| Unit name | Reflection on Religious Pluralism in Contemporary Society |
|---|---|
| Unit code | THRS30069 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Professor. D'Costa |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
none |
| Co-requisites |
none |
| School/department | Department of Religion and Theology |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit begins with the ‘Satanic Verses’ Rushdie affair, where students are introduced to different types of contemporary discourse: ideological and pragmatic forms of secular modernity; pre-modern and contemporary forms of Islam and Christianity. The unit builds from this starting point in terms of then presenting different attempts to theorise pluralism and moral/religious discourse by the examination of philosophers and cultural theorists: Alasdair MacIntyre, Jeff Stout and Talal Asad. Finally, students are introduced to key Christian thinkers who have reflected on religious pluralism. This will provide an interdisciplinary understanding of contemporary religious pluralism that will help students in their future careers.
On successful completion of this unit students will have (1) developed a detailed knowledge and critical understanding of selected problems in contemporary British religious pluralism viz. free speech and religion; (2) an in-depth understanding of the historical, philosophical, ethical and theological questions raised by this problem; 3) demonstrated the ability to analyse and evaluate competing perceptions on contemporary religious pluralism; (4) demonstrated the ability to identify and evaluate pertinent evidence/data in order to illustrate/demonstrate a cogent argument. Additionally, as part of a level H/6 unit, students will be expected to (5) display high level skills in evaluating, analysing, synthesising and critiquing arguments.
20 hours (seminar)
One summative coursework essay of 3000 words (50%) and one unseen examination of two hours comprising 2 questions (50%).
Alasdair MacIntyre, Three Rival Versions of Moral Enquiry, (London: Duckworth, 1990) Talal Asad, Genealogies of Religion: Discipline and Reasons of Power in Christianity and Islam, (Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1989) Jeffrey Stout, Ethics after Babel. The Languages of Morals and their Discontents, (James Clarke, Cambridge, 1988) Gavin D’Costa, Christianity and World Religions, (Oxford: Blackwell, 2009) Sayyid Qutb, Milestones, (Kazi Publications, 2007) Shabbir Akhtar, Be careful with Muhammad! :the Salman Rushdie affair (London: Bellew Publishing, 1989)
