Religion Minor

The exploration of the idea of religion is both urgent and timely. Students will engage in a dual study of religion: as a way of life and culture, and as an object of study in itself. Courses will critically unpack the evolution of key ideas such as faith and values, and social concepts such as tradition, modernity, and secularism. Courses in this minor approach the study of the doctrines, practice, and narratives of major world religions through multiple lenses, including, but not limited to, the study of scripture, the performance of rituals, religion and public life, religion and politics, and sacred material cultures.

The minor requires a minimum of four courses (16 credits). Students select courses from the list below and must include at least two courses with the RL designation and one course at the 300 level. 

Courses

  • HI 204 - Islam in the World
  • HS 202 - Sophomore Honors Seminar (with approval)
  • PH 307 - Genesis
  • RL 115 - Islamic Ways of Life 
  • RL 116 - Christian Ways of Life
  • RL 117 - Jewish Ways of Life
  • RL 210 - Topics in Religion
  • RL 310 - Advanced Topics in Religion
  • SO 305 - Religion and Globalization
  • SO 330 - Goddesses and Ghosts: Gender and Sexuality in South Asian Worlds

Faculty

Eric Michael Dale, senior affiliated faculty, is a specialist in German continental philosophy of the 18th–20th centuries and an expert on religious philosophy. He authored Hegel, the End of History, and the Future (Cambridge University Press, 2014) and is a former visiting fellow at the Institut für die Wissenschaften vom Menschen in Vienna, Austria. He teaches Islamic Ways of Life, Christian Ways of Life, and Topics in Religion for the minor. 

Lisa Eiduson, affiliated faculty, earned an EdD from Northeastern University with a concentration in organizational leadership studies. An ordained Rabbi, she has served reform congregations in Cincinnati, OH; Buffalo, NY; and Newton, MA. She teaches Jewish Ways of Life for the minor.

David Kishik, associate professor, is the author of To Imagine a Form of Life, a series of paraphilosophical books. He translated, from Italian, two of Agamben’s essay collections: Nuditiesand What Is an Apparatus? He also performs in Paramodernities, Netta Yerushalmy’s series of dance lectures. He received the Helaine and Stanley Miller Award for Outstanding Teaching in 2016 and the Huret Award for Faculty Excellence in 2020. He teaches Sophomore Honors Seminar and Genesis for the minor.

Amer Latif*, associate professor, is an interdisciplinary scholar specializing in comparative religion and Islamic studies. Broadly speaking, his research revolves around issues involved in the translation of cultures. Having grown up in Pakistan and with an undergraduate degree in physics, Dr. Latif thrives on studying and creating containers that are capacious enough to hold seeming contradictions such as science and religion, East and West. He teaches Topics in Religion and Advanced Topics in Religion for the minor.

Pablo Muchnik, associate professor, specializes in Kant, early modern philosophy, ethics, and political philosophy. He directs two book collections, Kantian Questions (Cambridge Scholar Publishing) and Kant’s Sources in Translation (Bloomsbury), and is the recipient of various national and international scholarships and awards. He teaches Sophomore Honors Seminar for the minor.

Tulasi Srinivas, professor in Sociology/Anthropology, is an expert in globalization and anthropology of the urban and religious life of South Asia. She is the author of Winged Faith and The Cow in the Elevator and editor of Curried Cultures: Globalization, Food and South Asia. She teaches Religion and Globalization and Goddesses and Ghosts: Gender and Sexuality in South Asian Worlds for the minor.

Please note this may not be a comprehensive list, as our affiliated faculty rotate on a semesterly basis. Please refer to the semester registration listings to identify any additional faculty participating in the minor.

* Minor Coordinator