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With particular strengths in the study of Christianity, Judaism, American religions, Islam, secularism, Buddhism, and other Asian religions, the Department of Religious Studies emphasizes descriptive, historical, and theoretical approaches to the study of religion.

Upcoming Events



A Queen in the Tomb of the Kings: An Ancient Monument and its Modern Legacy

RELS Colloquium
Sarit Kattan Gribetz (Fordham University)
Feb 22, 2024 at - | Cohen 204

According to the first-century Jewish historian Josephus Flavius, Queen Helena of Adiabene traveled from her kingdom in northern Mesopotamia to Jerusalem to worship the Jewish God in the temple. She ended up…



Teaching Religion in the Premodern World

CTL Teaching Workshop
Reyhan Durmaz (University of Pennsylvania)
Mar 14, 2024 at - | Cohen 204

Recent scholarship has demonstrated that “religion” as we know it today is a post-Enlightenment concept. But this fact has not changed common discourse that assumes the universality of religion, nor has it stopped…



What Not to Do: Anti-Lessons for Ethnographic Fieldwork

RELS Colloquium/TRAP Faculty Working Group Ethnography Workshop
Sara Swenson, Dartmouth College
Mar 21, 2024 at - | Cohen 204

This special event will feature an ethnography of religion workshop during our normal colloquium time (3:30–5:00 PM), followed by a public lecture featuring Dr. Swenson's research. 

What Not to Do:…