PP3RELI: Philosophy of Religion

Module code: PP3RELI

Module provider: Philosophy; School of Philosophy, Politics and Economics

Credits: 20

Level: Level 3 (Honours)

When you'll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Dr George Mason, email: g.p.mason@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 23 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

In this module we delve deeply into the critical aspects of philosophy of religion, building upon the skills and knowledge you have gained in prior years. The module offers an extensive exploration of central topics within analytic philosophy of religion, examining both contemporary ideas and their historical origins. Through lectures and seminars, you will evaluate these concepts, considering their significance and validity.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Develop and demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of major debates in contemporary philosophy of religions
2. Discuss the ideas in these debates and evaluate the strength of supporting arguments
3. Strengthen their skills in analytical thinking, assessing arguments and counterarguments, and critical assessment, building upon previous studies
4. Build and refine their expertise in areas such as analytic metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of language, and meta-ethics to support these evaluations

Module content

Questions covered in the module will typically include:

• Is the theistic conception of God coherent?
• Can religious experience provide a justification for religious beliefs?
• How can we talk about an allegedly transcendent being such as God?
• Do we need to invoke a supernatural cause to have an ultimate explanation of the existence of the universe? Can that cause be identified with God?
• To we need to invoke an intelligent creator to account for the orderliness and regularity of the world? Can that creator be identified with the deity that monotheistic religions are concerned with?
• Are divine foreknowledge and human free will compatible?      
• Does the existence of evil provide a case against the existence of an omnipotent and omnibenevolent God?
• What is the relationship between God’s will and moral norms?

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

The module is taught by lectures and seminars. Students are expected to attend all lectures and seminars during the semester in which the module’s lecture and seminar classes take place. Students may form discussion groups during and outside class, to discuss the topics and readings. All students are required to write two essays from a list of questions supplied by the module convenor. Students may be asked to write a short reflective paragraph of the topic for discussion in each seminar class. Students are encouraged to be active in all classes, asking questions and trying to answer the questions posed by others. A reading list and sample questions will be given out at the start of the course.

Study hours

At least 20 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Reassessment

Additional costs