Deepen your understanding of communities influenced by religious belief and consider fundamental questions about the meaning and purpose of human life.
Course
— Academic Direction:
91app
Religion, meaning and value
Module information>
This course provides an introduction to the study of religion which outlines key aspects of five major world religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism) and five methods for studying them (anthropology of religion, sociology of religion, psychology of religion, philosophy of religion, ethics in religion).
Topics covered
Section A: What is religion?
- Introduction:
- Definitions, including the relationship between religion, meaning and value,
- Types of religion (e.g. theism, pantheism, panentheism, non-theistic religion),
- Major world religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism). - Judaism and Christianity
- Islam
- Hinduism
- Buddhism.
Section B: Studying religion
- Anthropology of religion
- Sociology of religion
- Psychology of religion
- Philosophy of religion
- Religion and ethics.
Assessment
Forum participation (5%); a two thousand word essay (45%) and a 1.5-hour seen written examination (50%).
