DATE: 21 November 2013
TO: ARCC
FROM: Religions and Cultures
This document contains eleven (11) motions for consideration.
Course pre-requisites:
MOTION 1: That the pre-requisite requirement for the following upper-year RLCT courses be changed to any “18 credits completed.”
Rationale: In order to open up our course offerings to students across the university and in other faculties and disciplines, over the past few years we have been creating new courses that do not require our first year course (RLCT 1025) but rather require 18 credits of completed coursework. We believe that this is consistent with the new degree requirements and the flexible approach to student learning at Nipissing. Since it does not make sense to require RLCT 1025 for some courses and not for others, we would like to make the pre-requisite the same for all of our course offerings. Students majoring in RLCT will still be required to take RLCT 1025, but students who are interested in taking an upper year RLCT course other than World Religions will now have the opportunity to do so. In the view of faculty, teaching these courses without assuming knowledge from the introductory course does not compromise their academic integrity.
List of courses for which this change applies:
RLCT 2016 Life Rites: Ceremonies and Celebrations (to be renamed: Practicing Religion: Rituals, Ceremonies and Celebrations)
RLCT 2017 Death and Immortality
RLCT 2025 Themes in Religion
RLCT 2026 The Roots of Evil
RLCT 2036 History of Christian Thought I
RLCT 2037 History of Christian Thought II
RLCT 2045 Health, Healing and Religion (in the process of being changed to 3 credits with the new number RLCT 2116)
RLCT 2046 Critical Themes in Eastern Religious Thought
RLCT 2056 Religion and Violence
RLCT 2057 Peace and Non-Violence
RLCT 2066 Death, Dying and Spirituality
RLCT 2067 Special Topics in Religions and Cultures
RLCT 2126 Religious Themes in Literature
RLCT 2205 Sacred Cinema: Film and the Search for Meaning
RLCT 3026 Women and World Religions
RLCT 3036 Thinking Religion Now
RLCT 3046 Religion and Science
RLCT 3105 Special Topics in Religions And Cultures
RLCT 3116 Women and Western Religion
RLCT 3117 Gender and the Bible
RLCT 3205 Philosophy of Sex and Love
RLCT 3206 Constructing Religion; Theorizing God
RLCT 3216 Atheism, Skepticism, and Religious Faith (to be renamed: Is God Dead? Faith in the Modern World)
RLCT 3306 Holy Women: Mystics, Saints & Visionaries
RLCT 3307 Spiritual Journeys
RLCT 3406 Sacred Space
RLCT 3506 Religions and Politics
RLCT 3507 Religion and the Environment (to be renamed: Greening Religion: Nature, Spirituality and Activism)
New Courses: (descriptive and comparative data can be found below)
MOTION 2: That the new course RLCT 2117 New Religious Movements be added.
MOTION 3: That the new course RLCT 2136 Examining the Paranormal be added.
MOTION 4: That the new course RLCT 3056 Special Topics in Religions and Cultures be added.
MOTION 5: That the new course RLCT 3226 Fanaticism be added.
MOTION 6: That the new course RLCT/GEND 2076 Religion and Colonization be added.
Non-substantive changes- course name revisions:
Rationale: The following motions are for information only. The courses below have not changed, neither in the course description nor the material covered. We are simply updating the titles to more specifically target the questions and issues of the courses.
MOTION 7: That the course RLCT 3507 Religion and the Environment be renamed: Greening Religion: Nature, Spirituality and Activism
MOTION 8: That the course RLCT 2016 Life Rites: Ceremonies and Celebrations be renamed: Practicing Religion: Rituals, Ceremonies and Celebrations
MOTION 9: That the course RLCT 3216 Atheism, Skepticism and Religious Faith be renamed: Is God Dead? Faith in the Modern World
Cross-Listings:
MOTION 10: That the course RLCT 2205 Sacred Cinema no longer be cross-listed with PHILOSOPHY.
MOTION 11: That the courses PHIL 2717 and PHIL 2716 be cross-listed with Religions and Cultures.
A) Descriptive Data: Adding RLCT 2117: New Religious Movements
Course code: / RLCT 2117Course title: / New Religious Movements
Short title:
(maximum 29 characters) / New Religious Movements
If this course belongs to a major that has course groupings, please indicate which group the course belongs with: / n/a
Course Prerequisites: / 18 credits completed
Course Co-requisites:
Antirequisite: / RLCT 2067 Winter 2014
Total Hours:
(Lecture / Lab / Seminar) / 36 hours
Breakdown of Hours
(e.g. Two hours of lecture and one hour of laboratory work per week for one term.) / 3 hours lecture/week
Course Credits: / 3 credits
Course Description:
(as it will appear in the academic calendar) / This course will critically examine the phenomenon of New Religious Movements and their social implications. Is there a difference between cults and sects and NRMs? How do NRMs connect to secularism, cultural pluralism, feminism and environmentalism? How do we make sense of Neo-paganism or neo-shamanism in the 21st century West? And finally, can we, or should we, feel at liberty to take fragments from different traditions to cater to contemporary tastes, such as yoga in the gym or virtual sanghas/meditation communities?
Program Implications:
Learning Expectations/
Outputs
(6-8, visible, measurable, in active verbs) / By the end of the course students should be able to:
1. discuss the origins of New Religious Movements and their place in the history of religion
2. understand the academic study of New Religious Movements and demonstrate an awareness of the nomenclature surrounding sects and cults
3. identify the cultural forces that allow for or hinder the development of NRMs
4. demonstrate an understanding of the breadth of the growing field of NRMs
5. critically analyze how NRMs can be a lens for interpreting the relationship between religion and social change
6. develop internet literacy for investigating on-line religious communities
Cross-listing or cross-coding
(please indicate if this course is approved for either cross-listing or cross-coding, and to which discipline)
B) Comparative Data
University / Equivalent Course(s) and Titles / Non-Equivalent but 50% or more overlapCarleton / RELI 2736 Religion and Society
Guelph
Laurentian / RLST 2316 Cults and New Religious Movements
McGill / RLG 316 New Religious Movements
UToronto
Trent
Waterloo / Religious Studies 280: Cults and New Religious Movements
Western
Wilfrid Laurier / RLST 2316 Cults, Sects and New Religious Movements
Windsor
York
University of Northern British Columbia
University of Calgary
C) Statement of Need: Adding this course aligns our offerings with other universities and developments in the field of religious studies generally.
D) Statement of Resources: This course will be cycled regularly and will be taught by existing faculty. There are funds allocated in our RLCT library budget to acquire new books for this course.
A) Descriptive Data: Adding RLCT 2136 Examining the Paranormal
Course code: / RLCT 2136Course title: / Examining the Paranormal
Short title:
(maximum 29 characters) / Examining the Paranormal
If this course belongs to a major that has course groupings, please indicate which group the course belongs with:
Course Prerequisites: / 18 credits completed
Course Co-requisites:
Antirequisite: / RLCT 2067 Spring 2013
Total Hours:
(Lecture / Lab / Seminar) / 36 hours
Breakdown of Hours
(e.g. Two hours of lecture and one hour of laboratory work per week for one term.) / 3hours lecture/week
Course Credits: / 3
Course Description:
(as it will appear in the academic calendar) / Is there life after bodily death? Can the human mind send and receive information without the normal senses? Is there extra-terrestrial life? This course will examine paranormal topics such as ESP, psychokinesis, life after death, and UFO phenomena from a variety of perspectives: historical, philosophical, scientific, and psychological. It will also discuss the function and critique of paranormal experiences within various religions; this may include indigenous traditions, Christianity, and new religious movements.
Program Implications:
Learning Expectations/
Outputs
(6-8, visible, measurable, in active verbs) / By the end of this course students should be able to
· demonstrate a thorough knowledge of paranormal phenomena and claims
· critically assess whether or not paranormal experiences challenge our modern scientific view of reality
· identify historical and contemporary relations between paranormal experience and religious traditions
· understand and demonstrate interdisciplinary methods in the study of religion (sociology of religion, philosophical critique, theological arguments, and psychology of religion).
· demonstrate intellectual skills analyzing texts, scientific experiments, and paranormal claims
· demonstrate an ability to express this knowledge and these skills in independent research and coherent writing
· express in writing and/or orally an appreciation for the complexities and difficulties involved in the human search for meaning, knowledge, and understanding
Cross-listing or cross-coding
(please indicate if this course is approved for either cross-listing or cross-coding, and to which discipline)
A) Descriptive Data: Adding RLCT 3056 Special Topics in Religions and Cultures
Course code: / RLCT 3056Course title: / Special Topics in Religions and Cultures
Short title:
(maximum 29 characters) / Special Topics
If this course belongs to a major that has course groupings, please indicate which group the course belongs with:
Course Prerequisites: / Any 18 credits completed
Course Co-requisites:
Antirequisite:
Total Hours:
(Lecture / Lab / Seminar) / 36 hours
Breakdown of Hours
(e.g. Two hours of lecture and one hour of laboratory work per week for one term.) / 3 hours lecture/week
Course Credits: / 3 credits
Course Description:
(as it will appear in the academic calendar) / The theme and content of this course will change from year to year according to the research interests of faculty. The specific topics and course description will be made available to students during registration in each year of offering.
Program Implications: / This course allows for faculty to develop and teach in both new and ongoing areas of research and specialization. It will also allow RLCT to pilot and assess new course offerings prior to them being permanently added to the calendar.
Learning Expectations/
Outputs
(6-8, visible, measurable, in active verbs) / By the end of this course students should be able to:
1. demonstrate an ability to apply key concepts and methods in Religions and Cultures to the interpretation of religious and philosophical texts
2. demonstrate a clear understanding of the topic addressed at an advanced level
3. an ability to develop critical research questions and to find answers to these questions using established research techniques
4. demonstrate a broad understanding of selected topics at an advanced level within the study of religion
5. an ability to communicate in consistently clear, coherent, and grammatically correct prose
Cross-listing or cross-coding
(please indicate if this course is approved for either cross-listing or cross-coding, and to which discipline)
B) Comparative Data:
University / Equivalent Course(s) and Titles / Non-Equivalent but 50% or more overlapBrock / n/a
Carleton / RELI 3306
Selected Topics in Religion
RELI 4800
Topics in Religious Studies
Guelph / n/a
Lakehead / RELI 4800 (ST)
Topics in Religious Studies
Laurentian
McMaster / 4Q03 Advanced Readings in Religious Studies
Ottawa / SRS4107 Selected Topics in Religion and Culture
Queen’s / RELS-301 Topics in Religious Studies I
RELS-302 Topics in Religious Studies II
RMC / n/a
Ryerson / n/a
Toronto / RLG388H1
Special Topics I
RLG389H1
Special Topics II
Trent / CUST 395 – Special topics in Cultural Studies
CUST 495 – Special topics in Cultural Studies
Waterloo / RS 400 Special Topics in Religious Studies
Western / 310 F/G Special Topics (Kings)
Wilfrid Laurier / RE 449 Special Topics in Religion and Culture
Windsor / 07-222-01 Special Topics in Religion and Culture
York / n/a
C) Statement of Need
Our department currently offers a 6-credit 3000 level special topics course. We would like the flexibility to offer a 3-credit special topics course in the development of new courses and for faculty to teach according to new research projects.
D) Statement of Resource Requirements
No additional resources are required.
A) Descriptive Data: Adding a Course RLCT 3226: Fanaticism
Course code: / RLCT 3226Course title: / Fanaticism
Short title:
(maximum 29 characters) / Fanaticism
If this course belongs to a major that has course groupings, please indicate which group the course belongs with:
Course Prerequisites: / 18 credits completed
Course Co-requisites:
Antirequisite:
Total Hours:
(Lecture / Lab / Seminar) / 36 hours
Breakdown of Hours
(e.g. Two hours of lecture and one hour of laboratory work per week for one term.) / 3 hours lecture/week
Course Credits: / 3 credits
Course Description:
(as it will appear in the academic calendar) / From 9/11 to Al-Qaeda, from Waco to The Promise Keepers, we are all familiar with the idea of fanaticism and its connection to religious traditions. But what does it really mean to describe someone as a fanatic? What makes a fanatic and are they the same as militant fundamentalists? Where is the line between passionate and committed believer and fanatic and who gets to draw that line? Questions like these are the starting point for a critical examination of fanaticism and its connection to religious thought and practice.
Program Implications:
Learning Expectations/
Outputs
(6-8, visible, measurable, in active verbs) / By the end of the course students should be able to:
• demonstrate a fundamental knowledge and understanding of key concepts and methodologies in Religions and Cultures, particularly with regard to the interpretation of religious and philosophical texts.
• demonstrate a fundamental knowledge of the historical relations between various religious traditions and various forms of fanaticism.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the historical transformations undergone by terms such as enthusiasm, fanaticism, extremism, fundamentalism.
• demonstrate an ability to analyze the controlling assumptions behind various articulations of the problem of fanaticism, their historical development and political, intellectual, and practical influence.
• demonstrate an ability to comprehend primary texts and secondary texts, to offer analytical commentary and to use these texts in developing a research question and an argument to answer this research question.
• demonstrate an ability to articulate substantive content fluently in writing.
• demonstrate an ability to use established techniques to analyze texts and propose answers to interpretive questions.
• communicate in clear, coherent prose
Cross-listing or cross-coding
(please indicate if this course is approved for either cross-listing or cross-coding, and to which discipline) / To be cross-listed with Political Science
B) Comparative Data: Please list course numbers and titles. Course descriptions are not necessary.