Theo 186 Introduction to Religious Ethics
Summer 2014 - Session II
THEO 186: INTRODUCTION TO RELIGIOUS ETHICS
William French SUMMER 2014, Session II
Rome Center, Loyola University of Chicago
email: wfrench@luc.edu 773//508-2356)
Class meetings: Tuesdays/Thursdays 8:30am-12:40pm Rome Campus
Course Description. In this course we will examine religious ethics regarding war and peace and regarding ecological responsibility. In the first half of this course we will examine Christian and Hindu traditions regarding the ethics of war, conflict and peacemaking. We will explore the history of Christian thinking on pacifism, the just war theory and also crusader war. Likewise we will attend to the rise of modern warfare with its rise of new powerful weapons systems that give rise to new moral challenges and issues in the conduct of war. In the second section of the course we will examine the status of the contemporary scientific debates about the gravity of various ecological trends--biodiversity reduction, pollution, population growth,climate change--as well as the cultural and ideological reasons behind the continuing marginalization of ecological issues in the popular culture. Religion is a powerful shaper of ideas and human action and we will examine some of the resources in Judaism and Christianity that offer help for promoting efforts at peacemaking and ecological responsibility.
Course Requirements
1/ Informed participation, responsible attendance, and reading of texts and taking good notes of class discussions and lectures. .
2/ There will be Integrative Field Trip paper based on an integration of the course readings and our class trip to Rome’s Jewish Ghetto. This is worth 20% of the course grade.
3/ There will be three exams during the course. The first will count 20% It will be held on July 8th. The second and third will count for 30% each. The second will be held on July 17th. And the third will be held on July 25th.
FIELD TRIP to the Jewish Ghetto of Rome: There will be a supplemental fee for this field trip of roughly 25 Euro. This will pay for our guide and admission to the Museum
Grading Scale
93-100 A 73-76.99 C
90-92.99 A- 70-72.99 C-
87-89.99 B+ 67-69.99 D+
83-86.99 B 63-66.99 D
80-82.99 B- 60-62.99 D-
77-79.99 C+ below 60 F
Required Texts
Thomas Berry, The Great Work (New York: Bell Tower, 1999). Isbn 0-609-80499-5
Lester Brown, Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing To Save Civilization (NY: W.W. Norton, 2009). Isbn 978-0-393-33719-8
Gandhi, All Men Are Brothers (Continuum, 1980).
US Catholic Conference, The Challenge of Peace (Wasshington, DC: USCC, 1984). On line for free.
SESSIONS, CLASSES, TOPICS, READINGS
WEEK ONE
1) Tuesday July 1
THE ETHICS OF WAR AND PEACEMAKING
Faces of the Enemy: The Psychology and Dynamics of Aggression
US Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Letter: The Challenge of Peace Summary and Introduction from paragraphs 1-70 on Sakai resources
Page. Available on the web also
2) Thursday July 3
CHRISTIAN ETHICS ROOTED IN LOVE OF THE NEIGHBOR:
the Love Ethic of Jesus
US Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Letter: The Challenge of Peace Paragraphs 71-79 on Sakai resources page and on the web.
GANDHI’S EXAMPLE OF NONVIOLENT RESISTANCE TO OPPRESSION
Gandhi selection “Autobiographical” on Sakai resources page
Gandhi selection “Ahimsa or the way of Nonviolence” on Sakai resources page
WEEK TWO
3) Tuesday July 8
THE JUST WAR TRADITION: LIMITED USE OF FORCE
US Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Letter: The Challenge of Peace, paragraphs 80-121
Michael Walzer, Just and Unjust Wars (selection) on Sakai
** Exam
4) Thursday July 10
FIELD TRIP to the Jewish Ghetto of Rome: There will be a supplemental fee for this field trip of roughly 25 Euro. This will pay for our guide and admission to the Museum.
Harry Cargas selection on Sakai
WEEK THREE
5) Tuesday July 15
ECOLOGICAL THREATS AND GLOBAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY
Rising Ecological Challenges and Global Security
Brown, Plan B 4.0, Preface, chapter 1-4
6) Thursday July 17
FOOD SYSTEMS: COMPARING THE US AND ITALIAN DIETS
Feeding Eight Billion People Well
***Exam
Brown, Plan B 4.0 chapter 9
CITIES, SUBURBS, AND CARBON EMISSIONS: COMPARING UNITED STATES’ URBAN GROWTH SPRAWL AND ITALIAN COMPACT CITY FORMS
Film: On Transit Oriented Growth: Oregon’s Example
Brown, chapter 6, pp. 143-167
WEEK FOUR
7) Tuesday, July 22
JUDAISM AND CHRISTIANITY: THE CRITIQUE OF MODERN
WESTERN UNDERSTANDINGS OF NATURE AS A FIELD OF THINGS
Lynn White, “The Historic Roots of Ecologic Crisis,” on Sakai
Genesis, The Bible on Sakai
CATHOLIC RETRIEVAL OF CONCERN FOR NATURE
The Earth Story as the New Creation Story
Berry, The Great Work, chapters 1-3, 7 (pp. 1-32, 72-85)
Movie: God’s Earth by Paul Collins
8) Thursday, July 24
PROTECTING THE GREAT CHAIN OF BEING
Wm. French essays on Sakai
9) Friday, July 25 ***Final Exam
