The Russian Religious Experience

We will examine selected aspects of Russian Orthodoxy: its doctrine, the history of the Russian church, its art (icons), its music (Byzantine chant), and its literature (including saints’ lives and sermons). We will also read selected stories by major 19th century writers that employ religious themes (including those by Dostoevsky and Tolstoy). Students will select one aspect of the Russian religious experience and write a research paper. Readings and films will be chosen to support our inquiry.