This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.
This web site reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
-
History of Religions
History of the 3 Monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) and of the main different Christianity confessions (Roman Catholicism, Eastern Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglicanism and Protestantism)
-
Pedagogical Approaches
New pedagogical approaches to teach history of religion
-
Role of Religions in Civilization
How to didactically promote among students of different confessions, the capacity of a critical analysis and understanding of the role played by religions in the history of mankind
-
Interreligious Students’ Competences
Set of teaching contents, to be used by teachers to highlight and valorize the universal values of tolerance and universalisms that all Monotheistic religions and religious texts contain to promote and sustain mutual understanding among students
-
Managing Multi-Religious Classes
Teaching Sources to help teachers dealing with multicultural and multi-religious classes
Map
An interactive didactical map interactive didactical map giving access to sites with a religious relevance.-
Introduction
A comparative review of the liturgical celebrations, ceremonies and dietary rules existing in the different religions.
-
Celebrations
Description and comparative analysis of the celebrations of different religions and confessions
-
Ceremonies
Description and comparative analysis of the ceremonies of different religions and confessions
-
Dietary Rules
Description and comparative analysis of the dietary rules of different religions and confessions
Events
The Pathway through Religions project has been promoted trough conferences and articles.
Conferences
The Pathway through Religions project was presented in a number of events in order to report about the activities carried out and the results achieved
Press Review
The Pathway through Religions project partnership made contacts with web sites focusing on the fields of educationPartnership
-
Contractual Partners
From this section it is possible to access to a description of each contractual partner of the Pathway through Religions project.
-
Schools
From this section it is possible to access to the information about the schools involved in the Pathway through Religions Project in the European countries involved.
-
Associated Partners
As a result of the exploitation activity a number of associated partners officially joined the project in order to contribute to the improvement of the project impact on their target groups and to ensure the project sustainability by continuing using the project deliverables in the next years.
This section of the Pathway through Religions portal provides administrative information for the project contractual partners and for the European Commission and it is password protected.
Pedagogical Approaches
Homepage > Teachers’ Guide > Pedagogical Approaches
New pedagogical approaches to teach history of religion
Multidisciplinary Pedagogical Approaches to Teach History of Religions
6. Teaching Religions through Music
The status of music as a universal language offers an outstanding vehicle for the communication of any message, and more particularly, for the message of the sacred texts. From Bob Dylan to Beethoven, from Bob Marley to Buddhist chant, music expresses the spiritual. Lawrence Bixler says that this universal language appeals first to the emotions and then to the intellect. The emotions serve as a doorway to the throne room of the mind. In any religious community, musical power may be harnessed to spiritual life, or may be viewed with suspicion for its power to draw humanity away from the pursuit of religious truth.
When using music in religious education the teacher has to:
- Check the appropriateness of lyrics for concepts and correctness of spiritual teachings.
- Ensure the song/hymn is appropriate for the age group they are working with.
- LISTENING & RESPONDING - before the teacher explains anything about the song, it would be best if he/she can play the song once and ask students to listen with an open ear/mind, perhaps write down any reactions/thoughts/feelings they notice come up. Students can write down what they hear using a pre-prepared word bank: melody, harmony, major, minor, instruments, loud, soft, dynamics, tempo, beat rhythm, timbre, crescendo, decrescendo, form, verse, chorus, bridge, mood They can also describe their emotional response to music, to answer what they think this song may have been used for. Then the teacher may provide some contextual (i.e. historical, cultural, regional) information about the song and let the class listen a second time. After that repeat this process using a song from a different religion. Then the students will have to answer how this song is similar and different from the first song they listened to?
- ENGAGING: Many religions include music as a part of their spiritual practice. Some of the elements of religion are belief system/world view, myths/stories and community. The teacher may ask the students to answer some questions: to choose a song that is connected to a specific religion; to say what religion(s) is it based in; how do they know the song; where did they learn it; is the song part of their personal religious practice; does the song convey a belief system or world view; does the song incorporate a myth or story; how might this song be used to build community.
- COLLECTIVE REFLECTION: ask students to share their musical experiences with each other and ask them to reflect on that. Ask the students: In your discussion what similarities did you encounter with songs from different religions? What differences did you encounter? Why do you think so many different religions use music in their worship? How might spiritual practice be different without music?
- TAKING IT OUT INTO THE WORLD: Offer students the opportunity to continue the conversation with their friends and family. What experiences have they had with music in religion? Was it part of their personal experience with religion? Did the music serve to strengthen their beliefs? Community? Understanding of the myths and stories in the religion?
Online Resources
- Julian Stern, Using music to create inclusive religious educationThe article presents an analysis of how religion can be taught using music in class
- Tazim R. Kassam, Teaching Religion and MusicCentral aspects of religion which exclusively textual approaches fail to capture are its aesthetic and synesthetic dimensions. The article discusses how this can be done with music.
Practical Activity
- Using music in religious education The activity gives the teachers resources of music from different religions and suggests how a non-formal learning activity can be organized with students.
