Fall 2014/Fuller Live!

Houston and Pasadena

MR547

Reisacher

MR547: WORLD RELIGIONS, ART, AND SYMBOL (4 Units: 160 hours). Evelyne A. Reisacher.

DESCRIPTION: This course explores the world’s major religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, Taoism and Confucianism) by looking at art and symbols and other nonverbal means of expression. Instead of focusing on the study of central texts of these faith traditions, the course investigates their art, symbolism, and rituals. Students will explore the nonverbal and sensory elements of these religions and discuss their meaning and role. For example, they will look at the importance and the role of architecture, color, sound, rhythm, images and how they impact believers consciously and non-consciously and are essential elements of beliefs and practices.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: By the end of the course, students will be able to: (1) identify rituals, sounds, architecture, and other nonverbal elements of expression associated with world religions; (2) understand the role of art and symbols in world religions; and (3) explain how art and symbols impact the way they engage with people from other faiths.

COURSE FORMAT: This class meets once per week for three-hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion plus 10 hours of directed learning activities for a total of 40 instructional hours. Note that this is a Fuller Live! course. The Professor will primarily teach via polycom from Pasadena but will travel at least once to polycom from the other campus listed.

REQUIRED READING: 1,036 pp. required. If you have previously read any of the required texts, please select an alternative text from the recommended reading list or a book approved by the professor.

Bowker, John. The Great Faiths Explored and Explained. DK Adult, 2006. ISBN: 978-0756617721, Pub. Price $16.95 [216 pp.].

Brown, Frank Burch, ed. The Oxford Handbook of Religion and the Arts. Oxford University Press, 2013. ISBN: 978-0195176674, Pub. Price $150 [564 pp.].

Plate, S. Brent. Religion, Art, and Visual Culture: A Cross-Cultural Reader. Palgrave Macmillan, 2002. ISBN: 978-0312240295, Pub. Price $37.00 [256 pp.].

RECOMMENDED READING AND WATCHING:

Dyrness, William A. Senses of Devotion: Interfaith Aesthetics in Buddhist and Muslim Communities. Wipf & Stock Pub., 2013. ISBN:978-1620321362, Pub. Price $18.00 [160 pp.].

Grubin, David. The Buddha [Film]. PBS, 2010. 120 minutes.

Sharma, Arvind, ed. Our Religions: The Seven World Religions Introduced by Preeminent Scholars from Each Tradition. HarperSanFrancisco, 1993. ISBN: 978-0060677008, Pub. Price $22.99 [560 pp.].

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

1. 1,036 pp. of required reading [70 hours].

2. DLAs: Watch online videos describing religious rituals and discuss them in online forums (20%) [LO #1 and 2] [10 hours].
3. Visit a religious site or a museum with sacred art or attend a religious festival and reflect in 1,250 words on the art and symbols encountered (20%) [LO #1] [12 hours].
4. Class or online presentation on the role of art and symbols in a specific religion (20%) [LO #2] [13 hours].
5. A 1,500-word final paper, double-spaced, in which the student will reflect on how theories and concepts learned in class are shaping their engagement with people of other faiths (20%) [LO #3] [15 hours].
6. Five online forum posts with replies reflecting on weekly readings (20%) [LO #1, 2, and 3] [10 hours].

PREREQUISITES: None.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Option to meet the C1 requirement in the 120 MDiv Program. Meets World Religions (WREL) requirement for SOT MAT program. Option to count in the Worship and Music Ministry emphasis. Option to count in the Worship, Theology and the Arts emphasis. Serves as a course substitute for MB501.

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.