Religious_Studies

The Absolutist

2011-10-03T14:05:10Z

The Absolutist, John Boyne (author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas)
Quite apart from the fact that it is BRILLIANT, it also ties in nicely with the AS syllabus.

click here for a review of the book

Are we good or evil?

2011-09-14T21:49:52Z

Horizon asks the question ‘Are we born good or evil?’

BBC Horizon looks at genetics and brain function to establish if there is a ‘moral molecule’ inside of us. Click here for the link to BBC Horizon If we all have a general sense of morality, as the scientific research cited in this episode seems to suggest, then was Plato right in suggesting that we are born with an innate sense of ‘good’ and ‘right’? Should we be looking towards a moral absolute? Is relativism still relevant if morality has a genetic basis and linked to brain function? Is Sam Harris right? Can science answer moral questions and provide us with objective and absolute results?

Justice

2011-01-27T09:54:03Z

Michael Sandel has produced an excellent series on Justice. As well as being generally pretty interesting, it also contains some really useful descriptions of Virtue Ethics, Kantian Ethics and Utilitarianism.

click here for the link to bbc iplayer
the BBC 4 website has also got some very good links - click here for the link

Is religion bad for women?

2011-01-08T20:56:00Z

A conference in Newcastle this week has posed the question “Is religion responsible for keeping women in their place?”. Daphne Hampson, Professor of Divinity at the University of St Andrews argues that religion has proven to be hugely damaging to the equal rights of women. Last week Cheri Blair argued that over the years modern religion has fallen foul of fallible, masculine interpretation of key texts. However, Hampson argues that it is not simple a question of reinterpreting masculine versions of faith, but religion itself that is the problem. A transcendent, male divinity and a gendered hierarchy reflect all that is wrong with the patriarchal ideologies presented by the Abrahamic faiths. In her view religion has been central to modern day culture and has legitimized patriarchy.

Hampson’s arguments rest on several key points - the notion that culture and religion can be separated; a view of God that is entirely transcendent; she also appears to hold that people can gain nothing from religious texts now that we have an awareness of equal rights for women.
However, in a recent Radio 4 debate on Womans hour, Beattie (Reader in Christian Theology, Roehampton University) responded by stating that it is impossible to separate culture and religion in the way that Hampson suggests. Beattie argues that we ‘inhabit cultural narratives and live out the cultures that we are in as part of an expression of our identity’. She also points out that we should not understand religious texts as historical documents, but as something that shapes the world that we live in. It is vitally important that women pay new attention to these texts to ensure that there is potential for growth and equality throughout. “Too much credit is given to the old men in authority”. It is important that women recognize that the texts may have been written in a patriarchal society and have been interpreted for millenia by men, however that no longer needs to continue.
The idea of a masculine, transcendent God is one that has its roots in Greek Philosophy rather than Christianity per se. Modern Christians would argue that God is not solely transcendent but is also clearly a God with which they are in a relationship. They might point to Jesus as being an example of a personal God, rather than a transcendent one.
Beattie finishes the debate by highlighting the importance of education for women as being the root to empowerment. Surely religion is no more to blame for inequality than any cultural or social construct. Women will be downtrodden, as will the poor, social minorities, the young and many other groups, if they are not given the education and awareness to change their situation.

Overall, through the debate on Womans Hour, Hampsons assertion that religion is bad for women comes across as arrogant and outdated.
click here for the link to hear the Womans Hour debate in full.

Does Spider Man have Free -Will?

2011-01-06T21:10:00Z

Imagine that you are Spiderman and have just discovered that you have special powers. Do you have a moral obligation to use your new found powers to help other people?
Is Spiderman a consequentialist? Does Spiderman really have to use his powers to do good? Why is he considered to be good? Could he choose any other course of action? Click here for the link to the complete article.

A2 Conscience Prezi

2011-01-06T21:02:00Z

These are useful summaries of all the key players in the A2 topic on Conscience.
click here for no1 and click here for no 2

Modern take on the Nativity

2011-01-06T16:55:00Z

Who says that the Nativity Story is dated?
click hereor the digital version of the nativity

Teaching opportunities at Sha Tin College

2011-01-03T14:42:00Z

Interested in teaching in the Humanities Faculty at an excellent international school in Hong Kong? We have a vacancy for a Teacher of Philosophy and Religious Studies (and possibly some History) from August 2011. There is also a post of responsibility in the Faculty for a Coordinator of Theory of Knowledge and IPSE. Read on for more details…

Teacher of Philosophy and Religious Studies (and possibly some History)
A suitably qualified and experienced teacher is required from August 2011 to deliver the Religious Studies programmein Years 7 to 9 (students from 11 to 14 years of age) and the IGCSE examination course to Years 10 and 11 (students from 14 to 16 years of age). Additionally, the successful candidate will be expected to teach the IB Diploma Philosophy programme to students in Years 12 and 13 (from 16 to 18 years of age). Ideally, the appointed teacher will be able deliver a small proportion of lower school History within their timetable.

Coordinator of Theory of Knowledge and Personal and Social Education
A suitably qualified and experienced teacher is required from August 2011 to coordinate and lead the delivery of the Theory of Knowledge component within the IB Diploma programme (for students of ages from 16 to 18 in Years 12 and 13) and the iPSE (International Personal and Social Education) programme across the full age and ability range from Years 7 to 13 (students from the ages of 11 to 18 years). A responsibility allowance (TLR3) is available for this position which requires the administration and management of both TOK and iPSE programmes as well as the leadership and coordination of teams of teachers from various Faculties.

Visit the College website for more information about the application process:
http://www.shatincollege.edu.hk/teacher_vacancy.htm

For more information about working for the English Schools Foundation in Hong Kong, visit:
http://www.esf.edu.hk/about-esf/working-us-/overview

Jedi Knight intends to sue for religious discrimination

2010-03-27T20:20:00Z

A 31 year old Jedi has received an apology from the manager of his local Jobcentre after being asked to ‘dehood’ on a recent visit. However, Chris Jarvis does not believe this goes far enough and is now planning to sue for discrimination after feeling neither his religion nor beliefs had been treated with respect. Jedi-ism is supposedly our fourth most popular religion according to the national census, however the Equality and Human Rights Commision (EHRC) does not include Jediism as a religion on the grounds that it is not “heartfelt”. This could prove to be an interesting debate. Tesco, now seemingly having elevated itself to the status of Debretts on dress code, has commented that “We would ask Jedis to remove hoods. Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda and Luke Skywalker all went hoodless without going to the Dark Side.”
Click here for the complete article

Can Science Answer Moral Questions?

2010-03-26T20:14:00Z

In his recent TED talk Sam Harris argues that science can and should be used to answer moral questions. He talks about the relationship between science and human values. Usually it is thought that science can help us understand what we value but never tells us what we ought to value in the first place.
It is often said that science deals with facts and facts and values seem to belong to different spheres. Sam Harris argues this is untrue. He believes that values are a certain kind of fact. If questions affect human wellbeing then they do have answers whether or not we can find them, by admitting there are right and wrong answers that affect how humans florish will change the way we talk about morality.
Click here for the link
Have a look at the discussion underneath the TED talk as well.

Love and Religion

2009-11-30T10:42:00Z

According to a recent survey having a rival in love is likely to make you feel more religious. According to Yexin Jessica Li, Arizona State University, the statistics seem to suggest that people vary in religiosity depending on the perceived mating market.
Click here for the link to the article.

Muslim academics and students are turning against Darwin’s theory

2009-11-30T10:37:00Z

Nidhal Guessoum, Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the American University of Sharjah, in the UAE, told a science conference on Saturday that in many places students and academics believed they had to make a ‘binary choice” between evolution and creationism. He went on to argue that teachers from high schools through to university are misrepresenting the facts and theories of evolution by mixing it up with religious ideology.
click here for the article in the Times

The Oprah Religion

2009-11-26T10:17:01Z

Oprah Winfrey has announced her retirement from the tv chat show arena. Heralded as the mother of shows like Jerry Springer, Jeremy Kyle, Vanessa and even Richard and Judy, Oprah was a phenomenon that changed the world of tv ‘entertainment’. Sarah Churchill, in an interview with Steve Hewlett, discusses whether for some people the Oprah show took the place of religion. Sarah points out that there were elements of confession, worship (albeit of celebrities), morality, and ‘working through’ all contained within her show. Is this what accounted for her cultish following?
click here for the link to the Radio 4 interview - The Media Show

Hip Hop Creation

2009-10-07T21:52:00Z

A hip hop musical introduction to creation and evolution- it describes the main events of the creation and then sets out the theory of evolution and the notion of the Big Bang.
Well - at least it’s different!
Click here for the link..

Darwin’s Influence on Literature

2009-09-30T22:11:00Z

The Newsnight panel discuss Darwin’s ‘On the Origin of Species’.
This contains an interesting debate between Rev Richard Coles, Margaret Atwood, Ruth Padel and Richard Dawkins about why people still resist the theory of evolution.
Is it human behavior, is it the threat to religious authority or scriptural authority, is it due to an emotional barrier?
Click here for the link