World Religions

HUM 2093: World Religions

Spring 2025

James R. Adair

Contact Information

Email: james.adair@utsa.edu (note: use utsa.edu, not my.utsa.edu)
Phone: 210-363-8230
Office Location: FLN 1.02.06H
Class Hours: Internet
Office Hours: by appointment
Course Links

Course syllabus
Victoria Kennick Urubshurow, Introducing World Religions
Other books used in the course:

Charles Kimball, When Religion Becomes Evil, revised edition (used for group discussions starting Week 4)
Yann Martel, The Life of Pi (book review due Week 13)
Hugh B. Urban, New Age, Neopagan, & New Religious Movements (used for the final group discussions due Finals Week)

Canvas
Group Assignments and Presentations
Sources for Academic Research
How to Write a Book Review - sample reviews: nonfiction, nonfiction, fiction

Important Dates
Important Terms

Exam Study Guides

Class Notes: Unit One
Exam One Study Guide
Class Notes: Unit Two
Exam Two Study Guide

Religion in the News

Extra Credit Opportunities

For extra credit, choose up to three of the news items listed above under Current Religion News, read or listen to them, and write a reaction paper of a minimum of two pages, double-spaced (it must extend to the bottom of page two or extend to a third page to count as two pages). Summarize what you read/heard, and express your personal thoughts and reaction to it. This extra credit assignment, and others like it, are worth a maximum of 1 point added to your final average at the end of the semester. It and other extra credit assignments may be turned in between now and May 9. Additional news items may be added over the course of the semester, so check back from time to time if you're interested.
For extra credit, you may choose a smaller religious tradition—i.e., not one that we discussed in class, and not one that is assigned to your group for the final group discussion of Hugh Urban's book—and write a 2-page (minimum) paper about it. A bibliography of at least 3 academic sources must be included (the bibliography does not count toward the required page count). The religious tradition discussed must not be a member of a larger religious tradition that we've already discussed. If you're not sure, feel free to email the instructor.
You may also submit up to two additional interviews and visit reports for extra credit. See the syllabus or Canvas for details.

Grading

Individual grades on assignments will be recorded in Canvas. However, Canvas does not accurately calculate average grades. The following scheme will be used to determine your final grade in the class:

Reports on visits to houses of worship: 15% (+ up to 4 points added to the visit report grade average for up to two additional visits)
Interviews: 15% (+ up to 4 points added to the interview grade average for up to two additional interviews)
Book report on Life of Pi: 10%
Group discussions on Kimball's book and Week 13-14 presentations: 20%
Exam 1: 15%
Exam 2: 15%
Final group discussions on other religious traditions (audio recording): 10%
Extra credit: up to 5 points may be earned for extra credit assignments given over the course of the semester

Schedule

Week	Date	Assignments Due IWR=Introducing World Religions
UNIT ONE: RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS OF THE WEST
Week 1	Week of Jan 20	Course introduction Proposed Definitions of Religion Approaching religious traditions - IWR ch. 1 Class videos: Intro to HUM 2093 - Intro to Religion An Indian Love Song, by Sarojini Naidu (interaction between a Muslim man and a Hindu woman) The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections, 2010-2050 America's Changing Religious Landscape
Week 2	Week of Jan 27	Religious traditions of Oceania, America, & Africa - IWR ch. 2 Class videos: Intro to Religion, Expressive Traditions Expressive traditions: Maori tattoos (ta moko) Australian Aboriginal dreaming Sioux Ghost Dance Navajo sand painting Candomblé dance Dagara initiation Fon (Ifa) divination - cf. I Ching hexagrams
Week 3	Week of Feb 3	Zoroastrianism - IWR ch. 3 Class videos: Zoroastrianism, pt. 1 - Zoroastrianism, pt. 2 Zoroastrian worship service, with priest chanting Yasna, centered around sacred fire
Week 4	Week of Feb 10	Judaism - IWR ch. 4 Group report on Kimball, Introduction & chap. 1, due Feb 15 Class videos: Judaism, pt. 1 - Judaism, pt. 2 - Judaism, pt. 3 - Judaism - The Name of God The Six Orders of the Mishnah Talmud bBabaMetzia 59 Thirteen Principles of Maimonides Tree of Life in Jewish mysticism Hebrew, English Gold medallion recently unearthed in Jerusalem Jewish cantor blowing a shofar during Rosh Hashanah service Jewish Reactions to the Shoah/Holocaust
Week 5	Week of Feb 17	Christianity - IWR ch. 5 Group report on Kimball, chap. 2, due Feb 22 Class videos: Christianity, pt. 1 - Christianity, pt. 2 - Christianity, pt. 3 - Christianity, pt. 4 The Christian Canon Defining Orthodoxy in the Early Church The Divine and the Human in Christ - different views The Nicene and Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creeds Icons of the Virgin Mary and Jesus Unam Sanctam, a papal bull (decree) issued by Pope Boniface VIII The Last Judgment by Hans Memling (ca. 1470) Cologne Cathedral (13th-15th C, Germany): aerial view, interior South Rose Window of Chartres Cathedral Nestorian Tablet (image), (text) (record of Christian activity in China from the 8th century)
Week 6	Week of Feb 24	Islam - IWR ch. 6 Group report on Kimball, chap. 3, due Mar 1 Class videos: Islam, pt. 1 - Islam, pt. 2 - Islam, pt. 3 The Five Pillars of Islam Muslim Call to Prayer (Adhan) Great Mosque of Córdoba from the air, interior view Whirling Dervishes (traditional Sufi dance) Hajj in Mecca Illuminated (illustrated) Quran ca. 1600
UNIT TWO: RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS OF THE EAST
Week 7	Week of Mar 3	Group report on Kimball, chap. 4, due Mar 8 Visit report 1 due Mar 7 Interview 1 due Mar 7 Class videos: Bahai - Jainism Baháʾí - IWR ch. 7 The Baháʾí Faith Shrine of the Báb, Haifa, Israel Jainism - IWR ch. 8 Kevala Jnana of Mahavira, the 24th tirthankara inside and outside of Jain temple The Message of Jainism: Non-Violence is the Highest Virtue (from Jain Temple, Rajasthan, India)
SPRING BREAK
Week 8	Week of Mar 17	EXAM 1 (one hour, must be completed by Mar 22) Buddhism - IWR ch. 9 Class videos: Buddhism, pt. 1 - Buddhism, pt. 2 - Buddhism, pt. 3 Sand Mandala Demonstration Buddhanet Wheel of Life, representing the six realms of rebirth Dharma Wheel Collection of koans used in Zen Buddhism Sumedha, who would be Siddhartha Gautama in a future life, receiving the prediction of Buddhahood from the Dipankara Buddha Mandala, used in tantric traditions to enhance or focus meditation Distribution of major Buddhist schools Journal of Buddhist Ethics, oldest religious studies journal on the web, founded in 1993
Week 9	Week of Mar 24	Hinduism - IWR ch. 10 Group report on Kimball, chap. 5, due Mar 29 Class videos: Hinduism, pt. 1 - Hinduism, pt. 2 - Hinduism, pt. 3 Maurya Empire Hindu gods: Brahmā, Shiva, Ganesha, Vishnu, Krishna (and Arjuna), Kali Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva within a sacred Om Hindu temple at Angkor Wat, Cambodia Traditional Caste System in India Worship in Hindu Temple in Edmonton
Week 10	Week of Mar 31	Sikhism - IWR ch. 11 Group report on Kimball, chap. 6, due Apr 5 Class videos: Sikhism, pt. 1 - Sikhism, pt. 2 - Sikhism, pt. 3 Sikh worship service, with explanation Punjab region, Amritsar, Punjab, India Guru Nanak List of Sikh Gurus Sikh Golden Temple
Week 11	Week of Apr 7	Chinese traditions - IWR ch. 12 Group report on Kimball, chap. 7, due Apr 12 Class videos: Chinese Religion - Confucianism - Daoism - Shinto Oracle Bone from Shang Dynasty Ceremony at a Confucian temple The Great Learning, from Sanli, a traditional Chinese book especially revered in Confucianism Portrait of Confucius from the Tang Dynasty Zhuangzi Loses His Wife Traditional Daoist Taiji Diagram (yin-yang symbol) Dudeism, a modern take on Taoism (sort of) Shinto - IWR ch. 13 Introduction to Shinto Plan of a typical Shinto shrine: torii (gate) stone stairs approach to shrine purification font stone lanterns building for sacred dance administrative offices wooden plaques with prayers & wishes small shrines "lion-dogs," guardians of the shrine hall of prayer fence surrounding the main hall main hall, enshrining the kami (honden) decorative rooves Torii, or ornamental gate that serves as entrance to Shinto shrine Itsukushima main shrine Mount Fuji
UNIT THREE: TOPICS ACROSS RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS
Week 12	Week of Apr 14	EXAM 2 (one hour, must be completed by Apr 19) Visit report 2 due Apr 18 Interview 2 due Apr 18
Week 13	Week of Apr 21	Book report on Life of Pi due Apr 26 Questions to consider concerning The Life of Pi
Week 14	Week of Apr 28	Group Assignments and Presentations Discussion topic: The problem of evil (Group 1) due May 2 Discussion topic: Divine-human mediators (Group 2) due May 2 Discussion topic: Eschatology (Group 3) due May 2 Discussion topic: Nature of god(s) and (semi-)divine beings (Group 4) due May 2 Discussion topic: Religious expression in art & architecture (Group 5) due May 2 Discussion topic: Life, death, and afterlife (Group 6) due May 2
Week 15	Week of May 5	Discussion topic: War, peace, & violence (Group 3) due May 9 Discussion topic: God(s) and sexuality (Group 4) due May 9 Discussion topic: Sacred texts (Group 5) due May 9 Discussion topic: Sacred places, objects, and times (Group 6) due May 9 Discussion topic: Myth and cult (Group 1) due May 9 Discussion topic: Religion and culture (Group 2) due May 9 Visit reports 3+ due May 9 Interviews 3+ due May 9
Finals Week	Week of May 12	Final Group Discussions on Other Religious Traditions due May 16

HUM 2093: World Religions

Spring 2025

James R. Adair

Contact Information

Course Links

Exam Study Guides

Religion in the News

Extra Credit Opportunities

Other Links of Interest

Suggested houses of worship for various religious traditions (there are many others as well!)

Judaism

Christianity

Islam

Baháʾí

Buddhism

Hinduism

Sikhism

Shirdi Sai Baba

The Challenge of Religion

Grading

Schedule