Recently in Introduction to Religion Category

This will be the final day of our introductory unit. We'll start with Hinduism on Monday. Remember that there is a Reading Schedule that you should be following.

I mentioned this in passing, and I know it was running real slow for people who did check it out. So, I'll again link Belief-O-Matic's quiz, "What's your faith?" No, it's not intended to convert, but rather to match your answers to 20 questions against the "typical" answers from different religions. You might find it interesting and/or entertaining to try at some point.

We'll start off today talking about both your first Independent Assignment and the final set of readings from the introductory packet.

These were the articles for today:

• "Books on Atheism Are Raising Hackles in Unlikely Places"
• "A Modest Proposal for a Truce on Religion"
• "When Atheists Have Their Say"
• "Taking the Debate About God Online, and Battling It Out With Videos"
• "Brawl Over Islam on Facebook"

Sacred Literature: We'll hear from you on the creation story accounts you took a look at last class period. You were asked to take a look at some of the creation stories from the packet you were given. (You were all asked to read the Genesis account.) Let's hear what you found.

* According to each passage, how did creation happen?

* Based on these accounts, what general conclusions can be drawn about each religion's view on the role and meaning of human life?

* How are the views of creation in the passages similar? How are they different? Do they imply different views of the purpose and role of humans in the universe?

Sacred Literature links: We'll obviously do more with the sacred literature of specific faiths. Here are a couple of more general links that we didn't get to last time.

You might also want to take a look at World Scripture: A Comparative Anthology of Sacred Texts. Pick a couple issues and see what various works of sacred literature have to say on the subjects.

Others of you might be more interested in this. It is a site comprised of texts from various faiths.

If you are interested in comparing various "editions" of a work of sacred literature, in this case the Christian Bible, try this site.

Alternatives to Religion: Some of you may disagree, but it seems reasonable to me to look a bit at some of the alternatives to religious faith in a class about religion. You were asked to consider these two questions in preparation for today.

We'll use our two sessions this week to wrap up our introductory look at religion. Today, our foci will be on stereotypes/prejudice and sacred literature. Thursday. we'll turn our attention to "alternatives to religion." After that, we'll tackle Hinduism as our first specific faith next week.

REMINDERS: Your Blog Entry #1 was technically due before the start of class today. (Given the uncertainly about posting comments, I won't count those late this time for another 24 hours.) Your first Independent Assignment is due before the start of class on Thursday, September 11th.

Here are the readings for today:

• "Holy Missteps"
• "The Muslim Stereotype"
• "University Installs Footbaths to Benefit Muslims, and Not Everyone is Pleased"
• "It's a Simple Scarf, but Its Meaning is Much More Than Faith"
• "6 Imams Removed From Flight for Behavior Deemed Suspicious"
• "The Separation of Church and Job"

Sacred Time and Place: At the end of our last session, you were asked to bookmark two of the photos you find particularly meaningful or interesting from Sacred Sites, which features the work of photographer Martin Gray. Let's see what you've found.


Stereotypes and Prejudice in Religion: We'll start with a quiz here...

Stereotypes:

• What is a stereotype? What are the various types of stereotypes?
• Why do we stereotype?
• Is stereotyping always a bad thing?
• How do we best manage our tendency to stereotype?

Prejudice:

• What is prejudice?
• Why does prejudice exist? Is it inevitable?
• What are the five levels of prejudice?

Sacred Literature: We'll do several brief exercises related to sacred literature. After a few introductory comments, we'll look at one example of a work of sacred scripture, the Tao Te Ching (or Dao De Ching). Next, we'll consider the role of creation stories around the world.

Tao Te Ching:
The Tao Te Ching is the sacred literature of Taoism. There are different speculations about it authorship, yet it is the second most widely translated "book" in the world, following only the Bible. The Tao Te Ching is composed of 81 very short "chapters" or verses. There are a series of them. Spend perhaps ten minutes passing them around and reading/ discussing them. Try to come up with any generalizations or insights that you can regarding the work and its meaning.

Check this site for more information on the Tao Te Ching. Compare several of the translations and consider the issues raised by different translations.

Creation Stories:
You will next look at some examples of creation stories for various religions. One of the purposes of sacred literature is to explain notions of "origin" and creation. Take a packet and work in a group of two or three students. Each group should select four stories and the Judeo-Christian story found in Genesis 1 and 2. Read the selections and jot down answers to the following questions. Your group should be prepared to show evidence of this work on Thursday.

* According to each passage, how did creation happen?

* Based on these accounts, what general conclusions can be drawn about each religion's view on the role and meaning of human life?

* How are the views of creation in the passages similar? How are they different? Do they imply different views of the purpose and role of humans in the universe?

If you have time remaining today, take a look at World Scripture: A Comparative Anthology of Sacred Texts. Pick a couple issues and see what various works of sacred literature have to say on the subjects.

Others of you might be more interested in this. It is a site comprised of texts from various faiths.

If you are interested in comparing various "editions" of a work of sacred literature, in this case the Christian Bible, try this site.

Small-group Discussion- At the end of Friday's class you were also asked to form a small group and consider these issues. At least one person should serve as a "recorder" for the group. If you have yet to do this, you should try to form a group and do this in advance of Thursday's class.

• Is religion a less powerful force today than it has been in the past? If so, why do you think it has declined in importance? If not, why has it remained strong? Be specific.
  
  
• Do you think religion will ever become obsolete? Could human society and culture exist in a world without religion? Why or why not?

Fun Site for the Day: BeliefNet has a lot of resources related to religion. It's not the most academic site in the world, but it has some fun stuff. Here's Belief-O-Matic's quiz, "What's your faith?" No, it's not intended to convert, but rather to match your answers to 20 questions against the "typical" answers from different religions. Take it if you'd like, but take it with a grain of salt...


HOMEWORK for Day #7 - Introduction to Religion

We'll turn our attention to issues related to the "alternatives to religion" and the rise of what many are calling "new atheism." Please read the articles assigned for Day #7 in the reading packet.

Your first independent assignment is due Thursday. You can find the reminder at the top of this entry, and more specific information is available on the "pages" listed to the right on the blog itself.

We'll use today's lesson and our two sessions next week to wrap up our introductory look at religion. After that, we'll tackle Hinduism as our first specific faith.

REMINDERS: You have Blog Entry #1 due before the start of class on Tuesday, September 9th. Your first Independent Assignment is due before the start of class on Thursday, September 11th.

Here are the readings for today:

• "Our Fight is Righteous"
• "Religion in World Affairs: Its Role in Conflict and Peace"
• "Religion Journal: Shrines Serve the Need for Healing in Public Spaces"
• "Adam and Eve in the Land of the Dinosaurs"
• "Beliefs; In four pages, Al Franken ranks world religions and explains the thousand faces of God"
• "Summer Movies; God: Still Ready for His Close-Up"

Discussion question: On balance, is religion more a force of unity or division in today's world? Why?

Religion Scholars:  I gave you the little slips of paper pertaining to one of seven scholars of religion as you left last time. Let's hear just a bit about each of these folks and how they have influenced the study of religion.

• Emile  Durkheim
• Sigmund Freud
• Rudolf Otto
• Mircea Eliade
• Wilfred Cantwell Smith
• Karen Armstrong
• Diana Eck

Sacred Literature: We'll do several brief exercises related to sacred literature over the next few days. After a few introductory comments, we'll look today at one example of a work of sacred scripture, the Tao Te Ching (of Dao De Ching). Next week, we'll consider the role of creation stories around the world.


Sacred Time and Place: We've touched on these issues in both our discussion of ritual and of the religion in general. Sacred Sites features the work of photographer Martin Gray, who has spent more than 25 years photographing sacred sites around the world. DO THIS: Browse through the collection, focusing on sites important to Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, as well as anything else that interests you. Be sure to read the descriptions found beneath some of the photos. Bookmark two of the photos you find particularly meaningful or interesting. We'll share them next session.


Small-group Discussion- If time permits, I'll ask you to work in groups of three or four for this short discussion. Get together and discuss these questions to bring back to the large group. We'll take a good ten minutes, maybe fifteen for this. At least one person should serve as a "recorder" for the group. We may not get back to the "big group" until next week.

• Is religion a less powerful force today than it has been in the past? If so, why do you think it has declined in importance? If not, why has it remained strong? Be specific.
  
  
• Do you think religion will ever become obsolete? Could human society and culture exist in a world without religion? Why or why not?

HOMEWORK for Day #6 - Introduction to Religion

We'll turn our attention to issues related to the roles stereotyping and prejudice can play in looking at religion. Please read the articles assigned for Day #6 in the reading packet.

You've got two assignments due next week. You can find the reminder at the top of this entry, and more specific information is available on the "pages" listed to the right on the blog itself.

Welcome back.  I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend, whether you were at the State Fair or protesting the RNC or protesting the protesters or whatever...

Our main focus today will be on the use of symbols and symbolism in religion.  I've got a bunch of examples and a couple of corny activities for us.

The articles for today:

• "Form, Function and Controversy"
• "Dark Meat"
• "Use of Wiccan Symbol on Veteran's Headstones is Approved"
• "Muslim's Seek Nike's Apology"
• "Dispute Over Creche Pulls Down Tree and Menorah, Too"

Symbols and Symbolism in World Religions:
In addition to deriving a working definition of "symbol," we'll take a look at a number of examples and see what we can discern about the role of symbols in religion. I did invite you to think about/ create a symbol that represents "you." If anyone did that and is willing to share, that would be great.


We didn't get to this activity last time, so we'll wrap up today with it...

Religion Scholars: As you would probably imagine, a number of influential thinkers and scholars have studied religion over the years.  You can take entire courses in the philosophy of religion or on theories of religion.  Today, we'll take a very cursory look at the work of a handful of these scholars, both past and present.

You'll get a slip with one of seven names on it, as well as a little bit of information on them.  Use that as a starting point to do a little Internet research on your figure.  3-4 of you will have each one.  We're not asking for a book report or anything here.  Instead, simply tell us who the person was and how they contributed to the study or religion.  

Emile Durkheim

Sigmund Freud

Rudolf Otto 

Mircea Eliade

Wilfred Cantwell Smith

Karen Armstrong

Diana Eck

Homework for Day #4 - Introduction to Religion

Please read the articles from the packet that are assigned for Day #4.  Our focus will be on the roles ritual and ritual behavior play in our lives and in religion in particular.

I've posted a blog entry for the initial chapter in Huston Smith's The World's Religions. They'll always be on separate blog postings, and the specific due date will be listed there.

Welcome back.  We'll continue our look at the broad field of "religion" today, and we'll turn our attention to symbols on Friday.

Welcome to the class.  This is probably my favorite class to teach, and I missed not doing it last year.  (We didn't offer the class since last year's senior class was smaller, and a number of them took the class as juniors.)  16 years ago, I had three sections of a course called "Religion in Human Culture" on my teaching schedule during my first year at Eagan HS.  I was scared to death, mostly because I knew relatively little about Christianity, and even less about any other faith.  The more I prepared, the more interested I got.  Each year, I learn a lot from the students in the class, and there are always additional facets to explore.  I think you'll enjoy it.  

Several things on the agenda for today:

* First, we'll do a couple introductory activities to make sure I remember all of you and to give you an overview of the course and important policies.  The book we'll use in this course is Huston Smith's The World Religions:  Our Great Wisdom Traditions.  We'll make pretty extensive use of it, particularly following our introductory unit.

* Next, we'll do a "pre-test" to see where you are in your knowledge of world religions.  No, it doesn't count.

* Finally, we'll start doing some thinking together about the idea and meaning of religion.

What is religion? We will try and derive a working definition of religion as a group. We'll refer to that most academic of sources, People magazine, for some help here...

What are the functions of religion? - Again, let's derive a list by brainstorming.

Why should we study religion(s)? - One more list to finish things off...

HOMEWORK for Day #2 - Introduction to Religion

Please read the articles from your packet as listed in the unit reading guide.  We'll discuss them at the beginning of our next session.  (You'll also be expected to read the Foreword, Preface and Chapter 1, "Point of Departure," from Smith's The World's Religions during the course of this unit.)

We'll explain the process for making blog entries and other assignments at our next meeting.