Religion is an essential part of humanistic studies in a liberal arts education. The study of religion is one way to establish a view of reality and of the meaning of human existence as individuals and as social beings in relation to ultimate reality.
The goals of the department are to help students:
understand the nature of religion
understand both Western and non-Western religious traditions
develop critical and analytical skills for examining...
The Department of Religious Studies offers students the opportunity to explore the religious dimensions of life and culture. These dimensions are found in the culturally embedded narratives, beliefs and practices of particular religions as well as encounters with realities perceived to be ultimate or sacred. Through myth, symbol, ritual and doctrine, these religions not only provide order and meaning, they also carry capacities to challenge and transform...
Religion has played, and continues to play, a central role in virtually all societies. It is intimately related to such key aspects of communities as the structure of political power, economic organization, class structures, conceptions of gender, marriage, work and war. In short, religion shapes both the institutional order and the thought and behavior of individuals who inhabit it.
The study of religion, therefore, is basic to the liberal arts...
History, art, politics, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and literature all come together in the religion major. Two options are available to majors - a general religion track and a thematic track in which students concentrate on a particular interest in religion, such as mysticism or the role of women. Faculty offer introductory courses in a wide range of traditions as well as topics courses in more focused areas. Religion majors typically find...
Program Offerings The Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies offers students the opportunity to explore deep-rooted values and ideals that play a role in shaping the world, its people, and cultures.
The Religious Studies major allows students to engage primary historical texts and modern scholarly writings; ancient and modern religious traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; and the impact of these traditions...
The Religion Program focuses on the Biblical roots and theological development of the Judaeo-Christian tradition and on the cross-cultural study of humanity‘s religions including Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Native American traditions. The Religion Major comprises three distinct areas of study: scripture, theology, and the cross-cultural study of religion.
Students study religious traditions in their mythological, philosophical,...
PROGRAM OVERVIEW A major in Religion at Drake University is a study of sacred texts and their interpretation, of theological and ethical reasoning, of the breadth of religious thinking and practice, and of the meaning of the religious quest for a comprehensive understanding of reality. Our courses can prepare students for an understanding of the diverse religious traditions of the world, for graduate professional training for ministry, for an active...
In the broadest terms, the modern study of religion as part of a liberal education involves a comparative appreciation of the various ways different peoples, across space and through time, have developed their religious ideas, values, systems, beliefs, rituals, and traditions in response to fundamental questions of human existence. The study of religion, as with any modern academic discipline, strives for rigorous, systematic, intellectual inquiry...
Study of Religion at Duke: The Department of Religion is one of the largest Humanities departments at Duke and one of the most prestigious departments of religion in the country. The contemporary academic study of religion recognizes the virtual ubiquity of religion as a phenomenon in human life and culture, and it thus seeks to understand the nature and role of religion. The academic study of religion has a distinctive multidisciplinary character,...
To study religion is to reflect sympathetically and critically on the ways in which human beings understand themselves and structure their lives with regard to the ultimate conditions of human existence and the crises facing our civilization.
In Earlham's Religion Department, students may focus on matters of faith personally important to them, or study Religion as a major component of ancient and modern cultures and their ethical and political systems....
The faculty of the Department of Religion welcomes students into a community of learning, rigorous scholarship, academic freedom, ministry, and service. As a part of the historic and long-standing service to the foundation curriculum of East Texas Baptist University, the faculty seeks to lead students to a mature understanding of the Bible and the development of a Christian worldview. Through teaching, mentoring, and advising, students will be given...
DEPARTMENT OBJECTIVES 1. To foster an atmosphere that encourages the development of a Christian worldview and provides the opportunity to test it against alternative views.
2. To acquaint the student with the history, literature, and theology of the Bible as the Word of God and to give instruction in its proper use.
3. To introduce the student to the richness of the Christian tradition.
4. To delineate the parameters of Wesleyan holiness theology.
...
The Department of Religion at ENMU offers all students the opportunity to pursue moral and spiritual development through the study of religion.
The ENMU Department of Religion was established in 1936 and is one of the oldest university religion departments in the Southwest. It is staffed and maintained by cooperation between several denominations and churches. Each church body established a Bible chair or chair of religion with its own classrooms...
Students majoring in religious studies should have developed the following competencies by the time they graduate:
familiarity with the principal concerns and methods of the field of religious studies.
knowledge of a chosen focal area that allows the student to converse with ease on subjects related to the area and make appropriate
judgments based on critical study.
capacity to make effective use of appropriate historical, literary, and critical...
The Religious Studies major consists of 12 courses. Students are encouraged to design a program of study that has both breadth and depth. To gain depth in one area of religious studies, majors should choose one of the following areas of concentration: Biblical Studies, Ethics and Society, History of Christianity, Asian Religions or Ministry Studies.
Majors who concentrate in Biblical Studies, Ethics and Society, History of Christianity or Asian...
A program that focuses on the nature of religious belief and specific religious and quasi-religious systems. Includes instruction in phenomenology; the sociology, psychology, philosophy, anthropology, literature and art of religion; mythology; scriptural and textual studies; religious history and politics; and specific studies of particular faith communities and their behavior.
A bachelor‘s degree religious studies can lead to a career in ministry or serve as a complementary program for work in another field. Students who pursue ministerial work will be well prepared to enter a seminary or other graduate school. Along with core courses and departmental electives, students have opportunities to study abroad, live and study at a Chicago-area seminary, and test their knowledge in a senior seminar.
The Religious Studies Department seeks to stimulate an understanding of religion as a vital element of the human experience. Courses are offered that help the student reflect on the faith and experience of the Christian community in relation to other faiths and world visions.
On the undergraduate level, both a major and minor are offered in religious studies.
Students in the baccalaureate program in religious studies will:
The religious studies program is built around the central themes relating to spiritual questions and the ways in which the world‘s major religions address such questions to give graduates a solid knowledge of the history, philosophy, and sociology of religions. A flexible look at questions and research juxtaposes the world‘s religious philosophies with the traditions, beliefs, rites, ethics, communities,...
