Winter Quarter Course Offerings

 

In This Issue Religious Observances and Cultural Calendar ORSL Spotlight On-Campus Religious Services For Students Upcoming Events Stay Connected

Religious Observances and Cultural Calendar Chanukah begins at sunset on December 7 and ends on December 15. Also known as 'Hanukkah', it is the Jewish eight-day, wintertime "Festival of Lights," celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting, special prayers and fried foods. Bodhi Day is on December 8. The anniversary of the historical Buddha's awakening, this date is the "secular" Bodhi Day which is celebrated on a fixed date in much of the Western World and Japan.  ORSL Spotlight

Festival of Lessons & Carols Friday, December 8 and Saturday, December 9, 7:30 pm Stanford Memorial Church   All are welcome to this service of Advent and Christmas readings and music, based on the famous Lessons and Carols Service held annually at King's College, Cambridge. Festive music will be sung by the Memorial Church Choir and the Stanford Chamber Chorale. Doors open at 7:00 pm.

Stress Less Friday, December 8, 11:00 am - 2:00 pm Old Union   With finals approaching, we know that you are all working hard. Come and join Cardinal Nights and our colleagues in Old Union on December 8th from 11AM - 2PM to de-stress and take some time for yourself this week!    Join Cardinal Nights on 2nd Floor Old Union (STE 206) to make your own de-stress goody bags, tea blends, and enjoy some treats, including a hot cocoa bar.  OMAC, on 2nd Floor Old Union (STE 218), will be offering pastries, board games, and coffee so come and try your hand at some games and fuel up on some coffee before heading to the library.  ASSU will be offering massage chairs for 10 minute sessions to help take away some of your finals season tension. There will be a sign up sheet available in person for you to select your time slot. This will be first come, first serve and you can find ASSU on 1st Floor Old Union in STE 103.  Stop by Old Union 3rd Floor to decompress with homemade cookies and hot cocoa! Join ORSL for cozy snacks and friendly faces here to support you as you cross the finish line of fall quarter. Come and join FLI for some friendly board games and treats on 2nd Floor Old Union STE 200. FSL will be offering free food from Local Kitchen for the first 50 people in attendance and coloring pages so come on by Old Union 1st floor (STE 101 + 102) for some savory eats and sweet destressing coloring pages.

On-Campus Religious Services

For information on religious services in the Stanford community, please visit the ORSL Stanford Associated Religions webpage and navigate to the faith tradition you seek. If you have any questions, please contact the Rev. Dr. Colleen Hallagan Preuninger at cpreunin@stanford.edu.

University Public Worship: Advent Series Sundays, 11:00 am Stanford Memorial Church

Second Sunday of Advent: December 10  Ecumenical Christian Service with Rev. Annanda Barclay, Higher Education Chaplain Fellow, Preaching. Third Sunday of Advent: December 17  Ecumenical Christian Service with Rev. Dr. Kafuyni Mwamba, Spiritual Care Provider at Stanford Health Care, Preaching.

For Students

Click to watch the Winter Intensive Promo Video!

Leadership Organizing & Action: Community Organizing Winter Quarter 2024 Intensive 2 Weekend Retreats: January 12-14 & January 19-21 Urban Studies 127B | CSRE 127B | ETHICSOC 127B | LEAD 127B 3 Units Community Organizing makes a difference in addressing major public challenges that demand full engagement of the citizenry, especially those whose voices are marginalized. In this course you will learn and practice the leadership skills needed to mobilize your communities for positive social change. We identify leadership as accepting responsibility to enable others to achieve shared purpose in the face of uncertainty. As organizers you will learn how to develop capacity within your community and analyze power dynamics to develop a strategic plan. By the end of this course, you will create an organizing campaign that builds power rooted in the resources of your community and that can be implemented on campus!

Wellness 106A/LEAD 106A:  Spiritual Wellbeing and Religious Encounter: Reflecting on Our Personal Spiritual Journeys Wednesdays 6:00 - 7:20 PM, includes dinner Common Room, CIRCLE (Old Union, 3rd floor) 1 Unit   Engage in meaningful spiritual dialogue and religious encounter with one another, fostering a conversation across differences. Explore ways to nurture meaning and purpose in daily life through experiential learning activities. You will have the opportunity to focus inwards on your own spirituality and write your spiritual autobiography. It is not expected that you will be an adherant of or have expertise in religious practices and traditions or background in religious scholarship. You will gain skills and knowledge enabling you to wrestle with life's ultimate religious and spiritual questions through readings, facilitated discussions, and breakout sessions. All sessions will be held over dinner as communal meals are ways of community building between the students. Dinner is provided.

LIFE 105/WELLNESS 105: Meeting the Moment: Inner Resources for Hard Times Thursdays 11:30 am - 1:20 pm Thornton Center, Room 110 1-2 units   In the face of social, economic, environmental, and public health upheavals, many of us are experiencing an unprecedented degree of uncertainty, isolation, and stress affecting academic and day-to-day life. Challenging times ask us, in a voice louder than usual, to identify sources of strength and develop practices that sustain and even liberate. In this experiential, project-oriented class: Explore practices to find true ground and enact positive change for self and community; Cultivate natural capacities of presence, courage, and compassion; Develop resources to share with one another and the entire Stanford community.

Undergraduate offerings through the Department of Religious Studies starting in January   Syllabi for Religious Studies Courses are available at syllabus.stanford.edu. More details on all the classes in Explore Courses. Course full? Be sure to put yourself on the waiting list! Many classes are capped by room size, but if there’s enough interest, we can look for a larger room.  This quarter we welcome visiting professor Deena Aranoff! Check out her class, “The Hebrew Bible: Readings in Religion and Culture” (RELIGST 116X; JEWISHST 116).   NEW COURSES: Jump in on the ground floor of these new offerings! Note that some have limited enrollment, so don’t delay! Interfaith Peacebuilding and Global Justice (RELIGST 115), Anna Bigelow and Valeria Vergani The Hebrew Bible: Readings in Religion and Culture (RELIGST 116), Deena Aranoff Theological Reading Group (RELIGST 122), Brent Sockness Ritual and the Senses in Asian Religion (RELIGST 224), James Gentry and Michaela Mross William James and Religion (RELIGST 237), Lee Yearley   GATEWAYS TO RELIGIOUS STUDIES: Each of these established courses provides an entrance to the field of Religious Studies, here through the lens of material culture, popular culture, classic texts, and a single religious tradition. Some of these are IntroSems designed especially for first-year students. The Religious Life of Things (RELIGST 3), John Kieschnick Religion in Anime and Manga (RELIGST 6N), Michaela Mross Perspectives on the Good Life (RELIGST 12N), Lee Yearley Exploring Islam (RELIGST 61), Rushain Abbasi   ADVANCED SEMINARS: Dig deeper into a specialized topic and expand your knowledge and skills as an interpreter of religious texts and phenomena. Translating Religion (RELIGST 210), James Gentry and Paul Harrison Ritual and the Senses in Asian Religion (RELIGST 224), James Gentry and Michaela Mross William James and Religion (RELIGST 237), Lee Yearley Constructing Race and Religion in America (RELIGST 246), Kathryn Gin Lum and Joanna Mueller Hindu Tantra (RELIGST 264), Elaine Fisher   FOR OUR MAJORS: If you are a junior pursuing a major in Religious Studies or in the combined major Philosophy and Religious Studies, be sure to enroll in the required theories seminar & WIM course this quarter! RS minors are also welcome. Majors’ Seminar: Theories of Religion (RELIGST 290), Elaine Fisher

Upcoming Events

Visit the Stanford Event Calendar for a full listing of our events.

Fall Contemplative Program   Mondays-Thursdays, 5:30 - 6:30 pm CIRCLE Sanctuary (Old Union, 3rd floor) This is the last week of sessions for the quarter! Open to Stanford affiliates, sessions are free and no pre-registration is required. Bring your own yoga mat for yoga sessions. Program Schedule: Mondays: Student-led Yoga, last day: December 4 Tuesdays: Gentle Yoga, last day: December 5 Wednesdays: Student-led Yoga, last day: December 6 Thursdays: Guided Meditation, last day: December 7 Please check out our website for more information about the contemplative program.

Holiday Events at MemChu

Friday, December 8 8:00 am, 12:20 pm | Catholic Community at Stanford: Immaculate Conception Masses 7:30 pm | Office for Religious and Spiritual Life: Festival of Lessons & Carols Saturday, December 9 2:30 pm | Friends of Music: Holiday Musicale 7:30 pm | Office for Religious and Spiritual Life: Festival of Lessons & Carols Sunday, December 10 11:00 am | Office for Religious and Spiritual Life: University Public Worship: Advent Series Thursday, December 14 7:30 pm | Stanford Live: A Chanticleer Christmas Friday, December 15 7:30 pm | Department of Music: Annual Messiah Sing/Play Along Sunday, December 17 11:00 am | Office for Religious and Spiritual Life: University Public Worship: Advent Series 1:30 pm | Dr. Robert Huw Morgan: Annual Holiday Organ Recital **Memorial Church is closed from December 21 to January 7 except for the following holiday services.** Sunday, December 24 4:00 pm | Office for Religious and Spiritual Life: Ecumenical Christmas Eve Family Service 8:00 pm | Office for Religious and Spiritual Life: Ecumenical Christmas Eve Candlelight Service Monday, December 25 12:00 am | Catholic Community at Stanford: Christmas Eve Midnight Mass 12:30 pm | Catholic Community at Stanford: Christmas Day Mass

Stay Connected with the ORSL

ONLINE GIVING is available for those who wish to donate to Stanford Memorial Church and the Office for Religious and Spiritual Life. Donations can be sent via Stanford Make a Gift or by scanning the QR code below. Thank you for your thoughtfulness in giving.

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