What is Religion? Vodou, Christian TikTok, and the First Amendment
RELI 151
Fall 2024
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01
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Were the people who drank the Kool-Aid at Jonestown brainwashed, or did they die for a noble cause? How did Santeria practitioners get the right to perform animal sacrifice? Is Haitian Vodou a religion? What exactly does the First Amendment protect? What happens when Christian women become Tiktok influencers? This class will introduce you to the ways in which we study religion--and race--by reading critical case studies about Jonestown, Santeria, Vodou, freedom of religion court cases, and more. This is not a survey of world religions, and once you've taken What is Religion?, you'll know why we don't teach that at Wes. You will also have a critical set of intellectual tools for understanding the role of religion in the contemporary world. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS RELI |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Student Option |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (RELI-MN)(RELI)(STS) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: 50% - 74% |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
David Chidester, SALVATION AND SUICIDE (selections)
Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah (Supreme Court case)
Lofton, Katherine, OPRAH: GOSPEL OF AN ICON (selections)
Corrina Laughlin, REDEEM ALL: HOW DIGITAL LIFE IS CHANGING EVANGELICAL CULTURE. U CA Press, 2021
Maya Deren, DIVINE HORSEMEN: THE LIVING GODS OF HAITI (selections)
Ronald Hendel, ¿The Exodus in Biblical Memory¿ in Journal of Biblical Literature
Mary-Jane Rubenstein, ASTROTOPIA: THE DANGEROUS RELIGION OF THE CORPORATE SPACE RACE, (selections)
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Examinations and Assignments:
Weekly short response papers;
Two 7 page projects discussing scholarly evidence and argumentation. |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
Attendance and participation are required. |
| Instructor(s): McAlister,Elizabeth A. Times: ..T.R.. 10:20AM-11:40AM; Location: ALLB103; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 38 | | SR major: 0 | JR major: 4 | | |
| Seats Available: 0 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 4 | JR non-major: 4 | SO: 13 | FR: 13 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 13 | 1st Ranked: 1 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 4 | 4th Ranked: 1 | Unranked: 7 |
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