Religion Courses for Spring 2017

REL106 Exploring the Bible - Four sections (M,W, F, 8, 10,11, 1, 2; T,Th, 12:15; 1:40) - core: Religion

There is a reason it is a best seller -- take this class and find out why for yourself.

REL107 Exploring World Religions - Five sections in a classroom (M,W, F, 10, 11, 12; T,Th,10:50, 12:15 &3:05) and two sections online (seats reserved for online RNBSN and CJ students)- core: Religion

REL 220 Taking Human Life - Two Sections (M,W, F 9 & 10)- core: Humanities

Dr. Hovey says: Is it ever okay to take human life? If so, under what conditions? Many of the hardest contemporary issues in society and for religious communities are related to these questions, whether suicide, euthanasia, abortion, capital punishment, or warfare. Join us for an exciting yet also serious course examining these ethical issues from philosophical and theological perspectives.

REL234 History of Christian Worship - (T,Th, 10:50)
Dr. Slade says: Learn how church on Sunday ended up looking the way it does. From Thomas Tallis to Chris Thomlin, Gregorian Chant to Hillsong. Learn about the history of Christian worship from the New Testament church to the present day.
Fulfills the upper level Christian History requirement for the Religion major and the Christian Thought requirement for the minor.

REL 260 Short Term Missions (T, Th 9:15) - core: CCI with Study Away
This exciting new course with Dr. Sue Dickson explores the development, theology, and practice of international short-term, mission trips. It is designed to work with a Spring Break mission trip -- this year the university has groups going to Nicaragua and Dominican Republic (scholarships are available to help with travel costs). This class will enhance this experience of mission and help students engage this experience on a deeper critical level. If you are not going on a STM this spring, not to worry, you can still take the course!

REL 375OLB Understanding Israel  (03/13 -04/30) core: CCI with Study Away
Dr. Dickson says: take the online course, designed to prepare students for the Passages ten-day, (subsidized!!), trip to Israel in August of 2017. Half the course is online; half the course is in Israel. We will study the literature, history and archeology of biblical sites and discuss award-winning books about modern Israel. On the trip you will view the Dead Sea from the ruins of Masada; slosh through the waters of Hezekiah's tunnel; dance on the deck of a fishing boat on the Sea of Galilee; pray in the Garden of Gethsemane; dine in the home of Orthodox Jews; explore Old Jerusalem; hear world-class lecturers-- and much more. This is a wonderful opportunity but seats are limited. Taking REL375 GUARANTEES you a seat on the bus-- so sign up today! (P.S. Check out the photos on the Religion Department BB to see what the trip looked like in 2016.)

REL308 Faith and Society (T,Th 9:25)  
Dr. Hovey says: This course pushes up against the limits of ethics by looking at recent scholarship on religion and violence. You will be challenged to look at concrete events in history in different lights, especially various lights of faith. Was the violent abolitionist John Brown a religious fanatic to be condemned, a freedom fighter to be celebrated, or a complicated figure whose hope and actions were at odds yet whose faith still pointed to redemption? How have other groups such as the Native American Crow tribe and radical Islam's suicide bombers understood faith, hope, and redemption in the midst of violence? What are the risks involved in striving to understand "religious" violence separately from the violence waged by nation-states in the name of secular hopes? In this completely reworked version of the course formerly known as Political Theology, you will wrestle with some of the richest and most timely scholarship at the intersection of politics, religion, ethics, and faith.


REL401  Seminar in Christian Ethics: Peacemaking and Restorative Justice (T-Th 12:15)
Dr. Aune says: We will be looking at the ethics, theology and practices of peacemaking and restorative justice from St Paul to the 21st century (and how to deal with violent texts). Find out what Christians have been ignoring for years and why.
Fulfills the seminar requirement for the religion major