Religion

Register and pay online for religion courses

Call 314-984-7777 to register for fall classes by phone, or click the button above to register and pay online.

 Forgiveness: The Key to Happiness

Love can heal the world and forgiveness is the catalyst to make it happen. When anyone gives up all grievances, the path is open to find real peace and happiness. In this class, we will discuss inspirational stories of the miracles of personal healing that radical forgiveness can produce and why forgiveness is so important for our own well-being, as well as for others. The steps of actually performing forgiveness will be presented and discussed. Following these steps outside the classroom can release grievances and heal relationships. This presentation of forgiveness is psychologically based and is not focused on any particular religious view of forgiveness, so no religious or faith-based view of forgiveness is needed to understand and practice it.
RELG:701 | $19 | Age 60+: $13
F02 | Tu 7 pm-9 pm | Jan Worley | Oct 23 | MC - SO, 107

How Do We Know What We Know to be True?

This course will examine four major ways in which humans have come to "know" what they believe to be true and the impact each of these has had on the formation and continuation of the world's religions as well as their potential future impact on religion in the 21st century and beyond.
RELG:701 | $19 | Age 60+: $14
F01 | Th 7 pm-9 pm | Ron Mertz | Oct 18 | WW, 202

History of the Bible

Join us for a look at the history of one of the world's most famous, most read, most debated and most controversial books. The stories within the Bible will not be discussed. Discussions will focus on how, when and by whom the material was recorded, copied, translated, debated and eventually selected to be canonized into collections to form first, the Hebrew scriptures, then the Christian Bible, consisting of the Old and New Testaments. We'll discuss the Protestant Reformation with attention to the implications of printing and translation of the Bible into English, and the recovery of ancient manuscripts, construction of critical editions and the rise of critical historical scholarship as well as contemporary responses.
RELG:701 | $29 | Age 60+: $19
F03 | Tu 7 pm-9 pm | Jan Worley | Nov 6-Nov 13 | MC - SO, 107

NEW! Modern Anti-Zionism

Recently, Palestinian demonstrators from Gaza flew a kite decorated with a swastika into Israel proper. This action marked an unusual but undeniable connection between modern anti-Zionism and its cousin, classical anti-Semitism. The first part of this course explored the historical development of anti-Semitism, beginning, quite literally, with Moses, and "progressing" through the pseudo-scientific theories that classified Judaism not as merely a religion, but a race, an idea promulgated by, among others, Nazi Germany. This installment will focus on resentment directed specifically toward Jewish control of Israel, from an array of detractors, including some in the Jewish community. It will delineate between religious and ethno-cultural based hostility toward the Jewish people and that which results directly from the Zionist movement and its results. Please join us for an examination of this significant "-ism" from the perspectives of international relations, internal Israeli dynamics, religious sensibilities, and historical patterns.
RELG:765 | $19 | Age 60+: $14
F01 | Th 7 pm-9 pm | Katie Young | Nov 1 | MC - BA, 120