Program in Religious Studies - University at Albany-SUNY

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# Program in Religious Studies

#### Faculty

Director of Religious Studies
Nadieszda Kizenko, Ph.D.
Department of History
Professor Emeritus
John Monfasani, Ph. D.
Department of History
Professors
Louise M. Burkhart, Ph.D.
Department of Anthropology
Rachel Cohon, Ph.D.
Department of Philosophy
Susanna Fessler, Ph.D.
Department of East Asian Studies
Nadieszda Kizenko, Ph.D.
Department of History
John Schwaller, Ph.D.
Professor of History

Associate Professors
Patrick Nold, D. Phil.
Department of History
Dmitri Korobeynikov, D.Phil., Ph.D.
Department of History
Nathan Powers, Ph.D.
Department of Philosophy

Assistant Professors
Federica Francesconi, Ph.D.
Department of History/Judaic Studies Program
Aaron Proffitt, Ph.D.
Department of East Asian Studies

Religious Studies is an Interdisciplinary Studies major reflecting a wide variety of academic interests and disciplines. Its purpose is to produce a formal structure for the study of the religions of humankind.
Religion, one of the most basic of human concerns, has occupied a leading place in the thought and activities of all peoples from the earliest civilizations (as shown by archaeology), through early literate societies, (as seen in their religious texts), to the present, where religious beliefs and their consequences continue to shape the daily news.

#### Degree Requirements: Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies with a faculty-initiated concentration in Religious Studies

General program B.A.: Religious Studies requires a minimum of 36 credits, at least 18 of which must be on the 300 and 400 level, distributed as follows:

1. 3 credits from: A REL 100 Introduction to the Study of Religion
2. 15 credits from Breadth Courses:
   A AFS 341 African/African-American Religion
   A ANT 175 (= A REL 175) Anthropology and Folklore
   A ARH 205 Myths of the Greek and Roman World in Western Art
   A ANT 233 (= A LCS 233) Aztecs, Incas, and Mayas
   A ANT 363 (= A REL 363) Ethnology of Religion
   A HIS 235 (= A REL 235) Early and Medieval Christianity
   A HIS 253 (= A JST 253 & A REL 253) Medieval and Early-Modern Jews among Muslims and Christians
   A HIS 387 (= A REL 387) Islam in the Middle East: Religion and Culture I
   A HIS 388 (= A REL 388) Islam in the Middle East: Religion and Culture II
   A JST 150 Jewish Civilization: From the Birth of the Israelites until the Present
   A JST 151 (= A REL 151) Judaism and its Foundational Texts
   A PHI 214 (= A REL 214) World Religions
   A PHI 220 (= T PHI 220 & A REL 220) History of Social and Political Philosophy
   A PHI 311 History of Medieval Philosophy
   A PHI 322 (= A REL 322) Philosophy of Religion
   A REL 200 Introduction to the Bible
   A REL 265 (= A EAS 265) Introduction to Buddhism
   A REL 299 (= A JST 299) Topics in Religious Studies
   A REL 397 Independent Study of Religious Studies

3. 18 credits from one of the Concentrations: Religious Creative Expressions (Art, Architecture, Music, Literature); Religion and Society; or Critical Issues of Religion.

> Courses for the Concentration in Religious Creative Expressions (Art, Architecture, Music, Literature):
> A ARH 170 Survey of Art in the Western World I
> A ARH 171 Survey of Art in the Western World II
> A ARH 205 Myths of the Greek and Roman World in Western Art
> A ARH 241 Introduction to Italian Renaissance Art and Architecture
> A ARH 331 Monarchs, Monks, and Medieval Art: Europe 500-1100 C.E.
> A ARH 332 Gothic Art and Architecture
> A ARH 341 Italian Renaissance Art and Architecture: 1250-1450
> A ARH 342 Italian Renaissance Art and Architecture: 1450-1600
> A ARH 402 Roman Sculpture
> A ARH 405 Greek Architecture
> A ARH 432 Gothic Painting
> A ARH 442 Art and Change in Northern Europe, 1300-1500
> A CLA 207 (= A ARH 207) Egyptian Archeology
> A CLA 208 (= A ARH 208) Greek Archaeology
> A ENG 330 Literature of the Middle Ages
> A ENG 336 American Literature to 1800

> Courses for the Concentration in Religion and Society:
> A ANT 341 (= A LCS 341) Ethnology of Mesoamerica
> A ANT 233 (= A LCS 233) Aztecs, Incas, and Mayas
> A ANT 433 Mesoamerican Archaeology
> A HIS 235 (= A REL 235) Early and Medieval Christianity
> A HIS 324 Religion in American Life and Thought
> A HIS 336 History of the Early Middle Ages
> A HIS 337 The High Middle Ages
> A HIS 338 The Italian Renaissance, 1300-1530
> A HIS 339 (= A REL 339) Renaissance and Reformation in 16th Century Europe
> A HIS 346 History of England I
> A HIS 350 Gold, Conquest, & Pirates: Spain and Portugal in the Americas
> A HIS 354 History of Russia I
> A HIS 381 History of the Middle East I
> A HIS 383 The Arab-Israeli Conflict in Historical Perspective
> A HIS 387 (= A REL 387) Islam in the Middle East: Religion and Culture I
> A HIS 388 (= A REL 388) Islam in the Middle East: Religion and Culture II
> A HIS 425 American Intellectual History Since 1860
> A HIS 463 The Byzantine Empire, 300-1453
> A JST 150 Jewish Civilization: From the Birth of the Israelites until the Present
> A JST 151 ( =A REL 151) Judaism and its Foundational Texts
> A JST 221 (= A HIS 221) The American Jewish Experience
> A JST 244 (= A HIS 244 & A HEB 244) Zionism, Palestine, and Israel in Historical Perspective
> A JST 251 (= A HIS 252) Early Israel and Biblical Civilization
> A JST 252 (= A REL 252) Jews, Hellenism, and Early Christianity
> A JST 254 (= A REL 254 & A HIS 254) The Jews in the Modern World
> A REL 265 (= A EAS 265) Introduction to Buddhism
> A REL 266 (= A EAS 266) Buddhism in East Asia
> A REL 357 (= A EAS 357) Zen Buddhism

> Courses for the Concentration in Critical Issues in Religion:
> A AFS 213 History of the Civil Rights Movement
> A CAS 141 Concepts of Race and Culture in the Modern World
> A EAS 266 (= A REL 266) Buddhism in East Asia
> A EAS 345 (= A REL 345) Ethical Issues in East Asian Thought
> A HIS 235 (= A REL 235) Early and Medieval Christianity
> A HIS 250 (= A JST 250) The Holocaust in History
> A HIS 253 (= A JST 253 & A REL 253) Medieval Jews among Muslims and Christians
> A HIS 336 History of the Early Middle Ages
> A HIS 337 The High Middle Ages
> A HIS 338 The Italian Renaissance, 1300-1530
> A HIS 339 (= A REL 339) Renaissance and Reformation in 16th Century Europe
> A HIS 381 History of the Middle East I
> A HIS 387 (= A REL 387) Islam in the Middle East: Religion and Culture I
> A HIS 388 (= A REL 388) Islam in the Middle East: Religion and Culture II
> A PHI 114 Morals and Society
> A PHI 115 Moral Dilemmas
> A PHI 220 (= T PHI 220 & A REL 220) History of Social and Political Philosophy
> A PHI 212 Introduction to Ethical Theory
> A REL 299 (= A JST 299) Topics in Religious Studies
> E APS 120 Toleration

4. 3 credits from: A REL 499 Senior Seminar in Religious Studies

NOTE: Courses that conform to the intent and content of the concentration but are not listed may be counted towards fulfilling the requirements upon approval of the program director. A rearrangement of courses into new concentrations may be possible upon the approval of the program director.

Students may also complete a minor in religious studies.

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