Courses
The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.
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CAS RN 202: From Jesus to Christ: The Origins of Christianity
Introduces the texts of the New Testament and other early Christian writings: first, to place Jesus of Nazareth in the religious and social context of Second Temple Judaism and the Roman empire; and second, to explain the origins and growth of Christian beliefs, practices, and social formations up to the second century. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Critical Thinking. -
CAS RN 203: Religion and Film
Religions and films are world-building engines. They create -- and re-create -- a visioning of society as a world of justice, of lived myth, of fantasy, of ideology: a world we may long to live in or a world we wish to avoid at all costs. This course explores such worlds by examining the ways in which religious beliefs, practices and people are portrayed in popular film from the 1960s to the present. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Social Inquiry I, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
CAS RN 205: Topics in Religion and Music
May be repeated for credit as topics change. Topic for Spring 2024: Religion and Black Popular Music. Examines the interplay between colonialism, politics, religion, and popular music in shaping contemporary society. Through an in-depth exploration of the intersections between religion, music, colonialism, and politics, students gain a comprehensive understanding of the underlying structures that shape Black religion and Black popular music. They are encouraged to engage in nuanced discussions, challenging traditional interpretations, and critically analyzing the implications of power in these realms. This course fosters a deeper appreciation of the complexities of race and its impact on music, religion, and politics in our society, while empowering students to actively attend to the most pressing political, cultural, religious, and ecological concerns texturing the 21st century. -
CAS RN 206: Scriptures in World Religions
Undergraduate Prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120) - Introduction to scriptures in world religions, investigating the ways sacred books express, interpret, and make possible religious experience and ethical reflection. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, Writing-Intensive Course. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Ethical Reasoning, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. -
CAS RN 209: Religion, Health, and Medicine
How religious and moral narratives inform approaches to biomedicine from the nineteenth century to the present, including understandings of disease, illness, health, sexuality, and the body. Topics include medicine and prayer, alternative medicine, and boundaries between medicine and religion. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking. -
CAS RN 210: Buddhism
A historical and critical introduction to the major themes of Buddhist thought and practice in India and Southeast Asia, with special attention to the transmission of Buddhism to Tibet and the modern West. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking. -
CAS RN 211: S24: Chinese Religion
A historical survey of Chinese religions from the ancient period to modern times. Covers cosmology, divination, philosophy, divine kingship, ancestors, art, the Silk Road, death and afterlives, popular deities, Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism. Effective Spring 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Creativity/Innovation. -
CAS RN 213: Hinduism
The course will provide the student with the opportunity to study on an introductory level Hinduism, the majority religion of India and Nepal. It is structured for the student who has had little or no previous background in the study of Hinduism from either an anthropological perspective or from a literary and historical point of view. It will focus on the development of the Hindu textual tradition, the philosophy and mythology it expounds, and the ritual practices related to it. Emphasis will be placed on how Hindu traditions adapted to changing historical conditions. Effective Spring 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings. -
CAS RN 214: Islam
The rise and spread of Islam from the seventh century to the present; introduction to its central beliefs, institutions, and practices, and its impact on the religious and cultural history of Asia and Africa. Continuity and change in the modern period. Effective Fall 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
CAS RN 216: Judaism
Systematic and historical introduction to doctrines, customs, literature, and movements of Judaism; biblical religion and literature; rabbinic life and thought; medieval mysticism and philosophy; modern movement and developments. Effective Spring 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking. -
CAS RN 220: Holy City: Jerusalem in Time, Space, and Imagination
Transformation of an ordinary ancient city into the holy city of Jews, Christians, and Muslims; and development of modern Jerusalem, as shaped by British rule, Zionism, and Palestinian nationalism. Jerusalem's past, present, and meanings considered through analyses of religious and secular rhetoric. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, The Individual in Community, Critical Thinking. -
CAS RN 239: Religion and Science
Examines the complex relationship between science and religion, focusing on historical episodes (e.g., the "Galileo Affair") and current controversies (e.g., "Intelligent Design" movement's influence on school curricula, "Spirituality and Health" research, and "Ecology and Religion.") Effective Spring 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Ethical Reasoning, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
CAS RN 242: Magic, Science, and Religion
Boundaries and relationships between magic, science, and religion in Europe from antiquity through the Enlightenment. Explores global cultural exchange, distinctions across social, educational, gender, and religious lines, the rise of modern science, and changing assumptions about God, nature, and humanity. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Critical Thinking. -
CAS RN 245: The Quest for God and the Good
Undergraduate Prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120), - An interactive seminar, investigating the meaning and purpose of human life, the significance of God or an Absolute, the role of contemplation and action in the spiritual quest, relationships between philosophy and religious thought, East and West. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2023 this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings. -
CAS RN 246: S24: Sex, Death, and the Buddha
An exploration of various Buddhist understandings of the ideal human life. Topics examined include: karma and rebirth, nonviolence and war, human and animal rights, suicide and euthanasia, as well as abortion and contraception. Effective Spring 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
CAS RN 248: Food and Religion
Explores the intersection of religion and food, using food to learn about religion and religion to study the role of food in human societies. Topics include feasting; fasting; feeding God(s), spirits, ancestors; eating/not eating animals; ingesting alcohol and psychoactive plants. Effective Spring 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. -
CAS RN 249: Islamophobia and Antisemitism
Explores historical and contemporary manifestations of Islamophobia and antisemitism. Students are exposed to wide range of relevant written and visual texts as well as theoretical approaches. Includes active learning component and collaborative presentations by students. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, The Individual in Community, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
CAS RN 296: Religion and Hip Hop
Uses digital media studies to explore diverse religious expressions in hip hop culture. Through critical reading, community field trips, and hands-on technology usage, students consider an often overlooked element in the study of hip hop culture: religion. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Aesthetic Exploration, Creativity/Innovation. -
CAS RN 301: Varieties of Early Christianity
Undergraduate Prerequisites: junior standing. At least one prior course in biblical or New Testamen t literature recommended. - Surveys the many different and often competing forms of Christianity that arose and flourished in the second to the seventh century. Topics covered include martyrs, apocalypticism, Hell, Gnostics, prophecy, magical texts, angels and demons, and the various meanings of Christ. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Critical Thinking. -
CAS RN 310: The Reformation: Religious Conflict in Early Modern Europe
Examines religious change in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Europe, particularly the origins and causes of the Protestant Reformation, the parallel Catholic Reformation, and the consequent military conflicts in Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Also offered as CAS HI 209. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Social Inquiry I.
