A survey of popular Christian readings highlighting contemporary Christian theological debates and their relationships to historical Christian doctrine.

Offered fall semester every even-numbered year.

The social, cultural, and economic influences on canon formation and on canon reformation in various cultures. The valences of canon in such environments and its impact on society.

An exploration of various topics linking the languages of science and religion in the ancient world. For example, the relationships among Babylonian astrology and omenology, and Biblical and Greek thought, in the 8th-6th centuries BCE (the "Axial Age"), focusing on cosmology. Socially contextualized, this is a source of monotheism and philosophy.

The study of classical Sanskrit through an emphasis on reading texts. As such, it is an examination of both the religious language and literature of India.

A continuation of Sanskrit for Religious Studies I. It further examines the elements of classical Sanskrit through an emphasis on reading texts and continues treatment of both the religious language and literature of India.

Historical, thematic, detailed study of the life of Mohammad, the prophet of Islam, from earliest sources. An examination of biographical (sirah) material, the Transmitted Traditions (hadith), and debates about the Traditions. The introduction to Arabic script and phonology will permit students to read a few of Mohammad's short sayings.

Historical, thematic study of the Islamic sacred text, the Koran, including textual history, its compilation, and the stages that led to its printed form. There will also be an introduction to basic technical terms of the Koranic sciences, Koranic hermeneutics, and Arabic script and phonology.

The major genres of Islamic literature and its principle concepts, covering Qur'anic, hadith, legal and political literature, philosophy, theology, historiography, hagiography, and poetry, emphasizing the Medieval period and mystical prose and poetry primarily in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish. The works will be in English translation. A writing intensive course.

An examination of Islam and Islamic culture in Morocco. The course covers basic Islamic beliefs and practices and the most significant aspects of Islamic culture in Morocco, such as music, art, and architecture.

This is a maymester summer abroad program and will thus entail, with the course work, extensive travel throughout Morocco and homestays with Moroccan families. The educational experience of this course will be of an on-going "immersion" type.

The nature of early primitive religions and the main outlines of the chief living religions of the world. The method will be both historical and analytical.

Offered every even-numbered year.