New Testament" collection. The goal of the course is neither conversion nor its opposite, but understanding as best we can from this chronological and geographical distance what the participants in the various developments thought was happening, and how they shaped and were shaped by their worlds. We will get very involved in discussing what can be known about the period, and how much we as interpreters contribute to any resulting "historical" picture.

L/R 236. (COML241, GRMN256) The Devil's Pact in Literature, Music and Film. (C) Arts & Letters Sector. All Classes. Richter. For centuries the pact with the devil has signified humankind's desire to surpass the limits of human knowledge and power. From the reformation chap book to the rock lyrics of Randy Newman's Faust, from Marlowe and Goethe to key Hollywood films, the legend of the devil's pact continues to be useful for exploring our fascination with forbidden powers.

SM 239. Music in the History of Christianity. (M) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Matter. Selected periods of Christian history studies from the point of view of musical expression in Christian worship.

SM 432. (LATN409) Readings in Latin Literature. (M) Staff. An advanced reading and discussion seminar on varying subjects in Latin literature: authors, genres or topics. Focus will vary each semester, and the course may be repeated for credit.

SM 433. Christian Thought From 200-1000. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Matter. Prerequisite(s): None--some background in European history helpful. The development of the major Christian groups from the Central Middle Ages to the beginning of the modern era. Theolory, worship, and community identification.

SM 434. Christian Thought From 1000-1800. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Matter. Prerequisite(s): None-some background in European history helpful. The development of the major Chrisitan groups from the Central Middle Ages to the beginning of the modern era. Theology, worship, and community identification.

SM 435. Sources for the Life of Jesus. (M) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Reed. A critical assessment of early Christian traditions about Jesus (to ca. 200 CE), with special attention to methodology. Emphasis on applying consistent critical criteria in the analysis of ancient materials and traditions concerning Jesus, from whatever source (opponents, enthusiastic advocates, relatively uninvolved reporters). Problems encountered by any historian dealing with any subject of which the historian was not an eyewitness will be illustrated and elaborated in the investigation of what is known about Jesus.

SM 436. (COML591) The Life and Letters of Paul. (M) Distribution Course in Arts & Letters. Class of 2009 & prior only. Reed. The purpose of this course is to learn how to understand a noted author/thinker of the past on his own terms and in relationship to his own world. The specific subject matter is PAUL, a Jewish and Christian writer in the Greco-Roman world during the first century of the common era (c.e.). The larger historical context is Judaism and Christianity in the first two centuries c.e.

SM 437. (PHIL429) Medieval Philosophy. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Ross. Critical and historical examination of writings of Augustine, Anselm, Aquinas, Scotus, Ockham, and others.

SM 438. (ARTH410, HIST410) Topics in Medieval History. (C) Peters. The course deals with different topics whenever given and may be taken repeatedly for credit. Among recent and future topics are: The Popes, Rome, and the world; The Morning of the Magicians; Symbols and Realities of Power in Medieval Europe.

SM 439. (AFRC405, HIST405, URBS405) Religion, Social Justice & Urban Development. (B) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Lamas. Urban development has been influenced by religious conceptions of social justice. Progressive traditions within Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism have yielded: (1) powerful critiques of oppression and hierarchy as well as (2) alternative economic frameworks for ownership, governance, production, labor, and community. Historical and contemporary case studies from the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East will be considered, as we examine the ways in which religious responses to poverty, inequality, and ecological destruction have generated new forms of urban development.

SM 530. (GSOC530) The Feminist Critique of Christianity. (C) Distribution Course in Society. Class of 2009 & prior only. Matter. An overview of the past decades of feminist scholarship about Christian and post-Christian historians and theologians who offer a feminist perspective on traditional Christian theology and practice. This course is a critical overview of this material, presented with a summary of Christian biblical studies, history and theology, and with a special interest in constructive attempts at creating a spiritual tradition with women's experience at the center.

532. (ANTH594) World of the Latter Day Saints. (C) Hammarberg. An ethnography of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in its role today as an emerging world religion, and in its historical origins as an American revitalization movement. Considers world view, social organization, conversion, acculturation, life-course development, belief and disbelief, and the use of advanced technology in the administrative direction of the Church's culture. A research paper is required (20-25 page limit).

SM 533. (HIST533, JWST533) Ancient and Medieval Church History. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Matter/Reed. Selected topics in ancient and Medieval Christianity, for example, biblical interpretation, theological issues.

SM 535. (COML535) Varieties of Christian Thought before Irenaeus. (K) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Reed. A survey of the known groups and perspectives that emerged in the first 150 years or so of the development of "Christianity" from its roots in Judaism and the hellenistic world(s), with special attention to the primary sources (especially literary) and to modern attempts at historical synthesis.

SM 537. (GRMN510) Medieval Christian Mysticism. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Matter. Selected topics in Christian mystical writings. Authors will be read in English translation. Knowledge of medieval languages is helpful, but not required.

SM 538. (COML544) Modern Christian Thinkers. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Close study of selected texts dealing with the relation between Christian ideas and modern thought.

SM 539. (COML509) Kierkegaard. (C) Dunning. Critical examination of selected texts by Kierkegaard. Discussion of such issues as the pseudonymous writings and indirect communication, the theory of stages of religious development, the attack upon establishment religion, the psychological dimension of Kierkegaard's thought, and his relations to his predecessors, particularly Hegel.

SM 735. (CLST735, JWST735) Seminar in Judaism and/or Christianity in the Hellenistic Era. (F) Reed. Knowledge of Greek Presupposed. Student may enter either term. Selected topics from current research interests relating to early Judaism and early Christianity.

SM 736. (HIST736) Seminar in Medieval Religious Studies. (C) Matter. Selected topics in medieval religious studies, especially biblical exegesis. Reading knowledge of medieval Latin required.

Islamics

142. (ANTH142, SAST141) Islam in South Asian Culture. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Spooner. Islam reached South Asia in the eighth century and Muslim rulers held sway over large parts of the Subcontinent for much of the period from the late 12th century until the colonial period. However, the majority of the population never converted to Islam, and since independence in 1947 Islam--its interpretation, relization, and influence--has been a major factor underlying many difficult political issues. This has been true not only in the largest country, India, where Muslims form 12% (unevenly distributed) of the population, but in Bangladesh and Pakistan where non-Muslims are relatively insignificant minorities. This course explores the realities and the perceptions related to Muslim identities and the Islamic heritage in the subcontinent, and sets it in global context by comparison with other parts of the world which share various aspects of the South Asian experience. The course will conclude with an assessment of the larger significance--social, economic and political, as well as cult ural--of Islam in South Asia today.

143. (NELC136) Introduction to Islamic Religion. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Elias. A comprehensive introduction to Islamic doctrines, practices, and religious institutions in a variety of geographic settings from the rise of Islam in the seventh century to the present. Translated source materials from the Qur'an, sayings of Muhammad, legal texts, and mystical works will provide an overview of the literary expressions of the religion. The course aims, as well, to view Islam in the immediacy of everyday life. Among the topics to be covered are: The Qur'an as scripture and as liturgy; Conversion and the spread of Islam; Muhammad in history and in the popular imagination; Concepts of the feminine; Muslim women; Sectarian developments; Transmission of religious knowledge and spiritual power; Sufism and the historical elaboration of mystical communities; modern reaffirmation of Islamic identity; and Islam in the American environment.

147. (HIST147, NELC030) Islamic History to 1517. (M) May be counted as a General Requirement Course in History & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. The transformation of the Middle East into an Islamic civilization and its historical development from the time of Mohammed to the establishment of Ottoman, Savavid, and Mughal empires in the sixteenth century. Rise of Islam, the early Islamic empire, political fragmentation and cultural continuity in Muslim societies from Spain to North India. Within this wide chronological and geographical framework we will focus on the role of Islamic thought, institutions, and identities in a limited number of particularly revealing historical contexts. Primary sources in translation complement the two course textbooks.

246. (NELC236) Islamic Mysticism. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Elias. Typical forms of mystical experience in Islam. The cultural assimilation of ideas achieved by Muslim mystics. The development of Sufism and the formation of the sufi orders. Medieval trends of Sufi speculation and esoteric doctrine. Emphasis on primary readings.

248.(NELC238) Introduction to Islamic Law. (A) Lowry. This course will introduce students to classical Islamic law. Most of the, readings will be taken from primary sources in translation. Areas covered will include criminal law, family law, law in the Qur'an, humanities, and other selected topics.

249.Topics in Islamic Religion and Society. (C) Staff. A course devoted to specific problems in the religion of Islam and Muslim societies. Each semester will focus on oneof the following subjects: Muhammad, Women in Islam, Islamic Mysticism, or American Islam. No previous knowledge of Islam required.

SM 545. (NELC534) Topics in Islamic Religion. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Elias. Prerequisite(s): Reading knowledge of Arabic. Selected topics, such as Sufi Texts or The Qur'an, in the study of Islamic religion.

Southern and Eastern Asia

155. (PHIL050, RELS455, SAST150) Introduction to Indian Philosophy. (C) History & Tradition Sector. All classes. Staff. The fundamentals of Hindu and Buddhist philosophy, the main patterns of Western response to it, and some basic questions of "comparative philosophy". Selected readings from classical Indian texts in English translation.

163. (RELS663, SAST140) Introduction to Hinduism. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Hindu religious beliefs and practices from the earliest period to the present, stressing contemporary religious thought, performances and institutions and their historical backgrounds. Basic human issues such as the origin and nature of the world and society, the meaning of personal existence, sex, birth, death, human responsibility, the family, and destiny- and the variety of Hindu understandings of them as revealed in myth, story, philosophy, and ritual will be the focus of this course. Readings will mostly be original sources in English translation.

173. (SAST142) Introduction to Buddhism. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. An examination of the fundamentals of Buddhist thought and practice. In addition to reading and discussing selected primary Buddhist sources (in English Translation), we shall review the history and development of Buddhism from its Indian origins through its spread to Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Tibet, China, Korea, and Japan. Primary sources and historical materials will be supplemented by some ethnographic readings dealing with the actualities of Buddhist life in contemporary Southeast and East Asia. This course provides basic background for more advanced courses on Buddhism.

L/R 184. (EALC034) What is Taoism?. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Goldin. Topical study of the Taoist religion and its relations through history to philosophical Taoism, popular religion, and science.

SM 263. Studies in Hinduism. (M) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Staff. Prerequisite(s): RELS 163/SARS 163 or SARS 101 or equivalent, or permission of instructor. Religious experience and expression in Hindu India in their diversity and regional variations to the present. Intended as an intermediate/advanced course for students who already have an introductory knowledge of the subject, this course will examine relevant backgrounds and representative primary sources to assess continuity and change in learned and vernacular Hindu attitudes and practices.

276. (EALC265) Zen Buddhism. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. LaFleur. This course examines the history, doctrines, and practices of Zen Buddhism in China, Japan and the West. Topics include the monastic life, notable Zen masters, Zen's cultural impact, and enlightenment.

455. (PHIL050, RELS155, SAST150) Introduction to Indian Philosophy. (A) Staff. A survey of Indian philosophical thought from its Vedic beginnings to the early modern period. Fall: Hindu philosophy. Spring: Buddhist philosophy. Selected readings in English translation.

SM 461. (SAST310, SAST610) Introduction to Tantra. (C) Staff.

SM 489. (EALC269, EALC669) Japanese Buddhism. (C) Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Lafleur. An introduction to the history and cultural role of Buddhism in Japan. Emphasis is on Buddhism as a component in the religious, intellectual, and cultural life of the Japanese, especially in poetry and the visual arts. Includes a short review of prior Buddhism in India and China.

552. (SAST552) Devotional Literatures of North India. (C) Behl. Readings of medieval devotional texts in the North Indian languages, such as the Ramcaritmanas of Tulsidas, Sufi narratives, medieval poetry in Hindi, Urdu, Dakkini, Bengali, etc.

SM 562. (SAST562) Religions of Southern India. (M) Staff. Critical examination of selected problem areas in the interpretation of religious texts, traditions, institutions, and practices in South and Southeast Asia.

593. (COML504, EALC513, CINE205, RELS193) Buddhism, Criticism and Film. (M) LaFleur. This is the graduate level of Rels 193. See Rels 193 for description of the course.