Religious Studies Minor

Introduces the study of global religions, highlighting their complexity and strategies for recognizing patterns of similarity and divergence. Topics include history, development, texts, practices, and beliefs.

TBC: Creativity and Cultural Expression (Explorations)

Introduces the academic study of world religions with an emphasis on the ways religion both influences and is influenced by society and human behavior.

TBC: Human Society and Social Relationships (Discovery)

An introduction to the religions, people, culture, geography, and history of the Middle East from the distant past to the present.

Studies the historical development of biblical and extra-biblical texts with an emphasis on cultivating the skills of critical textual analysis, an understanding of reception history, and the emergence of diverse canons and interpretive approaches across different communities, both Jewish and Christian.

Employs central categories and concepts from the academic study of religion to analyze case studies from Western, Eastern, and Indigenous religions.

Explores religious diversity in North America with a focus on local case studies. Students will conduct original, ethnographic research examining religious sites in Murfreesboro.

A socio-historical survey of Christian thought and practice from the patristic period to the contemporary era. Discusses major events, texts, and figures in Christian history. Includes the study of theological concepts, interpretations of scripture, Christianity and politics, gender and sexuality, and disputes over orthodoxy.

The study of religious rituals and ceremonies that mark specific points in time, namely those in which individuals experience transition (births, weddings, funerals, and initiations). Explores how rites of passage and religious identities around the world are constructed and serve as sites of both conflict and resolution in a variety of religious traditions and cultural contexts.

A cross-cultural and comparative examination of the dynamics of religious journeys with the goal of gaining a thorough understanding of the phenomenon of pilgrimage in all its complexity. Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Judaism, Muslim, and indigenous traditions regularly included.

Surveys discourses and rituals associated with the supernatural across world religions. Topics covered might include angelology and demonology, sorcery and witchcraft, hauntings and possessions, and magic and miracles.  

A survey of mystical discourses, practices, communities, and institutions in Eastern, Western, and Indigenous religious traditions.

Examines the intersections of race, religion, and nation in various historical and cultural contexts.

Examines the cinematic expression of religious traditions and development of religious issues in cinema.

Examines global Christianities focusing on how narratives of the global correspond to and feed into localized religious practices within Christianity in a variety of regional and specific contexts.

Surveys the diverse portraits of Jesus reflected in the socio-culture interface of the first century CE, early Christian literature, the modern scholarly quest for the historical Jesus, and in light of recent discussions, movements, films, and books

Examines and analyzes contemporary issues in the religious lives of Native American, First Nations, Aboriginal, and other indigenous groups from a religious studies perspective.

Explores historical and socio-cultural developments within Hinduism, Buddhism, and Asian religions, their relation to other religions, and interactions with broader cultural forces.

Explores historical and socio-cultural developments within Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; their relation to other religions of the world.

Presents a survey of historical and contemporary Buddhist traditions. Examines the rise and development of Buddhism throughout Asia in areas such as India, Southeast Asia, Tibet, and East Asia. Closely examines doctrines, rituals, ceremonies, and scriptures and compares key similarities and key differences among diverse Buddhist traditions such as Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana Buddhism.

Survey of Islamic traditions in various historical and cultural contexts.

Investigates how new religious movements emerge, develop, and interact with American society and surveys "cult controversies" in the United States, asking why some new religious movements gain cultural legitimacy while others do not.

Explores the complex and contested relationship between religion and the law by examining how debates over the proper relationship of religion and government as well as the limits of religious freedom have developed and changed over time.

Examines magic, ritual, and religion in the context of Tibetan Societies. Religions covered will include Buddhism, Bön, Islam, and indigenous Himalayan tradition.

Inquires about the shared history and the confluences of religion and nationalism in their different manifestations from early modern times to the day.

A study of formations of religious traditions through biographic formations of figures known as founders, revivers, reformers, or transgressors from various religious traditions.

Study of the impact of the cultural milieu of the late antique Near East on the formation of the Qur'an; study of the impact of the Qur'an on the formation of varieties of cultures in Islamicate communities.

(Same as WGST 4201.) Examines changing conceptions of women's roles in various religious traditions with particular attention to the ways religious beliefs and practices have influenced and are influenced by feminism and struggles for gender equality both within and outside religious institutions.

Prerequisites: RS 2030 and RS 3020 with grade of C or better; junior or senior standing. Practical experience in applying coursework in Religious Studies to actual situations and projects in organizations, both on and off campus, in a supervised internship program.

An in-depth study of a specific topic in Religious Studies. Content will vary from semester to semester and will reflect the research interests and expertise of the instructor. May be taken more than once, as topics change for a maximum of 9 hours.

Directed study concerning a particular problem or thinker within religious studies.

Prerequisite: At least 12 Religious Studies credit hours and junior or senior standing or permission of instructor. Capstone seminar for Religious Studies majors and minors. Students reflect on previous religious studies coursework in the context of their college education, analyze and critique substantial theoretical contributions to the discipline of religious studies, and complete a final product that "caps" their study of religion at MTSU.