Philosophy & Religion


The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life 13 min.

This audiobook presents Durkheim’s classic argument explaining the origins of religion. The highly original thesis argues that when we worship God, we are really worshiping society. God and society are one.

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2022

Should We Separate the Art from the Artist?: A Debate 52 min.

Suppose you learn that one of your favorite artists, musicians, or authors has done something horrible, such as committed murder, advocated genocide, or engaged in some other reprehensible act. How do you respond? Do you reject the art they have created, or accept it as an entity in itself? Some argue that we should appreciate and revere great works of art as the masterpieces they are regardless o...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2022

Marx's Theory of Alienation 50 min.

This video plus audiobook set with sociology professor Garry Potter, explains how the concept of alienation combines with a kind of theory of human nature — Species Being. Potter explains that it is not a biological theory; rather it is based upon a fundamental feature of the human condition — that we must interact with nature to survive, we must labor. He explains Marx's ideas that doing this als...

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2021

Durkheim on Suicide 49 min.

This video plus audiobook set with sociology professor Garry Potter explains Durkheim's focus upon Suicide as the most counter-intuitive and difficult example to make his case for the sociological method. It discusses Durkeim's opinion that the most personal and individual act actually has a sociological causal component when one looks at suicide rates.

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2021

Sex, Lies, and the Priesthood 55 min.

Sex, Lies, and the Priesthood is a documentary biopic exploring the journey of A.W. Richard Sipe — from the priesthood to becoming an outspoken critic of the Catholic Church. Sipe was a former Benedictine monk and Catholic priest, trained as a psychotherapist to deal with the mental health problems of the clergy. Over the years he worked with the records of over six thousand patients and recognize...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2021

Enlightenment: The Next Step 12 min.

Suggestions for further explorations into personal enlightenment.

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2021

Secularization: The Decline of Religion? 9 min.

With contributions from leading experts on the study of religion, this film gives students a new take on secularisation theory. While secularisation theory assumes that in pre-modernity religion was everywhere whereas in modernity it’s almost nowhere, more recent research suggests that rather than disappearing, religion is undergoing a process of diversification, with the emergence of new and diff...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2021

Agree to Disagree: Are Booster Shots Unethical? 51 min.

The boosters are rolling out. In places likes the U.S., Britain, Israel, Germany and France, authorities are providing additional Covid-19 vaccines with the goal of bolstering immune systems and shoring up their economies. Though vaccines such as Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech have proven highly effective against the virus, efficacy wanes after six months, rendering older adults and those with weaken...

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2021

Agree to Disagree: Is Meritocracy Overrated? 51 min.

The days of kings and queens are largely over. That old hereditary lottery, at least within many democracies, has effectively been replaced by a system in which talent, grit, and ability are meant to set the terms of success. To quote Michael Shaara’s famous Civil War novel, "The Killer Angels," “Here we judge you by what you do, not by what your father was.” Yet with income inequality on the rise...

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2021

Muir's Childhood in Scotland — The Unruly Mystic: John Muir 11 min.

This program explores John Muir's early life and adventures growing up in Scotland and his immigration to the United States.

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2021