Religion has played a highly important part in the lives of human beings.
This course considers some of the foundations of three great world religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
We will exlore their:
The course does not assume any prior specialist knowledge of any of the religions being discussed.
This is an in-person course which requires your attendance at the weekly meetings in Oxford on Mondays, 2-4pm.
Week 1:
Week 2 Judaism:
Week 3 Judaism:
Week 4:
Week 5 Christianity:
Week 6 Christianity:
Week 7:
Week 8 Islam:
Week 9 Islam:
Week 10 Islam:
Recommended reading is optional and you are not required to purchase these books to study this course.
Optional recommended reading list (pdf).
All weekly class students may become borrowing members of the Rewley House Library, part of the Bodleian Libraries, for the duration of their course. Prospective students whose courses have not yet started are also welcome to use the Library for reference.
Credit Accumulation Transfer Scheme (CATS Points)
Please note, students who do not register for assessment and accreditation during the enrolment process will not be able to do so after the course has begun. If you wish to gain credit from completing this course you must register to do so before the course starts.
Only those who have registered for assessment and accreditation will be awarded CATS points for completing work to the required standard. Please note that assignments are not graded but are marked either pass or fail.
Learn more about the Credit Accumulation Transfer Scheme.
If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education at the Department you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee for assessment and accreditation.
Students who are registered for assessment and accreditation and pass their final assignment will also be eligible for a digital Certificate of Completion. Information on how to access the digital certificate will be emailed to you after the end of the course. The certificate will show your name, the course title and the dates of the course attended. You will be able to download the certificate and share it on social media if you choose to do so.
| Description | Costs |
|---|---|
| Course fee (with no assessment) | £300.00 |
| Assessment and Accreditation fee | £60.00 |
If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. See details of our concessionary fees for short courses.
Dr Karim Esmail was educated at London, Oxford, Cambridge, and Harvard.
He was awarded a British Academy Studentship and the Gregg Bury Prize at Cambridge.
He was a Research Fellow at Oxford and Burney Student at Cambridge and a Visiting Fellow at Harvard.
Alongside international articles, he is the author of a clear, concise, and original work on God's nature and existence.
He is a Course Director and Tutor (Religion and Philosophy) in the University of Cambridge.
Lectures (principally) and discussion.
Sessions consist of clearly structured talks and an encouragement to ask questions and to make comments.
By the end of the course students will have been given the opportunity to have learnt:
Only those students who have registered for assessment and accreditation, in advance of the course start date, can submit coursework/assignments for assessment.
3 short (c. 500 words) pieces of written work.
or
1 essay, c. 1, 500 words (students will also be asked to provide a very short plan).
Please use the 'Book now' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an enrolment form.
To be able to submit coursework and to earn credit (CATS points) for this course, if you wish to do so, you will need to register and pay an additional £60 fee. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online.
Students who do not register for CATS points during the enrolment process will not be able to do so after the course has begun.
If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education at the Department you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee.
The Department's Weekly Classes are taught at FHEQ Level 4, ie first year undergraduate level, and you will be expected to engage in a significant amount of private study in preparation for the classes. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class.
