About the Department

Religious Studies

We explore religious practices, beliefs, and cultures from a variety of angles and in multiple ways: through history, in politics, philosophically, as part of current events, in relation to science and economics, through the study of ritual, and through other methods as well. Faculty in our department engage texts and traditions in India, Japan, Turkey, China, Israel, Italy, France, Mali, Morocco, Lithuania, Sri Lanka, Bosnia, and the US.

An inherently interdisciplinary field of study, Religious Studies prepares students for a variety of paths and careers. Our students are creative and critical thinkers who appreciate intellectual challenge and want to engage the world in all of its diversity. We encourage our students to ask questions with us, whether we are in the classroom, working at a local non-profit, visiting an area temple, studying abroad, or doing undergraduate research. We are a department of active scholars who care about the world and enjoy sharing our passion for the study of religion with students.

Majoring in Religious Studies has been incredibly helpful for my career. Through my coursework, I was able to develop skills for analysis that have been greatly valued in every job I’ve ever had. I’ve been relied upon as someone able to dive into a complex challenge, analyze it thoroughly and provide clear recommendations for how to address it. I’m valued for being a writer who is able to articulate complex concepts clearly and concisely. These are skills that were honed during my time in the Religious Studies department, skills that truly set me apart from my peers.
Erin Culp ’07, Director of Philanthropy at Kettering Medical Center Foundation

Religious Studies Students Benefit from a Dynamic Curriculum

Religious Studies majors have the opportunity to take a diverse and engaging set of courses. The credit-hour requirement for the religious studies major allows students to earn a double major or add minors. The department also offers popular minors in Religious Studies and in Interreligious Studies, programs that pair well with degrees in Communications, Business, History, Political Science, Psychology and many other fields of study.

Introductory Religious Studies courses such as “Religion in a Global Context,” “Religion and Power,” and “Magic,” survey diverse religious traditions and introduce students to the field of Religious Studies. Other 100-level courses examine Buddhist traditions, Hindu traditions, Secular traditions, Islamic traditions, Christian traditions, Jewish traditions, and biblical literature. Many of our upper-level courses engage aspects of these traditions in depth, and other upper-level courses explore topics such as Religion and Popular Culture, Satan and the Supernatural, Environmental Ethics, or Sites and Rites (Sacred Space and Ritual).  Our faculty also offer study abroad courses in India, Greece, Turkey, France, Italy, and elsewhere around the world.

Religious Studies Students are Undergraduate Researchers

Many Religious Studies students pursue independent study and research projects with faculty mentors, and our students regularly attend and present at the Southeastern Commission for the Study of Religion (SECSOR) annual conference. In 2021, fourteen students attended the conference and six students presented their original research. Religious Studies students also present their research each year at Elon’s Spring Undergraduate Research Forum (SURF) and participate in the Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE). Some of our students receive support for their research through Elon’s Multifaith Scholars program.

Research and writing are an enormous part of my law school career and because I already had strong skills from my experiences as a Religious Studies major, I was able to immediately utilize and adapt these abilities to my new environment. This made my transition to a new school and academic context so much easier. Through my discussions with my Religious Studies peers and professors, I learned how to explore different worldviews and ideas, a mindset that has proved invaluable throughout my legal education. The Religious Studies department helped me foster my passions in effective ways while I was at Elon and continued to guide me as I moved into the next stage of my studies; without this formative academic background and the department’s ongoing support, I would not be where I am today.
Melina Oliverio ’16
Student at American University, Washington College of Law

Religious Studies Students Have Global Perspectives

• Religious Studies students have recently studied abroad in Denmark, France, Ghana, Hawaii, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Korea, Morocco, New Zealand, Scotland, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, and Turkey, as well as with Semester at Sea.
• Students have conducted research at the Sikh Gurudwara of North Carolina, yoga centers in India and the US, at the Schomburg Center for Black Culture in New York City, and within the Interfaith Worker Justice Movement.
• They have served as interns at the High Museum in Atlanta, Planned Parenthood in Durham, NC, and the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC.
• Our students study and speak a variety of languages, including Hindi, Arabic, French, German, Swahili, Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Spanish and Tamil.
• Many of our graduates eventually work and live internationally, in places such as Germany, France, India, Japan, Sri Lanka, the UK, and Rwanda. Domestically our students are in locations varied as Asheville, Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, New York, Seattle, and DC.

Religious Studies Students Become Successful Graduates

Recent graduates have recently been accepted to top graduate programs at Duke Divinity School, Elon School of Law, Emory’s Candler School of Theology, Harvard Divinity School, Indiana University Bloomington, Princeton Theological Seminary, University of Chicago’s School of Divinity, University of North Carolina School of Law, University of Washington, Vanderbilt University, and Wake Forest School of Divinity.

Our students pursue careers in a variety of fields, including law, museum education, non-profit fundraising and management, chaplaincy, library science, social work, international human resources, secondary education, school counseling, the restaurant industry, publishing, environmental advocacy, and university teaching.

• See our Alumni page to learn about career paths chosen by recent alumni.
• See our list of “Ten Ways to Apply Religious Studies After Graduation” here.

 

Religious Studies Faculty Are Engaged Scholars/Teachers/Mentors

Associate Professor Amy Allocco is an ethnographer who researches the religions of South Asia, particularly Hinduism, gender and everyday religion in India.

 

Associate Professor and Department Chair Geoffrey Claussen focuses on the history of Jewish practice, ethics, and theology. His research deals with topics including love and justice, war and violence, and moral formation.

 

Professor Lynn Huber specializes in New Testament and Early Christian History, focusing on apocalypticism and gender and sexuality.

 

Assistant Professor Ariela Marcus-Sells is an Islamicist focusing on Sufi traditions of West Africa. She also studies the difference between religion, magic, and science.

 

Assistant Professor Andrew Monteith specializes in Religion in the United States. He is particularly interested in questions about secularism, social regulation, and popular culture.

 

Professor Brian Pennington directs the Center for the Study of Religion, Culture and Society. He researches the history of Hinduism and modern religious change.

 

Professor Toddie Peters is a Christian social ethicist. Her research interests include economic ethics, globalization, feminist and liberation theologies, sexuality and reproductive justice.

 

Senior Lecturer LD Russell focuses on Religion and Culture. He leads a study abroad course in France.

 

 

Professor Pamela Winfield specializes in East Asian religious traditions, especially in Japan, and religion and visual culture.