Religion is arguably humanity’s oldest and most enduring cultural product. We create, alter, and adapt religions to answer basic questions about our human existence: who are we, how did we get here, how are we to live, what happens when we die, why is there evil, what is the meaning of all this, and much more. For this reason, the world’s religions offer a powerful mirror of the human experience. Houston is home to the faithful of every major religion alive in the world today; therefore, citizens of our city can be better friends and neighbors when we understand the basics of a handful of the world’s great religions.
In this short course, we will cover the basic history, founders, ideas and practices of 7 of the world’s religions: Hinduism, Judaism, Taoism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and Sikhism. We will come away with not only facts about these religions, but with a greater appreciation for the role they play in people’s lives and the ways in which the world is a better place because of them.