Religion

Religion is one of the most powerful social and cultural forces in human history. It has wreaked havoc through time and been a source of profound comfort and good.

Religion majors at Emory represent a wide range of individuals with an equally wide range of interests.

Whether you’re looking to go into the clergy, medicine, public service, or any number of other careers, developing a deeper understanding of religious traditions and their impact on history, policy, culture, society, and the way we interpret our stories will serve you well.

Examples of Classes at Oxford

Asian Religious Traditions

Explore Hindu schools of thought and religious traditions. Continue by studying Jain, Buddhist, Japanese Shinto, and Chinese Confucian and Taoist religious and philosophical traditions.

The Myth of Religious Tolerance

The American national creed elevates religious tolerance to a central position in its view of U.S. history. This perspective leaves no place for the religious intolerance that has marked U.S. life since the colonial period.

Civil Liberties

Examination of individual liberties guaranteed by the United States Constitution, including freedom of expression and religion; the right to privacy; and the right against discrimination based on age, sex, race, or economic status.

Example of Major Classes

History of Religions in America

From the colonial period to the present, examine what American people think and do with religion and spirituality. You’ll explore and have opportunities to question the divine right of kings, religious gestures used by Tim Tebow and Colin Kaepernick, religiously marginalized or oppressed communities, and everything in between.

Religion and Healing

Interest in meditation has grown increasingly as research suggests that it may positively enhance health and well-being. In this course, you’ll explore the mind/body connection and the broader role of faith, ritual prayer, and medication in various models of healing.

Introduction to Religion

In this course you will explore diverse ways of being religious by examining the unique concepts, behaviors, cultures, and experiences that comprise different faith traditions.

Research In Religion

International Research

As a Humanity in Action Fellow, Virginia Spinks 17C spent a month immersed in the study of human and civil rights in Sarajevo, Bosnia, and Herzegovina. The fellowship ended with a cohort of international students gathering for a conference in Berlin.

Emory University's National Scholarships & Fellowships office assists interested students in finding opportunities in the U.S. and around the world to further their research and exposure.

Mind-Body Science Summer Abroad

The Emory-Tibet Science Initiative offers a unique opportunity to combine study of western science and Buddhist philosophies. Spend five weeks with a Buddhist refugee community in India in an environment where Tibetan Buddhist monastics and students inspire and learn from each other.

Emory University is the only university in the Western Hemisphere to have such a close partnership with Tibet and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Religion has really asked me to question the boundaries that we've set up and so readily accept religion as one thing and secularism, politics, and science as another. I'm interested in both diplomacy and human rights and want to be able to work with people of different faiths and cultures.
Alizeh Ahmad '14
Religion and International Studies major, spent a year teaching English in Malaysia on a Fulbright scholarship, then earned a Masters of Theological Studies, Islamic Studies from Harvard University.
More about Religion and International Studies

Visit the Department of Religion