Theta Alpha Kappa (TAK) Honors in Religion Awards Ceremony

Wednesday, April 11th, from 3:00-4:00pm
Wingate – First Floor Lounge

The Department of Religion would like to honor your induction into the national honors society Theta Alpha Kappa (or TAK) for majors and minors in religious studies. We will have a small ceremony with refreshments on Wednesday, April 11th, from 3:00-4:00pm, in the lounge on the first floor of the Department.

The entire faculty and staff of the Department of Religion want to congratulate you on your wonderful scholarly achievement in the field of religious studies.

Gender Justice: American Muslim Discourses on Women’s Authority, Leadership, and Interpretation
Sponsored by: Triad Inter-university Project on Muslims in the Triad

Time: April 12, 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Location: Annenberg Forum, Carswell Hall
Speaker: Professor Juliane Hammer is assistant professor and Kenan Rifai Fellow in Islamic Studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She specializes in the study of American Muslims, contemporary Muslim thought, women and gender in Islam, and Sufism. Her most recent book American Muslim Women, Religious Authority, and Activism: More Than a Prayer (University of Texas Press, 2012) examines gender discourses in American Muslim communities through the writings of American Muslim women and with a focus on the 2005 woman-led and mixed-gender congregation Friday prayer in New York City. She is currently working on a research project focusing on American Muslim efforts against domestic violence.

Research in Religion Lecture Series

 Jarrod Whitaker
Strong Arms and Drinking Strength
February 23rd (3:30pm) – Wingate 202
Professor Whitaker will be discussing his new book, Strong Arms and Drinking Strength.  Professor Whitaker examines the ritualized poetic construction of male identity in the Rgveda, India’s oldest Sanskrit text, arguing that an important aspect of early Vedic life was the sustained promotion and embodiment of what it means to be a true man.
Nelly Van Doorn-Harder
The Emergence of the Modern Coptic Papacy
March 22nd (3:30 pm) – Wingate 202
Professor Van Doorn-Harder will discuss her new book, The Emergence of the Modern Coptic Papacy.  Her book spans the five centuries from the arrival of the Ottomans in 1517 to the present era and addresses the political, religious, and cultural issues faced by the patriarchs that led the Coptic community into the twenty-first century.
Stephen Boyd
Making Justice Our Business: The Wrongful Conviction of Daryl Hunt and the Work of Faith
April 12th (3:30 pm) – Wingate 202
Professor Boyd will be discussing his new book, Making Justice Our Business: The Wrongful Conviction of Daryl Hunt and the Work of Faith.  Boyd’s book covers the saga of Hunt, who spent 19 years in jail on a wrongful conviction before being freed in 2003.

The Future of the Philosophy of Religion
February 15, 4:30p.m – B316 Tribble

Sponsored by the Departments of Philosophy and Religion

Kevin Schibrack, Ph.D.
Professor and Department Head
Department of Philosophy and Religion

Kevin Schilbrack is Professor and Head of the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Western Carolina University.  A graduate of the University of Chicago Divinity School, he teaches courses in theory and philosophy of religions and is the contributing editor of Thinking through Myths and Thinking through Rituals (Routledge, 2002, 2004) and The Blackwell Companion to Religious Diversity (Blackwell, 2013).  In his scholarship, he seeks to develop the conceptual tools for practicing philosophy across cultures and to build bridges between the different disciplines at work in the academic study of religions.  His forthcoming book is entitled The Future of Philosophy of Religion (Blackwell).

Religion Department Faculty/Student Dinner
Monday, February 6th, at 5:30

Come join us for the Religion Department Faculty/Student dinner on Monday, February 6th, at 5:30 in Wingate Lower Auditorium.
Free food and fun conversation!  Please sign-up outside Wingate 118.

Mindfullness Meditation Retreat at
Alexander Correctional Institute
February 6th-7th

For more information about the retreat -Click Here

Tuesday, September 20 –7:00 (Brendle Recital Hall)

Voices of Our Time— “The Perils of Religious Ignorance: Religious Literacy for the 21st Century”

Dr. Stephen Prothero, Boston University

 

Religious illiteracy can be dangerous, says Stephen Prothero
In a lecture co-sponsored by the Department of Religion, Stephen Prothero, a Boston University professor of religion, gave the latest talk in the Voices of Our Time speaker series. Prothero argued that although the United States is one of the most religious countries in the world its citizens remain largely ignorant of the most fundamental elements of other peoples’—and their own—belief systems. Prothero delivered his timely remarks to a packed house. See the feature article on the WFU homepage, which includes some reflections from senior Religion major Eason Armstrong.  Or, watch the video of the event.

 

 

Wednesday, September 21–3:00-4:30 (401 Benson)
Symposium on “Religious Literacy and the Professions” (sponsored by the Dept. of Religion)

Representatives from the professional schools will respond to the question: “What do you need to know about Religion to succeed in your profession?” Participants will include:

  • Dr. Kathi Kemper, Director of the Center for Integrative Medicine at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center)
  • Dr. Ram Baliga, John B. McKinnon Professor of Management, WFU Schools of Business
  • Dr. Ronald Wright, Professor of Law, WFU School of Law
  • Dr. Stephen Prothero, Boston University (Respondent)

On the Humanities Institute website, there is an interesting article concerning the symposium on “Religious Literacy and the Professions.”  The article provides responses to one of the many questions that were considered that afternoon: “Is knowledge of religion important for success in your profession, and if so why?”
Take a look.

Monday, September 26th — 5:30 pm Wingate Lower Auditorium

Annual Fall Semester Faculty-Student Dinner!

Religion Majors, Minors, and Interested Students are welcome to come for food, fun, and conversation with Religion Department Faculty.  Please sign up on the sign-up sheet on the Bulletin Board across from Wingate 118.

Wednesday, October 5th from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm Benson 401

Major/Minor Fair

 

Interested in a Religion Major or Minor?  Come to the Major/Minor Fair on October 5th from 1-5 in Benson 401!  Talk with Religion Department faculty, find out about Spring 2012 courses, and learn what you can do with a Religion Major/Minor.