World Religions at The George Washington University

Congratulations to our Yeidi Prize Finalist in the Department of World Religions AY25-26, Sophie Lichtenstein!!! Although we will miss our graduating seniors in the Department, your legacy will always stand tall!

lichtenstein : "Being a World Religions student has allowed me to grow as a student and thinker while giving me a place to pursue my interests with support and purpose. Thank you so much to all of the incredible faculty and students for honoring me with this award, and for making this department what it is!"

Congratulations to Hedy Hon, who studied with Prof. Xiaofei Kang, on winning the Undergraduate Feminist Scholarship Award at GW for her essay, "Haunting the Good Woman: Female Pressures, Sexual Autonomy, and the Ghostly Feminine in Chinese Narratives."

According to Hedy, her work explores "how the ghostly feminine in Chinese literature and folklore serves as a vehicle for anxieties around female sexuality and autonomy, where women who refuse to conform are often literally made monstrous or spectral. I was drawn to this topic through my broader interest in how gender and religion intersect in Chinese history, which I was studying in my ‘Women, Gender, and Religion in China’ class. Receiving the feminist scholarship award means a lot to me as I feel it serves as affirmation that these stories, and the women in them, are worth writing about.”

Don't miss Department of World Religions' Chair Irene Oh in an upcoming webinar hosted by GW's School of Public Health on Religion & Bioethics!

RSVP before March 18 @ https://calendar.gwu.edu/event/why-study-religion-and-spirituality-in-bioethics

The Department of World Religions would like to thank Prof. Michael Ing (IU) for his riveting Berz Lecture on Hawaiian cosmogonies, indigenous philosophy, and comparative mythologies of time and being! Thanks to all the faculty, students, and community members who attended!

Join us March 4, 2026, from 5:30-7PM, for the Department of World Religions' annual Berz Endowed Lecture!

We're thrilled to learn from our guest speaker, Professor Michael Ing (IU), on Hawaiian cosmologies and indigenous spiritual practices!

Join us this Thursday, February 5, 2026, from 5:30-7:30 PM, for the Department of World Religions' annual Ziffren Endowed Lecture!

We're thrilled to learn from our guest speaker, Professor Oludamini Ogunnaike (UVA), on West African Religions!

How is gender portrayed in Islam? What does Islam contribute to historical and contemporary discussions of gender? How do Muslim women shape the faith? How has the internet and social media influenced these global dynamics?

Spotlight: Prof. Kelly Pemberton will be offering her not-to-be-missed Women in Islam course this Spring 2026! REL 3481.80 (CRN 47665). Sign up today!

What is film? What makes for a cinematic experience? How do movies showcase religious individuals, beliefs, communities, and traditions? What are the ethical blindspots of Hollywood?

Spotlight: Prof. Kelly Pemberton will be offering an exciting version of Religion & Film at GW this Spring 2026! REL 2990.83 (CRN 48097). Don't miss this opportunity!

Congratulations to World Religions Majors Sophie and Raffi for their fantastic RELx presentations during Interfaith Week at GW!

Sophie's "Evangelical Christianity and Consumerism: How the Megachurch Wrangles the Attention Economy" & Raffi's "The Same Tale from Separate Teachers: The Dynamic between Sufism and Erfan in Shiite Islam" garnered enthusiastic interest from the audience during the Q&A!

Thanks, also, to Prof. Rob Eisen for his discussion of the publication process via his recent work, Jews, Judaism, and Success: How Religion Paved the Way to Modern Jewish Achievement (Toronto Press, 2023).

Credit: Irene Oh, Chair AND photojournalist!

Join the Department of World Religions Thursday November 6 @ Noon for our second annual RELx Talks hosted by Interfaith Week at GW!

RSVP here: https://gwu.campuslabs.com/engage/event/11808778

PS- Lunch will be provided 🥪😋

Welcome to Fall 2025 at GW! We're so excited to see all the new and returning students back on campus in the nation's capital city.

By the way, did you hear? It's official. We are now the Department of World Religions! 👏

So, on behalf of the newly renamed Department of World Religions, we wish you all an amazing semester! Raise High ❤️