Welcome to Religion 105: Comparative Religion. Started in 2008, Religion 105: Comparative Religion is one of Essex County College's newest courses. In this course you will be introduced to the world's religions like the religions of African and Native American tribal peoples and new religions like Scientology. And we will explore the major world religions--Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
All peoples everywhere have some kind of religion or some way to explain the mysteries of life. The historian Will Durant said concerning religion that "The great majority of mankind feels compelled to ascribe mysterious entities or events to supernatural beings . . . [Religion] arises spontaneously and repeatedly from the needs and hopes of men."[1] Similarly, the father of comparative religion, Friedrich Max Muller, said that religion "enables man to apprehend the Infinite under different names."[2]
The study and comparison of religions has come a long way since 1856 when Max Muller wrote his Comparative Mythology. An example of one of the changes that has taken place in the study of religions is the move away from viewing religions through Western eyes. Previous anthropologists from Europe and the United States tended to relate other religions through Christian ideas, but now that we have become more familiar with other cultures and religions, and more importantly, now that scholars from within these religions are writing about their religion from their own perspective, we are now better able to understand them from a less biased position.
Religion is a fascinating topic of inquiry, and in our class we will see the beautiful variety and the profound similarities of our world's religions, and we will explore possible explanations for these differences and similarities. In our class discussion we will have opportunity to hear lectures and take part in lively yet respectful discussion. We will share our own personal journeys into religion and learn about some of the contemporary issues being discussed by today's religious leaders. We will think about and attempt to answer the question about the meaning of faith, mysticism, and spirituality.
Footnotes
1 Will Durant, The Power of Religion [web-page], available at: http://www.willdurant.com/religion.htm. The Center for the Advancement of the Writings and Teaching of Will and Ariel Durant. 2004, John Little and the Estate of Will Durant. Internet accessed on October 12, 2008.
2 Douglas Davies, "The Study of Religion," in Eerdmans' Handbook to the World's Religions, (Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982), 18.
Contact professor Lorenz at slinjersey@msn.com