Department of Religious Studies

REL 100.001

Introduction to Religious Studies

T, R | 9:30-10:45

NL 2009

This Core Humanities course examines the relationships between religion and human beliefs, practices, & culture; surveys debates in the history of the field, e.g., definition of religion, insider/outsider problem, & theories about the origins and function of religion. An ideal intro to the study of religion as carried out in a public university–meaning that is is an introduction to the study of religion that’s carried out in a non-confessional manner, consistent with how we study human behavior throughout the rest of the university. Neither assuming religion to be true or false, the course examines a variety of efforts to define and study religion, paying particular attention to the implications of how we classify elements of our social world. HU INB

Russell T. McCutcheon

• Office hours: 

  By appointment

• (205) 310-7546
• russell.mccutcheon@ua.edu