Department News
Professor Durmaz Publishes "Stories between Christianity and Islam"
Professor Durmaz has published her monograph, Stories between Christianity and Islam: Saints, Memory, and Cultural Exchange in Late Antiquity and Beyond.
RELS Undergrads Olivia Haynie and Justin Seward Present on Their Research
RELS undergrads Olivia Haynie and Justin Seward presented their findings from their summer project with Prof.
Professor Thomas Appointed to Japan-US Friendship Commission
Professor Thomas was recently appointed to the Japan-US Friendship Commission (JUSFC), with joint appointment to the US-Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange (CULCON).
Jillian Stinchcomb Receives Postdoctoral Fellowship at Institute for Advanced Study!
The Department is thrilled to announce that alumna Dr.
Anthea Butler Wins 2022 Marty Award from the American Academy of Religion
Each year, the American Academy of Religion presents the
Gabriel Raeburn awarded Dean’s Teaching Fellowship for Excellence!
The department is happy to announce that Dr. Gabriel Raeburn has been awarded a Dean’s Teaching Fellowship for Excellence from the School of Arts and Sciences! Dr.
Congratulations to Dr. Gabriel Raeburn!
Congratulations to Gabriel Raeburn, who successfully defended his dissertation "Preaching Prosperity: Pentecostals and the Transformation of American Evangelicalism, 1946–1988" on April 22, 2022!
Grad Student Awards and Fellowships
The Department is delighted to announce that several doctoral students in our program have recently received awards and fellowships!
Undergraduate Research Published in National Honor Society Journal
Emma Boockvar and Zoe Millstein, two students in Professor Robb's Religious Studies Course Gender, Sexuality, and Religion have had their research accepted for publication by The Journ
Max Dugan Named a 2021-2022 Dean's Scholar!
The Department of Religious Studies is delighted to announce that doctoral candidate Max Dugan has been appointed a 2021-2022 Dean's Scholar in the School of Arts and Sciences.
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
Book Launch: Reyhan Durmaz, Stories between Christianity and Islam
A Conversation with Barbara H. Roggema
Roundtable: Applying the Religious Studies PhD beyond the Professoriate
Rebecca Mendelson (Duke RELS PhD '20), Japanese Studies Librarian, Penn Libraries
,Rose Muravchick (Penn RELS PhD '14), Associate Director of Educational Development, Center for Teaching and Learning, University of Delaware
,Alex Ramos (Penn RELS PhD '17), Production Editor, Penn State University Press
Faculty Bookshelf
Women in the Church of God in Christ: Making a Sanctified World
The Church of God in Christ (COGIC), an African American Pentecostal denomination founded in 1896, has become the largest Pentecostal denomination in the United States today.
Islam
Islam is a concise and readable survey of the history of Islam from the birth of Muhammad in seventh century Arabia to the differing situations of Muslims throughout today's world.
The FBI and Religion
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has had a long and tortuous relationship with religion over almost the entirety of its existence.
Gathering Leaves and Lifting Words: Histories of Buddhist Monastic Education in Laos and Thailand
Gathering Leaves and Lifting Words examines modern and premodern Buddhist monastic education traditions in Laos and Thailand.
The Jews: A History
The Jews: A History is a comprehensive and accessible text that explores the religious, cultural, social, and economic diversity of the Jewish people and their faith.
Print and the Urdu Public: Muslims, Newspapers, and Urban Life in Colonial India
Published by Oxford University Press
Jacob of Sarug’s Homilies on Women Whom Jesus Met
Bi-lingual in Syriac and English. Published by Gorgias Press.
Feeling Modern: The History of the Emotions in South Asia
A special issue of the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, co-edited by Megan Robb with Elizabeth Chatterjee (Queen Mary, London) and Sneha Krishnan (Oxford).
Wisdom as a Way of Life: Theravada Buddhism Reimagined
This wide-ranging and powerful book argues that Theravāda Buddhism provides ways of thinking about the self that can reinvigorate the humanities and offer broader insights into how to learn and how
Drawing on Tradition: Manga, Anime, and Religion in Contemporary Japan
Manga and anime (illustrated serial novels and animated films) are highly influential Japanese entertainment media that boast tremendous domestic consumption as well as worldwide distribution and a
Religious Affects: Animality, Evolution, and Power
In Religious Affects, Donovan Schaefer challenges the notion that religion is inextricably linked to language and belief, proposing instead that it is primarily driven by affects.
Key Themes for the Study of Islam
Key Themes for the Study of Islam examines the central themes and concepts indispensable to an informed understanding of Islamic religion and society.