Department of Religious Studies
In a liberal arts setting, Religious Studies is an integrative discipline, embracing virtually all aspects of human experience, as expressed in history, art, literature, social organization, politics, scientific exploration, and ethics.
The Department of Religious Studies offers a major and minor in Religious Studies.
Requirements & Course Offerings
To review Religious Studies program requirements and course offerings, please visit our College Catalog (Hill Book).
Introduction
The Department of Religious Studies focuses on the religious beliefs and practices of communities and individuals throughout history and in the present. It introduces students to religious traditions worldwide, and to the ways in which those traditions have been studied.
In a liberal arts setting, Religious Studies is an integrative discipline, embracing virtually all aspects of human experience, as expressed in history, art, literature, social organization, politics, scientific exploration, and ethics.
In the Catholic tradition of the quest for greater understanding, the Department of Religious Studies helps students develop critical appreciation of their own traditions and those of others.
Curriculum
In the General Education curriculum, the Department introduces students to the study of religion through the required first-year course. Students may also explore specific topics in the study of religion in a variety of Learning Communities and Moral Inquiry courses.
Majors and minors in Religious Studies explore rigorously an array of compelling human questions, the distinctive beliefs and practices of religious people across cultures, and the various roles that religions play in society.
Graduate Study and Career Options for Religious Studies Majors
Because Religious Studies is an integrative discipline, majors and minors have gone on to pursue graduate study and careers in such fields as journalism, law, education, business, and health care, as well as in various forms of ministry.
Department News
March 18 | Local Catholics Encouraged By Humble Lifestyle, Latin American Roots of Pope FrancisStonehill College’s Peter Beisheim, professor of religious studies, comments on Pope Francis.
February 13 | Religious Studies Professor Peter Beisheim Weighs In On Pope Benedict ResignationIn the wake of the Pope Benedict’s resignation, Religious Studies Professor Peter Beisheim, an expert on the post-Vatican II Catholic Church, has been quoted widely in the local media on the surprise announcement
September 27 | If Only We Could Edit the BibleStonehill Adjunct Professor Karl Giberson discusses what would happen if we could edit the Bible.