The Sociology of Religion SOCI 156 Introduction

Office hours: MW, 2:00-3:00, SSB 467 Course Website: adamgomez.wordpress.com/teaching/soci156 All course documents (syllabus, essay prompts, course readings, lecture slides, etc.) will be available here 2

Grades Midterm: 30% Essay: 35% Final exam: 35% Papers must be submitted to turnitin.com All assignments must be completed in order to pass the class – Excuses from exams will be granted only with documented evidence of medical or personal necessity 3

Course Texts Mircea Eliade (Willard R. Trask, trans.), The Sacred and The Profane: The Nature of Religion (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, ISBN ) Robert D. Putnam & David E. Campbell, American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us (Simon & Schuster, ISBN ) Leila Ahmed, A Quiet Revolution: The Veil's Resurgence, from the Middle East to America (Yale, ISBN ) Additional readings will be linked from the course website 4

Disclaimer This course considers the subject solely as a subject of sociological inquiry, taking no position on the truth or falsehood of any religious position. The instructor will treat each of the traditions considered in this class with respect, and will extend that respect to all persons in the classroom. It is expected that students will do the same. 5

Complexity of Religion Influences and influenced by – Politics – Economy – Art – Culture – Science – Etc. Religion is just... – People who say this dont know what theyre talking about 6

Core Questions What is a religion? How can its resilience and endurance be explained? What are the social effects of religion, and how are they enacted? How do religion and politics interact? 7

Core Questions What is the importance of the content of religious dogmas and beliefs? What is the relationship between religion and identity? Why has religion attained renewed prominence in our social and political discourse? 8

Subjects of Investigation Belief Organization Sex Death Family Gender Identity Morality Law Power 9

Big questions Do beliefs matter? What is the conceptual legacy of various religions in different times and places? What are the effects of religion on social organization? Why has religion endured across human history? Why has religion not faded from existence, as theorists of the 19 th and 20 th centuries predicted? 10