Course Content / Syllabus

The following list of class content/links are still in the process of being updated:

• Topic: An Introduction to the Study of Comparative Religion, (2 Lectures)

• Topic: Religious Studies, Sociology, Anthropology, (4 Lectures)

• Religious Prehistory

  • Lecture, 3/17/2017

• Ancient Egypt Part 1: Egyptian History, Writing, and Magic

  • Lecture, 4/21/2017

• Ancient Egypt Part 2: Mythology and Theology

  • Lecture, 5/19/2017

• Ancient Egypt Part 3: Funerary Texts, Architecture, Rituals, and Practices

  • Lecture, 6/23/2017

• Ancient Egypt Part 4: Temples and Temple Worship

  • Bad Recording, Fix, 8/25/2017

• Ancient Egypt Part 5: Amarna Period

  • Lecture, 9/23/2017

• Mesopotamian Religion Part 1: Mythology

  • Lecture, 12/15/2017

• Mesopotamian Religion Part 2: Kingship and Law

  • Lecture, 1/28/2018

• Mesopotamian Religion Part 3: Covenant and Ritual

  • Lecture, 2/23/2018

• Mesopotamian Religion Part 4: Temple and Ritual

  • Lecture, 3/23/2018

• Ancient Israel and Judaism:

  • The Ancient Near Eastern Cultural Context for the Israelite Temple Cult

    • Lecture, 6/12/2024

    • Resources:

      • Temple Models:

        • Photographs of the Temple Models, built by myself and Michael Lyon

      • Handouts:

        • Israelite Temple/Tabernacle Biblical References Handout

        • Israelite Biblical Festivals Handout

      • Articles:

        • "The New 'Ain Dara Temple: Closest Solomonic Parallel", by John Monson, Biblical Archaeology Review May/June 2000

        • "Solomon's Temple in Context" by Victor Horowitz, Biblical Archaeology Review March/April 2011

• Hinduism, 5 Lectures

  • Details on the Hinduism Series

• Buddhism

  • Lecture 1: Introduction and the Life of the Buddha

  • Resources: 

    • "Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha" by Thich Nhat Hanh

      • https://www.amazon.com/Old-Path-White-Clouds-Footsteps/dp/0938077260 

  • Lecture 2: Sermon, The Three Marks of Existence

    • Sermon, 6/2/2019.  

  • Lecture 3: The Teachings of Buddhism

    • Recording Coming Soon

  • Lecture 4: Buddhist Meditation

    • Lecture, 8/23/2019

    • Recommended Reading: 

      • "Mindfulness in Plain English" by Bhante Henepola Gunaratana 

      • "Sutra on The Four Foundations of Mindfulness" https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.010.than.html

      • "Sutra on Mindfulness of Breathing" https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.118.than.html

  • Lecture 5: Buddhism After the Buddha

    • Lecture, 11/9/2019

    • Recommended additional reading and resources: 

      • "One Dharma, the Emerging Western Buddhism" by Joseph Goldstein

      • "God is Not One, The Eight Rival Religions that Run the World--and Why Their Differences Matter" by Stephen Prothero, (General Comparative Religion, with a great section on Buddhism)

      • "Great World Religions: Buddhism" from the Great Courses, by Malcom David Eckel

      • "Buddhism, the Illustrated Guide" Ed. Kevin Trainor (illustrations, images, temples, etc)

      • The Buddhist Councils: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_councils 

      • Tripiṭaka: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripi%E1%B9%ADaka 

      • Pāli Canon: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C4%81li_Canon 

      • Online free translation of selections from the Pāli Canon: https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/index.html 

• Zoroastrianism:

  • Zoroastrianism Part 1: Beliefs

    • Lecture, 4/20/2017

  • Zoroastrianism Part 2: Practices and Influence

    • Lecture, 5/18/2018

• Norse Religion and Myth

  • Lecture, 3/18/2016

• Mesoamerican Religion

  • Lecture, 2/19/2016. 

    • Unfortunately, this recording dropped out in the middle for a bit, the result of a sketchy internet connection. 

• Judaism

• Christianity

• Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

  • Lecture, 7/22/2016

• The Holy Grail and the Quest for Eternal Life

  • Lecture, 8/26/2016

• Alchemy, Transformation, and the Religious Origins of Chemistry

  • Lecture, 10/21/2016

• Mormonism, 6 lectures:

  • Details on the Mormonism Series 

• Unitarian Universalist History Part 1

  • Lecture, 11/18/2016

    • Lecture needs to be updated to give better view of slides, to merge this audio with the source slides. 

• Unitarian Universalist History Part 2 

  • Lecture, 2/17/2017

• Atheism Part 1 Demography and Destiny:

  •  https://youtu.be/U-8rOXu3U_I 

• Atheism Part 2, Morality, Meaning, and Truth :

  • https://youtu.be/gcpjJkb1zDY 

• Transhumanism

  • Resources and Further Reading Handout

  • This class had two parts, and the recording of the second half failed...

  • Transhumanism, Part 1 of 2: An Introduction to Transhumanism

    • Lecture, 6/10/2016 

  • Transhumanism, Part 2 of 2: Religious Transhumanism

    • Missing recording...

  • TODO, Post Los Alamos Science and Faith Forum Presentation on Religious Transhumanism. 

• The Evolution of God: What Evolution Says about the Existence and Nature of God

  • Lecture given at the MTA conference, April 2013

• The End of Religious Anxiety: Towards Religious Universalism 

  • Lecture given at the MTA conference, May 2015

• Meaning and the Broken Myth

  • Lecture given at the MTA conference, May 23, 2016

• Sacred Clothing

  • Lecture, 2/17/2017

• Unhealthy Religion, Cults, and When Religion Goes Awry (resources and links, no lectures yet, upcoming)

• Upcoming Topics and Resources for Future Lectures