Bard College Catalogue 2009-2010
2009-2010

Religion

http://religion.bard.edu

Faculty

Overview

Religious ideas and practices have been crucial in shaping distinctive human societies throughout history, and they continue to exercise critical influence in the world of the 21st century. We study the various phenomena we call “religion” for many reasons: for their intrinsic interest; to understand how particular religious expressions may reinforce or challenge their own social and historical settings; and to consider how they may also challenge our own understandings of the world.
At Bard, religion offerings are organized within three primary approaches to the study of religious phenomena: interpretive, historical, and theoretical. (For detailed descriptions of these categories, see the Religion Program website.) .

Requirements

Students wishing to moderate into the Religion Program should, by the semester of Moderation, complete four religion courses, with at least one course in each of the three approaches mentioned above. Students considering the religion major are strongly encouraged to explore several of the five major religious traditions of the world offered in the Bard curriculum: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism.

Graduation requirements in religion include at least eight courses in the Religion Program, in addition to the Senior Project and the Religion Colloquium. Majors are encouraged as well to take courses relevant to the study of religion offered by other programs, such as anthropology, sociology, psychology, theology, literature, historical studies, philosophy, gender and sexuality studies, and others. Courses outside the program that centrally involve religious issues or texts may, in consultation with the adviser, be counted as religion courses. Two courses are required for all moderands: Sacred Pursuits: Seminar in the Study of Religion (Religion 320) and Religion Colloquium.
Students are expected to study a language relevant to the particular religion or area of study upon which they intend to focus for their Senior Project. Relevant languages taught at Bard include Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Hebrew, Japanese, Latin, and Sanskrit.

The Senior Project in the Religion Program will ideally be the culmination of the student’s investigation of religion at Bard and should reflect a sustained analysis of a carefully defined topic in the critical study of religion.

Recent Senior Projects in Religion:

“¡Buen Camino! Active Pilgrimage and the Search for Authenticity on the Camino de Santiago”
“Fever and the Sacrifice: Investigations in the Daksa Narrative of the Santiparvan”
“Stand in This Lotus Heart: Understanding the Modern Image of Kali through the Devimahatmya and Syama-Sangita”
“The Persian Martyr Mentality: The Motif of Martyrdom in Iran”

Buddhist Thought and Practice
Religion 103
cross-listed: asian studies
A study of the basic categories of philosophy and practice in Buddhism, a pan-Asian religious tradition of remarkable diversity and expansive geographical and chronological scope. The course maintains a historical perspective but is structured mainly along thematic lines according to the traditional concepts of the “Three Jewels (or Refuges)”: Buddha (teacher, exemplar, enlightened being), Dharma (doctrine), and Sangha (community), and the “Three Trainings”: Shila (ethics), Samadhi (meditation), and Prajna (wisdom). Readings include primary sources in translation and historical and ethnographic studies.

Introduction to Judaism
Religion 104
cross-listed: jewish studies
Diverse Judaic religious systems have flourished in various times and places. No single Judaism traces a linear, unitary, traditional line from the beginning to the present. This course sets forth a method for describing, analyzing, and interpreting Judaic religious systems and comparing one such system with another. Topics include the formative history of Rabbinic Judaism; Reform, Orthodox, and Conservative Judaisms; Zionism; and the constant place of women in Judaic systems as a basis for comparison and contrast.

Introduction to Islam
Religion 106
cross-listed: theology
Is Islam in 7th-century Arabia the same religion as Islam in 21st-century Michigan? Does West African Islamic mysticism differ from South Asian Islamic mysticism? This course answers these and related questions by introducing Islamic religious systems in a global context. Themes include conceptions of prophecy, ritual practice, and development of Islamic theology and jurisprudence, among others, and texts include the Qur’an, traditions of the prophet Muhammad, philosophical treatises, mystical guidebooks, reform literature, and contemporary educational manuals.

The Bible as Literatures
Religion 110
The Bible is of pivotal importance in understanding the development of literature and history in the West, and it offers unique insights into the nature of the religious consciousness of humanity. A critical appreciation of biblical documents is therefore crucial to a well-rounded education in our culture. Through lectures, discussions, quizzes, essays, and a test, this course helps students to become biblically literate. Tutorials in Greek and Hebrew may be arranged in association with the course.

Christian Moral Decision Making
Religion 115
cross-listed: theology
Capital punishment, euthanasia, the environment, abortion, and homosexuality are among the issues on which individuals and communities seek to make appropriate moral responses. Within Christianity, there are several recognized sources of moral guidance: the Scriptures, tradition, natural law, reason, conscience, official church declarations, and personal experience. Focusing on a selection of moral issues, this course closely examines notions of the processes of moral decision making within Christianity, as well as various understandings of the moral life itself.

Hindu Religious Traditions
Religion 117
cross-listed: asian studies
An overview of the religious movements in India collectively referred to as “Hinduism.” Students explore a range of social and devotional paths taken by Hindus by examining caste structure and social location, as well as the paths of action, devotion, and wisdom (karma, bhakti, and jnana, respectively). They review modern ethnographic accounts of how the tradition is lived, both in India and the United States, with an eye to the construction of sacred space through temples and pilgrimage.

The Future of Christianity
Religion 120
cross-listed: american studies, theology
Questions regarding the continued viability and usefulness of Christianity have been raised with increasing force and frequency—not only by external critics, but also by thoughtful Christians. The social contexts of such questions include the challenge to Western imperialism in all its forms by developments such as the popular pursuit of individualized spiritualities without religious affiliation and the reconceptualization of gender and sexuality. Can the conceptual foundations of Christianity be rethought?

Catholicism and American Society
Religion 122
cross-listed: american studies
Life in America presented Roman Catholics with new opportunities and challenges, including religious pluralism, democratic ideals, and minority status in a predominantly Protestant society. Within the framework of a historical overview, this survey course examines the understandings and strategies employed by Catholic organizations and individuals as they engaged life in the United States to craft a distinctively American Catholic culture.

Reading Religious Texts
Religion 124
cross-listed: asian studies, theology
This course offers an introduction to some of the primary texts of the major world religions, and to the strategies adopted in reading them by both believers and scholars. It focuses on two genres of religious writing: narratives of the foundation of a religious community and lyric expressions of devotion to a deity. Traditional commentarial and hermeneutical methods employed within each religious tradition are examined, along with current methods of academic historians of religion.

History of Islamic Society
Religion 130
cross-listed: medieval studies, middle eastern studies
The rise of Islam in Arabia dramatically affected the historical landscape of territories stretching from Spain to the Indus Valley and from Central Asia to Yemen. This course surveys the political, social, religious, and cultural developments of these Islamic worlds from the 7th to the 16th century c.e. It addresses topics such as the process of conversion, the formation of Islamic art, and the growth of political and religious institutions. Readings include historical, biographical, literary, political, religious, and philosophical texts.

Pilgrimage
Religion 133
A consideration of pilgrimage as a unifying theme in the exploration of human religiosity, and as a crucial element in the shaping of trade and commerce, geographic consciousness, centers of political power, and artistic forms. While this course regularly returns to examinations of “ritual pilgrimages”—such as the Islamic hajj to Mecca—it also investigates pilgrimage more metaphorically, by looking at literary, legendary, and visionary journeys.

Religion and Politics
Religion 156
cross-listed: theology
With the close of the Cold War, a confrontation between the Soviet and American empires ensued that took on some traits of a religious struggle. George H. W. Bush announced a “new world order,” and Francis Fukuyama predicted “the end of history.” Events have disappointed belief in those and other forecasts. Instead, the underlying role of religion in shaping behavior has become increasingly evident, and in some cases troubling. This course investigates how the global religions shape ideals, policies, and strategies of governance.

Narrating the Modern Middle East
Religion 160
In 1979, Iran underwent a revolution that overthrew Shah Reza Pahlavi and replaced his rule with an Islamic theocracy. In an attempt to understand the revolution’s significance within Middle Eastern history, two narratives have emerged. The first argues that the presence of an Islamic state is a divergence from the process of modernization; the second interprets the revolution as a culmination of political and religious resistance against imperialism and colonialism. Students examine historical monographs, imperial communiqués, ethnographies, novels, and films to assess these opposing narratives.

Sexuality and Spirituality
Religion 213
cross-listed: gss, theology
Contemporary reappraisals of the domains of sexuality and spirituality have shed new light on the boundaries placed between them in Christian traditions. This course examines the historical, social, cultural, and theological roots and significance of these boundaries, as well as the numerous tensions and movements that cluster around them within contemporary Christianity. Extra-Christian religious perspectives, including Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and the cultic beliefs and practices of indigenous populations, are drawn into the discussion for comparison.

Islam and Modernity
Religion 219
cross-listed: middle eastern studies
Is Islam compatible with modernity? Diverse and complex Muslim reactions to modernity span more than two centuries. The history of Islamic reformation, including the role of traditional scholars and liberal intellectuals, is surveyed and analyzed, and the rise of Islamic movements and political Islam addressed in light of the challenges posed by modernity. Topics include the role of Islam in the public sphere vs. secularization, pluralism, human rights, and gender equality, among others.

History of Early India
Religion 221
cross-listed: asian studies, historical studies
An overview of the early history and culture of South Asia, from its earliest urban civilization in the Indus Valley (2500–1800 b.c.e.) up to the classical period of the Gupta dynasty in northern India (300–550 c.e.). Some topics covered are the Indus Valley civilization and early Indo-Aryan or Vedic culture; the rise of the Mauryan empire; and the emergence and growth of Buddhism and Jainism. Emphasis is given to key issues such as the development of caste society and the status of women.

Intermediate Readings in Sanskrit
Religion 225
cross-listed: asian studies
The course combines intermediate-level readings in Sanskrit with the study of Indian society and religion. Students review basic grammatical structures, and go on to read the classical stanzaic verse of kavya in Asvagosa’s Buddhacarita (Life of the Buddha) and Sayana’s 14th-century commentary on the Bhagavad Gita. Prerequisite: Sanskrit 140-141.

Devotion and Poetry in India
Religion 228
Bhakti means “participation in” or “devotion to” God. From 700 c.e. to 1700 c.e., in every region of India, bhakti poet-saints sang songs and lived lives of intense, emotional devotion to their chosen gods. The course explores the world of bhakti through its poetry, touching on such topics as opposition to orthodox social conventions, bhakti and gender, the interactions of Hindu devotionalism and Islamic Sufism, the role of bhakti in Indian music, and the problem of bhakti in 20th-century Indian literature.

Jewish Food and Jewish Eating: A Cultural and Religious Analysis
Religion 233
cross-listed: jewish studies
Jewish food and eating practices have been staples of comedy, but this course seriously examines these topics as a way to view the development of Judaism throughout the ages. Using texts ranging from the Bible and the Talmud to modern literature, students explore the complex religious and cultural structures, theological narratives, and legal principles that have driven Jewish civilization. These are enhanced by readings in anthropology, philosophy, and history, and by careful observation of the contemporary Jewish world.

Introduction to Sufism
Religion 236
cross-listed: middle eastern studies
Sufism is one of the most important philosophical and theological movements within the world of Islam. While primarily known for their production of mystical poetry and achievement of ecstatic states, Sufis have produced a unified system of belief and interpretation that both transgresses and defines the boundaries of the Islamic religious tradition. This course examines some of the central ideas of Sufism, as welll as the historical developments of Sufi orders and their social and political role in Islamic history.

The Sacred, the Uncanny, and the Divine: The Anthropology of Religion
Religion 238 / Anthropology 238
See Anthropology 238 for description.

Hindu Mythology
Religion 241
cross-listed: asian studies, classical studies
In their stories of the deeds of gods and goddesses, Hindus created an endlessly variegated alternative world, designed to delight listeners, to affirm or criticize existing Indian society, and to offer ways for believers to participate devotionally in that other world. Course readings consist primarily of primary sources in translation, as well as some secondary studies of the myths of particular deities. Contemporary comics, graphic novels, animated films, and mass-produced “god posters” are also reviewed.

Hinduism in the Epics
Religion 242
cross-listed: asian studies
The Indian epics have long been one of the major ways that the teachings of the Hindu tradition have been transmitted. In this course students read the Mahabharata (including the Bhagavad Gita) and the Ramayana, with a view to the role of the epics in Hindu ritual and devotional life. In addition, students examine how these texts have been retold and performed in various ways up to the present.

Buddha Imagined: The Literary and Artistic Landscape of Buddhism
Religion 254
cross-listed: asian studies
This course begins by examining the earliest images of the Buddha. Drawing upon literary and artistic sources, it considers how the biography of the Buddha is writ upon the landscape of his birthplace; how his projected presence through images, relics, and stupas reinvents Asia in Buddhist terms; and how new myths and images evolve to imagine and explain an expanding religious tradition. Students explore the transformation of Buddhism’s central mythic narrative and images as they are received and interpreted by other cultures.

Theravada Buddhism
Religion 260
cross-listed: asian studies
Theravada Buddhism is the dominant religious orientation in Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka. This course describes the historical, literary, and religious contours of this Buddhist tradition in accordance with such questions as: What makes the Theravada self-evidently valid to the community of the faithful? What is the worldview of the Theravada, including its position in history, its conception of the Buddha, and its principal ethical teachings? What are the main traits of the Theravada today?

Women and Buddhism
Religion 261
cross-listed: asian studies, gis, gss
This course examines the sacred images and social realities of women in the Buddhist world. Specifically, it considers the ways in which categories such as “woman,” “feminine,” “gender,” and “nun” have been explained and imagined by Buddhist communities (as well as by academics and feminists) through various historical and cultural locations.

Qur’an: Listening, Reading, Viewing
Religion 268
cross-listed: theology
Unlike other religious texts, the Qur’an explains itself. It announces itself as the word of God, and verse after verse reiterates that its form and content provide proof of the reality of Allah’s dominion. This course aims to understand how the Qur’an as a divine book is situated within Islamic culture. In assessing the position of and meanings in the Qur’an, students approach the text through three modes of analysis: listening, reading, and viewing.

Jesus
Religion 274
cross-listed: theology
Recent study of the material and cultural contexts of ancient Israel has advanced critical understanding of Jesus, but the religious context of Jesus and his movement has received less attention. This course investigates Jesus not just as a product of first-century Galilee, but also as a committed Israelite. Students analyze the visionary disciplines that lie at the heart of his announcement of the divine kingdom, his therapeutic arts, his parabolic actions and sayings, and his death and resurrection.

Imagination in Religion
Religion 276
cross-listed: theology
Dreams, visions, metaphors, and myths, the generative sources of religion, draw from the imagination to create, structure, and restructure “worlds.” But what is imagination, and how do societies and individuals conceptualize, utilize, manipulate, and attempt to regulate or contain its expressions and effects? Readings include the works of several contemporary theologians (Henry Scott Holland, Matthew Fox, and Letty Russell) and are also drawn from anthropological and psychological literature.

Mary Magdalene and Her Sacrament
Religion 277
cross-listed: theology
Since the first century c.e., hierarchical authorities have sought to silence Mary Magdalene. However successful they have been, unmistakable signs of her influence remain. This course examines the persistence of her signature sacraments, from the era of medieval hagiographies on through the conspiracy theories of modern revisionists.

The History of Christian-Muslim Relations
Religion 283
cross-listed: medieval studies
This course provides a historical overview of Christian-Muslim relations by discussing the lives and writings of significant persons against the backdrop of important events and developments, including the exploration of some of the key issues that have divided Christians and Muslims. The course is open to all students interested in religion and history.

Jewish Searches for Alternative Spirituality
Religion 284
cross-listed: jewish studies, theology
Periodically throughout Jewish history, some individuals or groups have felt that what they perceived as “mainstream Judaism” had become stale and estranged from an intimate relation to God. In response to these instances of dissatisfaction, a new movement was initiated to create more spiritual models of practice. This course examines and compares several of these movements, among them Kabbalism, early Hasidism, and the contemporary Jewish Renewal movement.

Golden Rule in Religions of the World
Religion 285
cross-listed: jewish studies, theology
The Golden Rule figures in the ethical teachings of all the important religions in the world. This seminar examines the role of the Golden Rule in various religious systems and compares them.

Special Topics in the Study of Religion: Religious Foundations of Tolerance
Religion 290
cross-listed: theology
This seminar takes up the ideas of major world religions on how to make sense of religious difference. Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and other religions are asked to explain the basis for toleration. Each religion is presented through academic papers written for this seminar by various experts.

Seminar: Sacred Pursuits
Religion 320
cross-listed: anthropology
The modern study of religion is an eclectic field, drawing upon many other disciplines in its attempt to circumscribe and comprehend the diversity of human religiosity. This course examines critically various approaches—including psychological, sociological, anthropological, and phenomenological—to the study of religion in the 20th century. The class considers where this field of study may be heading in its postmodern present. Required for religion majors.

Seminar in Islamic Law: Jihad
Religion 321
cross-listed: human rights
In its root meaning of “struggle,” jihad is one of the key generative categories for Islam and Islamic law. The term refers to the believers’ struggle against evil inclinations, the jurists’ struggle to make sense out of the sacred texts, and the armed struggle against unbelievers. This course traces the history and development of Islamic law from its Qur’anic roots to its modern applications, considering the place of jihad alongside rules of ritual, prayer, business transactions, and inheritance.

Belief within a Religiously Plural World
Religion 323
cross-listed: human rights, theology
The proximity of religious traditions in an increasingly global society tends to undermine absolutist and exclusivist truth claims by rendering them both socially and psychologically untenable. What are the alternatives? This seminar explores the question by tracing its biblical and historical roots and antecedents and examining its modern emergence among diverse religious thinkers, including C. S. Lewis, Paul Tillich, Karl Rahner, Thomas Merton, Bede Griffiths, Rosemary Radford Ruether, and John Hick. Prerequisite: Moderation in social studies or permission of the instructor.

World Religions in the Hudson Valley
Religion 338
cross-listed: asian studies
This course provides a historical overview of the movements that have shaped the religious diversity of the Hudson Valley, and offers excursions to local sites of interest. The influx of Buddhism into the region—for example, the Wappingers Falls stupa and the Zen Mountain Monastery in Mount Tremper—is used as a case study. Students then choose a location and religious tradition and produce both a contribution to our collective research on area institutions and a critical paper about religious pluralism and diversity.

Muhammad and His Wives
Religion 339
cross-listed: gss
Depending on which biography you read, the prophet Muhammad can be either the perfect model of a righteously guided Muslim or the vilest example of tyranny, manipulation, and sexual depravity. In between these two polarities is a vast range of attitudes about Muslim prophecy and Islamic faith. This class studies the politics inherent in biographies of Muhammad and his wives. Readings include the first historical accounts of the early Islamic community, traditions found within sayings of Muhammad, universal histories, and devotional literature, plus non-Muslim texts.

Popular Arts in Modern India
Religion 343
cross-listed: art history, asian studies
Bright, wide-eyed Hindu deities, in poster form, are ubiquitous in India. These mass-produced chromolithographs or “god posters” occupy a central place in the country’s visual landscape, but until recently have not received scholarly attention. This seminar explores the world of Indian god posters, considering iconographic features, stylistic developments, political and religious significations, and devotional responses to these commercial prints. The genre is also studied in relation to other modern forms of South Asian visual arts, such as pilgrimage paintings and Bollywood cinema.

Buddhist Ethics
Religion 344
cross-listed: asian studies, gss, human rights
This seminar considers the theoretical structures, patterns of behaviors, and societal norms operative in Buddhist communities of the past and present, East and West. Topics include the shared foundations of Buddhist ethics, canonical formulations and examples from various genres of Buddhist literature, and historical and contemporary accounts of Buddhist behaviors and motivations along several thematic lines. Contemporary issues (human rights, abortion and contraception) are examined in light of Buddhist ethics. Prerequisite: Religion 103 or permission of the instructor.

Legends and Legitimacy in Theravada Buddhism
Religion 345
cross-listed: asian studies
This course explores the genre of chronicle (vamsa) as employed in Southeast Asian Theravada Buddhist cultures. It examines the relationship between myth and history, and considers how mythically infused histories are conceived, preserved, explained, and employed. After reviewing the social history of Theravada Buddhism, students read the earliest texts from Sri Lanka, which bolster Sinhala Buddhist claims of authority, and examine how these texts have been employed in current nationalist and Buddhist fundamentalist movements, and then consider an informative case from 15th-century northern Thailand.

Classical Indian Philosophy
Religion 346
cross-listed: asian studies, philosophy, theology
This seminar explores philosophical developments in ancient and classical India, from the Upanisads through the formation of the three Vedanta schools. Students consider the basic recurring topics and problems of Indian philosophical discourse as formulated both in orthodox (Hindu) and heterodox (Buddhist, Jain, materialist) schools. The second half of the semester focuses on the Bhagavad Gita and its primary commentaries.

Ritual and Performance Studies
Religion 350
cross-listed: anthropology, asian studies
This seminar explores theories of ritual and performance as they have developed in disciplines of religious studies, sociology, anthropology, and theater studies. Using a series of case studies, it considers how these symbolic and transformative human practices are represented and analyzed within various theoretical perspectives. Particular attention is paid to rituals and ceremonial performances in the public sphere, such as royal coronations and presidential inaugurations.

Critical Mass: The History of the Eucharist
Religion 351
As Christianity evolved during its early centuries, a set of practices emerged that both rooted worship in familiar patterns and yet acquired a distinctive set of meanings. In this field as in no other, popular practice rather than political pressures, theological fashions, or authoritative leadership determined the definition of Christian faith. This course addresses both anthropological and historical considerations in evaluating the place of the Eucharist within the Church.

Child Sacrifice in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Religion 353
cross-listed: jewish studies, theology
The story of Abraham and Isaac has had a powerful influence in the West. Known by Jewish commentators since the second century as the Aqedah, literally the “binding” of Isaac, it has been written about exhaustively. This course examines the ways in which it has shaped our culture, and particularly how interpretations of the Aqedah have been the inspiration, both implicit and explicit, for cults of death in all three faiths.

Religion Colloquium
This colloquium, open to all students but required of religion moderands, fosters a community of scholarship among students and faculty interested in the study of religion and features public presentations of independent research. It is designed to encourage interdisciplinary and comparative perspectives on topics of interest.