The above course carries Arts and Humanities distribution

This course begins with a single question: What is religion? This
question will guide us as we explore some of the range of human
behaviors and ideas that can be included in this term. Drawing on
scriptures, fiction, poems, philosophies and a variety of other
sources from across the globe, we will pursue our question in its
three main guises. What is the object of religion (e.g., God, the
gods, truth, reality, delusion, escape)? What is its role in culture
and history, and connection with things such as economics, politics,
the arts? And finally, what are some explanations for it (e.g., it
is an expression of group identity, it is an infantile wish for
authority, it is a universal human quest to realize the meaning of
the cosmos)? The goal will be to become more conscious of the
breadth and complexity of a term we all use, to become, then, more
fluent in the possibilities it articulates, the boundaries it draws,
and the presuppositions it bears. This course carries Arts and
Humanities credit.