Bachelor of Arts in Comparative Religion

Religion is an essential dimension of human thought and experience. It shapes our history, culture, values, and beliefs. It influences debates on a diverse range of issues, including global terrorism and political ideologies, gender and racial equality, ethics and social justice. The comparative religion faculty offer courses in all the great world religions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Chinese and Japanese Religions. We teach a variety of courses on Hebrew Bible, New Testament, and American Religious History. In addition, we offer cross-cultural and thematic courses that examine particular topics, including women and religion, religion and politics, human rights, ethics, religious pluralism, mythology, mysticism, and film. Program faculty use an academic, non-confessional methodology in teaching religion. In our classes we analyze religious beliefs, practices, texts, and institutions both descriptively and critically as intellectual, historical, and cultural phenomena. We do not argue for the truth of one, all, or no religion.