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Global Religions Courses

Buddhist women

Courses

Please view the Moravian University Course Catalog for the latest course offerings.

Fall 2024 Term Course Offerings

  • REL 114 A: Jesus and the Gospels (M3)
    Tue, Thu 10:30 AM - 11:40 AM, Radine
  • REL 126 A: Judaism (M3)
    Tue, Thu 1:30 PM - 2:40 PM, Radine
  • REL 127 A: Health, Healing, and Medicine in Asian Context (M5)
    Tue, Thu 1:30 PM - 2:40 PM, Cheung
  • REL 132 A: Asian American Experiences (M1)
    Tue, Thu 10:30 AM - 11:40 AM, Cheung 
  • REL 226 A: From Prophecy to Apocalyptic (M3) 
    Tue, Thu 3:00 PM - 4:10 PM, Radine 
  • REL 245 A: Religion and Politics (U2) 
    Fri 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM, Denton-Borhaug 
  • REL 260 A (REL 290 A): Moral Injury (U2) 
    Wed 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM, Denton-Borhaug 
  • REL 261 A: Islamic Philosophy and Theology (M5) 
    Mon, Wed 10:30 AM - 11:40 AM, Naraghi 
  • REL 263 A: Civil Rights and Moral Life (U2)
    Wed, Fri 12:00 PM - 1:10 PM, Denton-Borhaug 

100-Level Courses

REL 114 A: Jesus and the Gospels 

Exploration of what we can know historically about the life and activities of Jesus. Comparison of the four gospels of the Christian New Testament, so that their separate messages and emphases can be discerned. Gospels that present different views of Jesus and his teachings but were not included in the Christian Bible will also be studied. (M3) Radine 

REL 126 A: Judaism 

An introduction to Jewish religion, culture, and history. The course will explore major Jewish textual resources (the Jewish Bible, rabbinic commentaries, philosophy, and mysticism) as well as Jewish religious lifeways such as worship and holidays. The diversity of Jewish cultures and languages, Jewish political nationalism (Zionism), as well as the complex and ever-changing question of Jewish identity will also be studied. (M3) Radine

REL 127 A: Health, Healing, and Medicine in Asian Contexts

How does healing go beyond the physical in include the emotion and spiritual? What are the boundaries between medicine and religion? This course investigates these questions by turning to Indian and Chinese religious-philosophical traditions. We will examine Chinese medical arts such as acupuncture and qigong, Indian Ayurveda medicine and its relationship to Yoga, and the contemporary discourse on Buddhist-based meditation practices-including Mindfulness-for health. (M5) Cheung

REL 132 A: Asian American Experiences

Asian American history is American history. Why, then, does the history of Asian Pacific Islander Desi Americans continue to be underrepresented across the curriculum? This course engages with the religious experiences of APA or AAPI populations in order to understand Asian American history in the United States. We will begin by asking how to understand APA identities and the history of immigration and exclusion-including how Buddhist identities of Japanese Americans were used to argue against their identity as Americans. Then, we turn to APA experiences of healing and medicine against the backdrop of xenophobic metaphors for disease and contagion and how that fueled anti-Asian violence and sentiment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, we examine the hypersexualization of Asian/American women in the media and how this contributed to the narratives around the March 2021 Atlanta-area shootings. (M1). Cheung 

200-Level Courses 

REL 226 A: From Prophecy to Apocalyptic

An exploration of the phenomenon of prophecy as a social institution as known in the ancient Near East as well as prophetic literature in biblical texts. The development of apocalyptic thought in Judaism and Christianity will be studied, up to the book of Revelation. (M3) Radine 

REL 245 A: Religion and Politics

What is "civil religion"? This course examines the relationship between religious ideas and values, and political structures, decision-making, and culture. Topics include the historical background of civil religion in the U.S., church-state relations and the First Amendment, the role of religion in politics post 9/11, the intersection of politics, religion and race, and other current issues. (U2) Denton-Borhaug

REL 260 A (REL 290 A): Moral Injury

Moral Injury has been defined as "the inevitable outcome of moral engagement with the reality of war and killing." (Antal and Winings: 2015) and as "the result of participation in the moral distortion of the world created by war" (Denton-Borhaug: 2021). In this course participants will explore and analyze moral injury through multidisciplinary methods including public "whole" health, spiritual, philosophical and theological frameworks, the arts and humanities, as well as through diverse social and physical scientific paradigms/methods. Our aim will be to illuminate increased understanding of the individual experience of moral injury: analyze the relationship between moral injury and U.S. War-culture; and engage in reflective moral deliberation regarding what the phenomenon of moral injury requires of us as individuals, citizens, people with religious (or no-religious) identities, and members of diverse moral communities. (U2) Denton-Borhaug

REL 261 A: Islamic Philosophy, Theology, and Mysticism

An exploration of key notions and figures in Islamic philosophy, theology, and mysticism. Some issues embedded in the enormous body of scholarship in Muslim intellectual heritage are employed to examine current global issues such as the struggle for justice and peace and the fight against violence and absolutism. Special attention is given to the structure of Being, the notion of the truth, and the way to attain the truth in the three systems. (M5) Naraghi

REL 263 A: Civil Rights and the Moral Life

Many forces and ideas shaped the civil rights movement. Through both a historical and a theological/philosophical lens, students will examine those forces and ideas and will consider how the power and depth of the movement continues to challenge us with its continued relevance today. The course includes in-close examination of key events in the movement, such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Nashville sit-ins, in order to view the movement from the vantage of people involved in the movement. (U2) Denton-Borhaug