Religious Studies Major, B.A.
The Department of Religious Studies is dedicated to the study of religions as historical and cultural phenomena. It examines the history, texts, objects, beliefs, practices, and rituals of a variety of local and global religious traditions. Inherently interdisciplinary in its approach, religious studies explores religions in light of related fields in the humanities and social sciences such as anthropology, archaeology, classics, geography, history, philosophy, political science, and sociology.
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the religious studies program, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of influential terms, approaches, and theories in religious studies
- Effectively conduct research on a specific topic using the discipline-based methods
- Communicate research clearly and effectively
- Demonstrate effective writing skills (clear focus, relevant evidence, coherent organization)
Requirements
In addition to the program requirements, students must
- earn a minimum final cumulative GPA of 2.000
- complete a minimum of 45 academic credit hours earned from UNC–Chapel Hill courses
- take at least half of their major core requirements (courses and credit hours) at UNC–Chapel Hill
- earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.000 in the major core requirements. Some programs may require higher standards for major or specific courses.
For more information, please consult the degree requirements section of the catalog.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Requirements | ||
| Six RELI courses, including courses cross-listed with other units | 18 | |
| Two RELI courses numbered 400 or above, including courses cross-listed with other units | 6 | |
| RELI 697 | Capstone: Undergraduate Seminar | 3 |
| Additional Requirements | ||
| Of the nine courses required in the major, students must take at least one course in three of the department’s five subfields listed below. | ||
| Total Hours | 27 | |
Religious Studies (RELI) course descriptions.
Introductory and intermediate language courses (RELI 401, RELI 402, RELI 403, RELI 404, RELI 409, RELI 410) are recommended for their usefulness but do not count toward the major in religious studies.
Ancient Mediterranean Religions
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| RELI 63 |  First-Year Seminar: The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls | 3 |
| RELI 65 | First-Year Seminar: Myth, Philosophy, and Science in the Ancient World | 3 |
| RELI 70 | First-Year Seminar: Jesus in Scholarship and Film | 3 |
| RELI 78 | First-Year Seminar: Reading the Bible: Now and Then | 3 |
| RELI 80 | First-Year Seminar: Religion and Writing in the Ancient World | 3 |
| RELI 104 | Introduction to the New Testament H | 3 |
| RELI 105 | Religions of the Greco-Roman World | 3 |
| RELI 109 | History and Culture of Ancient Israel H | 3 |
| RELI 114 | Early Christian Worship, Ritual, and Bodies | 3 |
| RELI 117 | Culture of the Ancient Near East | 3 |
| RELI 201 | Ancient Biblical Interpretation H | 3 |
| RELI 205 | Sacrifice in the Ancient World H | 3 |
| RELI 207 | Jesus in the Early Christian Gospels | 3 |
| RELI 208 | The Birth of Christianity | 3 |
| RELI 209 | Varieties of Early Christianity H | 3 |
| RELI 211 | Classical Hebrew I: A Linguistic Introduction to the Hebrew Bible | 3 |
| RELI 212 | Classical Hebrew II: A Linguistic Introduction to the Hebrew Bible | 3 |
| RELI 215 | Eastern Christian Cultures: Middle East, Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe | 3 |
| RELI 217 | Gnosticism H | 3 |
| RELI 314 | Memory and the Historical Jesus H | 3 |
| RELI 315 | Religious Frauds: Lies, Forgeries, and Fake News H | 3 |
| RELI 390 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 411 | Advanced Akkadian | 3 |
| RELI 412 | Ugaritic | 3 |
| RELI 413 | Biblical Coptic and Early Egyptian Monasticism | 3 |
| RELI 414 | Syriac | 3 |
| RELI 501 | The History of the Bible in Modern Study | 3 |
| RELI 504 | Readings in Hebrew Bible | 3 |
| RELI 590 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 602 | What Is Scripture? Formations of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Canon | 3 |
| RELI 603 | The Bible and Its Translation | 3 |
| RELI 607 | Problems in Early Christian Literature and History H | 3 |
| RELI 608 | The Messiah and the Apocalypse | 3 |
| RELI 609 | Christianity and Greco-Roman Culture | 3 |
| RELI 610 | Readings in the Apostolic Fathers | 3 |
| RELI 614 | The Cult of Saints: Narratives, Materialities, Practices | 3 |
| RELI 617 | Death and Afterlife in the Ancient World H | 3 |
| RELI/CLAR 375 | Archaeology of Cult | 3 |
| RELI/CLAR/JWST 110 | The Archaeology of Palestine in the New Testament Period | 3 |
| RELI/CLAR/JWST 512 | Ancient Synagogues | 3 |
| RELI/FOLK 502 | Myths and Epics of the Ancient Near East H | 3 |
| RELI/JWST 103 | Introduction to the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Literature H | 3 |
| RELI/JWST 106 | Judaism in the Time of Jesus | 3 |
| RELI/JWST 206 | Prophecy and Divination in Ancient Israel and Judah H | 3 |
| RELI/JWST 503 | Exploring the Dead Sea Scrolls H | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Asian Religions-Islamic Studies
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH/ASIA/RELI 574 | Chinese World Views | 3 |
| ARAB/ASIA/RELI 681 | Readings in Islamicate Literatures | 3 |
| ASIA/COMM/RELI 386 | Dance and Embodied Knowledge in the Indian Context | 3 |
| ASIA/COMM/RELI 387 | Disciplining the Body and Mind: The Martial Arts of East Asia in Religion, History, and Culture | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 180 | Introduction to Islamic Civilization | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 181 | Modern Muslim Societies | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 183 | Asian Religions | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 280 | Hindu Gods and Goddesses H | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 284 | The Buddhist Tradition: East Asia | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 285 | Monks, Magic, & Meditation: Theravada Buddhism Across Space and Time | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 382 | The Story of Rama in Indian Culture–Experiential | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 383 | The Mahabharata: Remembered and Reimagined–Experiential | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 384 | Religion and Globalization in Southeast Asia | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 445 | Asian Religions in America | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 486 | Islam and Feminism/Islamic Feminism | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI/WGST 482 | Sex, Gender, and Religion in South Asia | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 487 | Mountains, Pilgrimage, and Sacred Places in Japan | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 488 | Shinto in Japanese History | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 489 | Animals in Japanese Religion | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 581 | Sufism | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 582 | Islam and Islamic Art in South Asia | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 583 | Religion and Culture in Iran, 1500-Present | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 584 | The Qur'an as Literature | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 587 | Islam and Sexual Diversity | 3 |
| ASIA 300/RELI 283 | The Buddhist Tradition: India, Nepal, and Tibet | 3 |
| ASIA 301/RELI 286 | Premodern Japanese Religions | 3 |
| ASIA 302/RELI 287 | Modern Japanese Religions | 3 |
| ASIA 303/RELI 288 | Chinese Religions | 3 |
| HNUR/RELI 592 | Religious Conflict and Literature in India | 3 |
| PWAD/RELI 481 | Religion, Fundamentalism, and Nationalism | 3 |
| RELI 64 | First-Year Seminar: Reintroducing Islam | 3 |
| RELI 66 | First-Year Seminar: Buddhism in America: From the Buddha to the Beastie Boys | 3 |
| RELI 73 | First-Year Seminar: From Dragons to Pokemon: Animals in Japanese Myth, Folklore, and Religion H | 3 |
| RELI 165 | Mysticism H | 3 |
| RELI 184 | East Asian Religions | 3 |
| RELI 185 | Women/Gender/Islam H | 3 |
| RELI 248 | Introduction to American Islam H | 3 |
| RELI 279 | Islamic Law, Ethics, and Practice | 3 |
| RELI 289 | Muhammad and the Qur'an | 3 |
| RELI 381 | Religions of South Asia | 3 |
| RELI 385 | Modern Muslims and the Qur'an | 3 |
| RELI 390 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 474 | Buddhist Meditation, Mindfulness, and Modernity | 3 |
| RELI 480 | Modern Muslim Literatures | 3 |
| RELI 485 | Gender and Sexuality in Islam | 3 |
| RELI 524 | Ethnographic Approaches to Contemporary Religion | 3 |
| RELI 580 | African American Islam | 3 |
| RELI 585 | Religion and Culture of Turkey | 3 |
| RELI 586 | Women and Gender in Japanese Religions | 3 |
| RELI 590 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Medieval and Early Modern/Historical Studies
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ASIA/RELI 180 | Introduction to Islamic Civilization | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 284 | The Buddhist Tradition: East Asia | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 488 | Shinto in Japanese History | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 581 | Sufism | 3 |
| ASIA 301/RELI 286 | Premodern Japanese Religions | 3 |
| ASIA 303/RELI 288 | Chinese Religions | 3 |
| EURO/RELI 270 | Religion in Western Europe H | 3 |
| GSLL/RELI 218 | Christianity and Islam in the Middle Ages | 3 |
| GERM/RELI 227 | Luther and the Bible | 3 |
| HIST/RELI 263 | Gender and Religion in Premodern Europe H | 3 |
| HIST/RELI 454 | The Reformation | 3 |
| RELI 62 | First-Year Seminar: A History of Heresy: Christian Dissent from the Gnostics to the Pentecostals | 3 |
| RELI 77 | First-Year Seminar: Martyrs and Warriors: Religion and the Problem of Violence | 3 |
| RELI 87 | First-Year Seminar: Confessions | 3 |
| RELI 88 | First-Year Seminar: Religion and Society in Historical Novels | 3 |
| RELI 108 | Classic Jewish Texts: From Bible and Dead Sea Scrolls to Kabbalah and Hassidism | 3 |
| RELI 161 | Introduction to the History of Christian Traditions H | 3 |
| RELI 162 | Catholicism Today: An Introduction to the Contemporary Catholic Church | 3 |
| RELI 163 | Critical Issues in Western Religious Thought | 3 |
| RELI 164 | Heresy and Inquisition: Religion, Ethics, Marginalization | 3 |
| RELI 165 | Mysticism H | 3 |
| RELI 166 | Ideals, Cultures, and Rituals of the University H | 3 |
| RELI 184 | East Asian Religions | 3 |
| RELI 209 | Varieties of Early Christianity H | 3 |
| RELI 215 | Eastern Christian Cultures: Middle East, Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe | 3 |
| RELI 220 | Religion and Medicine H | 3 |
| RELI 266 | Medieval and Renaissance Christian Cultures | 3 |
| RELI 365 | Studies in Christian Theologies and Theologians | 3 |
| RELI 366 | Medieval Religious Texts | 3 |
| RELI 367 | The Art of Devotion in Medieval and Early Modern Europe | 3 |
| RELI 368 | Race, Sexuality, and Disability in the History of Western Christianity H | 3 |
| RELI 390 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 450 | Sexuality in Jewish Tradition and History | 3 |
| RELI 465 | Monotheistic Mysticism | 3 |
| RELI 565 | Medieval Jews and the Bible | 3 |
| RELI 564 | Religion, Race, and Inquisition in the Spanish Empire | 3 |
| RELI 566 | Islamic and Jewish Legal Literature | 3 |
| RELI 569 | Interfaith Marriages and Intimacy in World Religions | 3 |
| RELI 586 | Women and Gender in Japanese Religions | 3 |
| RELI 590 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 617 | Death and Afterlife in the Ancient World H | 3 |
| RELI 662 | Advanced Seminar in Contemporary Catholicism | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 362 | Mary in the Christian Tradition H | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 371 | Women Mystics | 3 |
| RELI 665/WGST 664 | Body and Suffering in Christian Mysticism | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Religion and Culture
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH/FOLK/RELI 428 | Religion and Anthropology H | 3 |
| ANTH/FOLK/RELI 688 | Observation and Interpretation of Religious Action | 3 |
| CMPL/GSLL 270/JWST 239/RELI 239 | German Culture and the Jewish Question | 3 |
| HIST/RELI 263 | Gender and Religion in Premodern Europe H | 3 |
| JWST 100/RELI 123 | Introduction to Jewish Studies | 3 |
| JWST/RELI 343 | Religion in Modern Israel | 3 |
| JWST/RELI/WGST 533 | Women, Gender, and Judaism | 3 |
| PHIL 134/RELI 126 | Reason, Faith, and God: Philosophy of Western Religion H | 3 |
| RELI 60 | First-Year Seminar: Religion and Racism | 3 |
| RELI 61 | First-Year Seminar: Religion, Magic, and Science | 3 |
| RELI 67 | First-Year Seminar: Nature/Culture/Self-Identity: Religion in the Construction of Social Life | 3 |
| RELI 68 | FYS: Charisma in Religion, Science, and Poetry Studies in the Entrepreneurial Imagination H | 3 |
| RELI 71 | First-Year Seminar: The Spirit of Capitalism | 3 |
| RELI 74 | First-Year Seminar: Person, Time, and Religious Conduct H | 3 |
| RELI 75 | First-Year Seminar: Sacrifice and Surrender | 3 |
| RELI 76 | First-Year Seminar: Money and Morality: Divining Value in Social Life | 3 |
| RELI 77 | First-Year Seminar: Martyrs and Warriors: Religion and the Problem of Violence | 3 |
| RELI 79 | First-Year Seminar: Human Animals in Religion and Ethics | 3 |
| RELI 85 | First-Year Seminar: Sex, Marriage, and Family in Religion | 3 |
| RELI 101 | Introduction to Religious Studies | 3 |
| RELI 102 | World Religions | 3 |
| RELI 121 | Introduction to Religion and Culture H | 3 |
| RELI 122 | Introduction to Philosophical Approaches to Religion H | 3 |
| RELI 125 | Heaven and Hell | 3 |
| RELI 127 | The Claims of Science and Religion | 3 |
| RELI 130 | Religion and Popular Culture | 3 |
| RELI 134 | Introduction to Religious Ethics H | 3 |
| RELI 135 | Religion, Ethics, and Technology H | 3 |
| RELI 138 | Religious Freedom | 3 |
| RELI 163 | Critical Issues in Western Religious Thought | 3 |
| RELI 166 | Ideals, Cultures, and Rituals of the University H | 3 |
| RELI 167 | Global Christianity | 3 |
| RELI 205 | Sacrifice in the Ancient World H | 3 |
| RELI 220 | Religion and Medicine H | 3 |
| RELI 222 | Modern Western Religious Thought | 3 |
| RELI 224 | Modern Jewish Thought H | 3 |
| RELI 225 | Christian Cultures | 3 |
| RELI 226 | Human Animals in Religion and Ethics | 3 |
| RELI 232 | Shrines and Pilgrimages | 3 |
| RELI 233 | Religion and Violence | 3 |
| RELI 235 | Place, Space, and Religion | 3 |
| RELI 236 | Religious Things | 3 |
| RELI 245 | Latina/o Religions in the United States-Mexico Borderlands H | 3 |
| RELI 246 | Supernatural Encounters: Zombies, Vampires, Demons, and the Occult in the Americas H | 3 |
| RELI 322 | Theories of Religion H | 3 |
| RELI 323 | Social Theory and Cultural Diversity | 3 |
| RELI 325 | Religion, Magic, and Science | 3 |
| RELI 338 | Religion in American Law | 3 |
| RELI 345 | Black Atlantic Religions H | 3 |
| RELI 352 | Anthropology of Christianity | 3 |
| RELI 390 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 420 | Post-Holocaust Ethics and Theology H | 3 |
| RELI 421 | Religion and Science | 3 |
| RELI 423 | Ethnicity, Race, and Religion in America | 3 |
| RELI 425 | Psychology of Religion H | 3 |
| RELI 426 | The Sacrifice of Abraham H | 3 |
| RELI 427 | Spirit Possession and Mediumship | 3 |
| RELI 430 | Dimensions of Evil | 3 |
| RELI 438 | Religion, Nature, and Environment H | 3 |
| RELI 452 | Documenting Religion | 3 |
| RELI 474 | Buddhist Meditation, Mindfulness, and Modernity | 3 |
| RELI 522 | 19th-Century Critiques of Religion | 3 |
| RELI 524 | Ethnographic Approaches to Contemporary Religion | 3 |
| RELI 525 | Seminar in Religion and Literature | 3 |
| RELI 527 | Religious Metaphor and Symbol | 3 |
| RELI 528 | Rituals and Rhetorics of Religion | 3 |
| RELI 530 | Genealogies of Religion | 3 |
| RELI 564 | Religion, Race, and Inquisition in the Spanish Empire | 3 |
| RELI 590 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 620 | Feminism and Religion | 3 |
| RELI/SOCI 429 | Religion and Society | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 244 | Gender and Sexuality in Western Christianity H | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 362 | Mary in the Christian Tradition H | 3 |
| RELI 368/WGST 370 | Race, Sexuality, and Disability in the History of Western Christianity H | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 424 | Gender Theory and the Study of Religion | 3 |
| RELI 665/WGST 664 | Body and Suffering in Christian Mysticism | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Religion in the Americas
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH/FOLK/RELI 342 | African-American Religious Experience | 3 |
| ASIA/RELI 445 | Asian Religions in America | 3 |
| JWST/RELI 107 | Introduction to Modern Judaism | 3 |
| JWST/RELI 143 | Judaism in Our Time | 3 |
| JWST/RELI 243 | Introduction to American Judaism | 3 |
| JWST/RELI 343 | Religion in Modern Israel | 3 |
| JWST/RELI 444/WGST 448 | Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Judaism | 3 |
| RELI 60 | First-Year Seminar: Religion and Racism | 3 |
| RELI 66 | First-Year Seminar: Buddhism in America: From the Buddha to the Beastie Boys | 3 |
| RELI 69 | First-Year Seminar: Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Judaism | 3 |
| RELI 71 | First-Year Seminar: The Spirit of Capitalism | 3 |
| RELI 72 | First-Year Seminar: Apocalypse Now? Messianic Movements in America | 3 |
| RELI 87 | First-Year Seminar: Confessions | 3 |
| RELI 130 | Religion and Popular Culture | 3 |
| RELI 135 | Religion, Ethics, and Technology H | 3 |
| RELI 140 | Religion in America H | 3 |
| RELI 141 | African American Religions H | 3 |
| RELI 142 | Catholicism in America | 3 |
| RELI 151 | Religion in Latin America | 3 |
| RELI 235 | Place, Space, and Religion | 3 |
| RELI 240 | Religion, Literature, and the Arts in America H | 3 |
| RELI 241 | Messianic Movements in American History | 3 |
| RELI 242 | New Religious Movements in America | 3 |
| RELI 245 | Latina/o Religions in the United States-Mexico Borderlands H | 3 |
| RELI 246 | Supernatural Encounters: Zombies, Vampires, Demons, and the Occult in the Americas H | 3 |
| RELI 247 | Uncertain Truths: Conspiracy Theories, Aliens, and Secret Societies in America | 3 |
| RELI 248 | Introduction to American Islam H | 3 |
| RELI 332 | The Protestant Tradition H | 3 |
| RELI 338 | Religion in American Law | 3 |
| RELI 340 | Liberal Tradition in American Religion | 3 |
| RELI 345 | Black Atlantic Religions H | 3 |
| RELI 390 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| RELI 423 | Ethnicity, Race, and Religion in America | 3 |
| RELI 441 | Religion in Early America H | 3 |
| RELI 442 | History of Religion in America since 1865 | 3 |
| RELI 443 | Evangelicalism in Contemporary America H | 3 |
| RELI 446 | Christian-Jewish Relations throughout the Ages | 3 |
| RELI 448 | Native and Christian: Indigenous Engagements with Christianity | 3 |
| RELI 452 | Documenting Religion | 3 |
| RELI 501 | The History of the Bible in Modern Study | 3 |
| RELI 540 | Mormonism and the American Experience | 3 |
| RELI 541 | Evangelicalism from a Global Perspective H | 3 |
| RELI 542 | Religion and the Counterculture H | 3 |
| RELI 580 | African American Islam | 3 |
| RELI 590 | Topics in the Study of Religion (based on topic) | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Special Opportunities in Religious Studies
Honors in Religious Studies
Students majoring in religious studies (including double majors) with a grade point average of 3.5 or above in department courses and 3.3 grade point average overall and who will have successfully completed at least one course numbered 400 or above on a topic in religious studies that is related to the proposed thesis may choose to write an honors thesis. Candidates for graduation with honors in religious studies are to be enrolled in RELI 691H in the fall and RELI 692H in the spring semester of their senior year. RELI 691H and RELI 692H count toward the major as courses fulfilling subfield requirements. Students should submit applications for the honors program to the department’s director of undergraduate studies by the end of February during their junior year. Consult the department’s director of undergraduate studies for details.
Study Abroad
Some courses through the Study Abroad Office can count towards the major and minor in religious studies as well.
Undergraduate Awards and Honors
The department presents three awards at the end of each academic year: the Bernard Boyd Fellowship, the Bernard Boyd Memorial Prize, and the Halperin-Schütz Undergraduate Essay Award.
The department also inducts qualified majors into the Religious Studies National Honor Society, Theta Alpha Kappa.
Department Programs
Majors
Minors
- Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies Minor
- Jewish Studies Minor
- Religious Studies Minor
- Study of Christianity and Culture Minor
Graduate Programs
Chair
Barbara Ambros
