The Religious Studies program

Religious Studies is the study of religion, as understood in its broadest sense.

For many, religion shapes the very essence of what it means to be human, it takes on a dazzling array of forms and can impact virtually all aspects of a person's life. Religious Studies examines human response to life’s biggest questions.

Every religious tradition answers questions about spirituality and meaning in a different way, setting out moral values and ethical guidelines for its followers.

Religious Studies aims to enhance critical understanding of the phenomenon of religion and the diversity of religious experience and expression from antiquity to the present in both Eastern and Western traditions.

Fundamental issues such as belief, texts, worship, ritual, concepts of the divine, the human condition, and the historical development of particular religions are examined. The academic study of religion requires a measure of neutrality and distance, whereby all religious traditions are treated with similar respect and critical inquiry.