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Class Notes for 07-100
Religion and Culture
University of Windsor
Fall
Semester, 2006
Professor B.L. Whitney, B.A., Ph.D.
OFFICIAL CLASS
OUTLINE (revised Sept 6/06)
This is the "OFFICIAL" Class
Outline for the Fall 2006 semester version of 07-100. This
Outline takes precedence over any former and current Outlines
which may be found in University calendars and websites. The
courses listed in the University calendar may, in theory, be
taught by more than one professor, and since each professor brings
a different expertise to the course, course content can vary
considerably. The University calendars' description, accordingly,
should be considered a generalized outline only, one which which
does not provide the specific details for the actual course content
which varies year to year. When the course is taught by Dr. Whitney,
the content is modified each time to reflect the professor's
expertise and ongoing research in the subject matter of the course.
The content also reflects the professor's past experience in
the course and the material which has been most useful and appreciated
by the past students.
Please read this Outline
carefully, all of it, since this is not a course recommended
for everyone. It is advisable to remain enrolled in this
course only if the content is of interest to you and if you
are prepared to bring a mature attitude to the material to
be studied. This is not the place to look for an easy course
credit with a minimal workload. This is, in fact, a rigorous
academic course which can also be an emotional experience
for some students. Religious beliefs (and also non-religious
beliefs passionately held) are intensely personal and important
to most people. As such, enrolled students must be open to
the academic study presented in the course, the study of
religious beliefs, without feeling threatened or becoming
angry when perspectives which differ from their own are encountered.
Note also that this course focuses on Christianity
as the main test case for theism and for assessments of Atheism
and New Age Spirituality. For those students who find Christianity
offensive or irrelevant, this is not a course in which you
ought to remain enrolled. Unlike any other religion, Christianity
is the dominant religion of this culture and in fact is inseparable
from the culture. For that reason alone it is worth serious
study to help Christians and non-Christians alike to become
more informed about what this religion teaches and how it seeks
to justify its beliefs. Note also that religious beliefs, including
Christian beliefs, have not been interpreted or represented
well in non-theological academic fields of study. Consequently,
this course provides the rare academic opportunity to study
not only religious beliefs in general but Christian beliefs
in particular from a theological perspective.
The course will be conducted in a non-threatening
academic environment. The study of religious beliefs
in no way implies or assumes agreement with those
beliefs. There will be no pressure in this course to agree
or disagree with the material covered in the assigned texts;
there will be no essays or exam questions where students are
required to express personal beliefs, nor will they be required
to assess their own or the religious beliefs of others. Doing
so is the decision and responsibility of the individual student
when they feel inclined to do so outside the classroom.
THEMATIC OUTLINE
The course discusses the conflict among the three major worldviews
which compete in contemporary western culture: (1) traditional
Christian Theism, (2) Atheism (secular humanism, naturalism),
and (3) Alternative Spiritualities (new age). There is also
a philosophical Postmodernism which has infiltrated the culture.
The assigned readings and class discussions will examine
the basic elements of these worldviews.
REQUIRED TEXTS
1. J. Sire, The
Universe Next Door (Available also at Amazon.ca and
Amazon.com -- (new and used)
2. D. Groothius, Unmasking
the New Age (Available also at Amazon.ca and Amazon.com
-- (new and used)
3. Assigned web documents (free)
Reference (optional): R. Fuller, Spiritual,
But Not Religious (Amazon.com: $30.00 US)
Reference (optional): Lewis, et al, eds. Perspectives
on the New Age (Amazon.ca: $32.41)
Reference (optional): Newport, The
New Age Movement and The Biblical Worldview (Amazon.ca:
$50.38)
GRADING
Please note that due to past problems at the University with
missed tests and exams, the Faculty of Arts and Social Science
policy is NOT to permit students who miss tests and exams to
rewrite them except for the most unusual and exceptional circumstances.
The final grade is based on the following:
[1] MID-TERM TESTS (20% and 30%
of the final grade): October
10 and November 7. This test will be written in a room assigned
by the University during the regular class time (4:00). Check
the date, time, and place on the University's SIS site. Students who miss
this exam will not be allowed to rewrite it without the professor's permission,
permission which the University defines as based on written proof of extreme
medical or personal reasons. The tests will consist of multiple choice questions,
graded by computer, unless otherwise stated in class.
[2] FINAL EXAM: 50%
of the final grade): December
16. The exam
will be written in a room assigned by the University. Check
the date, room and time on the University's SIS site. This
date and time cannot be changed and students who miss writing
the exam will have to prove extreme medical or personal reasons
(see per the Official Grade Policy). The exam will
consist of multiple choice questions, graded by computer, unless
otherwise stated in class. The final exam will
be cumulative, covering the entire course. Specifics will be
given in class.
Please Note: The midterm tests and final exam will cover the
assigned readings and the additional information given in
class in lectures and class discussions. Additional information
will be given in class.
COURSE PROTOCOL and STUDENT OBLIGATIONS
Class time will consist mostly of lectures (since the class
is too large for intimate discussions), addressing some of
the main points in the assigned readings and giving supplementary
information which is not available in the readings. While this
is an “options” course, it is as academically demanding
as other courses at the University. It is important [1] to
study the assigned readings, [2] to make summaries of the assigned
readings and lectures, and use other study aids, and [3]
to take careful and complete lecture notes in class. Students
are required also [4] to attend every class, [5] to keep
up with the assigned work, and [6] to seek help if you need it.
Students should [7] come to class on time, [8] resist carrying
on private conversations during class --- this is very distracting
to other students and to the professor, and cannot be allowed,
[9] to remain in class while it is in progress (except for emergencies)
and [10] remain for the entire class, not just the first half
-- the class meets only once a week, and it is important to take
full advantage of every class hour rather than skip class and then
try to make sense of the assigned material on your own. Past
history has shown that students who cannot make or keep
these commitments do not do well in this course.
This course has had a large enrolment history and, as such,
has been assigned a fairly large room (130 seats). Regrettably,
because of the size of the classroom and the number of students,
it is unrealistic to expect that this course can be as intimate
as much smaller classes. This class cannot provide the same
opportunity for open discussions that one finds in most smaller
classes, but every effort will be made to allow for student
questions and as much discussions as possible. While the vast
majority of students and professors prefer smaller classes
(20-30 students is the ideal), the current reality is that
large classes must be tolerated by because of the underfunding
and the inability of the University to provide more professors
to teach popular courses in Religion. This cannot happen without
the creation of as new Religious Studies department, something
which does not seem to be in the university's plans. At most,
there may be a Religion and Culture Minor degree: the following
section for more information.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
about "Asian Studies" and "Religious Studies" at
the U of Windsor
Please read the following carefully
to prevent any misinformation or misunderstanding of the
state of Religion on the U of W campus. Read this also to
be better informed about the current course, 07-221. Tragically,
the Department of Religious Studies was closed in the late
1990s. As such, there is no longer a degree available in
Religion at the University. While professors from the former
Religious Studies department continue to teach Religion courses
in their areas of expertise, the number of Religion professors
and courses has decreased drastically since 1997 as many
of the former Religious Studies professors have retired and
have not been replaced. Only five of the ten professors in
the former Religious Studies' department remain on campus.
Four of these professors joined the Department of Languages,
Literatures and Cultures and offer courses in the "Religion
and Culture" section of an area called Intercultural
Studies, an unfortunately cryptic term which does not refer
to "world religions" or "comparative religions" (the
term refers to the fact that the literatures of the several
languages taught in the department are studied: Greek, Latin,
Italian, French, Spanish, Italian, etc.; the term has nothing
to do with religion). Two of the four Religious Studies
professors who joined the "Religion and Culture" section
have recently retired: Dr Mehta who taught Hinduism, and
Dr King who taught Catholic Christianity; the other two professors
remain: Dr Lage, who teaches Christian History, and Dr Whitney,
who teaches Christian Philosophy of Religion. The courses
offered by Drs Lage and Whitney serve as meaningful
options for students, regardless of their major fields of
study and their religious (or non-religious) beliefs. These
courses are accepted by Teacher's College as qualifying courses
for "Religion as a Teachable" area. There is a
possibility that a Minor Degree in Religion and Culture could
be established. This Minor will be based in the Religion
and Culture section of Intercultural Studies in the
Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, with
additional courses from the LLC department in Ancient Greek
and Roman Mythology and Religion, Culture and Ideas courses,
Holocaust courses, and a few other courses from the Intercultural
area (07), including a possible course (or courses) on Islam
to complement the new course on Arabic. There is also a new course
for U of W credit offered by Canterbury College on Religious
Fundamentalism in various religions, and a Political Science
course on the Politics (and Religion) of the Middle East;
07-228 has been taught recently as a course on Islam.
Dozens of Christian and
Asian Religions courses once were taught by professors in
the Asian Studies and Religious Studies departments until
their retirements. These courses included Asian Studies
courses in Hindu History and Beliefs, Hindu Yoga, Buddhist
History and Beliefs, Buddhist Philosophy and Meditation,
Confucianism, Shinto, Zen Buddhism, Hindu Philosophy of Religion,
etc.); the Christian courses included several New Testament
courses, and courses in Business Ethics, Social Ethics, Psychology
of Religion, several in Systematic Theology and several in
Philosophy of Religion, etc.). All of the former Asian Studies
professors have retired and only 5 of the former Religious
Studies professors remain on campus. The University has not
replaced retiring professors from these two former departments
since both the Religious Studies department and the Asian
Studies department were closed in the 1990s. While
it is a sad reality that world religions, comparative religions,
Asian religions, and the once wide variety of Christian courses
no longer are offered at the U of W, the remaining courses
by Drs Lage and Whitney in Christianity form the basis of
the possible new Minor degree program in Religion, a program
-- if it is created -- would then seek to supplement its
courses by seeking permission to hire a professor to teach
Asian and World Religions, and ideally to hire others to
teach Biblical Studies, Islam, Judaism and to fill other
other gaps in the religion offerings at the U of W. It will
be a long, hard climb to build a Religion and Culture Minor
degree and then possibly rebuild a Major degree. It may or
may not come to fruition. The alternative, sadly for the
students, is that the remaining religion courses on campus
will end when the remaining 5 former Religious Studies professors
who teach these courses retire over the next decade.
The current reality, in sum, is that only a
handful of courses on Christianity continue
to be offered. Enrollment is strong in these courses and they
are important since, of course, Christianity is the religion
that has most influenced western culture and is the most familiar
to the majority of people in western culture. Christianity
as been integrated with western culture and continues to have
great influence in North American society. Christianity is
not only the world's largest religion (33%), with over 2 billions
adherents, but is the very basis of our western (European and
North American) culture. In the United States, 85% of the population
is Christian, while 76% of Canadians are Christian. In light
of this and regardless of the individual student's religious
or non-religious preferences, the study of an influential religion
like Christianity is a worthwhile enterprise if one wants to
understand our culture. The study of Christianity in modern
North American culture gives students of all religions (or
none) a basic background in Christian history, beliefs, and
its interaction (often a cultural warfare) with other worldviews
in contemporary culture -- secularism, postmodernism, new age
and alternative spiritualities. Those who are prepared to undertake
this journey are welcome in this class. Those who feel threatened
by studying religion or who are hostile to religion or to Christianity
should find alternative courses. Keep in mind that this
is one of only a handful of classes at the U of W in Christian
Studies and that there is little mention, if any, of Christianity
(or religion in general) in almost all of the other course
at the U. In sum, only 2 professors of the more than 600 professors
at the U of W teach Christianity and only 1 professor is left
teaching courses in eastern religions (the 3 courses in world
religions are offered in the Political Science department).
There may be 1 or more new courses in Islam to complement the
study of the new course in Arabic offered by the Dept. of Languages,
Literatures, and Cultures and -- as noted above -- there is
a new course by Canterbury College (offered by the office of
the Dean of Arts) on Religious Fundamentalism (in various religions),
a Political Science course on Politics (and Religion) in the
Middle East, and the Religion and Culture course 07-228 (Belief
in God in Contemporary Culture) has been taught recently as
a course on the Basics of Islam. Islam as a religion, of course,
should only be taught by a Muslim theologian, as Christianity
should only be taught by an Christian theologian, and Buddhism
by a Buddhist theologian, Hinduism a Hindu theologian, etc.
With the exception of Judaism and Islam, this was the case
with the former Religious Studies and Asian Studies departments
and it is the case in major universities.
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