THSR500 - Introducing Religions of the World

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

Teaching organisation

This unit involves 150 hours of focused learning, or the equivalent of 10 hours per week for 15 weeks. The total includes formally structured learning activities such as lectures, tutorials, and online learning. The remaining hours typically involve reading, research, and the preparation and submission of tasks for assessment.

Unit rationale, description and aim

Studying the religions of the world in a spirit of open and critical inquiry is essential to navigating today’s pluralistic society. This unit introduces a learner to understanding perspectives that are different to what is usually considered mainstream in a Western society (namely, Christianity). At the same time, learning about these other perspectives will allow a learner to have a greater and more informed appreciation of one’s own worldview. Whereas other units explore Christianity, Judaism and Islam within a closer nexus of related ideas and theologies, this unit will explore Christianity, Judaism and Islam alongside Hinduism, Buddhism and Australian Indigenous Religions from a more descriptive point of view. At the same time this unit will ask the question whether a merely descriptive and objective ‘religious studies’ approach is entirely possible or even desirable. The aim of this unit is to enable students to enhance their knowledge of a range of religious traditions, and to critically consider their interaction with contemporary Australian society.

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

LO1 - Articulate the essential beliefs, practices, philosophies and institutions of each religion studied (GA1, GA5)

LO2 - Compare and contrast the varieties of living religious experience (GA4, GA5)

LO3 - Assess the main issues and challenges in the ongoing debate about Christian approaches to other religions and develop the skills necessary to engage in respectful and fruitful dialogue with other religions (GA1, GA3, GA4)

Graduate attributes

GA1 - demonstrate respect for the dignity of each individual and for human diversity

GA3 - apply ethical perspectives in informed decision making

GA4 - think critically and reflectively 

GA5 - demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession 

Content

Topics will include:

• Understanding the nature of religion and approaches to the study of religion.
• Globalization, post/de-colonialism and the destabilisation of World Religions in the academy.
• Christianity’s encounters with the world’s religions.
• The ‘religions’ of the world: Sacred time, sacred space, sacred practice, sacred texts and sacred persons.
• Relationship between the religions and interreligious dialogue.

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit involves 150 hours of focused learning, or the equivalent of 10 hours per week for 15 weeks. The total includes formally structured learning activities such as lectures, tutorials, and online learning. The remaining hours typically involve reading, research, and the preparation and submission of tasks for assessment.

The unit is normally offered in either online or intensive mode. Students learn through formally structured and sequenced learning activities that support the achievement of the learning outcomes. Students are asked to critically reflect, analyse, and integrate new information with existing knowledge, draw meaningful new connections, and then apply what they have learned. Collaborative and peer learning is also emphasised.

The learning activities enable students to acquire and assimilate foundational knowledge of the world’s religions through application of, and critical reflection on, modern epistemic debates. The learning activities are supported by the presence and articulation of the lecturer and tutors. Students will be guided to develop the academic skills needed for a critical appreciation of the world’s religions.

THSR500 emphasises students as active, adult learners. Students are recognised as adult learners who engage best when what they are learning is relevant to them and gives them the opportunity to be responsible for their own learning. In many ways, the student is the one who drives the learning forward. Active participation in this unit is essential. Learning is designed to be an engaging and supportive experience, which helps students to develop critical thinking and reflection skills.

Assessment strategy and rationale

In order to pass this unit, learners are required to demonstrate achievement of all three learning outcomes and achieve an overall mark of 50% or higher.

The assessment tasks for this unit are designed for students to progressively demonstrate their achievement of each learning outcome.

Task 1 asks learners to describe the essential beliefs and practices of at least two non-Christian religions. The task is principally designed to allow learners to display achievement of Learning Outcome 1. It allows them a relatively low-risk piece of assessment to test their research skills, as well as academic writing techniques.

Task 2 gives learners an opportunity to research one or more world religions in greater depth and compare and contrast them with beliefs and practices in Christianity. The principal purpose of this task is to allow students to demonstrate achievement of Learning Outcome 2.

Task 3 asks learners to expand upon tasks 1 and 2 by interrogating the ‘world religions’ approach to the study of religions within the academy. Learners will be encouraged to reflect critically on the appropriateness and usefulness of a merely descriptive and objective ‘religious studies’ approach to religion. This reflection should serve as the basis for learners to articulate what skills and strategies will be necessary to engage in respectful and fruitful dialogue with other religions today. The principal focus of this task is to allow learners to display achievement of Learning Outcome 3.

Overview of assessments

Representative texts and references

Clooney, Francis X. Theology after Advaita. An Experiment in Comparative Theology. New York: SUNY Press, 1993. https://doi.org/10.1515/9780823278435

Clooney, & Stosch, K. von. (2017). How to Do Comparative Theology (Clooney & K. von Stosch, Eds.). Fordham University Press.

King, Richard. Orientalism and Religion. Postcolonial Theory, India and the ‘mystic East’. London: Routledge, 1999.

Kripal, J. J., Plensa, J., Kripal, J. L., Levy, S., & Kripal, J. J. (Jeffrey J. (2014). Comparing religions : coming to terms. Wiley Blackwell.

Markham, Ian S. A World Religions Reader. Malden: Blackwell, 2000.

Masuzawa, Tomoko, The Invention of World Religions Or, How European Universalism Was Preserved in the Language of Universalism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.

Nongbri, Brent. Before Religion. A History of a Modern Concept. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2013.

Ondich. J. (2021). World Religions: the Spirit Searching. Jody Ondich.

Oxtoby, William G. and Segal, Alan F., eds. A Concise Introduction to World Religions. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.

Prothero, Stephen. God Is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions That Run the World. New York: HarperOne, 2011.

Smart, Ninian and Hecht, Richard D., eds. Sacred Texts of the World: A Universal Anthology. New York: Crossroad, 2004.

Smith, Cantwell. The Meaning and End of Religion. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1991.