|
Syllabus ICS 2534 S07: Approaches to Interreligious Dialogue Dr. Ronald A. Kuipers 1. Course description Reformational philosophy claims that participants in public discussions will always find their positions to be rooted in “supra-theoretical” (religious) points of departure. Related to this notion is the doctrine of “antithesis” which suggests, among other things, that life patterns which orient themselves according to such different religious “ground motives” will inevitably be radically opposed. Some commentators have criticized this notion for suggesting a total communicative impasse between those who espouse different worldviews, while others have claimed that it in fact fosters such communication precisely because it accurately describes the depth of the difference that exists between such individuals and/or groups. On the whole, however, one might well argue that the doctrine of antithesis has done more to encourage the idea that little or no possibility for communication, dialogue, or learning exists between people owning such radically opposed points of departure. Yet today, due to patterns of international migration and the rapid globalization of telecommunications media, people find themselves increasingly face to face with others whose ideas and outlooks differ greatly from their own. This situation has been exacerbated by steadily increasing levels of mistrust and suspicion between such groups, as our world continues to be rent by violent conflict along various religious, ideological, political, and economic fault lines. In this context, the urgent need to increase one’s understanding and literacy concerning neighbours who in many ways remain strangers becomes especially salient. This is particularly true in the arena of interreligious dialogue, and so this course proposes to examine several philosophical and theological proposals (emanating from a Western Christian cultural background) concerning the best ways in which to approach this difficult undertaking. In particular, this seminar will examine and compare the work of three thinkers who have made signal contributions to the question of how we ought to approach the matter of interreligious understanding and dialogue: Diana L. Eck, John Hick, and Wilfred Cantwell Smith. 2. Reading Schedule
3. Course requirements: Total reading: 1250 pages, including research for paper, of which approximately 30-50 pages per week is required to prepare for class. In-seminar leadership: Each student is required to make two (or three, depending on class size) in-class presentations, of two different kinds. One (presentation A) is meant to spur discussion of the weekly assigned reading, the other (presentation B) will introduce a contemporary news item in order to bring out the socio-cultural relevance of the course theme. Presentation A should begin with a leading “pressing” question that the assigned reading raises for the student. This question might be pressing for intellectual, but also existential and religious reasons. After stating the question, the student will pinpoint the particular location(s) in the text where that question emerged for her or him, and then go on to offer a close reading of that limited portion of text. This close reading should take the form of a line-by-line analysis of the selected text, complete with suggested interpretation and explanation of why that portion of text raises the question it does. This interpretation may in turn radiate out from that selection and touch on other parts of the assigned text, but complete coverage is neither required nor requested. Presentation B will be based on the student’s selection and introduction of a contemporary news item, one in which the issue of interreligious confrontation and/or dialogue/cooperation is salient. The example may be taken from a newspaper, magazine, the internet, etc. The goal for this assignment is to relate course themes to real-life issues of contemporary concern. For this presentation, the presenter should a) state the problem or issue as she or he understands it; b) critically assess the way the media has portrayed it; c) venture some opinion as to how the work of the author’s we are engaging in class contributes or fails to contribute to our understanding of the issue or problem raised in the news item; and d) raise some questions for group discussion. Course paper: Students are required to submit one essay whose theme arises from in-class reading and discussion. Length requirement: MA: 3000-6000 words; PhD: 5000-8000 words. The essay may also build upon the research and writing put into presentations A and/or B, and students are in fact encouraged to do so. A substantive outline, including tentative thesis statement (50-100 words), outline, and proposed extra reading is due no later than Thursday, Mar. 29, 2007. Beginning March 1, however, time will be set aside for students to present their paper proposals in class for peer feedback, if they so choose. The paper is due on Friday, May. 26, 2007. 4. Description and weighting of elements to be evaluated: Class Participation: 10%; In-Seminar Leadership (Presentations A and B): 25%; Paper: 65%. 5. Required readings Buruma, Ian. 2006. Murder in Amsterdam: The Death of Theo van Gogh and the Limits of Tolerance. New York: Penguin. Eck, Diana L. 2003. Encountering God: A Spiritual Journey from Bozeman to Banaras. Boston: Beacon. Hick, John. 1996. A Christian Theology of Religions: The Rainbow of Faiths. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press. Smith, Wilfred Cantwell. 2001. Wilfred Cantwell Smith: A Reader. Ed. Kenneth Cracknell. Oxford: Oneworld Publications. 6. Recommended Readings Cracknell, Kenneth. 1986. Towards a New Relationship: Christians and People of Other Faith. London: Epworth Press. D’Costa, Gavin, ed. 1990. Christian Uniqueness Reconsidered: The Myth of a Pluralist Theology of Religions. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books. D’Costa, Gavin. 1987. John Hick’s Theology of Religions: A Critical Evaluation. Lanham, MD: University Press of America. . 1986. Theology and Religious Pluralism: The Challenge of Other Religions. Oxford: Blackwell. Eck, Diana L. et. al., eds. 1985. Speaking of Faith: Global Perspectives of Women, Religion, and Social Change. Philadelphia: New Society. Gort, Jerald D., Henry Jansen, and Hendrik M. Vroom, eds. 2006. Religions View Religions: Explorations in Pursuit of Understanding. Amsterdam and New York: Editions Rodopi. Hick, John. 1989. An Interpretation of Religion. London: Macmillan. . 1985. Problems of Religious Pluralism. London: Macmillan. . 1973. God and the Universe of Faiths. London: Macmillan. . 1980. God has Many Names. London: Macmillan. . 1993. The Metaphor of God Incarnate. London SCM Press. Oxtoby, Willard G., ed. 1976. Religious Diversity: Essays by Wilfred Cantwell Smith. New York: Harper and Row. Perry, Tim S. 2001. Radical Difference: A Defense of Hendrik Kraemer's Theology of Religions. Waterloo: Wilfred Laurier University Press. Smith, Wilfred Cantwell. 1979. Faith and Belief. Princeton: Princeton University Press. . 1962. The Faith of Other Men. New York: Mentor Books. . 1962. The Meaning and End of Religion. New York: Harper and Row. . 1981. Toward a World Theology: Faith and the Comparative History of Religion. Philadelphia: Westminster Press. Tillich, Paul. 1963. Christianity and the Encounter of the World Religions. New York: Columbia University Press. Volf, Miroslav. 1996. Exclusion and Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation. Nashville: Abingdon Press. Vroom, Hendrik M. 1996. No Other Gods: Christian Belief in Dialogue with Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdman’s. |
| Academic Schedule |
| Course Timetable |
| Programs |
| Courses in Education |
| Distance Courses |
| Summer School |
| All Courses |
| Student Services |
| All Info for Students... |
| Past Events |
| New Events |
| Library |
| Faith & Learning Network |
| Bookshop |
| Papers |
| All Resources... |
| Our Story |
| Alumni |
| Employment |
| Contact Information |
| Map & Street View |
| Supporting ICS |
| Channel 229 |
| Perspective |
| More About ICS... |
| Full Time Faculty |
| Emeriti, Adjunct, Associates |
