Languages: English

Offers perhaps the clearest view of the relationship between myth and ritual through an examination of primal religion – the worldview of approximately 200 million people. Thomas Drift, a Native American from the Ojibwa nation, discusses the basic characteristics of primal religion, the features of a primal religious worldview, ritual techniques, and the relationship between ritual practices and spirituality in Native American cultures.

Features Cynthia Jones and Patricia Storm, co-founders of the ritual-magic group Diana’s Grove. Myth, magic, ritual, and experience are all part of the recovery of primal religion, a spirituality that is earth-centered as opposed to heaven-centered. Cynthia and Patricia discuss ritual-magic, Wicca, and neo-paganism. They also offer insights into what motivated them to establish Diana’s Grove.

Calls upon Christianity to help illuminate the doctrinal dimension. This introductory program to the doctrinal dimension stresses the inter-relationship of the six dimensions. The lesson explores traditional Christian doctrines, the relationship between certain sacred Bible texts, and Christian doctrinal interpretation.

Explores the religious doctrines that define religious beliefs and practices. The class takes a look at existing tensions between believers of differing doctrines through an examination of basic Christian fundamentals, Protestant sects in Israel, and the biblical book of “Revelations.”

Probes how believers use doctrines (i.e. beliefs about the sacredness of reality) to create a religious lifestyle designed to keep the secular world at bay. Amish and Mormon believers provide a means of comparison as to how their differing patterns of doctrine-inspired behavior control life in their respective communities.

Focuses on the study of Islam and considers the “second dimensional triangle” formed by doctrine, ethics, and society. Students see how Islamic doctrines and ethical practices work together to shape Islamic society. Key Islamic concepts covered in discussion include “The Five Pillars of Islam” (a.k.a. The Five Articles of the Islamic Faith), shirk, shari’a, jihad, the holy Qu’ran, and the meaning behind the prayer ritual.

Offers insights into the Nation of Islam and highlights some of its key figures. Imam W. Deen Muhammad, one of the most influential religious leaders in African American Islam today, explains openly and candidly how his father, Elijah Muhammad, took traditional Islamic doctrines and reinterpreted them to empower and raise self-esteem in African Americans living in a racist society. Also explored is the power struggle between leading figures within the Nation of Islam.

Probes the ethical dimension in an effort to understand what motivates believers to behave according to their beliefs. Tangible results of belief practices are observed in the building of religious monuments such as pyramids and cathedrals, the observation of prayer rituals, and the committing of terrorist acts, to name a few. The lesson compares religious ethics (proper patterns of action) and rules of ethics in society (law, custom, morals). It also attempts to discern how obligation, responsibility, and punishment are present in religious ethical systems.

Explores ethical conflicts inspired by a volatile mixture of religion and politics in Middle Eastern societies. Examples of this conflict are offered from two different countries – Israel, with its mix of Jews, Christians, and Muslims, and Egypt, where Christian believers clash with Muslim believers. Students also learn how ideas taken for granted in the U.S. – such as freedom of religion, property rights, and sovereignty – tend to fuel ethical conflicts in the Middle East.

Explores the relationship between the ethical and social dimensions as demonstrated by East Asian religions. Included in this study are the religions of Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, Japanese Shintoism, and a mixture of ancient folk religious practices that dates back to prehistoric times. This class investigates the six dimensions of Chinese religion, the ethical and social dimensions of Confucianism, the “radical” quest for balance and ethical harmony in Taoism, and the difference between Eastern and Western religious/spiritual perspectives.