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Albion College Religious Studies

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Albion College Religious Studies

Welcome to the Albion College Religious Studies Department. The term "religious studies" refers to the scholarly study of religion.

Unlike some other subjects, most students come to Albion never having studied religion in an academic manner—that is, in a way that encourages asking critical questions. Religious studies at the college level is, like philosophy, English, and foreign languages, a part of the humanities division and, like the other humanities, a vital part of a liberal arts education. The purpose of studying religi

on is not to foster or discourage any particular kind of religious beliefs or practices. Rather, we study religion in order to better understand something that has played an important role in every culture. The neglect of the study of religion would create a serious gap in a liberal arts education, for religion has shaped individuals in every major culture, reaching back to human prehistory. The academic study of religion is different from religious education in churches, synagogues, temples or other religious institutions. Our goal in the Department of Religious Studies is to understand the major world religions sympathetically, but critically, and to explore the phenomenon of religion itself as a prominent component of human life and culture. The term "religion" refers to the beliefs which individuals and groups hold about the ultimate reality (often considered to be God) and the nature of the Universe (including humanity's relationship to it); these beliefs are accompanied by practices which religious practitioners feel relate them to the ultimate reality. Religious studies must not be confused with religion, nor should religious-studies scholars be confused with the practitioners/believers of religion. Scholars in religious studies examine the beliefs and practices of a religion or religions from an analytical point of view. Believers maintain the beliefs and practices of their religion from a confessional point of view. Therefore, the focus of our department is on the scholarly study of religious beliefs and practices, rather than on the actual practice of religion. Because of our small size, we can offer our majors personal attention, including directed studies in areas of students' interests. Directed studies allow upper-class students to pursue a subject of particular interest in which no specific course is offered in the department. Biblical languages (Hebrew and Greek), for example, are regularly taught as directed studies. Students can petition individual faculty members for directed studies. Senior majors are encouraged to do a senior honors thesis under the supervision of a Religious Studies faculty member for departmental honors. These theses may have an interdisciplinary focus. The thesis option is highly recommended for students considering graduate studies in religion. Here are some of the fields in which people who study religion work:

Archaeology
Biblical studies
Church history
Church-state studies
Comparative religions
Philosophy of religion
Psychology of religion
Religion and literature
Religion and the arts
Religion and science
Religion in America
Sociology of religion
Theology

05/18/2024

After a hiatus of five years (for obvious reasons), another crew of Albion's Holocaust Studies Service Learning Project students spent a productive and eye-opening week in Poland. Click on the image to view the blog!

May 3, 2024

02/08/2022

Jocelyn McWhirter has been assigning the HarperCollins Study Bible ever since she started teaching undergraduates. You can see a taped-up first edition on the bookshelf to her left!

The ‘go-to’ resource is used in religious studies courses and classrooms at colleges and universities around the world.

04/02/2021

Join us for the 2021 Daoud Family Lecture on Middle Eastern Studies. Albion’s department of Religious Studies welcomes Professor Elizabeth F. Thompson, the Mohamed S. Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace at the American University School of International Service. Professor Thompson will discuss her book, How the West Stole Democracy from the Arabs, a groundbreaking study that explores how and why Arabs gathered in Damascus after World War I to establish a democratic regime, in contrast to the prevalence of authoritarian-nationalist regimes established elsewhere in the lands of the defeated Ottoman and Habsburg Empires. The book also considers the long-term, negative consequences of the destruction of the Arab democracy, authorized by the Paris Peace Conference and enforced by the new League of Nations.

Due to pandemic restrictions, this year’s event will be held virtually. Below is the invitation to the event, which will be held on Zoom.

Topic: Daoud Family Lecture, Dr. Elizabeth Thompson
Time: Apr 6, 2021 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/96209804437?pwd=T2piVHRucTNuZGlneisvNzFIZGVWZz09

Meeting ID: 962 0980 4437
Passcode: EXe93D

07/01/2020

Congratulations and best wishes to Dr. Ron Mourad, Albion College's new Interim Provost!

Dr. Ron Mourad, professor of religious studies, has been named interim provost effective July 1. "I like thinking about new programs and how they attract new and different types of students," he said. "We want to enliven a student’s imagination."

05/02/2020

Congratulations, Religious Studies graduates: Jalisa, Lexi, Tyler, Kelsey, Marah, and Cameron. We're so proud of you!

05/04/2019

https://www.albion.edu/academics/departments/religious-studies/department-news/14472-students-faculty-staff-head-out-on-holocaust-studies-service-learning-project

An Albion College education. It's hands-on. It's the liberal arts. It's career readiness. It's providing you the knowledge, skills, and experiences you'll need to succeed in college, in your career, and in your life.

04/16/2019

Looking forward to the Albion College Elkin Isaac Student Research Symposium on Thursday, April 18. Religious Studies presentations include:
Tyler Eyster, "Religion, Immigration and Industry: The Role of Christian Communities in Shaping 20th-Century Albion"
Troy Trombley, "Messianic Exegesis in the Letter to the Hebrews"
Leaha Sinneave, "The Greek Orthodox and Hindu Diasporas in the United States"
Cameron Voss, "Post-Genocide Understanding within Rwandan Families"

The Elkin Isaac Research Symposium honors excellent student research, scholarship, and creative activity at Albion College.

02/08/2019

Troy Trombley ’19 presenting his paper on “Messianic Exegesis in Hebrews 1:1-14” at the Midwest Regional Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature.” Thank you FURSCA and the Prentiss M. Brown Honors Program!

01/21/2019

The Oyneg Shabbos archivists preserved a historical record of life and death in the Warsaw Ghetto. Because of them, we will never forget.

09/09/2018

Studying religion in Albion! Kudos to Tyler and thanks to FURSCA, the GLCA oral history project, and all the Albion residents who so generously told their stories.

The junior religious studies and English major's project featured conversations with members and leaders of five Albion churches across a series of 15 interviews.

06/27/2018

Our students do amazing things in remarkable places!

The best place to study post-genocide restoration and peace building is to do it where people are still in the process and have come through many difficulties. In spring 2018 I studied abroad in Rwanda. The experiential learning process was emphasized through constant site visits and learning from p...

01/26/2018

First faculty lecture of the new semester!

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611 E Porter Street
Albion, MI
49224

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