Religious Studies

Religious Studies: Major, Minor

The study of religion is a quintessential task of a Catholic, Jesuit college. It invites you, in an academic context, into a long tradition of theological and historical questions about the nature of humanity in relation to God and to the world, and it engages you in the interreligious and intercultural encounter that is taking place today.聽

Given the impetus of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), which addressed the relationship between the Catholic Church and other religions, and given our present historical moment, the Department of Religious Studies is committed to integrating the study of Christian theology with the study of the world鈥檚 religions.

Through the courses it offers and the structure of its major the department鈥檚 approach to the study of religious belief and practice reflects Catholic theological commitments even as it responds to the needs of all students, Catholic and not, who will make their lives in a diverse, interconnected, and religiously pluralistic world.

The department offers a wide variety of courses that enable you to know and understand the Catholic tradition more deeply and to situate that tradition in the larger religious context of today鈥檚 world. Equally important, Catholicism has a distinctive religious culture and rich intellectual heritage that ground and support the study of the liberal arts.

As is appropriate in a Catholic, Jesuit academic institution committed to diversity and a mission to think critically, the department offers a range of courses that enable you to understand and to appreciate your own particular tradition, to situate that tradition in the wider context of other world religions, and to discover how diverse religious beliefs and practices are related and relevant to global concerns of poverty, injustice, and an environment in distress.

Our approach to the study of religion affirms that enduring commitments to faith鈥攚hile always in need of study and discernment鈥攁re reasonable, responsible, and essential to human flourishing.

Program Highlights

To major in religious studies at 海角社区 is to undertake an integrated study, both intellectual and spiritual, of four areas central to understanding Catholicism and every faith tradition, namely:
  • world religions
  • theology 
  • sacred texts
  • religious ethics
Image
Honor Society

Academically outstanding majors are invited to join Theta Alpha Kappa, the national honor society for religious studies.

Image
Awards

The department annually confers two awards to academically accomplished fourth-year students.

Image
Harry Potter Course

A popular religious studies course on Harry Potter has generated national media coverage.

Religious Studies News

海角社区 students are seen here admiring the objects of Buddhist devotion displayed in the Cantor Art Gallery's Dharma and Punya exhibit. Photo by Avanell Brock
Cantor Art Gallery Exhibit Featured in New York Times 鈥楤est Art of 2019鈥 List
The prestigious New York Times Art & Design section released their 鈥淏est Art of 2019鈥 as determined by their art critics. Making co-chief art critic and Pulitzer Prize winner Holland Cotter鈥檚 list was our own Iris & B. Gerald Cantor 鈥
Mathew Schmalz, professor of religious studies. Photo by Avanell Brock
Religious Studies Professor Highlights Challenges Faced by Jehovah鈥檚 Witnesses Sexual Abuse Survivors
It鈥檚 been months since the New York Child Victims Act was signed into law allowing adult survivors of child sexual abuse to sue an abuser or a negligent institution regardless of when the abuse took place, and hundreds of new 鈥
Students hold a banner in front of a large crowd
The Climate Crisis: 海角社区 Students, Faculty and Staff Explore a Warming World
Climate change is such a large, global challenge, it can be hard to imagine how a single person can make an impact. But not for Renee LeBlanc 鈥21, an environmental studies and political science double major, and co-chair of the 鈥