Syllabi
in American Religious History
INDIVIDUAL COURSES
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- Religious Life in
the United States (Religion 166)
- Prof. Terry Matthews
- Wake Forest University
- http://www.wfu.edu/~matthetl/perspectives/index.html
- "This course is
designed to give the student a feel for the rich diversity of religious
experience in the United States. It also will serve as a a resource
for helping the student appreciate the impact religion has had on our
nation's history and culture, and how various faith traditions have
been shaped, in turn, by their encounter with America."
- Religion in American
History (History 401)
- Prof. Paul Harris
- Moorhead State University
- http://www.h-net.msu.edu/~amrel/links/401.html
- "The Senior Seminar
is designed as a capstone experience for History and Social Studies
majors, bringing together critical thinking, research, and communication
skills for a major thesis project. In conjunction with that project,
you will also learn about major themes in U.S. religious history through
readings and discussion."
- Religion in American
History (History 435)
- Prof. Gregory Holmes
Singleton
- Northeastern Illinois
University
- http://www.neiu.edu/~ghsingle/435.htm
- "Through a consideration
of representative scholarship, we will explore the complex and fascinating
world at the intersection of religion and public life in American history.
We will particularly probe the "mainstream" and the "periphery" in the
public aspects of religious life in the United States in order to a)
determine if these two general categories have any useful meaning and
b) if so, what that might tell us about public life in the United States
ge nerally."
- American Religious
History (HS 361)
- Prof. Jeffrey B. Webb
- Huntington College
- http://www.huntington.edu/history/HS361/syllabus.htm
- "This course examines
the origins and development of Christianity in America from the colonial
period to the present. Featured topics include the Continental and English
roots of Puritanism and Anabaptism, the formation and history of the
Christian commonwealths of New England, the causes and consequences
of the Great Awakening, the influence of Jonathan Edwards, the relation
between Christianity and the founding of the American republic, the
nature of 19th century Evangelicalism and the formation of American
denominations, the emergence of theological liberalism and the Social
Gospel, the course of the fundamentalist / modernist controversy, and
the situation of Protestant Christianity in the late 20th cen tury.
Students will write several papers, including a paper based on original
research, and exams are of the essay variety."
- Religious Experience
in America (History 43.11CD / American Studies 62CD)
- Prof. Donald F. M.
Gerardi
- Brooklyn College
- http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/history/dfg/amrl/arx-main.htm
- "This course explores
the wide range of religious responses Americans have made to the changing
conditions of life in this country, the connections between religion
and dominant American values, and the rel igious forms of dissent from
mainstream American culture."
- U.S. Religious History,
1500-1900 (History 353)
- Prof. Paul harvey
- University of Colorado
- http://web.uccs.edu/~history/fall2000websites/hist353/353syllabus.htm
- Religion in America
(History 380F)
- Prof. Phyllis Amenda
- Binghamton University
(SUNY)
- http://bingweb.binghamton.edu/~pamenda/index.htm
- "Religious movements
do not exist in a cultural vacuum. All religious expression is shaped
by political, economic, and cultural factors. This course seeks to understand
how religion, especially Protestant Chri stianity, has both shaped and
been shaped by political, economic, and cultural conditions in the U.S.
After doing a brief survey of the development of religion in the antebellum
U.S., the course will focus on three case studies of religious reactions
to t he urban industrialization in the Gilded Age and the Progressive
Era. The three reactions we will look at are the Social Gospel, fundamentalism
and pentecostalism. By examining the origins of these three movements
in their broader cultural and political c ontext, we can appreciate
their unique contributions to American society and their broader global
ramifications."
- Religion and Politics
in America (Political Science 603/Religion 603 )
- Prof. Timothy J. O'Neill
- Southwestern University
- http://www.h-net.msu.edu/~amrel/links/oneill.htm
- "This course explores
the relationship, and occasionally the tension, between religious and
political impulses and values in America. Our approach will be both
theological and political, analyzing the changes and continuity in religious
and political beliefs and structures. Topics include how religion encourages
political action (disputes over abolitionism, prohibition, abortion,
and nuclear arms), how politics affects religion (religious pluralism,
the develo pment of black churches, Mormons and Jehovah Witnesses),
and how we are affected by both. Be advised that this is an area in
which reasonable people can (and should?) disagree."
- The Religions of
the American Peoples (American Studies 241)
- Prof. Peter W. Williams
- Miami University
- http://www.h-net.msu.edu/~amrel/links/williams1.htm
- "Purposes of Course:
To provide students with basic knowledge of some of the religious communities
in North America outside the historic Protestant "mainstream." To examine
the impact of immigration and ethnic ity on the pluralistic character
of American culture and society as reflected in its religious communities.
To develop skills of analysis and expression."
- Religious Pluralism
in America (American Studies 242 and Comparative Religion 242)
- Profs. Peter W. Williams
and Lisa J. Poirier
- Miami University
- http://www.h-net.msu.edu/~amrel/links/williams2.htm
- "Purposes of Course:
To provide students with basic knowledge of the cultural and religious
experience of some of the major ethnic communities in North America
whose origins have been primarily non-European. To examine the impact
of immigration and ethnicity on the pluralistic character of American
culture and society as reflected in its religious communities. To develop
skills of analysis and expression."
- Protestantism and
the Development of American Culture (American Studies 341)
- Prof. Peter W. Williams
- Miami University
- http://www.h-net.msu.edu/~amrel/links/williams3.htm
- "This course is first
designed to describe some of the major varieties or "families" of Protestant
Christianity in the United States (and its colonial antecedents) in
terms of their origins and historical deve lopments; distinctive beliefs,
practices, patterns of worship and of organization; and the sociological
and geographical circumstances of their appeal."
- Nature and Religion
in American Society
(Religious Studies 451)
- Prof. Rachel Miller
- Lewis and Clark College
- http://www.h-net.msu.edu/~amrel/links/r451-nras.html
- "Drawing from primary
sources, works of literature and poetry, in conjunction with works of
recent scholarship in the fields of history, religious studies and anthropology,
this course will explore the intersection of religious beliefs and attitudes
towards nature throughout American history, from the seventeenth century
to the 1990s."
- American Religious
History to the Mid-19th Century (History 451)
- Prof. Charles Cohen
- University of Wisconsin
- Madison
- http://www.wisc.edu/history/clc/451syl.html
(link is to a PDF)
- "Otto von Bismarck
once remarked that God has a special providence for drunkards, fools,
and the United States. This course may help you determine if his point
is valid."
- Religion in the
South (Religion 466)
- Prof. Terry Matthews
- Wake Forest University
- http://www.wfu.edu:/~matthetl/south/
- "Hopefully, by the
end of the semester, each student will have developed an appreciation
of the rich religious history of the South, as well as an awareness
of the intellectual, moral, political, social and economic forces that
helped mold the region and give it a distinctive ethos. For it was this
diversity of culture that served to shape religious experience in the
South, and it was religion, in turn, that helped to fashion and mold
the values and vision of the region."
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- AAR Syllabi Project
- http://www.wlu.ca/~wwwaar/home.html
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- World Lecture
Hall syllabi: Religious Studies
- http://www.utexas.edu/world/lecture/rel/
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- Younger Scholars
Program in American Religion (IUPUI)
- http://www.iupui.edu/~raac/html/young_scholars.html
-
- Religious course
syllabi at Syracuse
- http://syllabus.syr.edu/REL/
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