Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update
Due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, any references to assessment tasks and on-campus delivery may no longer be up-to-date on this page.
Students should consult iLearn for revised unit information.
Find out more about the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and potential impacts on staff and students
Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Nicholas Smith
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Credit points |
Credit points
10
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
40cp at 1000 level or above
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
Religion has been an important feature of human life throughout history and it continues to shape human affairs across the planet today. All religions posit the existence of some divine force, and the major monotheistic religions - Judaism, Christianity and Islam - take this divinity to be a single all-powerful God. But what kind of justification can be given for belief in the existence of God? Does science support or undermine belief in God? Or have science and religion got nothing to do with each other? Might religion provide a basis for morality and spiritual fulfilment that secular or non-religious people lack? Or are there secular sources of meaning available in the modern world that could make religion redundant? Should religion be viewed as an antidote to violent conflict or a cause of it? What place should there be for religion in the political sphere? The unit does not presuppose any religious commitment or particular religious perspective, just a willingness to explore these questions, and others like them, in an open-minded and rigorous way. |
Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update
Assessment details are no longer provided here as a result of changes due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Students should consult iLearn for revised unit information.
Find out more about the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and potential impacts on staff and students
Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – two (2) marks out of 100 will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted more than seven (7) days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments – e.g. quizzes, online tests.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update
Any references to on-campus delivery below may no longer be relevant due to COVID-19.
Please check here for updated delivery information: https://ask.mq.edu.au/account/pub/display/unit_status
All lectures will be recorded and can be downloaded from the iLearn site. Lectures slides will be uploaded in advance of the lectures.
Weekly readings can be downloaded from the library via the Leganto links. Reading should be done in advance of the lectures and tutorials.
Links for the submission of assignments, including links to the weekly quizzes, will provided on the iLearn site.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update
The unit schedule/topics and any references to on-campus delivery below may no longer be relevant due to COVID-19. Please consult iLearn for latest details, and check here for updated delivery information: https://ask.mq.edu.au/account/pub/display/unit_status
Week 1 26/02 |
Introduction; What is religion? Philosophy of Religion and Philosophical Theology |
Week 2 04/03 |
The idea of the perfect being: Descartes |
Week 3 11/03 |
Providence and the problem of evil: Leibniz |
Week 4 18/03 |
Design and purpose in nature: Hume and Paley |
Week 5 25/03 |
Can the existence of God ever be proved and does it matter? Kant and the limits of reason |
Week 6 01/04 |
Faith and subjectivity: Kierkegaard |
Week 7 08/04 |
‘The death of God?’ – Nietzsche and his heirs |
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Mid-semester break |
Week 8 29/04 |
Secularism, meaning and morality - Richard Rorty’s pragmatism |
Week 9 09/05 |
The axial revolution and the significance of religious pluralism – Charles Taylor |
Week 10 16/05 |
Science and religion |
Week 11 23/05 |
Religious toleration |
Week 12 30/05 |
Religion and violence |
Week 13 |
Catch up week |
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