Religious Studies

Course summary

Who should take this course? • Anyone planning a career that involves the ability to evaluate ideas and understand complex issues. • Anyone who enjoys questioning and debating issues of which there are no definitive answers. • Anyone who wishes to have a better understanding of communities and society. • Anyone who has ever thought about why people make the decisions and judgements that they do, particularly on matters of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. • Anyone who has ever asked themselves difficult questions, such as: What makes me ‘Me’? Why am I here? Is there a God? Is there life after death? What makes this right and that wrong? Why did they do that? What is the course about? • The Philosophy of Religion part of the course begins with Greek and Judaeo-Christian influences on the philosophy of religion, moves on through the classic arguments for the existence of God and challenges to religious belief, and culminates • in issues such as the mind/body distinction, revelation and religious language. • The Religious Ethics part of the course begins with an introduction to ethical theory, moves on to consider specific ethical theories and their practical applications and culminates with a consideration of free will and determinism, conscience, religious ethics and practical ethics.