Dr. Sophia Shafi
E-mail: sshafi@iliff.edu
Office: I-302
Office Hours: Thursday 12-12:50 p.m.
Dr. R.J. Hernández-Díaz
E-mail: rhernandez-diaz@iliff.edu
Office: I-302
Office Hours: Thursday 12-12:50 p.m.
Click here if you like to download the course syllabus as a pdf .
Abrahamic traditions have yielded complex religious responses to oppression and social injustice. This course examines some of those responses in relationship to governance, economics, war, health, and sexuality through the lenses of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Ahearn, David Oki and Peter R. Gathje, editors. Doing Right and Being Good: Catholic and Protestant Readings in Christian Ethics . Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2005.
Dorff, Elliot N. Love Your Neighbor and Yourself: A Jewish Approach to Modern Personal Ethics . Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society, 2006.
Foltz, Richard C., Frederick M. Denny and Baharuddin Azizan, editors. Islam and Ecology: A Bestowed Trust . Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2003.
Lakhani, Ali, editor. The Sacred Foundations of Justice in Islam: The Teachings of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib . Bloomington: World Wisdom, 2006.
Levenson, Jon D. Inheriting Abraham: The Legacy of the Patriarch in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam . Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2012.
Rieger, Joerg. No Rising Tide: Theology, Economics, and the Future . Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2009.
See Taylor Library's list of online book sellers for purchasing options.
You are required to attend all class sessions unless there is a medical reason or a family emergency.
All course readings should be completed before the class on which they are due. Please bring relevant texts or articles to class.
No electronic devices should be out during class unless you are referring to a class reading posted on Canvas or taking notes. Please refrain from Facebook, Twitter, and texting during class time.
Attendance counts for 10% of your grade.
You get 1 point deducted for every class you miss.
Participation counts for 20% of your grade.
Posing questions, contributing to discussions, and demonstrating you have read the assigned texts will help you earn these 20 points.
Your leading of a discussion is worth 20% of your grade.
Each student will lead a discussion on a reading between weeks 3 and 9 on an issue/problem situated in the class readings. Parameters will be outlined in an assignment sheet.
The final project is worth 50% of your grade.
Each student will write a paper of 8-10 pages in length on a particular ethical problem from a comparative perspective. For example, perhaps you are interested in ecology and will focus on the care of the earth from the viewpoint of at least two traditions. This assignment will be due in three stages. The first part requires you to turn in a topic analysis, in which you describe your topic, provide a working thesis, list of readings that you are likely to use (this should include at a minimum required course readings related to your topic), and preliminary outline of your essay. The topic analysis is due no later than the 5th week of the quarter. The second part of the assignment will be a presentation on your findings on the 10th week of class. The third the full essay
** Doctoral Students: The final paper shall be 12-15 pages in length and should be appropriate in content and style for a peer-reviewed journal.
Each of you will facilitate the discussion of one reading during the quarter. You are expected to make some introductory comments about the reading, generate some open-ended questions, and facilitate the discussion by interjecting when necessary to keep the conversation lively. Please add your name and which reading you would like to address in the table below:
| Wk | Topic | Name | Reading |
| 3 | Life and Death, part 1 |
Jason Lizka |
Jason:"Christianity and opposition to the Death Penalty" Lizka:"Theological Reflections on End of Life" |
| 4 | Life and Death, part 2 | Christopher |
|
| 5 | Gender and Sexuality |
Lacey
Gia
John |
"Indecent Proposal"
"Deviant sex"; "Letter to Amina from Sadiyya Shaikh"
"Downside of Getting it up" |
| 6 | Love, Sex, and Relationships |
Vanessa Katie |
Omid Safi, “On the ‘Path of Love’ Towards the Divine: A Journey with Muslim Mystics Dorff reading |
| 7 | Economics | ||
| 8 | Governance | Tony |
Fazlur Rahman, “Islam and Social Justice,” Pakistan Forum 1, no. 1 (1970): 4-5, & 9. |
| 9 | The Earth | JoHanna | “Stewardship: Work, Property, and the Environment,” edited by David Oki Ahearn and Peter R. Gathje, 195-240. |
Click here to see more details about the assignment.
Brief Description
Your topic analysis, the initial deliverable of your final project, is worth 10% of your grade. Your topic analysis should describe (briefly) your project and provide a working thesis, list of readings that you are likely to use (this should include at a minimum required course readings related to your topic), and a preliminary outline of your essay. The topic analysis is due no later than the 5th week of the quarter (February 6).
Throughout the quarter we've seen how people from different religious traditions negotiate issues of social justice. The final project asks you make a claim about a social justice issue/topic that interests you/you find important from a comparative religious/theological standpoint. The topic analysis offers a way to examine your research idea before you commit to it. You do this informally whenever you are asked to choose your own research topic. Since we'd like to be helpful to you as you define and refine your ideas, we're asking you to write down your topic analysis.
As noted above, the topic analysis consist of four parts:
1) Description of the Topic
Clearly and briefly describe your idea or topic of interest. You will need to chose a social justice issue and compare and contrast approaches to it from the perspective of two religious traditions. We generally recommend you chose your own religious tradition and one other that you'd like to learn more about.
2) Working Thesis or Hypothesis
Provide a concise, working thesis statement or hypothesis. Remember that the final project is an argumentative essay. That means that you will need to make an argument and provide reasons that support your argument based on your research.
3) List of Readings/Resources
Propose a list of readings or resources you will use to make your case based on your preliminary research. You should attend to primary sources that underlie the moral and ethical reasoning in the traditions that we have studied (sacred texts and tradition), as well as secondary sources (journal articles, books, book chapters). List at least five resources.
4) Preliminary Outline
Sketch a preliminary outline of your argument. Help us to understand the logic of your thinking. Remember, your essay must support your thesis as well as consider other points of view. This should be evident in your outline.
The topic analysis should be between 1-2 pages. Please submit your file below.
Each student will write a paper of 8-10 pages in length on a particular ethical problem from a comparative perspective. For example, you are interested in ecology and will focus on the care of the earth from the viewpoint of at least two traditions. Your final essay should fulfills the following requirements:
A few reminders:
Grading Rubric for the essay (40 points total):
Incompletes: If incompletes are allowed in this course, see the Master's Student Handbook for Policies and Procedures.
Pass/Fail: Masters students wishing to take the class pass/fail should discuss this with the instructor by the second class session.
Academic Integrity and Community Covenant: All students are expected to abide by Iliff’s statement on Academic Integrity, as published in the Masters Student Handbook, or the Joint PhD Statement on Academic Honesty, as published in the Joint PhD Student Handbook, as appropriate. All participants in this class are expected to be familiar with Iliff’s Community Covenant.
Accommodations: Iliff engages in a collaborative effort with students with disabilities to reasonably accommodate student needs. Students are encouraged to contact their assigned advisor to initiate the process of requesting accommodations. The advising center can be contacted at advising@iliff.edu or by phone at 303-765-1146.
Writing Lab: Grammar and organization are important for all written assignments. Additional help is available from the Iliff Writing Lab, which is available for students of any level who need help beginning an assignment, organizing thoughts, or reviewing a final draft.
Inclusive Language: It is expected that all course participants will use inclusive language in speaking and writing, and will use terms that do not create barriers to classroom community.
** Please note: the syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructors.
| Date | Day | Details |