Comparative Religion

This course introduces students to one of the two primary approaches to Religious Studies: Comparative Religion (sometimes called the History of Religions). The other, complementary, approach being the Social Scientific Study of Religion as Culture. It is not primarily a World Religions course but rather a course emphasizing the comparison of various religions. We will begin with an introduction to the academic study of religion, followed by a brief survey of five of the world's major religious traditions. We will then move to a discussion of theoretical categories, from the study of religion, intended to provide a framework for comparison: myth, ritual, religious experience, and religious institutions. To help students understand, critique, and work with these categories we will illustrate each with examples from various world religions.

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