History 413: World Religions and Classical Philosophies

California State University Channel Islands

Fall 2005

Class #1514, Monday/Wednesday 2:30-3:45

Bell Tower 2688

 

 

Instructor:  Amy R. Caldwell

Office:    Professional Building 109

Mailbox: Professional Building 264

Phone Number: (805) 437-8970 (no voicemail)

Email: amy.caldwell@csuci.edu

Office Hours:  Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays 10:30 – 12:00

                        and by appointment

 

Course Description:

 

World Religions and Classical Philosophies is a course on the development of religious and philosophical traditions in East Asia, India, North Africa, Persia, the Middle East, and Europe.  Our two main themes are the historical development of religion and philosophy to 1550 AD, and the relationship between public and private tendencies within that development.  These themes are quite broad, and within them we will explore several sub-themes – the relationship between government and religion, the role of minority religious movements within society, the tension between pure and universal practices, and ideas of tolerance, intolerance, and persecution.

 

Learning Objectives and Outcomes:

Students in this course will develop:

1) good understanding and knowledge of global history in other regions of the world.

2) good knowledge and problem-solving skills in analyzing contemporary and historical events.

3) good communication skills in oral and written forms.

4) good skills in historical research, analysis, and presentations.

 

Required Texts:

Huston Smith. The World's Religions. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1991.

The Bhagavad Gita New York: Penguin Books, 2003.

Lao Tzu Tao Te Ching New York: Penguin Books 1963

The Book of Mencius New York: Penguin Books 2003

Plato The Republic New York: Penguin Books 2003

The Koran New York: Penguin Books 2003

Course Requirements:

Grades for this course are based on four components:

  1. Participation.  In every class meeting, there will be time to ask questions and discuss the course materials.  All students are expected to participate regularly in class discussion.
  2. Journal.  All students must keep a written journal throughout the semester.  Each week, write 1-2 pages about the readings.  There is no specific question for the journal, but it would be to your benefit to focus on why the documents are important to the course themes.  There should be a journal for each week of the semester, however, they will only be collected in weeks 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15.  Late journals will not be accepted.
  3. Research Project.  You will have an opportunity to write a 10-15 page research paper on a topic of your choosing.  You may choose your subject, but you will be most successful if you think about subjects that fit with the course themes.  In order to avoid starting a project that will ultimately be impossible to finish, you must discuss your topic with me before September 19.  You also must submit a final bibliography for the project by November 2.  The final paper is due Wednesday, November 30.  Further details on the project, as well as suggested topics, will be passed out in the first two weeks of the semester.  Late papers will receive a 5 point penalty per day late.
  4. Exams.  There will be a take home midterm and a take home final.  The exam questions will be based on the course materials – no research is required.  Questions will be handed out a week in advance.  The midterm is due in class on October 19; the final is due December 14 at 3:00.  The final will be cumulative.  Late exams will receive a 5 point penalty per day late.

 

Grading:

            Participation                 10%

            Journal                         15%

            Midterm                       15%

Bibliography                   5%

            Project                         35%

            Final                             20%

           

 

Lecture and Reading Schedule:

Week I:

8/29:    Introduction, Defining Religion and Philosophy

8/31:    Religion Before the Axial Age

            Readings: 

Smith pp 1-11

Electronic Coursepack: 

Mesopotamian Prayer for Forgiveness,

Egyptian Hymn to the Nile

Text from a Shang Oracle Bone

 Japanese Creation Story

                       

Week II:  Religion and Philosophies of India

9/5:      Labor Day Holiday

9/7:      The Vedic Age and the Rise of the Brahmans

            Readings: 

Smith pp 12-29

Start The Bhagavad Gita 3-86 (due next week)

Electronic Coursepack:

Selections from the Rg Veda

Selections from The Lawbook of Manu

           

Week III: 

9/12:    Knowledge and Devotion

9/14:    Jainism                                                                         Journal 1 Due

            Readings: 

Smith pp 29-41; 63-73

Finish The Bhagavad Gita 3-86

Electronic Coursepack: 

Selections from the Khândogya Upanishad

Selections from the Acaranga Sutra

           

Week IV:  Religion and Philosophy in China and Japan

9/19:    Indian Buddhism                                                                       Research Decision Due

9/21:    The Age of Warring States and Taoism

            Readings: 

Smith pp 82-112; 196- 200; 211-218

Tao Te Ching 5-13; 20-26; 34-42; 45; 50; 61-68

Electronic Coursepack:

Ashoka’s Rock Edicts

The Monastic Ideal

 

Week V:

9/26:    The Architects of Confucianism

9/28:    Buddhism in China

            Readings:  Smith pp 154-180

The Book of Mencius 3-14; 36-39; 75-98; 122-144

Electronic Coursepack:

Selections from the Disputation of Errors

Emperor Wu-tsung’s Edict on the Suppression of Buddhism

 

Week VI:

10/3:    Buddhism in Japan

10/5:    Despair, Deliverance, and Destiny                                             Journal 2 Due

            Readings:

            Smith pp 112-139

Electronic Coursepack:

            Proclamation of the Emperor Shomu

            Selections from The Vimalakirti Sutra

            A Dharma Talk by the Saint of Yokawa

            Selection of Zen Buddhist Koan

Jacqueline Stone. “Seeking Enlightenment in the Last Age.” Eastern Buddhist 18-1 (Spring 1985): 28-56.

 

Week VII:

10/10:  Neo-Taoism and Neo-Confucianism

10/12:  Maitreyism and the White Lotus

            Readings: 

Smith pp 187-193; 204-207

Electronic Coursepack:

Ko Hung Pao-p’u-tzu (“He Who Keeps to Simplicity”).  “On Rewards for Deeds”

Wang Yang-Ming, selections from The Letters and the Great Learning

David Ownby “Chinese Millenarian Traditions: The Formative Age”

 

Week VIII:  Religion and Philosophy of the Ancient Near East

10/17:  The God Who Did Wrong

10/19:  Religions of Persia                                                                    Midterm Due

            Readings:

Smith pp 271-296

Electronic Coursepack:

Selections from the Book of Exodus

Selections from The Book of Job

Selections from The Book of  Deuteronomy

Zarathustra, Gathas

 

Week IX:  Religion and Philosophy in Greece, Rome, and North Africa

10/24:  Science and Tragedy

10/26: Plato and Aristotle                                                                    Journal 3 Due

            Readings:

Plato, The Republic, 130-139; 150-154; 196-208; 231-235; 237-248

Electronic Coursepack:

The Eumenides

                       

Week X:

10/31:  Roman Religion

11/2:    The Son of the God Who Did Wrong                                        Bibliography Due

            Readings: 

Smith pp 317-339

Electronic Coursepack:

Plutarch, The Life of Numa

Lucius Apuleius, The Golden Ass

Handbook of Epictetus

Plotinus, “The Process of Emanation”

Gospel of Matthew, “Sermon on the Mount”

H.A. Drake “The Old Guard Changes,” Constantine and the Bishops

                                   

Week XI:

11/7:    Will Success Spoil Christianity?

11/9:    Eastern and Western Christianity          

            Readings:

Smith pp 339-356

Electronic Coursepack:

St. Augustine, Against the Donatists

H.A. Drake, “Milan 390,” Constantine and the Bishops

            Pope Leo I, the Petrine Doctrine

 

Week XII:  Religion and Philosophy in the Islamic Lands and Europe

11/14:  Prophet of the God Who Did Wrong

11/16:  Division and Growth in the Islamic Lands                                  Journal 4 Due

            Readings:

Smith pp 221-248

The Koran 42-60; 197-214; 234-240; 343-348; 433 (“The Unbelievers”)

Electronic Coursepack:

The Pact of Umar

Al-Baladhuri: The Battle Of The Yarmuk (636) and After

           

Week XIII: 

11/21:  Faith and Reason

11/23:  Judaism, Islam, and Christianity

            Electronic Coursepack:

            Ibn Rushd (Averroës), 1126-1198 CE: Religion & Philosophy, c. 1190 CE

            Thomas Aquinas: Reasons in Proof of the Existence of God, 1270

            Abraham Ibd Daud: On Samuel Ha-Nagid, Vizier of Granada

Memoirs of Glückel of Hameln

David Nirenberg. “Crusade and Massacre in Aragon (1320)” from Communities of Violence Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996

 

Week XIV:

11/28:  Dervishes and Assassins

11/30:  The Magisterial Reformation                                                     Research Project Due

            Readings: 

Smith pp. 257-266

Electronic Coursepack:

Jalal ad-Din Rumi, selections from The Masnavi

Martin Luther On the Freedom of the Christian

Gerhard Böwering. “Early Sufism Between Persecution and Heresy.” From Frederik de Jong and Bernd Radtke Islamic Mysticism Contested Leiden: Brill, 1999

 

Week XV:

12/5:    The Radical Reformations

12/7:    Final Thoughts                                                              Journal 5 Due

            Readings:  Smith pp 356-362

Electronic Coursepack:

The Trial of Michael Sattler

Brad Gregory “The Willingness to Kill” From Salvation at Stake Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1999

 

                       

Final Project Due: Wednesday, December 14, 3:00.  In My Office

 

Academic Honesty

I assume that all students in this course adhere to the highest standards of academic honesty.  I will not tolerate any incidents of cheating or plagiarism in this class, and I hope that all students will stand with me in upholding the honor and integrity of the university community.  I will penalize students who participate in plagiarism, cheating, or helping another student cheat according to the policies of the California State University, Channel Islands.  For more information, consult the Academic Dishonesty Policy in the university catalog.

 

Other Policies:

            99-100%         A+                   78-79%           C+      

            93-98%           A                     73-77%           C

            90-92%           A-                    70-72%           C-

            88-89%           B+                   68-69%           D+

            83-87%           B                      63-67%           D

            80-82%           B-                    60-62%           D-

All grades below 60%= F