DESCRIPTION:
The purpose of this course is two-fold. First
it will provide an overview of the world's major religions, namely, Hinduism,
Islam, Confucianism and Buddhism. Such a vast subject with a plethora of
people, including their faith, and phenomena: sacred and foundational texts,
myths, rituals, theologies, philosophies, ideologies, moral codes, sacred
places, religious communities, and various other expressions of religious
experience will necessarily involve a degree of selectiveness. The overview
therefore will deal with salient features as they pertain to the emergence of
these religions, their core beliefs and practices as well as their
understanding of the human predicament and salvation. Second, in addition to
studying world religions, this course introduces the student to various
approaches on how Christianity relates to other religions and religious
pluralisms, technically known as the "theology of religions.” Catholic and
Protestant proposals and responses will be critically discussed and an outline
of Evangelical approach will be attempted. Case studies are conducted regarding
Islam-, Hindu-, and Buddhist - Christian encounters.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
· To gain a workable knowledge
of selected world religions focusing on origins, core beliefs and practices.
· To be able to relate to
other religions and facilitate dialogue from a Christian perspective.
COURSE FORMAT: This course will meet twice a week for
two hours of lectures, discussions, and occasional student presentations.
REQUIRED READING:
On World Religions:
Braswell, Jr. George W. Islam: It’s
Prophet, Peoples, Politics and Power. Broadman & Holman, 1996.
Ching, J. Chinese Religions.
MacMillan, 1993.
Klostermaier, Klaus K. A Survey of
Hinduism. State University of New York Press, 1994.
Sharma, Arvind, Our Religions. Harper
Collins, 1995.
On
the Theology of Religions and Interfaith Encounter:
Kärkkäinen, V.-M. An Introduction to the Theology of Religions.
IVP, 2003.
Knitter, P. Introducing Theologies of
Religions. Orbis, 2002.
Tennett, T. C. Christianity at the
Religious Roundtable. Baker, 2002.
RECOMMENDED
READING:
Chapman, C. The Cross & Crescent: Responding to the
Challenge of Islam. InterVarsity, 2004.
Corduan, W. Tapestry of Faiths: The
Common Threads between Christianity & World Religions. IVP, 2002.
McDermott, G. R.Can Evangelicals Learn
from World Religions? IVP 2001.
Netland, H. Encountering Religious
Pluralism. IVP, 2001.
Parrinder, Geoffrey, World Religions: From Ancient History to the Present. Facts on
File, 1983.
Ramachandra, V. Faiths in
Conflict: Christian Integrity in a Multicultural World. IVP, 2000.
Smart, Ninian, The World’s Religions. Cambridge University Press, 1992.
Tiessen, Terrance L. Who Can Be
Saved? Reassessing Salvation in Christ and World Religions. IVP, 2004.
ASSIGNMENTS:
· Required reading of approx. 1,500 pages
· One 5-6 page paper
(1200-1500 words), comparing and contrasting the doctrine of salvation between
any two religions. The student is free to choose the religions to be studied
· One 5-6- page (1200-1500
words) book review on the theology of religions (Knitter and
Kärkkäinen)
· One 4-page (1000 words)
joint paper by a group of 3-4 students on an interfaith topic of your choice to
be approved by the instructors
· Th. M. students will, apart
from the above, do an additional review of a book of their choice with approval
from the instructors. The length of the review will be 4-6 pages (1200-1500
words).
PREREQUISITES: None.
RELATION TO
CURRICULUM: Elective in SIS. MDiv: meets Min8 requirement; MAT: meets
globalization requirement.
FINAL EXAM: None.