Comparative Religion

This course provides an overview of religion from the emergence of the human species until the present. It draws on scholarship from a variety of fields including archaeology, cultural anthropology, history, religious studies, evolutionary biology, psychology, and neuroscience. The course begins with a discussion of the psychological/biological foundations of religion. It then examines hunter-gatherer religions, prehistoric agricultural/pastoral religions, and major ancient/early religions (e.g., Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Zoroastrian, Greco-Roman, Aztec). Next, students are introduced to the three major families of world religions; namely, the "Abrahamic" religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam); the "Indic" religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism), and the "East Asian" religions (Confucianism, Daoism, Shintoism).
Course Attributes: BU Eth; BU BA; AS HUM; AS LCD; FA HUM; AR HUM; EN H

Comparative Religion

RELIGIOUS STUDIES 3843

Section 01