It’s been an interesting few weeks in REL, to say the least; given the worldwide spread of COVID-19, the University of Alabama extended Spring break, asked students not to return to campus after it, and released a plan to alter how we finish the semester. Originally we planned to re-open main offices on the Monday after Spring break but the so-called limited business operation (LBO) of campus has been extended until Sunday, March 29 (with only essential employees allowed on […]
Category: Religion in Culture
Posts in this category discuss how those aspects of culture known as religion can be studied in a way comparable to all other cultural practices.
Upcoming REL Events Canceled
With Spring break right around the corner, during which little might be taking place on campus, but happening just as the nation-wide spread of the COVID-19 virus shows no signs of slowing down, we felt that it was necessary to be proactive and to think ahead a little, so that REL students, faculty, and staff know that at least a few things are settled for the coming weeks. Because the experts continue to tell us that not only regular hand-washing, […]
Mining Futures for the Philosophy of Religion: What to Do with 80,000 or so Journal Articles
By Nathan Loewen and Jackson Foster We have some questions. Given its conventional focus on topics and problems specific to Western Christianity, how might the philosophy of religion enter the 21st century, globalized world? How may researchers build bridges from those conventional approaches towards other topics and problems? Steven Dawson’s essay reviews some conventional approaches to answering these questions. Were it useful to find complimentary research from other (sub)fields, however, how might this be done across thousands of other, specialized […]
New Staff Soon Joining REL
With Betty and Donna’s upcoming retirement (effective April 1 — did you see the announcement?), it’s time to announce who we’ve hired to keep both our main office and the Department as a whole on the right track. LeCretia Crumpton will be our new full-time Administrative Secretary; she’s currently working on campus in the Department of Chemistry, where, apart from general clerical duties and working with a variety of UA systems, she’s focused on assisting their efforts to recruit and […]
It Cuts Both Ways
If you were paying attention to US news this past week it was probably tough not to know that the Senate trial of President Trump concluded with him being acquitted by a vote that pretty much went along straight party lines. I say pretty much because a lone Republican Senator, Mitt Romney, from Utah, voted to convict. The reason Romney’s vote stood out for some scholars of religion on social media was likely the manner in which he couched his […]
Yes, We’ve Got Some Great Students
Although our annual Honors Day ceremony on the balcony is a couple months away (Friday, April 3 this year), it’s time for the faculty to make some decisions about which students to recognize and award for their hard work and successes. […]
REL’s Annual Careers Workshop
REL grad Khara Cole (Religious Studies and Public Relations, 2013), and member of our Alum Liaison Committee, is a freelance career coach and will return for her third annual CV-writing/careers workshop for REL majors, minors, and MA students. It will be held Tuesday, February 11 at 6:00 pm in Manly 210 (with pizza), with individual meetings with Khara scheduled that evening for her return visit on Wednesday, February 19, for one-on-one meetings for her feedback on CVs etc. If you’re […]
The Science of Religion–A Work in Progress
Prof. Richard Newton reports on a discussion topic from his graduate seminar on the history of religious studies. His students have been talking about the backstory of debates on definition as it pertains to religious studies. This week, students read a little bit from the nineteenth century Dutch scholars, Cornelis P. Tiele. In my History of the Study of Religion seminar, our Religion in Culture graduate students have been discussing the very enterprise in which we are engaged. The course […]
Call for Submissions: Alum Liaison Committee Award
Are you a student in an REL class this year (whether or not you;re a major or minor in our Department) who is game to write approx. 500 words on: How you found the study of religion at UA Aspects of the field that you found surprising Unexpected ways in which you might apply what you’ve learned If so, then our Alum Liaison Committee, comprised of four REL grads, wants to hear from you! Annually, at the Department’s Honors Day […]
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Highlighting REL Undergraduate Research
It’s that time again: time to consider presenting your research at REL’s 7th annual Honors Research Symposium. Devoted to the work of our undergrad students, the annual symposium is chaired by REL M.A. students and is again organized by REL faculty member, Emily Crews. The event this year will again be held in Gorgas Library 205, all morning on Thursday, March 26 — we’ll announce the actual start time closer to the event, once we know how many students will […]