Lahore University of Management Sciences

REL 412 – Religion, Ethics, and Pragmatism

Spring 2024

Instructor Nauman Faizi

Room No. 239-D (New Social Sciences Wing – academic block, first floor, wing opposite PDC)
Office Hours TBD
Email nauman.faizi@lums.edu.pk
Telephone
TA
TA Office
Hours
Course URL
(if any)

Course Basics
Credit Hours 4
Lecture(s) Nbr of Lec(s) Per 2 Durati 110 minutes each
Week on
Recitation/Lab (per Nbr of Lec(s) Per Durati
week) Week on
Tutorial (per week) Nbr of Lec(s) Per Durati
Week on

Course Distribution
Core
Elective
Open for Student All
Category
Close for Student
Category
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COURSE DESCRIPTION

What makes an experience or a set of ideas religious? What should be the function of philosophic thought in
figuring out questions about religious behavior and ethical conduct? Are religion and philosophy
oppositional, inter-connected, or simply unrelated with each other? The focus of this course is discovering
how the highly influential and wide-ranging style of philosophy termed “pragmatism” – whose proponents
insist that abstract beliefs and ideas must be related to human lives and practices – raises and answers such
questions. We will learn how pragmatic philosophers provide different ways of thinking about the
relationship between religion, ethics, and philosophy. We will do this work over three sections. The first
section of the course takes students through the works and historical context of the “classical” pragmatists.
The second section explores ethical questions that pragmatists are interested in, especially the question of
how different religious and ethical ideals may have a voice in the life of a community. The third module of
the course samples the work of thinkers who draw connections between specific religious traditions and
pragmatist philosophy.

COURSE PREREQUISITE(S)

None

Grading Breakup and Policy

Course Instruments:
Attendance 5%
Take-home Quizzes 25%
Midterm Essay 35%
Final Essay 35%

Attendance Policy:
This course is designed to stimulate discussion and conversation about the theorists and issues we shall take up
during class. The success of the course depends largely on your careful preparation and substantive participation
in our twice-weekly conversations. Consequently, attendance is mandatory. After 2 unexcused absences, you
will be docked points from the 5% points that your attendance grade is worth.

A note on reading for this course

This course requires students to engage with the assigned readings with both attention and care. For each of the
sessions, I shall send out questions that you should focus on as you do the assigned reading. An important part
of the purpose of the course is to enable you to read texts that may appear daunting or strange at first glance.
We will only be able to acquire the ability to fruitfully engage with and develop in relation to the material of the
course if you come to class after carefully reading the assigned material.
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Campus supports & Key university policies

Campus Supports

Students are strongly encouraged to meet course instructors and TA’s during office hours for assistance in
course-content, understand the course’s expectations from enrolled students, etc. Beyond the course, students
are also encouraged to use a variety of other resources. (Instructors are also encouraged to refer students to
these resources when needed.) These resources include Counseling and Psychological Services/CAPS (for
mental health), LUMS Medical Center/LMC (for physical health), Office of Accessibility & Inclusion/ OAI
(for long-term disabilities), advising staff dedicated to supporting and guiding students in each school, online
resources (https://advising.lums.edu.pk/advising-resources), etc. To view all support services, their specific role
as well as contact information click here (https://advising.lums.edu.pk/#supportservices).

Academic Honesty/Plagiarism
LUMS has zero tolerance for academic dishonesty. Students are responsible for upholding academic integrity.
If unsure, refer to the student handbook and consult with instructors/teaching assistants. To check for
plagiarism before essay submission, use similarity@lums.edu.pk. Consult the following resources: 1)
Academic and Intellectual Integrity (http://surl.li/gpvwb), and 2) Understanding and Avoiding Plagiarism
(http://surl.li/gpvwo).

LUMS Academic Accommodations/ Petitions policy

Long-term medical conditions are accommodated through the Office of Accessibility & Inclusion (OAI).
Short-term emergencies that impact studies are either handled by the course instructor or Student Support
Services (SSS). For more information, please see Missed Instrument or ‘Petition’ FAQs for students and
faculty (https://rb.gy/8sj1h )

LUMS Sexual Harassment Policy

LUMS and this class are a harassment-free zone. No behavior that makes someone uncomfortable or
negatively impacts the class or individual's potential will be tolerated.
To report sexual harassment experienced or observed in class, please contact me. For further support or to file
a complaint, contact OAI at oai@lums.edu.pk or harassment@lums.edu.pk. You may choose to file an informal
or formal complaint to put an end to the offending behavior. You can also call their Anti-Harassment helpline
at 042-35608877 for advice or concerns. For more information: Harassment, Bullying & Other Interpersonal
Misconduct: Presentation (http://surl.li/gpvwt )
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Course Overview
Part I: Religion and Textuality
Session 1 Introduction to the Course – No assigned Reading

Session 2 Mullin, Richard P. The Soul of Classical American Philosophy: The Ethical and Spiritual
Insights of William James, Josiah Royce, and Charles Sanders Pierce. New York: State
University of New York Press, 2007.
Chapter: “William James and Moral Philosophy”

Session 3 Mullin, Richard P. The Soul of Classical American Philosophy: The Ethical and Spiritual
Insights of William James, Josiah Royce, and Charles Sanders Pierce. New York: State
University of New York Press, 2007.
Chapters: “Josiah Royce’s Philosophy of Loyalty as the Basis for Ethics”; “Rationality and
Religious Faith”

Session 4
Continued: Mullin, Richard P. The Soul of Classical American Philosophy: The Ethical and
Spiritual Insights of William James, Josiah Royce, and Charles Sanders Pierce. New York: State
University of New York Press, 2007.
Chapters: “Josiah Royce’s Philosophy of Loyalty as the Basis for Ethics”; “Peirce and the Origin
of Pragmatism”
Session 5
James, William. Pragmatism and Other Essays. New York: Washington Square Press, 1963
Chapters: “What Pragmatism Means”; “Pragmatism and Humanism”; “Pragmatism and Religion”
“The Will to Believe”

Session 6
Continued:
James, William. Pragmatism and Other Essays. New York: Washington Square Press, 1963
Chapters: “What Pragmatism Means”; “Pragmatism and Humanism”; “Pragmatism and Religion”
“The Will to Believe”

Session 7
Peirce, C. S. “Pragmatism and Pragmaticism,” in Haack, Susan, and Robert Lane, eds.
Pragmatism, Old And New: Selected Writings. New York: Prometheus, 2006.
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Session 8 Raposa, Michael L. Theosemiotic: Religion, Reading, and the Gift of Meaning. New York:
Fordham University Press, 2020.
Chapters: “On Prayer and the Spirit of Pragmatism”

Session 9
Dewey, John. “Philosophy and Democracy” in Haack, Susan, and Robert Lane, eds. Pragmatism,
Old And New: Selected Writings. New York: Prometheus, 2006.

Session 10
Seigfried, Charlene Haddock. Pragmatism and Feminism: Reweaving the Social Fabric.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
Chapter: “The Missing Perspectives: Where Are All the Pragmatist Feminists and Feminist
Pragmatists?”

Session 11
Seigfried, Charlene Haddock. Pragmatism and Feminism: Reweaving the Social Fabric.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
Chapter: “The Theory of Practice”

Module II: The Meaning of Ethical Action

Session 12
Bernstein, Richard J. The Pragmatic Turn. Cambridge: Polity, 2010.
Chapter: “The Ethical Consequences of William James’s Pragmatic Pluralism”

Session 13
Bernstein, Richard J. The Pragmatic Turn. Cambridge: Polity, 2010.
Chapter: “ “John Dewey’s Vision of Radical Democracy”

Session 14
Rorty, Richard. Consequences of Pragmatism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press,
1982.
Chapter: “Pragmatism, Relativism, and Irrationalism.”

Session 16
O’Hara, David L., “Rorty’s Religion” in Goodson, Jacob L., and Brad Elliott Stone, eds. Rorty
and the Religious: Christian Engagements with a Secular Philosopher. Oregon: Wipf and Stock
Publishers, 2012.
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Session 17
Putnam, Hilary. The Collapse of the Fact/Value Dichotomy and Other Essays. Revised edition.
Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2002.
Chapter: “The Collapse of the Fact/Value Dichotomy”

Session 18
Putnam, Hilary. The Collapse of the Fact/Value Dichotomy and Other Essays. Revised edition.
Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2002.
Chapter: “Are Values Made or Dicovered?”

Module III: Theo-Philosophical Pragmatisms

Session 19
West, Cornel. The American Evasion of Philosophy: A Genealogy of Pragmatism. Wisconsin:
University of Wisconsin Press, 1989.
Chapter: “Prophetic Pragmatism: Cultural Criticism and Political Engagement”

Session 20 Continued: West, Cornel. The American Evasion of Philosophy: A Genealogy of Pragmatism.
Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press, 1989.
Chapter: “Prophetic Pragmatism: Cultural Criticism and Political Engagement”

Session 21
Ochs, Peter. “Scriptural Pragmatism: Jewish Philosophy’s Concept of Truth.” International
Philosophical Quarterly 26, no. 2 (1986): 131–35.

Session 22
Adams, Nicholas. “Reparative Reasoning.” Modern Theology 24, no. 3 (2008): 447–57.

Session 23
James, Mark Randall. Learning the Language of Scripture Origen, Wisdom, and the Logic of
Interpretation. Leiden: Brill, 2021.
Guest lecturers: Dr. Mark James and Dr. Randi Rashkover
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Session 24

James, Mark Randall. Learning the Language of Scripture Origen, Wisdom, and the Logic of
Interpretation. Leiden: Brill, 2021.
Chapter: “Introduction”; “Origenism as Pragmatism”

Session 25
Guest lecturers: Dr. Mark James and Dr. Randi Rashkover: Pragmatism,

Session 26
Faizi, Nauman. God, Science, and Self: Muhammad Iqbal’s Reconstruction of Religious Thought.
Montreal & Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2021.

Session 27

Guest Lecturer: Dr. Kelly West Figueroa-Ray: Pragmatism, Scripture, and Contemporary
American Politics

Session 28 Recap and Review