UCOR Section Descriptions

Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the Qur'an, considering the Qur'an as a basis for the theological and ethical teachings for Muslims, as well as a source of literary inspiration. We will study the Qur'an in terms of its main features and themes, covering classical interpretive traditions and contemporary academic approaches, as well as the relationship between the content of the Qur'an and many practical and existential elements of Muslim life.

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce students to the study of world religions. Religious traditions studied include Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. In addition to engaging in an overview of these traditions, students will also learn about religious studies as a discipline, and about the methods involved in comparative religion. This will necessarily involve discussions of feminist and post-colonial critiques.

Course Description

Students in this course will explore the way gender is constructed (and deconstructed) in the texts of Hebrew Bible. By analyzing large portions of the text, students will gain understanding of gender assumptions that still play a role in our lives today, as well as the profound distinctions between our contemporary society and the historical and social context of the Bible. In addition, students will gain language and skills for analyzing gender and identity in multiple contexts.

Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the Qur'an, considering the Qur'an as a basis for the theological and ethical teachings for Muslims, as well as a source of literary inspiration. We will study the Qur'an in terms of its main features and themes, covering classical interpretive traditions and contemporary academic approaches, as well as the relationship between the content of the Qur'an and many practical and existential elements of Muslim life.

Course Description

In this course, we tackle the complex role religion played in the establishment, defense, and continuation of slavery in the American colonies and fledgling United States, the role religion played in the slave communities themselves, the role it played in the abolitionist movement in the northern states through the time the slaves’ emancipation, and the role it played in maintaining rigid patterns of racial discrimination and segregation in the United States afterward.

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce students to the study of world religions. Religious traditions studied include Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. In addition to engaging in an overview of these traditions, students will also learn about religious studies as a discipline, and about the methods involved in comparative religion. This will necessarily involve discussions of feminist and post-colonial critiques.

Course Description

We will use a combination of historical, textual, legal, and anthropological approaches to analyze the complex interplay between Quranic exegesis, Islamic religious traditions, gender, sexuality and politics in the Muslim world. We will start with Quranic tenets and traditional precepts on gender and sexuality; we will continue with a study of how classical interpretations were altered by the encounter with the West; and we will conclude with different views and strategies adopted by Muslim women and gay, lesbian, and transgender Muslims around the world.

Course Description

In this course, we tackle the complex role religion played in the establishment, defense, and continuation of slavery in the American colonies and fledgling United States, the role religion played in the slave communities themselves, the role it played in the abolitionist movement in the northern states through the time the slaves’ emancipation, and the role it played in maintaining rigid patterns of racial discrimination and segregation in the United States afterward.

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce students to the study of world religions. Religious traditions studied include Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. In addition to engaging in an overview of these traditions, students will also learn about religious studies as a discipline, and about the methods involved in comparative religion. This will necessarily involve discussions of feminist and post-colonial critiques.

Course Description

This course introduces students to Islam as a historical religion and a lived tradition. Core readings include passages from the Muslim scripture, the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, and the classics of Islamic law, theology, and mysticism. The course also introduces students to the key texts of modern Islamic studies, especially those that contextualize Islam in relation to other Near Eastern religious traditions. Class readings also address numerous aspects of contemporary Islam, from gender struggles to the American-Muslim experience.