Religion Degrees Online

Students who want to know and understand the genesis of religion to satisfy their thirst for knowledge by enrolling in a program with a minor in religious sciences. Catholicism, Protestantism, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism are the different religions studied in depth in this discipline.

The minor program in Religious Science explores the religious dimension of human being, while allowing to discover the great religions, the new spirituality and the Christian faith. Those who enroll in this program will become familiar with the various works carried out by Jesus, Moses, the prophet Muhammad and other founders of major world religions. Several aspects of the religious sciences are also covered, such as psychology and sociology, religion, comparative history of religions, theology and hermeneutics of sacred texts.

Specialties
Religious Sciences in Lucerne deals heavily with contemporary and contemporary issues of the relationship between religion and society, religion and politics as well as immigrant religions in Europe.
The different traditions of Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism are the focus of teaching and research.

Extent and duration
The Master’s degree Religious Studies comprises 120 Credit Points. One credit point corresponds to an average division of labor by 25-30 hours. The standard period of study is 4 semesters (2 years).

Minors
As part of a course subjects can be offered as a Minor each compartment of the Cultural and Social Sciences Faculty elected, provided that it is not already occupied as a Major.

Minors can also outside of the Cultural and Social Sciences Faculty elected, and – in the context of the conventions, and the mobility of the study agreement with the Philosophical Faculty of the University of Zurich, 31
July 2001 – also at other universities, federal documents.

Degree Requirements
First year, fall
REL 503 Tibetan I (4) or
REL 507 Sanskrit I (4) or
REL 539 Biblical Hebrew (4)
REL 645 Methods and Issues in the Study of Religion (3)
REL 649 Religious Studies Seminar I: Nondualism in Theory and Practice (3)
One Course from the Religious Studies Courses List (3)
One Contemplative Practice Elective (3)
SUBTOTAL 16

First year, spring
REL 533 Tibetan II (4) or
REL 537 Sanskrit II (4) or
REL 568 Biblical Hebrew II (4)
REL 651 Contemplative Practice Retreat* (noncredit)
Two Courses from the Religious Studies Courses List (6)
One Contemplative Practice Elective (3)
SUBTOTAL 13

Second year, fall
REL 553 Tibetan III (4) or
REL 557 Sanskrit III (4)
REL 585 Spiritual Models of Social Action (3)
Three Courses from the Religious Studies Courses List (9)
SUBTOTAL 16

Second year, spring
REL 583 Tibetan IV (4) or
REL 587 Sanskrit IV (4)
REL 670 Trends in Religious Studies II (3)
REL 779 Interreligious Dialogue: Theory and Practice (3)
REL 885 Master’s Project (noncredit)
One Contemplative Practice Elective (3)
One Course from the Religious Studies Courses List (3)
SUBTOTAL 16
TOTAL CREDITS 61

*It is recommended that students complete the noncredit Contemplative Practice Retreat requirement (REL 651) no later than the winter break between the fall and spring semesters of their second year.

Religious Studies Courses List
REL 525 Contemplative Christianity (3)
REL 529 Foundations of Judaism: Torah, Prayer and Acts of Kindness (3)
REL 530 Contemplative Hinduism (3)
REL 535 Introduction to Jewish Mysticism (3)
REL 540 Zen Buddhism (3)
REL 545 Contemplative Islam (3)
REL 546 Buddhism in America (3)
REL 608 The Life and Teachings of Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche (3)
REL 611 The First Turning of the Wheel: Nature of Mind and Emotions* (3)
REL 614 Mind and Its World I* (3)
REL 623 Religious Experience in Africa: Sacred Cosmos, Ritual and Community (3)
REL 624 Mind and Its World I (3)
REL 625 Biblical Literatures: Prayer and Prophecy (3)
REL 626 Topics in Judaism: Feminine Principle (3)
REL 628 Studying Buddhism: Methods and Issues (3)
REL 634 Hindu Yoga-Tantra (3)
REL 647 The Three Jewels: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha (3)
REL 653 Self and No-Self: Analytical Meditation and Experience (3)
REL 661 The Second Turning of the Wheel: The Bodhisattva Path* (3)
REL 676 Contemplative Jewish Practice (3)
REL 710 The Third Turning of the Wheel* (3)
REL 749 Contemporary American Religion (3)
REL 751 Buddhism in Tibet (3)
REL 760 Vajrayana: Symbol, Iconography and Ritual ** (3)

Contemplative Practice Electives
REL 540 Zen Buddhism (3)
REL 571 Centering Prayer as Christian Contemplation (3)
REL 600 Meditation Practicum I* (3)
REL 609W Mindfulness Instructor Training I* (3)
REL 620 Meditation Practicum II (3)
REL 635 Meditation Practicum III* (3)
REL 690W-791W Shambhala Training Levels I-XII (1)
REL 709W Mindfulness Instructor Training II* (1)
REL 780 Mudra Space Awareness (3)
REL 809W Mindfulness Instructor Training III* (1)

Course Work
The Area requires that students take HR 6001 (Seminar on Interdisciplinarity and Religious Studies) in their first fall semester. They must also take HR 6006 (Issues in Contemporary Study of Religion), offered by the Area. Students are also expected to work with their advisors to identify and take courses that will prepare them for broad certification and comprehensives. Students doing the teaching preparation comprehensives (below) must take IDS 6016 (Seminar on Course Design and Syllabus Development).

Comprehensive Examinations
In the course of their studies, students are expected to establish a broad grounding in their tradition or culture of specialization and in their chosen methodology. Students submit a statement of prior or current course work, reading, examinations, or writing that will serve as Certification of Broad Grounding. With broad grounding certified, Comprehensive Examinations are somewhat more focused and lead to the dissertation and the specific teaching and writing goals of the student.

The Area requires four Comprehensive Examinations.
Religious tradition or culture of specialization
The student will have certified breadth in a particular tradition as part of Certifying Broad Grounding. The tradition may be a religious tradition (e.g., Judaism, Hinduism, Christianity, and indigenous tradition) or a religious culture, such as that of India, China, or Ghana (any of which would include several traditions). The broad tradition or culture of specialization should be sufficiently broad to serve as a “job category” for purposes of hiring.

Since the student has completed Certification of Broad Grounding in the tradition or culture, this Comprehensive Examination will focus on the student’s significant specialization within the tradition (an historical period, a major theme—e.g. Chan or Zen Buddhism, Modern Jewish Thought, Religious pluralism in contemporary India).

This examination is normally taken as a closed-book timed exam, meeting the GTU requirement that comprehensives include such an examination.

Methodology
Scholars in religious studies use a wide range of methodologies (historical, philological, interpretive, anthropological, feminist, critical, postcolonial, etc.) The required course HR 6006, Issues in Contemporary Study of Religion, introduces students to a range of literature in religious studies using various methodologies and approaches, and encourages students to consider these literatures in relation to their own scholarly approaches. This examination will require the student to explore in some depth critical issues in a methodology that s/he intends to uses in his/her research. The student will develop a select bibliography in consultation with the comprehensive committee, and write a bibliographic essay or a critical essay on methodological issues.

Preparation for Teaching
This examination requires the student to prepare a full syllabus with clearly defined objectives, requirements, expectations, evaluation criteria, and a reading list for an introductory course with no prerequisites. The course can be an introductory course in the student’s religious tradition or culture of specialization (see exam 1), an introduction to the study of religion, a course on world religions, or an introductory course whose scope is broader than the student’s religious tradition or culture of specialization. The syllabus is to be accompanied by a 15-20 page paper describing the intellectual approach of the course and specifying the decisions made about both content and instruction. The bibliography should include literature on pedagogy as well as on the topic of the course. Students doing this comprehensive are required to take Doctoral Seminar IDS 6016 Seminar on Course Design and Syllabus Development as a context in which to develop this syllabus.

Students whose primary professional goals are other than teaching may petition for an alternative form of this comprehensive, designed to prepare them to meet their professional goals. The petition should include a project or course and paper equivalent in sophistication to the pedagogical requirement. The student would develop the petition with their advisor/committee and submit it to the Area for approval in principle prior to proposing comprehensives.

Research Paper
This paper represents the student’s distinctive approach to research in religious studies, using the methodology discussed in examination 2 in conjunction with the religious tradition or culture discussed in examination 1. The paper may be related to the topic of the dissertation, but should be a self-contained, autonomous 30-40 page research paper.

Religion is probably the most powerfully creative-and destructive-force in human culture. It is perhaps also the least understood, even among those who consider themselves religious.

Everyone knows that religious convictions are at stake when American politicians appeal to fundamentalist principles, when terrorists attack in New York or Northern Ireland, when tensions build in the Middle East, or when protesters picket a controversial film on a religious subject. Few people, however, have explored in any depth the roots or the implications of these religious convictions. The Department of Religion provides the opportunity to examine such questions.

The department’s courses focus mainly on Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and Judaism; classes are also offered in Hinduism, in American religions, and in the religions of Japan and China. Whether students do or do not belong to these traditions, courses in the department can challenge their assumptions and enrich their understanding of religion and the role it plays in human life. Study in the department does not require religious commitment, but neither does it undermine such commitment; the goal is simply to gain deeper understanding of religion as a human phenomenon. As the German scholar of religion, Max Müller, said many years ago, a person who knows only one religion in fact knows none: to understand how religion functions in human experience and culture, one must know something about similarities and differences in world religions.

We invite you to immerse yourself in the texts, history, and practices of the religious traditions that have shaped society, politics, and the arts for millennia. Home to eight full-time faculty, with close ties to faculty in a host of other programs and departments, we are known for our breadth, interdisciplinary emphasis, and strong teaching, not to mention active and diverse faculty scholarship. We offer courses in Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, and American religions as well as in theory and method.

Students interested in our undergraduate program can pursue a major or a minor or simply sample from a varied menu of introductory and advanced courses. Our graduate program offers concentrations in Buddhism in its Asian Context, Medieval Christianity, and Religion, Ethics and Public Life. We also teach continuing education courses through the School of Continuing Studies.

Requirements for the Major
The department’s strengths in comparative study, textual and social analysis, philosophy, theory, and cultural history allow students to balance close study in one area with a broad investigation of the field we name “religion.” Working closely with an advisor in the department, majors construct a cluster of five courses that relate to one another in a coherent fashion (#1, below) and support the senior thesis. To complement this depth, they select four courses that lend breadth to their studies in religion (#2). Students considering Religion as a major should contact the chair or a member of the department in their sophomore year to begin planning their programs.

The Religion major requires twelve courses, as follows:
1) Major cluster: five intermediate or advanced courses, including one seminar. As many as two of these courses may come from other departments, and individually supervised research (V 3901-2: Guided Readings) may also be included. This cluster of courses may be organized around a particular tradition or geographic area: Hinduism, Islam, Religion in America, etc. Alternatively, students may design clusters that focus on a set of related subjects and concerns, such as: Religion in New York; Religion in theory and practice; Religion and culture; Religious texts and histories; Religion, women, gender; and Religion, race, nation, ethnicity.

Yet these are only exemplary. Students are urged to design their own clusters, supplementing departmental listings with religion-related courses posted on the Barnard Religion Department’s website as “Religion Related Courses” (PDF, 80 KB). Courses taken outside of the religion department must be approved by the student’s advisor or department chair. Several sample majors are posted on the Barnard Religion Department’s website.

2) Breadth: four Religion courses – either lecture or seminar – that lend geographical, historical, and/or disciplinary range to a student’s program.

3) One semester of the Juniors’ Colloquium (V3798, V3799), engaging major theoretical issues in the field.

4) The two-semester Senior Research Seminar (BC 3997-8), which must be taken in sequence, beginning in autumn and continuing through the spring, and which structures the experience of preparing a senior thesis. Students work together in this seminar to develop, critique, and accomplish their research projects, submitting a formal proposal and partial draft in the fall, and completing the research and writing in the spring.

The department encourages study abroad, particularly in summers or in one semester of the junior year, and is eager to help facilitate internships and funded research. These possibilities often contribute very meaningfully to the senior essay project.

Religious Studies is a relatively new study programme in Nijmegen. The aim is to acquire knowledge and understanding of European religions and philosophies and their mutual relations. The focus is on such key questions as: How do people give sense to their lives? How do they translate their deepest convictions into practical action? How does Christianity relate to other religions such as Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism and to non-religious philosophies? What can these religions and philosophies learn from each other? The keyword here is interreligious dialogue.

The M.A. in religious studies emphasizes the comparative study of religions. The program seeks to understand the phenomena of religion across a wide spectrum of cultural contexts and historical periods. Reflecting the different interests and areas of expertise of the faculty, the curriculum incorporates a variety of approaches to the subject, including the cultural, historical, literary, sociological and theological.

Primary areas of emphasis include:
Religion in the Americas (African-American, Latin American, Native American and North American religions).
Modern Western theological and ethical thought.
Buddhism.
Christianity.
East and Southeast Asian religions.
Hinduism.
Islam.
Judaism.

Comparative themes and issues are central to the curriculum. These include:
Religion and gender.
Religion, nationalism and ethnicity.
Religion and science.
Religion and modernity.
Mysticism.
Popular religion.
Ritual studies.
Symbolism.

Although students often concentrate upon a single religious tradition for their thesis work, the program seeks to provide a broadly comparative understanding of religions, not simply a specialist’s training in a single tradition.

Courses in Religion, Spring 2009

RELI-13 Popular Religion
RELI-14 Introduction to Hinduism
RELI-18 Philosophy of Religion
RELI-22 Christian Scriptures
RELI-24 Muhammad
RELI-28 Socially Engaged Buddhism
RELI-35 Religion in Mesoamerica
RELI-39 Women in Judaism
RELI-43 The Holy Wo/Man in Late Antiquity
RELI-50 Liberation and Twentieth-Century Christian Thought
RELI-53 Sufism
RELI-58 Religion in the Atlantic World: 1441-1808
RELI-64 The Nature of Religion: Theories and Methods in Religious Studies