Courses

The Department of Sociology at the University of Notre Dame provides a supportive and challenging environment for sociological research, undergraduate studies, and graduate training -- and offers a number of courses for undergraduates and graduate students with an emphasis in the study of religion.

Undergraduate Courses on Religion by Center Affiliates

Fall 2018

Soc 20002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: David Sikkink

Description: What does it mean that humans are social creatures and how does participation in social life shape people’s personal life experiences and outcomes? How and why do people together create and sustain cultures, groups, institutions, and organizations? And how do these form people’s relationships, actions, and experiences? This course introduces students to the discipline of sociology as a way to better understand how personal behaviors and life outcomes are profoundly influenced by a variety of social structures, and how their actions in turn maintain and can transform those social structures. Course readings and discussions will focus on the experience of community in modern society, schools, young adult culture, marriage and family, inequality and poverty, civil rights, and disruptive social movements fighting for change—particularly in the United States. Along the way we will learn a bit about social research methods and philosophy of social science, both of which will help students be smarter thinkers and consumers of social science research findings. Students will, as a result of taking this course, better understand both the society and world in which they live and the character and outcomes of their own personal lives.

Soc 20651: "Ethnic, Religion and Politics in Mid-East"
Professor: Hyun Jeong Ha

Description: What is the Middle East and how do we understand the region’s religion and politics? How diverse is the region in terms of its ethnic and religious construction? Seeking to answer these questions, this course will explore the topics of Orientalism, knowledge production, ethnicity, religion, gender, and the methodology of political ethnography, among others. Despite the diversity and historical dynamics of the region, the Middle East has largely been mistaken as a homogeneous and timeless place. In this course, we will thus explore how diverse and dynamic the countries in the region are and what we have to heed when thinking about and discussing issues of the “Middle East” in relation to the critiques of Orientalism. Based on our epistemological awareness, we will learn how to understand “ethnicity” in the region and how national politics has empowered and/or marginalized diverse ethnic and religious groups in such countries including Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, and Algeria.

In order to best serve the purpose of the course, this class is composed of three parts. In Part I, focusing on critiques of Orientalism, we will examine how U.S. academia has produced knowledge about the region and have developed studies of the Middle East. In Part II, we take a historical approach to understand the composition of ethnic and religious groups in several Middle Eastern countries and what it means to live as Muslim minorities or non-Muslims in contemporary societies. In Part III, we will do extensive readings in political ethnography of the region in sociology, anthropology, and political science to immerse ourselves with social and political dynamics. Ethnographic readings will help us understand more complex fabrics of the Middle Eastern societies but also explore the method of ethnography.

Soc 30672: "Religion and Social Life"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Description: How does social life influence religion? How does religion influence society? What is religion’s social significance in a complex society like ours? Is religion’s significance declining? This course will consider these and other questions by exploring the great variety in social expressions of religion. The course examines the social bases of churches, sects, and cults, and it focuses on contemporary religion in the United States.

Soc 30900: "Foundations of Social Theory"
Professor: Christian Smith

Description: Sociological theory is the foundation of sociology. Students in this course will learn two things: first, what theorists do and why and, second, how to use fundamental theoretic concepts - such as exploitation and alienation, social structure and solidarity, bureaucracy and charisma - to analyze and explain contemporary society.

Soc 33458: "Social Concerns Seminar: Mexico-U.S. Border Immersion"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Description: This experiential-learning course exposes students to various perspectives about immigration issues, especially those related to the México-U.S. border. During our in-class meetings (about an hour per week), we will discuss scholarly and journalistic accounts of why migrants leave their home countries, the struggles they face during the journey, how 16 U.S. citizens are responding, and possible policy solutions. For the immersion part of the course, we will travel to the Southern Arizona borderlands during the first week of January. Among other activities, we will observe Operation Streamline legal proceedings, be trained for and participate in humanitarian efforts, tour a Border Patrol and detention facility, visit the border wall and learn about its environmental impact, hear from faith leaders about their current and past border activism, and visit Nogales to experience everyday life in a border community. Throughout the course, particular focus will be given to the intersection of religion—especially Catholic Social Teachings—and border and immigration issues. To be eligible, students must complete an application, posted here: http://socialconcerns.nd.edu/academic/winter/BorderIssuesSeminar.shtml. Enrollment is competitive. The 15 available spots will be chosen based the application responses, with preference given to those submitting earliest. Students will be notified about their status within a week of submitting the application. There are fees associated with this seminar (see CSC website for information). Note: Due to the overlap in content, students who have completed the one-credit version (CSC 33966/SOC 33066) cannot take this course.

Soc 43615: "Beyond the Christian West"
Professor: Megan Rogers

Description: What is the role of religion in modernizing non-Western societies? How is it similar to and different from what we see in the Christian West? Drawing on the concept of ?multiple modernities,? this course moves beyond the US and Western Europe models of modernity to examine how religion shapes and is shaped by individuals, civil society, and state institutions in diverse parts of the Global South. We will use case studies of Brazil, Nigeria, Egypt, India, and China to investigate issues such as religious change, religious activism, religious violence, religious nationalism, and religion under state repression. Throughout the semester, your assignments will be geared towards helping you build a case study of religion and modernity in a Global South society of your choice.

Spring 2018

Soc 13181: "University Seminar: Becoming Kids Next Door: A Sociology of Children and Childhood"
Professor: Jessica Collett

Description: Childhood is often depicted as a carefree time, when play takes center stage. In reality, we learn a tremendous amount about our social world and our selves during this developmental period. In this course, we will revisit childhood from a sociological perspective. Coupling childhood games, cartoons, books, and more with sociological theories, methods, and research, we will explore childhood together. You will learn about how various influential institutions—from parents and families to schools and the media—socialize children and how dimensions like race, class, and gender shape the experience of childhood. You will also discover the agentic role children take in creating and navigating their social lives, ultimately playing a large part in their own socialization, while coming to understand the immense power our culture has on the feelings, thoughts, and behavior of some of its youngest members. (First Year Studies Only)

Soc 20722: "Introduction to Social Psychology"
Professor: Jessica Collett

Description: The overarching goal of this class is to provide students with a working knowledge of social psychology and to stimulate an interest in ourselves, the world around us, and the connections between the two. This is a course about how we become who we are - how our personalities (or our selves) are shaped by others, the groups we belong to, the social structures around us, and our interactions as social beings. However, interaction is a process between entities, a two-way street. Hence, it is not only about how the world around us shapes who we are, but also a course about how we shape others, the groups that we belong to, and the social structures around us. (You cannot take this course if you have already taken SOC 10722 or 10723 because courses are equivalent. (Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors Only)

Soc 30672: "Religion and Social Life"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Description: Sociology 30672 is a course that is designed to introduce undergraduate students to the nature and functions of religious beliefs and institutions in modern societies, with a particular emphasis on conditions in the contemporary United States. Throughout the course, a distinctively sociological perspective is employed to evaluate claims about the viability of religion in what has been called a "post-traditional" world. Lectures and class discussions will cover, among other subjects, individual religious experience; social mechanisms of conversion and commitment; civil religions; religious inspirations for, or impediments to, social change; and the varied processes of secularization. (-01: Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors Only; -02 Freshman Only, Department Approval Required)

Soc 30900: "Foundations of Sociological Theory - Sections 01"
Professor: Mary Ellen Konieczny

Description: This course explores the content, methods and contemporary significance of great written works by sociology's founding theorists, including Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, Karl Marx, and Georg Simmel. Through a focus on classic 13 texts, the course will address two main themes: the methodological arguments concerning the appropriate intellectual strategy for fulfilling sociology's scientific ambitions, and the substantive debates over the nature and dynamics of a changing society. After this course, students will be able to: 1. Articulate and explain the major concepts, arguments, and methods of classical social theory 2. Identify them where they are used today in sociological explanation (in scholarly and practical work) 3. Choose and use classical theories in analyses of social phenomena and problems 4. Evaluate their utility for explaining contemporary social life, and 5. Use the argumentation and critical thinking skills they have honed, through analysis of these classic argumentative texts, in future courses and in the everyday world. (-01 Sociology Majors/Minors Only; Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors Only)

Soc 30900: "Foundations of Sociological Theory - Sections 02 & 03"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Description: Sociology 30900 is a course that is meant to introduce the undergraduate students who enroll, most of whom are majors in sociology, to the origins, development, and uses of sociological theory. In that pursuit, the course seeks to explain how theoretical ideas emerge, how perspectives are framed, and how vantage points for viewing society and its operations shift over time. To achieve these ends, special attention is devoted to prominent thinkers, both "classical" and contemporary, in the history of social thought, from the early critics of modern industrialism like Karl Marx to ironic commentators on present-day social practices such as Erving Goffman. "Foundations of Sociological Theory" is also a "writing-intensive" course in the liberal-arts curriculum. This means that students in the class, at the same time that they are reading and studying theory, will work on improving their skills as writers of clear, objective, and persuasive prose. (-02: Sociology Majors/Minors Only; Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors Only; -03 Freshman Only, Department Approval Required)

Soc 33651: "Religion and Modernity in the Global South"
Professor: Megan Rogers

Description: What is the role of religion in non-Western modernity? Does modernity necessitate secularity? Despite predictions that religion would fade as societies modernized, religion has not decreased in influence as the world has developed and globalized. Instead, it continues to shape individual values, civil society, social organizations and movements, and state institutions in varying ways. This course moves beyond the US and Western European models of modernity to examine the ways in which religion shapes society and society shapes religion in different parts of the Global South. We will conduct an in-depth investigation of the role of religion in five different societies (Brazil, Nigeria, Egypt, 16 India, and China) before asking each student to report on the state of religion and its role in modernization efforts in a Global South country of his or her choice. (Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors Only)

Fall 2017

Soc 20002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Description: Societies are the contexts for all that we experience as human beings, but we often take these settings for granted. Our families, schools, and jobs, beyond being avenues for our own contact with the world, are also major components of the society in which we live. Moreover, these components influence the very ways in which we live. Sociology is the discipline that attempts to understand how societies work, and “Understanding Societies” is a basic introduction to that discipline. In it, you will learn about sociology’s varied intellectual origins, its dual organization as a humanistic and a scientific pursuit, and - most broadly - the uncommon perspective that it offers for viewing human activities and aspirations. You cannot take this course if you have already taken SOC 10002 because the courses are equivalent. (Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors Only)

Soc 20651: "Religion and Politics in the Middle East"
Professor: Jeong Ha

Description: In this course, we will explore how religion(s) interact with politics in the Middle East, using the cases of several countries that have diverse ethnic and religious groups: Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Turkey, and Lebanon among others. Despite the diversity and historical dynamics of the region, the Middle East has been largely mistaken as a homogeneous and timeless place. Students will not only learn about diverse ethnic, religious, linguistic, and national groups in the region, but will also explore the ways in which historical and contemporary politics have marginalized these groups. Therefore, this course will enhance students? understanding of the region through historical and political examinations of the diverse ways that non-Muslims have been marginalized. We will also learn diverse historical, social, and political contexts that shape not only the structures of political systems but also everyday lives of ordinary people through interdisciplinary, extensive readings of the literature in the fields of political sociology, the sociology of religion, history, anthropology, and political science. In so doing, students will learn how to produce social scientific questions, answer said questions, and use methods, overall developing their research skills. The course aims to build students? comprehension of the region’s diversity on the basis of theoretical discussions of ethnicity from a postcolonial perspective and in comparison to western discourses, focusing on such themes as racialization and ethnicization in intercommunal contexts. To meet the course goals, the course will utilize diverse learning materials 13 and scholarly books, journal articles, newspaper articles, films, novels, and comics produced in and on the region, historical and contemporary. The empirical studies that we will examine include the Armenian Genocide (1915-1917) in Turkey, the expulsion of Jews from Egypt (1956-57) and their adaptation in Israel, violence against Coptic Christians in Egypt, Muslim and Christian minorities in the Levant areas, and the repression of Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, and Syria. The goal of this course is to promote students? critical thinking and empower them with a comparative understanding of a globalizing world. Active participation and reading the class material are required. This course does not include a reading package and all reading materials will be available on Blackboard.

Soc 30672: "Religion in Social Life"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Soc 30900: "Foundations of Sociological Theory"
Professor: Mary Ellen Konieczny

Description: The course explores the content and the method of great written works by Sociology’s founding theorists. Theorists to be discussed include Durkheim, Weber, Marx, and Tocqueville. An examination of their writings serves as an introduction to the intellectual concerns and the new insights, the theoretical ambitions and the controversies that provided the foundation for the development of Sociology. Through a focus on classic texts the course will address two main themes: the methodological arguments concerning the appropriate intellectual strategy for fulfilling Sociology’s scientific ambitions and the substantive debates over the nature and dynamics of a changing society. Some attention will be directed to the implications of classical sociological theory for contemporary controversies and research. (Sociology Majors/Minors Only)

Soc 30903: "Statistics for Social Research"
Professor: David Sikkink

Description: We frequently encounter statements or claims based on statistics, such as: “Women earn less than men,” “The American population is becoming more racially and ethnically diverse,” or “Married people are healthier than unmarried people.” On what information are these statements based? What kinds of evidence support or refute such claims? How can we assess their accuracy? This course will show students how to answer these sorts of questions by interpreting and critically evaluating statistics commonly used in the analysis of social science data. Hands-on data analysis and interpretation are an important part of the course. You should finish the course with the ability to interpret, question, and discuss statistics accurately and with an understanding of which type of statistic is appropriate for different kinds of data and research questions. You should also finish the course with basic programming and data analysis skills. No prior statistical knowledge is required. This course is ideal for students interested in the social and/or life sciences as well as business and/or law. (Sophomores, Juniors, & Seniors Only)

Soc 33458: "Mexico-U.S. Border Immersion"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Description: This experiential-learning course exposes students to various perspectives about immigration issues, especially those related to the México-U.S. border. During our in-class meetings (about an hour per week), we will discuss scholarly and journalistic accounts of why migrants leave their home countries, the struggles they face during the journey, how U.S. citizens are responding, and possible policy solutions. For the immersion part of the course, we will travel to the Southern Arizona borderlands during the first week of January. Among other activities, we will observe Operation Streamline legal proceedings, be trained for and participate in humanitarian efforts, tour a Border Patrol and detention facility, visit the border wall and learn about its environmental impact, hear from faith leaders about their current and past border activism, and visit Nogales to experience everyday life in a border community. Throughout the course, particular focus will be given to the intersection of religion—especially Catholic Social Teachings—and border and immigration issues. To be eligible, students must complete an application, posted here: https://www3.nd.edu/~csc/application/sem_application.php?s=Fall&y=2017. Enrollment is competitive. The 15 available spots will be chosen based the application responses, with preference given to those submitting earliest. Students will be notified about their status within a week of submitting the application. There are fees associated with this seminar (see CSC website for information). Note: Due to the overlap in content, students who have completed the one-credit version (CSC 33966/SOC 33066) cannot take this course. (Sociology Majors/Minors Only; Department Approval Required)

Soc 43901: "Power and Identity in Modern Society"
Professor: Mary Ellen Konieczny

Description: How is power related to our social identities, and to the ways we understand ourselves and others? This seminar explores different ways of thinking about the distribution and exercise of power in modern societies, and how power, in its various forms, affects us and the social groups of which we are a part. The first part of the course asks, "What is authority?" and explores sociological studies that examine authority, such as between parents and children, supervisors and workers, and governments and their communities. Then we move on to debate different definitions and theories of power. We examine the interplay of power with different forms of identity, based on characteristics such as economic status, gender, religion, race, and other cultural groupings. We examine intersectionality--that is, the way some of identities, especially gender, class, and racial identities--can work together to either dominate or empower people. In so doing, we read case studies from the US, Africa, and Latin America. The main goal of this course is to teach students how to ask and answer their own questions about the exercise of power in modern societies and its effects upon individuals--which they will practice by developing a case study of their own. Because of its themes and interdisciplinary approach, this course will be of interest not only to sociology majors, but also to majors in political science, gender studies, anthropology, and history. (Section 01: Junior & Seniors Only; Section 02: Junior & Seniors Sociology Majors/Minors Only)

Spring 2017

Soc 10002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Description: What explains why people act as they do and how their lives turn out? Scholars have long debated these questions. Moreover, from casual conversations to accounts described in the news, the public constantly weighs in on them. In this course, students will learn how sociologists approach and answer these questions. Central to the sociological theories that we will investigate to understand human behaviors and outcomes is a focus on the social context (e.g., friendship networks, neighborhoods, and organizations) in which individuals are embedded. We will explore diverse topics of the human experience, including happiness, love, death, disease, sacrifice, activism, and religion, in our effort to make sense of it sociologically. Students will also become familiar with the distinct methodologies and tools that sociologists use in their research. (First Year Studies Only)

Soc 20002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: Sara Skiles

Description: What does it mean that humans are social creatures and how does participation in social life shape people's personallife experiences and outcomes? How and why do people together create and sustain cultures, groups, institutions, and organizations? And how do these form people's relationships, actions, and experiences? This course introduces students to the discipline of sociology as a way to better understand how personal behaviors and life outcomes are profoundly influenced by a variety of social structures, and how their actions in turn maintain and can transform those social structures. Course readings and discussions will focus on the experience of community in modern society, young adult culture, marriage and family, inequality and poverty, civil rights, and disruptive social movements fighting for social structural change - particularly in the United States. Along the way we will learn a bit about social research methods and philosophy of social science, both of which will help students be smarter thinkers and consumers of social science research findings. Students will, as a result of taking this course, better understand both the society and world in which they live and the character and outcomes of their own personal lives. You cannot take both this course if you have already taken SOC 10002 because the courses are equivalent. (-02: Sophomores Only; -03: Junior Sociology Majors only)

Soc 30900: "Foundations in Sociological Theory"
Professor: Christian Smith

Description: The course explores the content and the method of great written works by Sociology’s founding theorists. Theorists to be discussed include Durkheim, Weber, and Marx. An examination of their writings serves as an introduction to the intellectual concerns and the new insights, the theoretical ambitions and the controversies that provided the foundation for the development of Sociology. Through a focus on classic texts the course will address two main themes: the methodological arguments concerning the appropriate intellectual strategy for fulfilling Sociology’s scientific ambitions and the substantive debates over the nature and dynamics of a changing society. Some attention will be directed to the implications of classical sociological theory for contemporary controversies and research. (Sociology Majors/Minors Only; -01: Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors Only; -02 Freshman Only, Department Approval Required)

Soc 33458: "Mexico-U.S. Border Immersion Seminar"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Description: This seminar and experiential-learning course is broken into two parts. In the fall (for two credits), students will participate in a seminar that will expose them to various perspectives about immigration issues, especially those related to the México-U.S. border. During our in-class meetings in the fall, (approximately 1 hr. & 40 min. per week), we will discuss scholarly and journalistic accounts of why migrants leave their home countries, the struggles they face during the journey, how U.S. citizens are responding, and possible policy solutions. In the spring (for one credit), students will participate in an immersion trip to the Southern Arizona borderlands during the first week of January and in follow-up classroom meetings (approximately 50 min. per week) during the spring semester to process the immersion experience. During the immersion trip, we will observe Operation Streamline legal proceedings, be trained for and participate in humanitarian efforts, tour a Border Patrol and detention facility, visit the border wall and learn about its environmental impact, hear from faith leaders about their current and past border activism, and visit Nogales to experience everyday life in a border community. Throughout the course, particular focus will be given to the intersection of religion—especially Catholic Social Teachings—and border and immigration issues.
To be eligible, students must complete an application, posted here: http://socialconcerns.nd.edu/academic/winter/BorderIssuesSeminar.shtml. Enrollment is competitive.
The 15 available spots will be chosen based on the application responses, with preference given to those submitting earliest. Students will be notified about their status within a week of submitting the application. There are fees associated with this seminar (see CSC website for information). (Department Approval Required)

Soc 43600: "Society and Spirit"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Description: The purpose of this course is, in the setting of a small seminar, to engage students in close reading and broad discussion of sociological writings about religion by classical theorists of the discipline. Works that may be nominated for treatment include such mainstays as The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life and other studies of religion by Emile Durkheim; The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism and The Sociology of Religion by Max Weber; portions of The German Ideology by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, as well as excerpts from Marx's Capital; The Future of an Illusion and Civilization and Its Discontents by Sigmund Freud; and various essays on religion by Georg Simmel. The course also will cover more recent works, both in the sociology of religion and in related fields, incorporating assumptions about and approaches to religion that can be traced to these pioneering authors. (Juniors & Seniors Only)

Fall 2016

Soc 10002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Soc 10002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Description: What does it mean that humans are social creatures and how does participation in social life shape people’s personal life experiences and outcomes? How and why do people together create and sustain cultures, groups, institutions, and organizations? And how do these form people’s relationships, actions, and experiences? This course introduces students to the discipline of sociology as a way to better understand how personal behaviors and life outcomes are profoundly influenced by a variety of social structures, and how their actions in turn maintain and can transform these social structures. Course readings and discussions will focus on the experience of socialization and social norms, the important categories of race, gender, class, and culture, and the persistence of social inequality– particularly in the United States. Along the way we will learn a bit about social research methods and the ‘sociological imagination’, both of which will help students be smarter thinkers and consumers of social science research findings. Students will, as a result of taking this course, better understand both the society and world in which they live and the character and outcomes of their own personal lives. (First Year Studies Only; Cannot have taken SOC 20002)

Soc 30408: "Religion in International and Global Relations"
Professor: Atalia Omer

Description: The so-called resurgence of religion to global politics, conventionally dating back to the Iranian Revolution of 1979, challenged the secularist myopia that informed policy makers and theorists of international relations. But it took the events of September 11th, 2001 to fully catalyze a process of rethinking the role of religion, on both the levels of theory and practice within the contexts of international relations. Both theorists and practitioners in the arenas of international relations are trying to decipher how to theorize religion into the existing paradigms of realism, liberalism, and constructivism. The course will examine these conversations, dating back to Westphalia of 1648 and the historical role of religion in the construction of the international system of nation-states. The course will also study the establishment of the Office of International Religious Freedom under the auspices of the US Department of State and the strategic incorporation of the “promotion of religious freedoms” globally as a key geopolitical agenda of the US as well as the related establishment of an office of “religious engagement” also under the auspices of the State Department. We will examine the arguments of supporters of these developments as well as the arguments of critics. Beyond a focus on how religion is theorized into conventional paradigms informing thinking about and the practice of international relations, the course will also explore the role of global religious networks in transforming the discourse about religion and politics. (Sociology Majors Only; Sophomores, Juniors, & Seniors Only)

Soc 30672: "Religion and Social Life"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Soc 33458: "Mexico-U.S. Border Immersion"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Description: This experiential-learning course exposes students to various perspectives about immigration issues, especially those related to the México-U.S. border. During our in-class meetings (about an hour per week), we will discuss scholarly and journalistic accounts of why migrants leave their home countries, the struggles they face during the journey, how U.S. citizens are responding, and possible policy solutions. For the immersion part of the course, we will travel to the Southern Arizona borderlands during the first week of January. Among other activities, we will observe Operation Streamline legal proceedings, be trained for and participate in humanitarian efforts, tour a Border Patrol and detention facility, visit the border wall and learn about its environmental impact, hear from faith leaders about their current and past border activism, and visit Nogales to experience everyday life in a border community. Throughout the course, particular focus will be given to the intersection of religion—especially Catholic Social Teachings—and border and immigration issues. To be eligible, students must complete an application, posted here: https://www3.nd.edu/~csc/application/sem_application.php?s=Fall&y=2016. Enrollment is competitive. The 15 available spots will be chosen based the application responses, with preference given to those submitting earliest. Students will be notified about their status within a week of submitting the application. There are fees associated with this seminar (see CSC website for information). Note: Due to the overlap in content, students who have completed the one-credit version (CSC 33966/SOC 33066) cannot take this course. (Sociology Majors Only; Department Approval Required)

Soc 40068: "Religion, Gender, and Development"
Professor: Atalia Omer

Description: Is religion an obstacle or opportunity for women’s empowerment? Religion is often seen as institutionalizing and perpetuating patriarchy and thus operating in contradiction to women’s agency, rights, and equality. This course will grapple with the tensions and contradictions between the imperative of gender justice foregrounded in the Sustainable Development Goals and religions’ competing conceptions of women’s roles. The course will overcome some of this dichotomizing of secular and religious paradigms of development by looking at the theoretical and practical work of religious feminists. In responding to the question “is religion an obstacle or opportunity for women’s empowerment?” we will debate why feminists and religious actors are hesitant to collaborate on development agenda and what does this indicate about the potential relations between development and religious reform. (Sociology Majors Only)

Spring 2016

Soc 10002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Soc 23901: "Power and Identities"
Professor: Mary Ellen Konieczny

Description: How are authority, power, and culture related? How is power related to identities and to the self? This seminar explores various ways of thinking about the distribution and exercise of power in modern societies. The first part of the course considers theories and case studies that examine authority relations, including those between parents and children, supervisors and workers, and governments and their communities. In later portions of the course, we examine the interplay of power with economics, politics, gender, religion, and culture. In these sections of the course, we read case studies from the US, Africa, and Latin America. The main goal of this course is to teach students how to ask and answer their own questions about the exercise of power in modern societies and its effects upon individuals -- which we do through reading, discussion, and exploration of students’ own case studies. Because of its themes and interdisciplinary approach, this course will be of interest not only to sociology majors, but also to majors in political science, gender studies, anthropology, and history.

Soc 30651: "God, Country, and Community: Religion and Public Life in America"
Professor: David Sikkink

Description: This course investigates how religion influences what Americans think about politics and how they are involved in public life, including political participation and volunteering and community service. We will examine, for example, how and why religion influences opinions on controversial social and political issues, such as abortion, expanding the welfare state, and school choice policy. At the organizational level, the course seeks to understand what religious congregations and schools are doing for their communities and how they are active in political life, such as mobilizing protest, inviting political speakers, talking about politics, or organizing voter registration drives. The analysis will pay close attention to religious tradition differences, including investigating whether and why conservative Protestants are more or less likely to give and volunteer in their communities than Catholics, mainline Protestants, or the nonreligious. By investigating what about religion leads to good works and active citizens, the course will shed light on the complex and changing relationship between religion and public life in the United States.

Soc 30672: "Religion and Social Life"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Soc 33458: "México-U.S. Border Immersion Seminar"
Professor: Kraig Beyerlein

Description: This seminar and experiential-learning course is broken into two parts. In the fall (for two credits), students will participate in a seminar that will expose them to various perspectives about immigration issues, especially those related to the México-U.S. border. During our in-class meetings in the fall, (approximately 1 hr. & 40 min. per week), we will discuss scholarly and journalistic accounts of why migrants leave their home countries, the struggles they face during the journey, how U.S. citizens are responding, and possible policy solutions. In the spring (for one credit), students will participate in an immersion trip to the Southern Arizona borderlands during the first week of January and in follow-up classroom meetings (approximately 50 min. per week) during the spring semester to process the immersion experience. During the immersion trip, we will observe Operation Streamline legal proceedings, be trained for and participate in humanitarian efforts, tour a Border Patrol and detention facility, visit 18 the border wall and learn about its environmental impact, hear from faith leaders about their current and past border activism, and visit Nogales to experience everyday life in a border community. Throughout the course, particular focus will be given to the intersection of religion—especially Catholic Social Teachings—and border and immigration issues. To be eligible, students must complete an application, posted here: http://socialconcerns.nd.edu/academic/winter/BorderIssuesSeminar.shtml. Enrollment is competitive. The 15 available spots will be chosen based on the application responses, with preference given to those submitting earliest. Students will be notified about their status within a week of submitting the application. There are fees associated with this seminar (see CSC website for information).

Fall 2015

Soc 10002: "Understanding Societies"
Professor: Christian Smith

Description: The goal of this course is to introduce you to the discipline of sociology and the major questions that guide sociological research and study. We will examine how (often invisible or taken-for-granted) social forces of our everyday worlds influence our individual lives and life outcomes, yet, at the same time, how we as individuals help to create, maintain and transform the social world. We will focus on various types of social differences, race/ethnic, class, gender, etc., as well as how these have developed and the impact they have on people in society. This course will introduce you to the sociological perspective or "imagination" in examining social problems and issues, making the familiar unfamiliar and helping you critically examine what you experience in your day-to-day life.

Soc 20610: "Sociology of Religion"
Professor: Christian Smith

Description: This course provides an introduction to the sociology of religion, an important field in the discipline of sociology. Religion is one of the most powerful forces of social cohesion, order, meaning, disruption, and change in human societies, both historically and today in the modern world. Sociology provides a particular disciplinary perspective and analytical tools and theories for describing, understanding, and explaining the nature and influence of religion in the world. Studying religion sociologically is also a great way to learn about the perspective, methods, theories, and interests of this social science discipline.

The course will engage the following kinds of questions. What is religion? Why is religion so primordial and prevalent in human societies? What do different religions teach? Why are people religious or not religious? What causal role does religion play in human personal and social life? How does the sociological study of religion differ from a theological or psychological study of religion? Why and how do religious organizations grow and decline? How, for example, did an obscure, early Jesus Movement manage to become the largest religion in the world? How and why do people convert to a different religious faith or lose their faith entirely? Is modernity secularizing? What are the religious and spiritual lives of 18-23 year-old Americans today like? Why has the Islamist movement become so powerful in recent decades? What is happening today at the global level when it comes to religious movements and their social, cultural, political, and economic impacts?

Soc 30672: "Religion and Social Life"
Professor: Kevin Christiano

Description: How does social life influence religion? How does religion influence society? What is religion's social significance in a complex society like ours? Is religion's significance declining? This course will consider these and other questions by exploring the great variety in social expressions of religion. The course examines the social bases of churches, sects, and cults, and it focuses on contemporary religion in the United States.