Sociology 310: Sociology of Religion
Dr. Scott Schaffer
Spring 2003

Class Meetings: Mon/Weds/Fri 12pm to 1250pm, McComsey 107 (NOTE: Room change effective M Jan 27)

Office Hours: MWF 11am to 1150am, TTh 1130am to 1230pm or by appt
Office: Susquehanna House 105
Vox: 717/872.3567    Fax: 717/872.3942     Email: scott.schaffer@millersville.edu

Web site: http://www.millersville.edu/~schaffer/courses/s2003/soc310

Course Description:

This class is devoted to the sociological study of the place religion plays in our everyday lives and in social change. Through the study of this meaning system, we can understand not only the importance of meaning systems for our understanding and organization of the world, but also the ways in which we relate to one another and to a social order and in which we can conceive of certain kinds of social change.

It should be said from the outset that this course is not about religion per se; rather, we are using religion as a tool for understanding the variety of ways in which we organize our social lives, relate to others, and, from a more sociological point of view, as a means for examining many of the more fundamental questions about our social lives. As such, this course is not about the veracity or falsity of any religion in particular or religion in general; instead, religion becomes for us a means to an end, and no criticism of any student’s religious beliefs or lack thereof will be tolerated.

The first segment of this course will be a study of a variety of sociological theories about different aspects of religion. Sociologists have understood religion in different ways, and our task in this section of the course will be to develop a general understanding of the function and causes of religion and religious beliefs and their place in society. The second segment of the course will be an examination of religious beliefs as versions of social theory. In this segment, we will examine key texts in the world’s major religions in an attempt to understand how it is that our religious beliefs give us particular understandings of our place in the world vis-à-vis others and society.

The third segment of this course will put into practice these two ways of understanding religion through the examination of a set of case studies that focus on the ways in which religion serves to bolster and/or make possible a wide variety of movements oriented to social change. For better or worse (depending on the historical situation), religion often plays a part in how we conceive of “a better world”, and it is important to understand this when examining social movements.

The final segment of this course will examine the most recent contentious topic surrounding religion in our society – fundamentalism. We will explore fundamentalisms of all kinds, ranging from those most prominent in the media (Islamic, Jewish, and Christian fundamentalisms) to those that don’t get mentioned in the media, including capitalism and American-style democracy. Part of this is an attempt to get beyond what the media tells you about “those fundamentalists”; but part of this is an effort to help you understand that fundamentalisms are both attempts at solving particular kinds of social problems and pose other kinds of social problems we will be facing for a number of years.

This course is, as any good university course should be, designed to bend your mind – to get you to see things in the world you’re not used to seeing and to think about the world in ways you haven’t before. It will be challenging, and if you are up to that challenge, the rewards will be great.

Required Texts:

There are five required texts and one recommended text for this course, all available at the MU Bookstore or at any reputable online bookseller.

Required:

Roger Eastman (ed.), The Ways of Religion
Christian Smith (ed.), Disruptive Religion: Force and Faith in Social Activism
Joel Schalit, Jerusalem Calling: A Homeless Conscience in a Post-Everything World
Richard Antoun, Understanding Fundamentalism: Christian, Islamic and Jewish Movements
Michael Cuneo, American Exorcism: Expelling Demons in the Land of Plenty

Recommended: Malcolm Hamilton, A Sociology of Religion

There are required readings on eReserve through Ganser Library, listed by author's last name in the reading schedule below. These must be read. Directions for accessing these readings can be found here.

Course Assignments: There are four kinds of assignments for this course. You should note that in order to pass the course, you must complete all assignments in a timely manner.

Papers: There will be three papers assigned for this course. The first, a five-page paper, will be due in 5^th week. The second, a eight-page paper, will be due in 9^th week. The final paper, a twelve-page independent research paper, will be due on the last day of finals week. The first two paper assignments will offer you a choice of topics to write on; the final research paper will deal with a general research question regarding religious forms of behavior, but will focus primarily on a topic of your choosing. Outside research materials can be used to complement the works read for the first two papers, and are required for the final research project; please discuss these with me prior to using them in your work. You should refer to the “How to Write a Schaffer Paper” handout when preparing your papers, including citation and bibliographic requirements.

Pop Quizzes: There will be four pop quizzes in this course, given with no advance notice. They are designed to gauge your understanding of the reading materials and to ensure that you’re staying on task with the readings. They will cover the readings listed in the syllabus up to that day. There will be no makeup quizzes; if you’re not there and your absence was not discussed with me in advance, you will receive a zero. Pop quizzes are usually given when it’s clear that people aren’t doing the reading.

Discussion Groups: In the second class session, you will join a three-person discussion group, that will serve as both a site for discussing the weekly questions that are intended to guide you through the readings and as a moral support group for your journey through this course. The questions will be handed out in advance of each week’s reading. These questions will serve as the basis for the in-class discussion we will have each Friday. As you’ll notice in the reading schedule, Mondays and Wednesdays are dedicated to lecturing about the readings assigned for the week, while Fridays will be devoted to discussing your responses to the discussion questions. You should meet with your group prior to that session, having prepared responses (with page citations, etc.) to those questions, and you should come to the Friday sessions prepared to talk about the readings. More details about these discussion groups appears later in this syllabus.

Participation: As always, your success in this course will depend in part upon your participation in it. Participation can take many forms – sometimes just being in class for lecture counts, while other times (such as on Fridays) you’ll be asked to participate in class discussions. In every case, participation is indicative of your level of commitment to your success in the course, and as such, it will be rewarded.

Grade Breakdown: All graded assignments will be evaluated on a letter grade basis with +/- adjustments (so A, A-, B+, etc.). At the end of the semester, your final grade will be converted to a GPA basis (A = 4.0, etc).

First Paper:                               15%
Second Paper:                           25%
Final Paper:                              35%
Pop Quizzes                             10%
Participation:                            15%

Timeliness, Presentation, Ethics and Academic Dishonesty Policies:

Timeliness: As you know, the tempo of the semester system does not allow one to fall behind, and everything in this course builds to the final research paper. As such, you are requested and required to submit all assignments at the time and date announced. Except in the event of a sudden, unforeseen, catastrophic and well-documented event (such as your demise), no late papers will be accepted; in the event of a catastrophe, you must contact me by phone or e-mail as early as possible. Papers must be submitted to the instructor in person at the time and date due, to the Sociology/Anthropology Department office prior to the deadline, or by e-mail to me before the deadline.

Presentation: The research papers you will undertake in this course represent a significant portion of your time this quarter and are intended to get you to think about the nature of the institution in which you find yourselves. The expectation is that you will pursue these projects with vigor and a clear intent to do well in the development of your social research skills. As such, you are required to proofread and spell- and grammar-check all work submitted during this course. There is no excuse for submitting shoddy work in a time when any decent word processing program can polish your work. Any paper submitted with copious errors will automatically lose one full letter grade and may be returned for editing and resubmission within 72 hours. If your work receives a second proofreading violation, that and any further work will receive a zero.

Academic Dishonesty: Absolutely NO form of academic dishonesty (defined as the use of prohibited materials during an examination, any kind of communication with another person other than the professor or an exam proctor during an examination, the representation of another’s work as your own whether that work was purchased or freely offered) will be tolerated in this course. As it is contrary to both the mission of the university and to MU policies, any act of academic dishonesty will be met with an immediate failure on the exam or assignment at minimum, and referral to Student Affairs for judicial board proceedings at most. Just don’t even think about it – it robs us all of the learning experience.

Reading Schedule:

Please make sure that you have prepared the readings listed for each class session before coming to class and are ready to discuss them on the date listed.

M Jan 27: Introduction to the Course: Mechanics, Expectations, and Scheduling
W Jan 29: Introduction to the Course: Topics and Issues – Hamilton, 1-20 (these readings are in the Xerox packet or on eReserve)

Weeks 2-5: Social theories of religion (all readings are on eReserve)

F Jan 31: Tylor (recommended: Hamilton, pp. 21-27)

M Feb 3: Freud (recommended: Hamilton, pp. 45-56)
W Feb 5: Marx (recommended: Hamilton, pp. 80-86)
F Feb 7: Discussion on Tylor, Freud, Marx

M Feb 10: Durkheim and Radcliffe-Brown (recommended: Hamilton pp. 97-122)
W Feb 12: Yinger and Weber (recommended: Hamilton, pp. 137-146)
F Feb 14: First paper handed out and discussed; Discussion on Durkheim, Radcliffe-Brown, Yinger, and Weber

M Feb 17: Geertz (recommended: Hamilton, pp. 157-164)
W Feb 19: Berger (recommended: Hamilton, pp. 183-192)
F Feb 21: Discussion on Geertz and Berger

M Feb 24: Social theories of religion wrap-up discussion – no reading
W Feb 26: Paper prep and peer evaluation session – no reading; bring 3 copies of your paper draft to class
F Feb 28: First paper due at the start of class; paper debriefing session, first intermission discussion – social theories on religion – read Eastman, pp.1-12

Weeks 6-9: Religions as social theories

M Mar 3: Hinduism: Eastman, pp. 13-73
W Mar 5: Buddhism and Zen: Eastman, pp. 77-104, 110-121, 131-143, 154-159
F Mar 7: Discussion on Hinduism, Buddhism and Zen

M Mar 10: Second paper handed out and discussed; Confucianism and Taoism: Eastman, pp. 163-200, 207-211, 215-245
W Mar 12: Shinto: Eastman, pp. 257-286
F Mar 14: Discussion on Confucianism, Taoism, and Shinto

M Mar 17: Judaism: Eastman, pp. 287-317, 326-334
W Mar 19: Islam: Eastman, pp. 397-444
F Mar 21: Discussion on Judaism and Islam

Mar 24-28: Spring Recess – no class.

M Mar 31: African Religions: Eastman, pp. 447-483
W Apr 2: Religion as social theory wrap-up session – no reading
F Apr 4: Paper prep and peer evaluation session – no reading; bring 3 copies of your paper draft to class

M Apr 7: Second paper due at the start of class; Term project handed out and discussed; paper debriefing session – no reading

Weeks 9-11: Religion and social change

W Apr 9: Religion and Social Movements: Smith, pp. 1-28
F Apr 11: Religion, Organization and Leadership: Smith, pp. 29-66

M Apr 14: Ritual and Insurgent Consciousness: Smith, pp. 67-104
W Apr 16: Religion, Mobilization and Repression: Smith, pp. 105-146
F Apr 18: Discussion on religion as the basis for social movements

M Apr 21: Symbols and Activist Identities: Smith, pp. 147-188
W Apr 23: Ideology and Religious Disruption: Smith, pp. 189-222
F Apr 25: Discussion on religion, activism, and ideology

Weeks 12-14: Fundamentalism(s) and you

M Apr 28: Schalit, pp. 15-86; Antoun, pp. 1-36
W Apr 30: Schalit, pp. 87-124; Antoun, pp. 37-84
F May 2: Discussion on Schalit, pp. 125-162; Antoun, pp. 85-132

M May 5: Schalit, pp. 163-219; Antoun, pp. 133-162
W May 7: Cuneo, readings TBD
F May 9: Cuneo, readings TBD; paper prep session

T May 13, 12pm: Final papers due to me or the Sociology/Anthropology department office

Th May 15, 8am to 10am: Mandatory closure discussion session

Summing Up – Due Dates:

Every Friday – your preparations for in-class discussion

Fri Feb 28/2003 – First paper due at the start of class

Mon Apr 7/2003 – Second paper and journals due at the start of class

Tues May 13/2003, 1200pm – Final paper due at the start of class

 

Paper Evaluation Guidelines

More information on these guidelines and examples of what I expect is available in the “How to Write a Schaffer Paper” handout, which will be given out with the first paper assignment. These, though, are the overall guidelines in order of importance.

1. Strength and clarity of response to the paper topic’s main question. Each paper assignment will ask you to respond directly to an argumentative question, and you should ensure that your paper contains a direct and clear response to this question.

2. Strength and cohesiveness of the argument. The papers you will write in this class are argument-based – it isn’t enough to deliver a simple one-sentence statement that answers the question. Instead, you need to take the time to show me how it is you came to that response – the thought process you went through, the references you drew from in order to figure out your position, and how you put everything together. In algebra, it was called “showing your steps”; here, it’s just good argumentation.

3. Accuracy in presentation and understanding of materials. While most of this course is devoted to the development of your own perspective on these thinkers and the world, there are some minimum “correct” and “incorrect” understandings of what the authors said. You need to be sure that you accurately represent what each author says, that you accurately and adequately cite any reference to the original text(s), and that you explain any unorthodox presentation of the authors’ works.

4. Presentation – spelling, grammar, tone, and the actual submitted paper. As it’s become ridiculously easy to ensure that your work is cleanly presented, you must ensure that your paper is spell- and grammar-checked prior to submitting it for evaluation. You should also endeavor to ensure that it’s proofread, either by you, a discussion group member, or someone else – and this proofreading should be both for the technical matters and for clarity of argument. Otherwize, you’re paper will appeer bad, even iff its the most briliant thing ever writen.

Deductions: The following are automatic deductions without appeal:

• Not reaching minimum page count: 1/3 letter grade per page the paper is short;

• Not utilizing minimum number of texts: 1/3 letter grade per text the paper is short;

• Not proofreading the paper: up to one full letter grade the first time, with revisions possible at my discretion; the second time, your paper will receive a zero (0);

• Not citing all references to original texts: 1/3 letter grade;

• Copious use of direct quotes to stand in for your own work: 1/3 letter grade;

• Not including a bibliography when required by the assignment: one full letter grade.

Also, note that I grade on a letter grade with +/- additions, so there should be no dallying around with the math.

Discussion Question Assignment

The discussion questions are an integral part of this course. They serve a number of purposes:

• First, to provide you with a basis for understanding not just what each author says, but also why they see what they say, how they develop their argument, and how their ideas can be extended and translated into understanding other contexts;

• Second, to give you an opportunity to gain regular feedback on your burgeoning understanding of these materials over the course of the semester, both from me and from others in the class;

• Third, to participate in a fruitful exchange of ideas with your peers on a regular basis, so you end up getting a variety of perspectives on the issues being dealt with in the course;

• And finally, to build a support group that can help you with clarifying questions you might have, a group of proofreaders to ensure your work is the best and most polished it can be, and hopefully, some new friends.

In the second class session, we’ll set up discussion groups of three people (four is acceptable). Your task during that session is to exchange phone numbers and email addresses and to figure out a time where you can meet to discuss the questions on a weekly basis. It doesn’t matter to me if this meeting is on campus, off-campus, or by email or telephone (hence the three people – three-way calling). You need to be sure to find a time that is generally acceptable to all of you; the written work you submit comes from the entire group, and all of you know how annoying it is to have a “free rider” who does none of the work. Don’t be that free rider.

You should note that the questions are “cumulative,” so that the last question in each set builds on all the questions that come before it. Hence, skipping questions or splitting the questions into blocks that one person prepares does not help you in the long run – paper questions are more like the last question in each set than any of the others.

Every Thursday, we will devote the class period to discussing your responses to the discussion questions. It is incumbent on you to ensure that you are prepared for that discussion by having already met with your discussion group, discussed the questions, and prepared notes for your in-class discussion of these materials. Your class participation grade will be based primarily on what happens in these discussions, and as the semester goes on, I will increasingly rely on you to manage and spark these discussions. At any time, should I find that discussion is not happening in the way that it should be, I will be most displeased. You do not want to see that.

Disputes within groups: If a dispute occurs within a group – someone keeps skipping group and expecting credit, or some other kind of internal problem appears – the group members should take care of it collectively. If it cannot be resolved internally, it is expected that you will come to me to resolve the situation, though I prefer not to get involved in this way. We’re all adults – we can manage our own affairs.