PHIL 352 – STUDY GUIDE

CHAPTER 1 – INVITATION TO WORLD RELIGIONS

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: 1. To clarify the importance of studying world religions and briefly to explain the history of this academic field 2. To introduce the challenge of defining “religion,” with examples of notable attempts 3. To explore three basic questions that point to what religions do 4. To introduce three categories—teachings, historical development, and way of life— that provide the book with its primary organizational structure 5. To consider various features of religions in the modern world 6. To introduce the most important aspects of an academic approach to the study of religions

Study Questions: 1. Identify and discuss the importance of some of the “don’ts” of the academic study of world religions. 2. Are religion and spirituality the same? Is it possible to be spiritual without being religious and vice-versa? 3. Who is Émile Durkheim, and what is notable about his definition of religion? 4. Bruce Lincoln, in his definition of religion, identifies four “domains.” What are they? Explain the significance of the “transcendent” for the definition of religion set forth by Lincoln. 5. How are the roles of women in religions changing? 6. Explore the insights of Freud or Jung regarding religion, and use those insights to examine the religious tradition with which you are most familiar. How would Freud or Jung understand that religion? 7. Karl Marx argued that religions arise as an escape from poverty and social oppression. Consequently he thought that when social problems were eliminated, religions would die away. What arguments and examples would you give for and against this position? 8. Identify and briefly describe Ninian Smart’s seven “dimensions” of religion. 9. What is meant by the concept of the numinous? 10. What is “empathy,” and how is it relevant for the academic study of religion?

Terms: atheism, cosmology, empathy, globalization, henotheism, urbanization, modernization, monism, monotheism, multiculturalism, mysterium tremendum and fascinans, mystical experience, myth, nontheistic, numinous experience, pantheism, polytheism, revealed ethics, revelation, ritual, secularization, theistic, transtheistic

Figures: Kant, Durkheim, James, Tillich, Jung, Marx, Freud, Eliade, Otto, E.B. Tylor, James Frazer, Smart, Lincoln.

CHAPTER 2 – INDIGENOUS RELIGIONS OF NORTH AMERICA

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: • Understand the diversity and similarities of North American indigenous religious traditions • Understand some teachings of Native North American religions • Become familiar with different practices of Native American religions • Learn about the impact of European colonialism on indigenous religions of North America • Discuss rite of passage and rites of renewal ceremonies • Define and describe the role of shamanism

Study Questions: 1. Your area now has, or once was home to, native peoples. Make a list of their religious sites, beliefs, and practices. 2. The indigenous religions of North America are very diverse. However, we can see some common threads in belief and practice. What are these? Why is it difficult to make generalizations? 3. What is a rite of passage and a rite of renewal? Describe two examples of each from Native North American religions. 4. How do mythic narratives address the origins of humanity? Give two examples. 5. What happened to Native American peoples and religions during European colonization of the Americas? 7. Discuss the Ghost Dance and the Native American Church as resistance movements. 8. What does the term “shamanism” mean? What is its origin and history as a term? What are some of the tasks of the shaman? 9. What is sacred time, sacred space? How do indigenous religions tend to differentiate it from ordinary time and space?

Terms: Axis Mundi, Changing Woman, initiation, cosmogony, vision quest, animism, calumet, chantway, Ghost Dance, Holy Wind, Jump Dance, kachina, Native American Church, peyote, Popul Vuh, Quetzalcoatl, rites of passage and renewal, two spirit, sand painting, Sun Dance, sweat lodge (temescal), Corn Woman, trickster, Coyote, Mt. Shasta.

Figures/Tribes: Lame Deer, Black Elk, Wovoka: Lakota, Hopi, Navajo, Zuni, Mayan, Aztec, Modoc, Yurok, Ojibway, Cherokee, Huichol.

CHAPTER 4 – HINDUISM

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: • Describe possible origins of Hinduism and key features of the Vedic and Upanishadic periods • Explain a monistic and a dualistic worldview • Explain concepts of atman, brahman, karma, samsara, dharma, and moksha • Discuss aspects of social and personal life, such as caste, stages of life, and four goals • Explain the practices and goals of the yogic paths • Describe features of devotional Hinduism practiced by the majority of Hindus • Become familiar with main events in the historical development of Hinduism

Study Questions: 1. What are the essential features of Vedic religion? How does it differ and how it is similar to contemporary Hinduism? 2. Describe Vedas, Upanishads, epics, and Puranas. What are the most important features of each? 3. What are Atman and Brahman and how are they related? 4. What are varnas, or Hindu castes, and how do they relate to the concept of karma and reincarnation? 5. What is an avatar? How does the concept of avatar compare with the ways in which other religions speak of God on earth? 6. Investigate to see whether examples of Hindu practice exist in or near your home or school. Visit a Hindu temple or center and attend a service; write a short report. 7. Explain how it is that Hindus who hold the monistic viewpoint still believe in gods and goddesses. 8. How has Hinduism changed since the British Colonial period? 9. Describe the various roles that women have played in Hindu tradition and worship. 10. Describe the history of bhakti. What are the earliest sources? How does bhakti change as it develops across time and moves from region to region?

Terms: Vedas, rishis, Upanishads, Vedanta, Bhagavad-Gita, The Laws of Manu, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Indus Valley, Hindu, Brahmin, karma, samsara, darshan, bhakti, monism, dualism, Atman/Brahman, advaita-vedanta (nondual), vishishta-advaita (brahman is vishnu), dvaita (dualist), OM, mantra, Ganges, avatar, maya, Sat-chit-ananda (truth-consciousness-bliss), karma yoga, bhakti yoga, jnana yoga, raja yoga, hatha yoga, kundalini yoga, chakras, varnas (castes), dalit, ashramas (life-stages), sannyasin, kama, artha, moksha, ahimsa, dhyana, prana, lingam/yoni, puja, tantra.

Deities/Personages: Purusha/ Prithvi, Arjuna, Krishna/Radha, Rama/Sita, Shiva/Parvati, Shiva/Shakti, Vishnu/Lakshmi, Devi, Mahadevi, Kali, Durga, Ganesha; Hanuman, Saraswati, Indra, Agni, Varuna, Usha, Shankara, Kalidasa, Kabir, Mirabai.

CHAPTER 5 – BUDDHISM

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: • Understand the teachings of the Buddha • Understand the essential features of Buddhist traditions and schools • Understand the most important features in the history of Buddhism • Understand the significance of Buddhist practices • Explain the content of the Four Noble Truths • Discuss concepts of impermanence, suffering, and no self in Buddhism • Discuss the spread of Buddhism from India • Distinguish among the three major branches of Buddhism • Discuss modern developments in Buddhism, including its emergence in the West

Study Questions: 1. Describe some of the ways in which Buddhism differs from other religions. 2. Explain the Noble Eightfold Path to Liberation. What are the Four Noble Truths? 3. What is meant by “the Middle Way”? What is meant by the phrase tat tvam asi? 4. How do you think the Buddha might have regarded distinctive Mahayana and Vajrayana beliefs and practices? 5. Describe the doctrine of Interdependent Origination and its implications. 6. What do Buddhists mean when they speak of “suffering” (dukkha)? Why does it occur? Why does putting an end to desire bring an end to suffering? 7. Buddhism arose in a Hindu culture. What features of Hinduism does it preserve? Which does it reject? 8. Some scholars have claimed that Mahayana Buddhism arose in order to serve the needs of laypeople. Do you think it serves the needs of laypeople? Why? 9. Describe and compare the essential features of Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana Buddhism. 10. What is the place of Buddhism in the world today? Do you think it will become a more popular religion in the future? Why?

Terms: anatman, arhat, bodhisattva, dharma, lila, nirvana, Dukkha, interdependent origination, karma, lamas, Mahayana, trikaya (Dharmakaya, Nirmanakaya, Sambhogakaya),Theravada, Vajrayana, mandala, mantra, middle way, Noble Eightfold Path, parinirvana, samsara, sangha, skandhas, stupa, sutra, karuna, shunyata, tathata, Perfection of Wisdom Sutra, Tibetan Book of the Dead, Zen, satori, koan, Zendo, zazen, vipassana, upaya, shamatha, Pali Canon, Bodhi tree, Tantra, Naropa Institute.

Deities/Personages: Siddharta Gautama, Maitreya, Ashoka, Guanyin, Amaterasu, T.W. Rhys-Davids, Alan Watts, Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Nagarjuna, Kyoto School, Nishitani, D.T. Suzuki, Beat Zen (Synder, Kerouac, Rexroth), Schopenhauer, Hume.

CHAPTER 8 – DAOISM AND CONFUCIANISM

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: • Describe the basic elements of traditional Chinese belief that appear in later developments of Chinese religions. • Relate basic details of the lives of the key founders of Daoism and Confucianism. • Define the meaning of Tian, Dao, ren, li, and wu wei. • Discuss Daoist values and ideals, and the images used to convey them • Discuss the focus and goals of Confucianism, especially in terms of the Five Great Relationships, the Confucian Virtues, and the notion of the “noble person.” • Describe how Daoism and Confucianism shaped Chinese arts. • Understand the history, teachings, and way of life of Confucianism and Daoism. • Appreciate the continued relevance of Confucianism and Daoism in modern and contemporary China • Appreciate the perennial value of Confucianism and Daoism among world religions

Study Questions: 1. Describe how Daoism and Confucianism are complementary and how they are different. 2. In what sense are the two notions of Yin and Yang fundamental to the understanding of Chinese religions? 3. Why should the term “Confucianism” be used with caution? In what way may it be a misnomer? 4. According to Confucius, what are the five basic relationships of the social order? Which one was the most basic to a harmonious social order? 5. Why is Daoism more than the teachings of the Laozi and the Zhuangzi? 6. Why is Confucianism a religious tradition despite its lack of concern for the afterlife? 7. Do you see any contradiction between the Daoist ideal of gracefully accepting death, suggested by the Daodejing, and the Daoist search for long life and immortality? Can the two goals be reconciled? How? 8. Compare and contrast the Confucian notion of Tian with the Christian concept of God. 9. Compare and contrast the Daoist notion of Dao with the Hindu concept of Brahman. 10. What aspects of the Confucian and Daoist teachings are still relevant to the 21st century world?

Terms: I Ching, dao, Daozang, Five Classics, Four Books, yang, yin, shen, gui, junzi, shengren, Shangdi, ming, Tianming, Tian, Di, de, qi, ren, li, xiao, zhi, ru, wuwei, xian, wuxing, ziran, xinzhai, zuowang, shenren, neidan, yangsheng, fangshi, daoyin, waidan.

Deities/Personages: Confucius, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, The Three Purities (Primordial Dao, Heavenly Worth of Numinous Treasure, Laozi), Xiwangmu.

CHAPTER 11 – JUDAISM

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: • Develop a comprehensive view of the history of Judaism from antiquity to the present • Obtain a clear and precise understanding of Judaism as a belief system • Name and describe the three parts of the Hebrew Bible • Retell some of the major stories in the Hebrew scriptures • Describe Jewish religious practices • Explain the characteristics of the major divisions within Judaism • Discuss the history of persecution that culminated in the holocaust • Understand the relation of Judaism to Christianity and Islam • Appreciate the diversity of Jewish beliefs and practices in the modern era

Study Questions: 1. From the perspective of biblical authors, what was the central religious crisis facing ancient Israel, and how did this crisis affect the development of monotheism? How is the diaspora related to an emphasis on “the book”? 2. What is meant by the words “covenant” and “election”? 3. Name and describe the contents of each book of the Torah (Pentateuch). 4. Discuss and define the significance of apocalypticism and messianism in the prophetic literatures. 5. Who were the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Essenes, the Zealots, and the Nazirenes? 6. Why is the era of rabbinic literature (c. 1st–6th century C.E.) referred to as the “formative” age? What did the rabbis contribute to the formation of Judaism? 7. Who are some major kabbalistic writers, and how do kabbalistic writers re- imagine God’s nature and God’s relationship to humankind? 8. What are the differences between Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, and Zionist Judaism? 9. Which ideas lie at the heart of the early Zionist movement? To which aspects of Jewish identity do they relate? 10. Discuss three philosophical responses to the Shoah. Which of these responses seem most meaningful to you, and why?

Terms: covenant, election, eschatological, apocalypticism, messianism, Torah, Tanahk, Ten Commandments, Talmud, Sabbath, ethical monotheism, exodus, diaspora, Masada, gentiles, Israel/Judaea, Ashkenzim, Sephardim, Mizrachim, biblical Judaism, rabbinical Judaism, Hasidism, halacha, shoah/holocaust, kosher, Kabbalah, Sephirot, Zohar, ein sof, teshuvah, Kabbalah, Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, rabbi, Zionism, Dead Sea Scrolls, synagogue, tefillin, Mishnah, Tabernacle, transcendence, otherness.

Deities/ Personages: Jehovah/YHWH/Elohim/Adonai, Asherah/El, Abraham, Jacob, Adam/Eve, Lilith, Noah, Tower of Babel, Moses, David/Solomon, Saul, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Enoch, Saadiah, Maimonides, Isaac Luria, Baal Shem Tov, Moses Mendelssohn.

CHAPTER 12 – CHRISTIANITY

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: • Summarize the life and teachings of Jesus, especially in the context of his times • Describe the structure and content of the New Testament • Explain Christian doctrines and practices • Discuss the growth of Christianity, and medieval and modern developments • Explain the origins and distinctive features of the major branches of Christianity, focusing especially on Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant Christianity. • Assess the impact Christianity has had on the arts

Study Questions: 1. Compare the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant traditions with respect to their beliefs, practices, and forms of ecclesiastical government/organization. 2. In what languages were the Old and the New Testament written? Explain/explore 3. Compare the teachings of Jesus with those of Paul. Why do you think some people consider Paul the second founder (or true founder) of Christianity? 4. Which emperor legalized Christianity? When? Which emperor made Christianity official state religion? When? 5. What were the great issues in the theology of ancient Christianity? How were they resolved? What was the nature of the dispute over the Arian controversy? 6. What is the doctrine of the Holy Trinity? How and when did it originate? 7. Compare the views of Judaism and Christianity on the nature of God, sin, human nature & destiny, revelation, and the relationship between God and human beings. 8. In what ways did Luther challenge Roman Catholicism? What was the response of the Roman Catholic Church to Luther and the Protestant Reformation? 9. In what ways has modern culture challenged Christianity? How has Christianity responded? What is the place of Christianity in today’s and tomorrow’s world? 10. Assume you have been offered an all-expenses-paid, one-month trip to Europe— if you are willing to guide a tour to cities/sites that played roles in the spread of Christianity. Do research in choosing an itinerary. Write a script of what you would visit and study at each of the sites you chose.

Terms: apostle, apostolic succession, baptism, bishop, Christmas, Easter, metanoia, pope, logos, epiphany, eucharist, evangelion, gospel, grace, icons, Trinity inquisition, liturgy, Messiah, Nicene & Chalcedon Creed, Original Sin, filioque, theotokos, Great Schism, Orthodox Church, Hagia Sophia, Philolakia, Roman Catholic Church, saint, mysticism, purgatory, ta eschata, rosary, sacrament/musterion, Scholasticism, con- substantial, trans-substantiation, con-comitance, indulgence, Reformation, Protestantism, Anglican, Episcopal, Pentecostalism, Gnosticism, Liberation Theology, ecumenism.

Personages: Jesus, Mary Magdalene, the Apostles, Saul/Paul of Tarsus, Tertullian, Marcion, Montanus, Arius, Constantine, Theodosius, Ambrose, Augustine, Pseudo- Dionysius, Pope Leo the Great, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, Ignatius Loyola, Pope Francis.

CHAPTER 10 – ISLAM

Learning Objectives: After reading this chapter, the student should be able to do the following: • Describe Muhammad’s life and the major events that shaped Islam to the present • Understand the essential teachings of Islam, and Islam’s sacred sources • Describe the Islamic view of God • Describe the Five Pillars of Islam • Discuss the significance and content of the Qur’an • Become familiar with Muslim worship practice and Muslim ways of life • Explain the differences between the Sunni and Shiite branches of Islam • Understand the different ways in which Islam is practiced and understood • Describe the belief and practices of Islam’s mystics • Discuss Islam’s influence on the arts • Become familiar with Islam as a growing religion in North America

Study Questions: 1. Who was Muhammad, and why is he so important to the Islamic tradition? How is Muhammad similar to or different from other prophets? 2. What is a prophet in the Islamic tradition? What does a prophet do? Give examples of one or more prophets. 3. What are the principles of Islamic belief? How do they relate to key worship practices? What are the Five Pillars of Islam? 4. Explain the terms Sunnah, hadith, and hadith qudsi, describe the relationship between them. How and why are they important to Muslims today? 5. What features does Islam share with Judaism & Christianity? How does it differ? 6. What was the Hegira (hijra)? What is miraj? 7. What is Sufism? What are the sources of Sufism, and what are the goals of Sufis? 8. What are the differences between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims? 9. Discuss differences in the status of women in two regions of contemporary Islam. 10. Islam is becoming an important presence in Europe and North America. Discuss what kind of contributions Islam might make. Explain Islamophobia? 11. Make a list of mosques in your geographical region. Visit one and if possible, experience Friday public prayer there. Please describe what you experienced.

Terms: adhan, Allah, Bedouin, caliph, dhikr, hadith, hadith qudsi, hijra, imam, Islam, isnad, little jihad, greater jihad, jinn, Mecca, Medina, miraj, mosque, muezzin, Qur’an, fatihah, Ramadan, Ka’ba, jahiliyya, shari’ah, Five Pillars (shahadah, salat, zakat, sawm, hajj), Shi’a, infallibility, shirk, Sufi, shaykh, fana, Sunnah, surah, tafsir, umma, minaret, qibla, ayatollah, shah, Wahhabism, Nation of Islam, Arab Spring, calligraphy, Alhambra.

Deities/Personages: Allah, Hawa, Ibrahim, Gabriel, Ismael, Muhammed, Khadija, Aisha, Abu Bakr, Ali, Rabi’a, Rumi, Hafiz, al-Ghazali, MalcolmX, Reza Aslan, Saba Mahmood.