This course explores the scriptures, histories, beliefs, and practices of those whom the Qur’an calls “The People of the Book”: Jews, Christians, and Muslims. What assurances, hopes, and fears bind these faiths together? What has divided them, often to the point of bloodshed? The answers to these questions are multifaceted and require careful study and appreciation of the contending scriptural claims, the merging and diverging histories, and the diverse forms of worship and practice that have developed in these three faiths over the millennia. The purpose of this course is to foster religious literacy around the stories, traditions, complex histories, and diverse human beings who have sought meaning through Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Students will bring their own thoughts and experiences to some of the most analytically elusive and yet deeply meaningful questions in human history. As a result, students will build empathy and compassion for lives and cultures different from their own. The knowledge and skills developed in JCI will prepare students to combat stereotypes and religious oppression. Along with careful examination of sacred texts, students will have the opportunity to experience the contemporary manifestations of these three religions through a variety of sources such as art, film, current events and interaction with religious practitioners. (Open to IV, V, and VI Formers. All students are required to take Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as part of fulfilling their Religion requirement)
