How diverse has religious study become?
Williams: Departments like ours are covering more of the major religious traditions, and sometimes tribal and indigenous religions — African or Native American, for example. The methods of studying religions have changed too. Religious studies scholars use anthropology, sociology, historical and cultural studies, and literary theory to understand religious texts, world views, and institutional expressions. Recognizing new questions and insights prompted by feminist scholarship, Professor Tracy Coleman and I offer three courses that emphasize those perspectives. Q: You hear this frequently: I’m not religious, but I’m a spiritual person. With CC students, what does that mean? What’s the difference? Weddle: Students often associate “religion” with traditional practices, institutional loyalties, restrictive moral rules, dogmatic beliefs — everything they reject about “organized” religion. Of course, the logical alternative would be “disorganized” religion, but that doesn’t sound very good
