RLST 4800 SPRING
2008
CRITICAL
THINKING: Prof.
Ira Chernus
RELIGION AND
NONVIOLENCE
This course will be divided into two parts.
In the first part of the course we will examine some of the connections between religion and the tradition of principled nonviolence. We will study two of the greatest figures in the religious nonviolence tradition, Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We will also study two major Christian theologians: Reinhold Niebuhr, who developed a classic critique of nonviolence, and Paul Tillich, who was a major influence on the thinking of Dr. King.
In the second part of the course we will study a number of influential theories of religion. We will gain a basic understanding of the theories in their own right and then ask how they can be applied to the theories and critique of nonviolence that we studied in the first part of the course.
ABOUT "CRITICAL THINKING"
This course is listed in the core curriculum as a "Critical Thinking" course. Therefore you will be expected to think critically. That does not mean you should spend the term criticizing. Critical thinking means logical thinking. It means constantly asking questions such as: What are our aims, goals, and assumptions in evaluating this author? What are the author's (or speaker's) aims and goals? What are his/her basic assumptions? Which aims and assumptions are explicitly stated and which are left implicit? Should we accept those aims and assumptions as valid? What is the historical context of this argument? How does it relate to earlier writers' ideas? Why was it offered by this writer at this particular time? How does that historical context compare with our own?
Does the author present logical arguments? How does s/he go from assumptions to facts and data to further ideas to conclusions? How does s/he get facts and data? Are they valid? Might the conclusions be valuable even if the assumptions or data are questionable? What is the ultimate importance of the argument? What does it tell us that we wouldn't know otherwise? Why does it, or does it not, matter in our individual lives? Why does it, or does it not, matter in dealing with societal issues? What other ideas can we connect with this author's to develop new ideas of our own? How might we pursue this author's ideas further?
You need not be able to answer all these questions for every author we read. They are just examples of the kinds of issues a "critical thinking" course should address.
Tuesday 2:00 - 3:00
and Wednesday 1:00 - 2:00 or by appointment, in HUMN 284
phone: 492-6169;
email: chernus@colorado.edu
If you need any special accommodations to enhance your learning in this course, I would be glad to discuss that with you.
To Purchase:
Mohandas K. GANDHI, The Essential Writings of Mahatma Gandhi, ed. R. Iyer
Marting Luther KING, Jr., I Have a Dream, ed., James M. Washington
Paul TILLICH, The Dynamics of Faith
These readings are available
at the Lefthand Bookstore,
On the web -- linked from this syllabus:
Ira CHERNUS, American Nonviolence, chapters on Gandhi, Niebuhr, King
Various readings from religion theorists: Mircea Eliade, Charles Long, Jonathan Z. Smith, Clifford Geertz, Bruce Lincoln
Please use the online syllabus: http://spot.colorado.edu/~chernus/Courses/4800/SyllabusSpring2008.htm
Many of the readings are linked directly from the online syllabus.
For a broader understanding of various theories of nonviolence you can consult
Ira Chernus, American Nonviolence: The History of an Idea, which is available on the internet, linked from the home page for the course: http://spot.colorado.edu/~chernus/Courses/4800/
SCHEDULE OF READING ASSIGNMENTS:
Jan. 17 CHERNUS: “Gandhi”: Introduction and ‘Truth is God’; GANDHI: 136, 137, 140-147, 61, 65, 70,7 5-83, 104 (Assignments in Gandhi are by Selection, not page, number. There is an excellent glossary of Indian terms Gandhi used at http://www.mkgandhi-sarvodaya.org/glossary.htm)
Watch the film Gandhi as soon as you can. It is nearly 3 hours long, but you won’t be bored.
Jan. 22 CHERNUS: “Gandhi”: ‘Truth and Nonviolence’; GANDHI: 123, 125, 126, 148-155, 157, 161-163, 166-177, 182, 130, 132
Jan. 24 CHERNUS: “Gandhi”: ‘Satyagraha’; GANDHI: 186 - 209
Jan. 29 GANDHI: 35, 37, 40, 48, 210, 213, 219, 223-239
Jan. 31 GANDHI: 240 - 264
Feb. 5 CHERNUS: “Reinhold Niebuhr”: Introduction and ‘Human Nature and the Limits of Reason’; Selections from Niebuhr, Moral Man and Immoral Society (each Section number is a separate link), Section 1, 2
Feb. 7 CHERNUS: “Reinhold Niebuhr”: ‘The Limits of Religion’; Summary Of Moral Man And Immoral Society Chapter 3; Selections from Niebuhr, Moral Man and Immoral Society, Section 3, 4
Feb. 12 CHERNUS: “Reinhold Niebuhr”: ‘Coercion and Violence’; Selections from Niebuhr, Moral Man and Immoral Society, Section 5
Feb. 14 Selections from Niebuhr, Moral Man and Immoral Society, Section 6
Feb. 19 Selections from Niebuhr, Moral Man and Immoral Society, Section 7; CHERNUS: “Reinhold Niebuhr”: ‘Niebuhr’s Later Career’
Feb. 21 FIRST EXAM DUE
Feb. 26 TILLICH, Introductions and Chapters I, II, III
Feb. 28 TILLICH, Chapters IV, V, VI; Chernus, "The Neurosis of Modernity," 47 - 56 (from Nuclear Madness)
Mar. 4 CHERNUS: “Martin
Luther King, Jr.”: Introduction
and ‘The Fundamental Ideas,’ King,
xii-xxi, 3 – 28
Mar. 6 CHERNUS: “Martin Luther King, Jr.”: ‘Sin And The Beloved Community’‘Nonviolence’ King, 29 - 62
Mar. 11 CHERNUS: “Martin Luther
King, Jr.”: ‘Creating The Beloved Community In
The
Mar. 13 King, 107 - 134
Mar. 18 King, 135 – 165, CHERNUS: “Martin Luther King, Jr.”: ‘Beyond Civil Rights’
Mar. 20 King, 169 – 203
April 1 Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and the Profane, Introduction and Chapter 2
April 3 Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and the Profane, Chapter 4; Chernus, "The Meaning of the End of the World," 193 - 203 (from Nuclear Madness)
SECOND EXAM DUE
April 8 Charles Long, "Introduction," "Interpretations of Black Religion in America" Parts A & C (Part B optional),
"Perspectives for a Study of Afro-American Religion in the United States" (all from Significations)
April 10 Jonathan Z. Smith, "The Wobbling Pivot," "Map Is Not Territory"
April 15 Jonathan
Z. Smith,"A Pearl of Great Price and a Cargo
of Yams," "The Bare Facts of Ritual"
April 17
April 22 Clifford Geertz, "Religion as a Cultural System" (rest of the article)
April 24 Bruce Lincoln, "Introduction" (from Discourse and the Construction of Society)
Lincoln, "The Study of Religion in the Current Political Moment"
April 29 Bruce Lincoln, "Religion, Rebellion, Revolution," Lincoln, "Theses on Method"
May 1 REVIEW
May 5: EXAM # 3 due.
Your grade will be based on your demonstrated ability to understand the ideas
discussed in the course. You will have three ways to demonstrate your
understanding: