BA Religious Studies

The Program in Religious Studies explores religious practices as important aspects of social life. We include three related approaches: study of the history of religion; examination of primary texts and artifacts; and interdisciplinary analysis of the ideas and activities that have contributed to the development of various religions. It should be stressed that the program is oriented toward the academic analysis of religious phenomena and is not intended to promote or endorse either religious belief itself or the views and practices of any particular religious tradition. The program makes use of resources from several areas of study in the College, including Anthropology, Art History, Classics, English, French, Hebrew and Judaic studies, History, Medieval and Renaissance Studies, Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, Music, Performance Studies, Philosophy, Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Literature, and others.