Martha G. Newman

Topics in premodern history with emphasis on regions outside of the ancient Mediterranean world.

Hybrid instruction:  Students will meet in person on Mondays at 11am – 12 noon in UTC 3.112.
Other instruction is asynchronous.

Our images of medieval Europe are often shaped more by contemporary popular culture and modern politics than by the historical record.  Scholars, however, have broadened their understanding of the period to incorporate material culture, as well as data from climate science, genetics, and archeology, into their traditional analysis of written documents. This class draws on recent studies of European history between 500 and 1500 to explore how the social practices, ideas, and institutions of the European middle ages developed through interactions with Europe’s neighbors. Themes include: climate change and disease; archeological evidence for everyday life; the relationship between trade and political power; the articulation of religious, ethnic, and gendered differences; intellectual interactions between Christians, Jews, and Muslims; and the formation of empires.

Here’s what we will investigate together:
• important events, people, and places within the medieval millennium (500-1500)
• how interactions with peoples, ideas, and material objects from the Middle East, Asia and Africa shaped medieval European culture
• the documents and material objects that scholars use to study medieval Europe, and how to understand the perspectives of their authors and their audiences
• how historians formulate arguments and conversations
• an understanding of how societies change
 the modern fascination with the medieval past, and ways of understandingcultures different from our own
• how to write and speak more clearly, to articulate your position or argument, and to support it effectively and respectfully.


Readings:
Barbara Rosenwein, A Short History of the Middle Ages (5th edition). University of Toronto Press, 2018
Articles, translated documents and images will be available on Canvas

Grading:
2 Midterms  25% each
Final Project 30%
Reading response handouts and class participation using Perusall 10%
Group reading response projects using ClioVis  10%. 

Our images of medieval Europe are often shaped more by contemporary popular culture and modern politics than by the historical record.  Scholars, however, have broadened their understanding of the period to incorporate material culture, as well as data from climate science, genetics, and archeology, into their traditional analysis of written documents. This class draws on recent studies of European history between 500 and 1500 to explore how the social practices, ideas, and institutions of the European middle ages developed through interactions with Europe’s neighbors. Themes include: climate change and disease; archeological evidence for everyday life; the relationship between trade and political power; the articulation of religious, ethnic, and gendered differences; intellectual interactions between Christians, Jews, and Muslims; and the formation of empires.

Here’s what we will investigate together:
• important events, people, and places within the medieval millennium (500-1500)
• how interactions with peoples, ideas, and material objects from the Middle East, Asia and Africa shaped medieval European culture
• the documents and material objects that scholars use to study medieval Europe, and how to understand the perspectives of their authors and their audiences
• how historians formulate arguments and conversations
• an understanding of how societies change
 the modern fascination with the medieval past, and ways of understandingcultures different from our own
• how to write and speak more clearly, to articulate your position or argument, and to support it effectively and respectfully.


Readings:
Barbara Rosenwein, A Short History of the Middle Ages (5th edition). University of Toronto Press, 2018
Articles, translated documents and images will be available on Canvas

Grading:
2 Midterms  25% each
Final Project 30%
Reading response handouts and class participation using Perusall 10%
Group reading response projects using ClioVis  10%. 

Inquisition and witch-hunt: the modern use of these terms evokes conceptions of authoritarian and irrational officials, acts of intimidation and torture, and mass hysteria about hidden dangers and conspiracies. This course explores the development of inquisitorial practices in the European middle ages and their expansion in early modern Europe as officials searched for heretics, witches, Jews, Muslims, and other dissenters. We will consider the problems of interpreting the documents that inquisitors and witch hunters produced.  We will also explore how these documents illuminate everyday practices and behaviors, imagined and wonderous phenomena (including a werewolf and a canine saint), and the exercise and abuse of legal procedures.  In addition, we will examine inquisitorial documents at the HRC and the Benson. Students will learn to analyze medieval and early modern documents (in translation) but can develop their own research projects using inquisitorial documents from more modern periods if they wish.


Readings will include selections from:
RI Moore, The War on Heresy: Faith and Power in Medieval Europe
Edward Peters, Inquisition
Le Roy Ladurie,  Montaillou: The Promised Land of Error
Carlos Ginzburg, The Cheese and the Worms
Brian Levack, The Witchcraft Source Book
and selected articles and documents in translation


Grading:
    Class preparation and reading response exercises  30%
    Research project prospectus:  10%
    Draft research paper and peer review:  20%
    Oral Presentation 10%
    Final Research paper (15-20 pages) 30%

European society changed so rapidly and extensively between 1050 and 1200 that medievalists often call it a "renaissance," ( a period of rebirth not to be confused with the later Italian Renaissance.) During this period, agricultural technologies changed, new forms of religious life developed, schools and universities emerged, cathedrals were built, towns became self-governing, and royal governments experimented with new forms of administration and law. Though a reading of primary documents - including love letters, memoirs, accounts of religious visions, chronicles of urban revolts, court poetry, theological treatises, and artistic creations – this course examines a series of these intellectual, religious, social, and political developments.

Grading:

• Class Preparation Exercises 26% 13 Total at 2% each (complete/incomplete)
• 2 short (3-page) papers 30% (15% each, re-writes average grade)
• Map Exercise (on line) 4%
• Final Paper (8 pages) 30%
• Class Participation and Attendance 10% Your attendance grade is the number of classes you attend

Introductory survey of premodern history with emphasis on regions outside of the ancient Mediterranean world.

Introductory survey of premodern history with emphasis on regions outside of the ancient Mediterranean world.

Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

May be repeated for credit when the topics vary.

What were the crusades? Was a crusade an armed pilgrimage, holy war, or a war of conquest? What motivated those who fought and those supported these expeditions? What were the political, cultural, and religious developments that led to the crusades and what were their legacies both in Europe and in the eastern Mediterranean? This class explores these questions by examining both accounts of crusades written by medieval authors and modern historians' interpretations of these documents. In the process, we will investigate religious encounters between eastern and western Christians, Christian heretics, Jews, Muslims, and polytheists; political, military, and cultural changes of the high middle ages; and the ways that crusading ideas and symbols have been reused in contemporary politics and popular culture.

TEXTS:

• Susanna Throop, The Crusades, An Epitome (Leeds: Kismet Press, 2018)
• The Crusades:  A Reader  ed. S. J. Allen and Emilie Amt (Toronto:  University of Toronto Press, 2014)
• Selected documents and articles in a reader.

GRADING:

Class attendance, preparation and reading worksheets, discussion, and in-class work: 30%

Research paper on a topic of a student's choice (15 pages): 70%

•  Library Assignment/ Annotated bibliography 5%
•  Source analysis 5%
•  Draft 20%
•  Oral presentation 10%
•  Peer Review of others 5%
•  Final draft 30%

The Signature Course (UGS 302 and 303) introduces first-year students to the university’s academic community through the exploration of new interests. The Signature Course is your opportunity to engage in college-level thinking and learning.

European society changed so rapidly and extensively between 1050 and 1200 that medievalists often call it a "renaissance," ( a period of rebirth not to be confused with the later Italian Renaissance.) During this period, agricultural technologies changed, new forms of religious life developed, schools and universities emerged, cathedrals were built, towns became self-governing, and royal governments experimented with new forms of administration and law. Though a reading of primary documents - including love letters, memoirs, accounts of religious visions, chronicles of urban revolts, court poetry, theological treatises, and artistic creations – this course examines a series of these intellectual, religious, social, and political developments.

The goals of this course are for students 1) to identify the important events and figures in this period of rapid change; 2) to learn to read and analyze different types of medieval documents;  3) to understand how historical arguments and accounts are constructed from the analysis of primary documents; 4) to understand the interconnections between economic, social, religious, and cultural developments; and 5) to construct and write their own historical analyses.

Advanced seminar designed to introduce students to the profession of religious studies. Includes development and preparation of a dissertation proposal, placing scholarship within a broader theoretical context,and pedagogical issues in teaching religious studies at the undergraduate college level.

This course has a Writing Flag and an Independent Inquiry Flag and I will apply for a Global Cultures Flag.  Crosslist with Religious Studies

What were the crusades?  Was a crusade an armed pilgrimage, holy war, or a war of conquest?  What motivated those who fought and those supported these expeditions?  What were the political, cultural, and religious developments that led to the crusades and what were their legacies both in Europe and in the eastern Mediterranean?   This research seminar explores these questions by examining both accounts of crusades written by medieval authors and modern historians' interpretations of these documents.  In the process, we will investigate religious encounters between eastern and western Christians, Christian heretics, Jews, Muslims, and polytheists; political, military, and cultural changes of the high middle ages; and the ways that crusading ideas and symbols have been reused in contemporary politics and popular culture.

Texts:

Jonathan Riley-Smith. The Crusades:  A History  Yale, 2005  

Robert the Monk, History of the First Crusade, trans. Carol Sweetenham (Ashgate, 2006).

The Song of Roland.  Trans. Michael Newth. (Italica Press, 2015)

Joinville and Villehardouin, Chronicles of the Crusades (Penguin, 2009)

Selected documents and articles in a reader.

Class attendence, preparation, discussion, and in-class work:         25%

Research paper on a topic of a student's choice (15 pages):             75%

            Library Assignment/ Annotated bibliography     5%

            Source analysis                                                       5%

            Draft                                                                           20%

            Oral presentation                                                     10%

            Peer Review of others                                              5%

            Final draft                                                                  30%

The Signature Course (UGS 302 and 303) introduces first-year students to the university’s academic community through the exploration of new interests. The Signature Course is your opportunity to engage in college-level thinking and learning.

            Western Civilization in Medieval Times explores the history and culture of Europe between 400 and 1500.  In this class, we will investigate ways that medieval Europe is familiar to us but also what makes it strange.  That is, we will examine the medieval roots of modern institutions and ideas but will also consider how medieval culture encourages us to reexamine our assumptions about characteristics of western civilization.

            This course only partially moves chronologically, for it focus on four important medieval texts and their historical, literary, and artistic contexts.  While reading Augustine of Hippo's Confessions, we explore the transition from classical to medieval society and Augustine's philosophical questions about self and God. With the Song of Roland, we examine violence and honor, the culture of knighthood, and the crusades.  The Letters of Peter Abelard and Heloise bring us to the formation of the university, the relation of faith and reason, and expressions of love.  Finally, Machiavelli's Prince brings us to the Italian Renaissance, the transition to an early modern world view, and questions about kingship, justice, and virtue.

This section of History 309K is for Plan II students.

Books:

Augustine of Hippo, The Confessions.  Trans. Maria Boulding.  Vintage, 2012

The Song of Roland.  Trans. Michael Newth. Italica Press, 2015

Abelard and Heloise:  The Letters and Other Writings  Trans.  William Levitan.    Hackett Classics, 2007.

Machiavelli, The Prince. Trans.  David Wooton.  Hackett Classics, 1995.

Selected readings posted on Canvas.

Grading and Assignments:

•Reading journals, class preparation, attendance, and short assignments: 25%

•3  4-page papers: 45%(15% each)

• Group project and presentation:  10%

•Final exam:  20%

The Signature Course (UGS 302 and 303) introduces first-year students to the university’s academic community through the exploration of new interests. The Signature Course is your opportunity to engage in college-level thinking and learning.

European society changed so rapidly and extensively between 1050 and 1200 that medievalists often call it a "renaissance," ( a period of rebirth not to be confused with the later Italian Renaissance.) During this period, agricultural technologies changed, new forms of religious life developed, schools and universities emerged, cathedrals were built, towns became self-governing, and royal governments experimented with new forms of administration and law. Though a reading of primary documents - including love letters, memoirs, accounts of religious visions, chronicles of urban revolts, court poetry, theological treatises, and artistic creations – this course examines a series of these intellectual, religious, social, and political developments.

The goals of this course are for students 1) to identify the important events and figures in this period of rapid change; 2) to learn to read and analyze different types of medieval documents;  3) to understand how historical arguments and accounts are constructed from the analysis of primary documents; 4) to understand the interconnections between economic, social, religious, and cultural developments; and 5) to construct and write their own historical analyses.

Texts:

REQUIRED BOOKS:

Colin Morris, The Discovery of the Individual (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1987).

Galbert of Bruges, The Murder of Charles the Good, trans. James Bruce Ross (New York:  Harper and Row, 1967;  reprinted by Toronto University Press).

Paul Archambault, ed. , A Monk’s Confession:  The Memoirs of Guibert of Nogent (Pennsylvania State University Press, 1995).

Peter Abelard and Heloise, Letters and other Writings, ed. William Levitan (Hackett Publishing Company, 2007).

Georges Duby, William Marshal:  Flower of Chivalry, (New York:  Pantheon, 1987).

Highly recommended:

Christopher Brooke, Europe in the Central Middle Ages, 3nd edition (London, Longman, 2000).

In addition, selected primary documents are available on Blackboard.

Grading:

Course Requirements and Grades

•3 short (2-3-page) papers                               30% (10% each)        

•Map Test                                                       5%

•Midterm Exam                                                20%

•Final Paper (10 pages)                                    35%

•Class Participation                                           5%

•Attendance                                                     5%

RS 383c/ RS388E

Readings in Religion in Europe, 400- 1600

This reading course explores the scholarship on selected topics in the religious history of Europe from the time of Augustine of Hippo through the early Reformation.   We will explore various genres of scholarship – biography, institutional history, intellectual history, the social history of religion, historical theology,  gender studies – and the application of different theoretical aproaches to the study of religion to medieval and early modern European phenomena.  Topics will include Augustine of Hippo, Conversion, Reform and Investiture,  Heresy and Inquisition, Jewish-Christian relations, Affective Religiosity, Material and Visual Culture, the Protestant and Catholic Reformations.

Assignments:  weekly reading questions;  3 short reading response papers;  1 15-page historiographical essay.

The Signature Course (UGS 302 and 303) introduces first-year students to the university’s academic community through the exploration of new interests. The Signature Course is your opportunity to engage in college-level thinking and learning.

European society changed so rapidly and extensively between 1050 and 1200 that medievalists often call it a "renaissance," ( a period of rebirth not to be confused with the later Italian Renaissance.) During this period, agricultural technologies changed, new forms of religious life developed, schools and universities emerged, cathedrals were built, towns became self-governing, and royal governments experimented with new forms of administration and law. Though a reading of primary documents - including love letters, memoirs, accounts of religious visions, chronicles of urban revolts, court poetry, theological treatises, and artistic creations – this course examines a series of these intellectual, religious, social, and political developments.

The goals of this course are for students 1) to identify the important events and figures in this period of rapid change; 2) to learn to read and analyze different types of medieval documents;  3) to understand how historical arguments and accounts are constructed from the analysis of primary documents; 4) to understand the interconnections between economic, social, religious, and cultural developments; and 5) to construct and write their own historical analyses.

REQUIRED BOOKS:

Colin Morris, The Discovery of the Individual (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1987).

Galbert of Bruges, The Murder of Charles the Good, trans. James Bruce Ross (New York:  Harper and Row, 1967;  reprinted by Toronto University Press).

Paul Archambault, ed. , A Monk’s Confession:  The Memoirs of Guibert of Nogent (Pennsylvania State University Press, 1995).

Peter Abelard and Heloise, Letters and other Writings, ed. William Levitan (Hackett Publishing Company, 2007).

Georges Duby, William Marshal:  Flower of Chivalry, (New York:  Pantheon, 1987).

Highly recommended:

Christopher Brooke, Europe in the Central Middle Ages, 3nd edition (London, Longman, 2000).

In addition, selected primary documents are available on Blackboard.

Course Requirements and Grades

•3 short (2-3-page) papers                               30% (10% each)         

•Map Test                                                       5%

•Midterm Exam                                                20%

•Final Paper (10 pages)                                    35%

•Class Participation                                           5%

•Attendance                                                     5%

This course explores the principal beliefs and practices of Jews, Christians and Muslims and the historical development of the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.   In so doing, it will fulfill the Cultural Diversity Flag by increasing your familiarity with the beliefs and practices of different cultural groups in the United States.   At the same time, it will provide an introduction to the field of religious studies by exposing you to some of the interdisciplinary methods used to understand religion as a central component of human culture.  These will include historical methods, the study of ritual, and the analysis of ideas.  Finally, this class has an ethics component that will encourage your reflection about the ways you speak about religion, and the implicit definitions you use, and the implications of these choices for real-life situations.

John Corrigan, Frederick Denny, Carlos Eire, Martin Jaffe, Jews, Christians, Muslims:  A Comparative Introduction to Monotheistic Religions  (Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, Second Edition, 2012)I>clicker+ (this is an electronic device, not a book.  If you already have an i>clicker – any model – you do not need to purchase another;  check to see if you need new batteries. This syllabus has the pages numbers for the Second Edition.   I will post on Blackboard a syllabus with the page numbers for the First Edition. Noted readings can be found on the Blackboard site.  Materials will be placed in folders under “Course Documents.”Strongly Recommended:The HarperCollins Study Bible, ed. Wayne Meeks  (New Revised Standard Version, also known as NRSV)The Qur’an. Trans. M. A. S. Abdel Haleem.  (Oxford, 2004).You do not need to by a Bible or a Qur’an if you already own one.  Be aware, however, that translations differ, and we will occasionally discuss the implications of this. On-line resources:The NSRV is also available on line at: http://www.devotions.net/bible/00bible.htm .If you are interested in comparing translations of the (Christian) Bible, see http://ntgateway.com/multibib/bible.htm. For an English (JPS) translation of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), see http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Bible/jpstoc.htmlFor the Qur’an on line see: http://www.hti.umich.edu/k/koran/browse.html  M.H. Shakir, trans. (Tahrike Tarsile Qu’ran, 1983),;  to compare translations, see  http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/quran/All websites on this syllabus can be found as “hot links” on Blackboard, in a folder under “Course Documents.”

•Class participation:   10% = 100 pts.   You will  receive 1 point for every i>clicker question you answer.  There will be approximately 110 questions over the course of the semester).   You will get 10 free points to compensate for lost i>clickers, sick dogs, broken cars, and other unforeseen disasters.   No excuses or makeups except for documented absences. •In-class i>clicker quizzes   10% = 100 pts.   Expect one question a day, starting Jan 23.    There will be at least 35 questions @3pts per question.  Again, you will receive at least 5 extra points.  No excuses or makeups except for documented absences. •Intellectual journal  20% = 200 pts     Graded as acceptable or unacceptable;  you get 9 pts per acceptable entry for a total of 20 entries.    20 pts reserved for quality.  See below for further information.  Due weekly.•Midterm essay  20%  = 200 pts  Due March 25.•Ritual observation assignment  20%  = 200 pts  Due April 15•Final Exam 20% = 200 pts.  TBA once the exam schedule is posted.

This course will explores the principal beliefs and practices of Jews, Christians and Muslims and the historical development of the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.  At the same time, the course will provide an introduction to the field of religious studies by exposing students to some of the interdisciplinary methods used to understand religion as a central component of human culture, including historical methods, the study of ritual, and the analysis of ideas.

This class carries both a Cultural Diversity and an Ethics and Leadership flag.

Mystics and visionaries claim  to have a particular encounter with the divine that transcends ordinary human experience.  In this course, we examine particular mystical and visionary experiences within the context of medieval European Christianity.   We will read writings both by and about figures such as Hildegard of Bingen, Bernard of Clairvaux, Catherine of Siena, Margarete Porete, and Meister Eckhard, and we will investigate the interpretative questions these writings raise for historians and scholars of religion.   We will explore the tensions between individual experience  and communal or institutional religion; the kinds of authority and challenges to authority that these experiences created;  the relationship between experiences of the spirit and practices of the body; and the problem of expressing what is unexpressible.  Finally, we will examine the ways in which scholars have studied these types of religious experiences. This course will have a writing flag, and thus students are expected to write frequently, substantially, and with peer input.  Students will write 5 response papers to the weekly readings, and will work through the stages of writing a research paper.   While the course readings will focus on medieval Christian mystics and visionaries, students are welcome to write research papers on figures from other religious traditions or to examine mystics or visions from the early modern or modern period.

Books will include:

Hanson, Ron.  Mariette in Ecstasy. 

Kroll, Jerome, and Bernard Bachrach,  The Mystic Mind:  The Psychology of Medieval Mystics and Ascetics

Fanning, Steven.  Mystics of the Christian Tradition

McGinn, Bernard.  Essential Writings of Christian Mysticism.

Selected Writings of Hildegard of Bingen.

In addition, a set of  articles and primary source readings will be placed on Blackboard.

Grading

5 1-2 page papers:    3% each  =  15%

research project prospectus   =  10%

research paper (10-15 pages)  draft  = 15%

peer responses  = 10%

final research paper  = 25%

class participation  = 25%

350L

Mystics and visionaries claim  to have a particular encounter with the divine that transcends ordinary human experience.  In this course, we examine particular mystical and visionary experiences within the context of medieval European Christianity.   We will read writings both by and about figures such as Hildegard of Bingen, Bernard of Clairvaux, Catherine of Siena, Margarete Porete, and Meister Eckhard, and we will investigate the interpretative questions these writings raise for historians and scholars of religion.   We will explore the tensions between individual experience  and communal or institutional religion; the kinds of authority and challenges to authority that these experiences created;  the relationship between experiences of the spirit and practices of the body; and the problem of expressing what is unexpressible.  Finally, we will examine the ways in which scholars have studied these types of religious experiences. This course will have a writing flag, and thus students are expected to write frequently, substantially, and with peer input.  Students will write 5 response papers to the weekly readings, and will work through the stages of writing a research paper.   While the course readings will focus on medieval Christian mystics and visionaries, students are welcome to write research papers on figures from other religious traditions or to examine mystics or visions from the early modern or modern period.

Books will include:

Hanson, Ron.  Mariette in Ecstasy. 

Fanning, Steven.  Mystics of the Christian Tradition

McGinn, Bernard.  Essential Writings of Christian Mysticism.

Petroff, Elizabeth.  Medieval Women’s Visionary Literature.

Selected Writings of Hildegard of Bingen.

Marguerite Porete, The Mirror of Simple Souls.

In addition, a set of  articles and primary source readings will be placed on Blackboard.

Grading

5 1-2 page papers:    3% each  =  15%

research project prospectus   =  10%

research paper (10-15 pages)  draft  = 15%

peer responses  = 10%

final research paper  = 25%

class participation  = 25%

RELIGIOUS  STUDIES 304;  HISTORY 304R

(Jewish Studies 311,  Islamic Studies 311, CTI 304 + CTI 111)

JUDAISM, CHRISTIANITY,  ISLAM:  AN INTRODUCTION

Dr. M. Newman                                                            Office: Burdine 410

Spring 2010                                                                        Office hours:  Wednesday 1:30-3:00

Unique nos. 38990, 43520, 41480, 39925, 33097                                    or by appointment

UTC 3.110                                                                        email:  newman@mail.utexas.edu           

MWF 10                                               

TA:  Lior Sternfeld                       

Office hours:   Mon 11-12;  Wed 12-1;  Fri 11-12, or by appointment.           

Office:  Burdine 454                       

Email:     <lior.sternfeld@mail.utexas.edu>

Core Texts and Ideas seminar:

Dr. Patrick Gardner

Office Hours:  T Th  3-5 or by appointment

Office:  WAG 401 D

Email: <patrickmgardner@gmail.com>

Students interested in enrolling in a 1-credit hour discussion section can contact the office of the Core Texts and Ideas Program to enroll in CTI 111.                                    

I. BOOKS

The following books are available in paperback:

Required:

John Corrigan, Frederick Denny, Carlos Eire, Martin Jaffe, Jews, Christians, Muslims:  A Comparative Introduction to Monotheistic Religions  (Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 1998)

Documents and readings on the Blackboard site.  Materials will be placed in folders under “Course Documents.”

Recommended:

The HarperCollins Study Bible, ed. Wayne Meeks

The Qur’an. Trans. M. A. S. Abdel Haleem.  (Oxford, 2004).

On-line resources:

The NSRV is also available on line at: http://www.devotions.net/bible/00bible.htm .

If you are interested in comparing Christian translations of the Bible, see http://ntgateway.com/multibib/bible.htm. 

For an English (JPS) translation of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), see http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Bible/jpstoc.html

The Qur’an is also available on line: http://www.hti.umich.edu/k/koran/browse.html  M.H. Shakir, trans. (Tahrike Tarsile Qu’ran, 1983), or  http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/quran/

(multiple translations, interesting but hard  to use).

All websites on this syllabus can be found as “hot links” on Blackboard.

II.  COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADES

I grade using +/- on letter grades.  For my grading scale, see Blackboard, course documents. 

5 quizes @ 4% each = 20%                          Sept 20, Oct 4, Oct. 18, Nov. 3, Nov. 22

2 short papers  = 10% total                          Sept 3, Dec 3                       

2 projects @ 20% each = 40%            Due  Oct 11, Nov. 10

final exam  =  25%                                    Due  Wed. Dec 8.

attendance  =  5%                                    Starting Sept 1

Attendance policy:  We will take attendance starting on Sept 1 (after adds and drops is over).  You will receive a point for each class you attend of the remaining 38 classes.    Your attendance grade will be the percentage of 37 classes:  that is, your accumulated points divided by 39, multiplied by 100.  You thus receive one free absence;  students with perfect attendance will receive the extra credit.  Other than this one class, excused absences will be granted only for a documented medical problem, a religious holiday, or an absence due to official university business;  expect a request for written documentation although this may be waived in the case of a flu outbreak.              

Statement on academic integrity:  Don’t cheat.  I report all cases of scholastic dishonesty to the Dean of Students.  My recommended penalty for cheating on tests or plagiarism on papers is an F for the course.  If you are unsure about the exact definition of scholastic dishonesty or what constitutes plagiarism, you should consult the information about academic integrity produced by the Dean of Students Office: http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sjs/acint_student.php

Make-up Exams:  I will only give a make-up exam if a student misses a test because of a documented medical problem, a religious holiday, or official university business.  In all cases, I should receive valid written documentation for the absence.  If the absence is due to university business, I should receive this documentation at least one class prior to the exam.

Students with Disabilities:  Any student with a documented disability who requires academic accommodations should contact the Services for Students with Disabilities (471-6259) as soon as possible to request an official letter outlining authorized accommodations.

Religious Holidays:  Students can make up work missed because of a religious holiday as long as they provide the instructor with documentation before the holiday occurs.

Blackboard:  Course information, handouts, assignments, review sheets, etc. will be posted on the class website on Blackboard.  To find the Blackboard site, and go to:  http://courses.utexas.edu/  and log in with your EID and password.  Readings can be found under “Course Documents.”

Academic Assistance:  In addition to the assistance of the assigned teaching assistants, students may wish to utilize the academic services provided by the UT Learning Center (UTLC). The UTLC is a student academic service that offers both group and individualized programs to help increase efficiency in college-level writing, reading, and learning strategies.  All UTLC programs, except appointment tutoring, are free to all currently enrolled students. The UTLC is located in the Jester Center, Room A332A

III. Course Goals

This course will explores the principal beliefs and practices of Jews, Christians and Muslims and the historical development of the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.  At the same time, the course will provide an introduction to the field of religious studies by exposing students to some of the interdisciplinary methods used to understand religion as a central component of human culture, including historical methods, the study of ritual, and the analysis of ideas.

IV. Schedule of Lectures

I. Studying Religion

Reading (August 25-30):  Nye, “Religion: Some  Basics”  [Blackboard]

1. August 25  Introduction

2. August 27  What is religion?

3. August 30  Defining religion

II.  Rituals and Foundational Stories

            Reading (Sept 1-3): Genesis 9.1-9.17;  15.1-18.15;  21.1-22.19;  Exodus 19;

Deut. 4.44-11.32; 2 Corinthians 1-3,  Romans 4

                        Qur’an Surah 3.78-3.130

            4. Sept 1 Abrahamic religions                                      

5. Sept 3  The idea of covenant 

*short paper due*

Sept 6  LABOR DAY

Reading (Sept 8-20):  Corrigan JCM:  pp 213-234;  277-295; 341-368.

            6. Sept 8  Passover 

                        Reading: Exodus 3; Exodus 6-7;  Exodus 11-15.

            7. Sept 10  Ritual analysis

                        Reading:  Haggadah excerpts (blackboard)

8. Sept 13 Jews as the Chosen People

            Reading: Psalm 115, Psalm 145; Deut. 12-17.

                        613 Mitzvot (on blackboard)

9. Sept 15 Exile and  Redemption

            Reading:  Deut. 27-30; Isaiah 57-58; Psalm 27

10. Sept 17 Written and Oral Torah

            Reading: Pirke Avot 1 (blackboard)

            Tractate Ta’anith 27b (blackboard)           

            Tractate Menahoth 109b-110a (blackboard)

11. Sept. 20 Enacting this History QUIZ 1

            Reading: daily prayers (blackboard)

Reading (Sept 22-Oct 4): Corrigan JCM:  pp. 235-255; 296-322;  368-396.

12. Sept 22  Easter

            Reading: Luke 22-28

13.  Sept 24  Ritual Analysis 

            Reading:  Easter liturgies (blackboard)

14. Sept 27  Human Sinfulness  

            Reading: Genesis 3-10;  Psalm 51;  Isaiah 11

15. Sept 29  Jesus the Redeemer

            Reading Matthew 5-6; John 3;  Romans 5-8

16. Oct 1 Presence and Remembrance

            Reading Matthew 26;  Mark 14 (compare to Luke 22);  John 6           

17.  Oct 4  Enacting this History  QUIZ 2

            Reading:  Apostles Creed, Nicene Creed, Lord’s Prayer (blackboard)

Reading (Oct 6-Oct 18): Corrigan, JCM, pp. 256-273;  323-338;  397-416.

18. Oct. 6  Hajj 

            Reading: Qur’an Surah 2. 196-219.  Malcolm X on the Hajj (Blackboard)           

19.  Oct. 8  Ritual Analysis 

            Reading:  schematic of the Hajj (blackboard);

            Talbiyah prayer   (blackboard)

20. Oct 11  Muhammad the Prophet

Reading: Life of Muhammad [Sirat Rasul Allah of Ibn Ishaq] (excerpts) (blackboard)

Qur’an  Surah 96;  Surah 1, Surah 87.

*Project 1 due*

21. Oct. 13:  Forming the Umma

            Reading: Qur’an Surah 2

22.  Oct. 15  Sunni and Shia

Reading: Elegies on the death of Husayn (blackboard)

23.  Oct 18:  Enacting this History  QUIZ 3

            Reading: Salat prayers (blackboard)     

III.  Texts and Authorities

            Reading (Oct 20-Nov 10):  Corrigan, JCM:  pp. 1-72; 155-211

24.  Oct. 20  Ancient kingdoms and their texts

            Reading:  Genesis 1-2; Genesis 6-9;  Genesis  37.                       

25.  Oct. 22   Apocalyptic

            Reading:  Daniel 7-8;  Daniel 10-12

26.  Oct. 25   Paul’s epistles

            Reading:  1 Thessalonians

27.  Oct. 27  Gospel variants

            Reading: Mark 13-16, John 19; (review Luke 21-24);

                        excerpt from Gospel of Thomas (blackboard)

28.  Oct. 29  Bishops and the Biblical Canon

            Reading: Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch; Irenaeus of Lyons (blackboard)

29.  Nov. 1  Rabbis and the Oral Torah  

                              Reading: excerpts from the Talmud (blackboard)

                              sample Talmud page (follow the hyperlinks!): http://www.ucalgary.ca/~elsegal/TalmudPage.html#Page

30.  Nov. 3 Christians and Jews QUIZ 4

            Reading:   Matthew 23, 27;  John 8.  Acts 7;  1 Thessalonians 2

31.  Nov. 5  The Qur’an

             Reading:  Qur’an Surah 17, Surah 53, Surah 10

32.  Nov. 8  The Sunnah of the Prophet

            Reading:   Qur’an  Surah 62   

            Examples of hadith (blackboard)

33.  Nov. 10  Schools of Law and the Ulama

            Reading:  Al-Baghdadi on the law and its variations (Blackboard)

*Project 2 due*

Reading (Nov 12-Dec 3):  Corrigan JCM:  pp. 75-151

34.  Nov. 12  Jews, Muslims, Christians and the encounter with classical thought

            Reading:  excerpts from Ibn Sina, Maimonides, Aquinas  (blackboard)

35.  Nov. 15  Christians and Muslims;  the Crusades 

            Reading; Urban II at Clermont (blackboard)

36. Nov.  17 Mysticism

            Reading: Sufi poems and prayers (blackboard)

37.  Nov. 19 Christian Reformation;  Sola scriptura

            Reading: Luther on his conversion  (blackboard)

38.  Nov. 22  Jewish Orthodoxy and Reform QUIZ 5

            Hand out final exam questions

            Reading:  Pittsburgh Platform of 1885;  Columbus Platform of 1937 (balckboard)

39.  Nov. 24: Individual conferences

Nov 26:  THANKSGIVING 

39.  Nov. 29:  Reopening the gates of Itjihad? 

            Reading:  TBA

40. Dec. 1  Jews and Muslims in the Middle East

            Reading;  TBA

41.  Dec. 3 Conclusions 

*short paper 2  due *

This course contains a Cultural Diversity flag.

Please see advisor for more information.

Please check back for updates.

Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

May be repeated for credit when the topics vary.

Please check back for updates.

Please check back for updates.

Please check back for updates.

Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

May be repeated for credit when the topics vary.

Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

May be repeated for credit when the topics vary.

Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

May be repeated for credit when the topics vary.