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RS 100 Introduction to Religion
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Examines the various methods scholars employ for describing and understanding religious phenomena. The course focuses on the various dimensions of religious belief, experience, and practice and explores the main religious themes, such as the nature of God, the human condition, and salvation, in the context of different religious traditions. It also draws attention to the values that religions promote and to the major religious issues commonly discussed in academic and/or public circles. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 202 Eastern Religions
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A survey of those religious traditions usually labeled "Eastern," namely, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, Chinese and Japanese religions, and the various forms of Buddhism. A brief history, the major scriptures, and the beliefs and rituals of each religious tradition are covered. Current developments, especially the presence of some of these religions in the Western world are also explored. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 203 Western Religions
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A survey of those religious traditions usually labeled "Western," namely, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Also included are prehistoric religion, the religions of contemporary nonliterate societies, and several religions of ancient civilizations. The historical background, the major religious developments, and the beliefs and rituals of the main religious traditions are outlined. Some problems, such as secularization, which these great religions face in the modern world, will be discussed. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 212 Introduction to Judaism: An Ecumenical Approach to Jewish Life and Thought
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to the essentials of basic Judaism: beliefs, practices, customs, ceremonies, holidays, and institutions of the Jewish people. Current trends in contemporary Jewish life, as well as the concerns of the Jewish people are examined. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 214 Women and Religion
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
This course examines, from women’s perspectives, their experience in a variety of religious traditions. It examines the relationship between religious definitions of women and their social status, analyzes the causes of women’s subordination in some religious traditions, compares the values of such traditions with those values affirmed in religious traditions primarily shaped by women, and presents feminists’ and womanists’ critical theories relating to dogmas, traditions, and ethics. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 215 Early Christian Controversies
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A study of the historical setting, theological controversies and institutional development of early Christianity. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 217 Religion in U.S.A.
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An historical introduction to the variety of religious orientations in the U.S.A. together with a consideration of the relationship of religion to American culture. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 218 Black Religion in America
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Introductory exploration of the spirituality and religious understandings of African Americans, attending to gender and class, and the identification of related key social streams. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 219 Contemporary American Jewish Life
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An examination of the immigration of Jews to America and the development of Orthodox Reform and Conservative Judaism in response to the American experience. Jewish survival in America and religious developments indigenous to America are addressed, including contemporary issues of anti-Semitism, relationships to Israel, the Holocaust, interfaith activities, and the Jewish cultural renaissance. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 222 From Adam to David
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A survey of portions of the Torah (Genesis through Deuteronomy) and the historical [z]books of the Hebrew Bible (Joshua through 2 Kings). | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 223 Prophets and Visionaries
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A survey of portions of the books of the prophets, the Wisdom writers, and the apocalyptic visionaries in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 224 Jesus and Gospels
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A survey of the gospels in the Christian Testament (New Testament): Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 225 Paul and Revelation
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A survey of the letters of Paul and the Book of Revelation (the Apocalypse) in the Christian Testament (New Testament). | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 229 The Bible as Religious Literature
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A literary-historical survey of the biblical writings, concentrating on the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and their influence of the New Testament. Attention is also paid to post-biblical literature influenced by the Bible (e.g. Milton?s Paradise Lost). | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 230 Roman Catholic Theology Since Vatican II
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introductory survey of Roman Catholic Theology both in its traditional form and in the light of its transformation during and since Vatican Council II, focusing chiefly on doctrinal issues: God, Christ, Revelation, the Church, relationship to the modern world. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 231 Introduction to Theology
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A basic introduction to the nature and method of theology using both classical and contemporary theologians as models. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 234 Christian Ethics
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to the field of Christian ethics, this course discusses the sources of Christian moral thought and the ways in which Christians have approached a variety of moral issues, e.g., war, economic and social justice, sexuality. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 235 Christ in Faith, Fiction, and Film
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to Christology, concentrating on the narrative depiction of Christ in the New Testament and in selected short stories, novels, and films. The course begins by comparing the gospels in the context of the developing understanding of Jesus in early Christianity and proceeds to study the Christ image in various works of fiction and film. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 236 Religion and Film
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to religious themes, perspectives, stories and traditions in film. Special attention is paid to the unique ways in which cinematographic techniques can convey religious meanings and perspectives. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 240 Christian Social Ethics
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Prerequisites:
A survey of selected contemporary social ethics issues. Interest will focus on the disciplined methods of understanding the nature, function, and validity of religious values in public policy debates.
A survey of selected contemporary social ethics issues. Interest will focus on the disciplined methods of understanding the nature, function, and validity of values in socially structured situations. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 242 Religion and Science in the West
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Prerequisites:
A study of changing relations between religious outlooks and scientific methods, from the 17th to the 20th century. Special attention is paid to the shifting boundaries between "religion" and "science." | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 245 Sex, Race, and Class: Feminist/Womanist Ethics
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to white feminists' and black womanists' ethical thought. This course explores important themes in religious ethics, such as how to discern the good, the relationship between love and justice, and between objectivity and subjectivity. It provides an introduction to women's critical contributions in ethics and theology. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 248 The Holocaust
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
This course examines events leading up to the Holocaust and the systematic decimation of European Jewry during the Third Reich. The course will trace the historical roots of anti-Semitism, the societal impact of WWI and WWII, the rise of Hitler and the Nazis' annihilation of six million Jews. Students will explore their own personal responses to the information learned and the implications of the Holocaust for society. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 249 Violence, Peace, and Religion
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
This course examines the ways in which Christianity has both encouraged violence and condemned it, while proposing ways of stopping the cycle of violence and enabling its victims to heal from its destruction. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 250 The Quest for God Today
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
The contemporary search for the meaning of life as expressed in literature, psychology, and theology. This course explores both Christian and non-Christian forms of spirituality, from prayer and social action to recovery movements, focussing on the individual?s experience of the divine. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 251 Theology and Literature
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An investigation of theological themes such as faith, the search for meaning, the mystery of suffering, death, conscience, hope and love. It uses a variety of literary texts, classic and contemporary, in the course of an experiential reflection of these topics in the light of the Christian tradition. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 255 Theology of Christian Marriage
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A study of Christian marriage from a number of perspectives: historical (from Old Testament Judaism through early Christianity to today); theological (the meaning of Christian commitment in relation to God, the community, and the couple themselves); psychological (questions of intimacy, sexuality, faithfulness, developmental stages in the life process, effective communication in marriage). | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 256 God and the Human Condition
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introductory course in theology which uses literature and film to explore basic questions about human existence, such as the following: What forces or powers–chance, luck, fate, providence–are at work in our lives? What are the natures and causes of human tragedy, suffering and evil, and what difference might faith in God make in responding to them? | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 301 Anthropology of Religion
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to current anthropological approaches to the study of religion. The main themes include symbolism, myth, magic, and witchcraft. Contemporary viewpoints on primitive religions and on the great religions are discussed. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 302 Contemporary Religious Movements
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An investigation into the presence and significance of religious movements (sects, cults) in the West, especially those which became prominent since the 1960s. These movements are examined from historical, psychological, sociological, and theological perspectives. The social, religious, and legal implications of this new religious pluralism are also discussed. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 303 Hinduism
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
History of Hinduism from its classical and pre-classical origins to contemporary manifestations. Studies in religious and philosophical movements, their change and continuity in the development of religious thought and institutions. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 305 Islam
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Understanding and living with religion, politics and culture in the Middle East. This course studies the origin and growth of Islamic civilization, emphasizing the principal religious teachings, including selections from the Quran, the life of the Prophet Muhammad, and later developments in Sufi mysticism, sectarian differences, and the recent Muslim experience in America. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 306 Buddhism
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
History of Buddhism from its origins to later manifestations, differentiations into Mahayana and Theravada. Also, a study of major philosophical schools and Buddhist institutions in South Asia and East Asia. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 324 Feminist Biblical Interpretation
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Focuses on texts that deal with the following issues: female subordination/male dominance; images of God; power and leadership in institutional religion; differences in the ways African Americans and white Americans read the Bible; women in Israelite societies, in early Judaism, in the Jesus movement, and in Gnosticism. Students read major American and European feminist/womanist literary criticism. This course also hosts lectures or panel discussions for the UDM community. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 332 Modern Christian Theologians
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to the thought of some influential modern interpreters of the Christian message–Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox. After a survey of developments in Christian theology since the Enlightenment, the course will focus chiefly on the work of a few seminal thinkers representing the major traditions. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 334 Theology of Death and Resurrection
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An approach to the deepest of life's mysteries, using literature and theology to shed light on the darkness of human destiny. The New Testament accounts of Jesus' death and resurrection will be studied, along with experiential attempts to confront (or avoid) the reality of dying, and the means various religions and cultures employ to deal with death or to envision an afterlife. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 337 Black Theologies
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A focused study of black theologies which have developed through the African Diaspora. Special attention is given to current developments. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 338 Latin American Liberation Theologies
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An introduction to liberation theologies through reading major theorists; understanding the significance of connecting faith with action; and exploring the dynamics of social analysis. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 339 Ecology and Justice
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An exploration of relationships between justice and the environment, the varied religious meanings and ethical dimensions, and global connections and implications. Special application is made to ecology in the Detroit metropolitan area. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 343 Ethics and Economic Theories
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An in-depth analysis of the underlying assumptions about human nature, community, and social justice as expressed in contemporary economic theories. Economic theories, as expressions of social values, are analyzed in light of religious teachings, particularly Jewish and Christian teachings, in social ethics. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 347 Christian Social Thought
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An examination of the positions major Christian thinkers have proposed on the responsibility of men and women towards each other, government, the legitimacy of dissent, and issues of justice. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 348 Justice: Contemporary Issues and Theories
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An examination of contemporary problems of justice in the areas of economics, law, government, and international relations. These issues are analyzed in the light of philosophical and religious theories of justice. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 350 Religion and Psychology
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An exploration of the interface between psychology and religion, as each addresses such issues as the nature of human beings, the development of conscience, freedom, the quest for meaning, the origins of the idea of God, the nature of faith, etc. A blend of readings from both disciplines will be included, with special attention to humanistic psychology and its approach to the problem of becoming fully human and fully alive. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 357 Spiritual Autobiographies
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A careful reading of some of the great religious autobiographies, beginning with The Confessions of St. Augustine and proceeding on to such 20th century classics as the works of Gandhi, Dorothy Day, and Anne Frank. Each student also writes an account of his or her own spiritual journey up to the present. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 359 Religion, Health and Healing
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Explores the ways in which health, illness and healing are integrally related to religious and moral concerns, beliefs and practices in all cultures. Special attention to the ancient healing traditions of shamanism and energy medicine. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 414 Gender and Religion
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Examination from a gender standpoint of the experiences of women and men in various religious traditions, including issues of social status, leadership, teachings, ethics, reform. The course will be taught from a (pro) feminist/womanist perspective. | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 422 Torah to Kings
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A critical, scholarly introduction to the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) from Genesis and the Torah to the Kings of Israel and Judah. | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 423 Prophets, Wisdom, and Daniel
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A critical, scholarly introduction to the major and minor prophets of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), the Wisdom Literature (such as Psalms and Proverbs) and the emergence of apocalyptic in the Book of Daniel. (RS 422 is not a prerequisite for this course.) | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 424 Christian Gospels
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A critical, scholarly introduction to the four gospels of the Christian Testament (New Testament) and to the other gospels not included in the Christian Bible. | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 425 Acts, Letters, Revelation
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
A critical, scholarly introduction to the Christian Testament (New Testament) accounts of the development of the Christian churches in the first century of the common era. | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 432 Classical and Contemporary Catholicism
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Exploration of the historic Catholic tradition from the patristic to the modern era, with special attention to the philosophical and theological foundations and implications of key beliefs, symbols, doctrines and rituals. Focus on the distinctiveness of Roman Catholicism. | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 434 Christian Ethics
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
An in-depth study of several methods used in the development of Christian ethics and the underlying assumptions of such methods. Contemporary issues are used to illustrate the diversity that constitutes Christian Ethics. | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 443 Sexuality and Justice
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Explores western concepts of gender and sexuality in order to analyze how such concepts have effected the religious quest for social justice regarding women, racialized groups, the poor, and humanity's relationship to nature. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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RS 444 Sexuality and Love in Contemporary Christian Thought
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Among issues to be discussed are the following: the nature of human sexuality and its relationship to love; contemporary theories of psychosexual development; the history of Christian teaching regarding sex; changing attitudes to sexuality; homosexuality, married love, and celibacy; sexuality and gender roles; sexual love and its relationship to religious love. | 3 | 0 | 0 | | |
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RS 495 Directed Readings
| Credit Hours | Recitation/Lecture Hours | Studio Hours | Clinical Hours | Lab Hours |
Private readings on a selected problem. Permission of instructor required. | 1-3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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