link to studyreligion.org
Religion is arguably the most powerful and pervasive force in the world. Majoring in religious studies can help you understand the complex and sometimes volatile relationships between religion and politics, economics, and social structures, as well as the ways in which the past (scripture, tradition, history) has helped shape the present. Fall classes now enrolling! […]
During an interview in the Los Angeles Review of Books, Richard Powers indicated that in The Overstory, his Pulitzer Prize-winning arboreal novel, there is a lot of what University of Florida religion professor Bron Taylor called “Dark Green Religion” in his own book on contemporary nature spirituality. “Dark Green Religion,” according to Professor Taylor is, “a […]
Read more "Religion prof explains the backstory to The Overstory and its “dark green religion”"
The University of Florida (UF) Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere launched its Intersections Research-Into-Teaching Grants earlier this year, made possible with $400,000 in funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Awards of $30,000 were given to four Intersections Groups of UF faculty and staff working together across disciplines on researching and addressing […]
Read more "New Mellon-funded program led by UF Religion faculty, graduate students"
Each year the Department of Religion at the University of Florida awards the top undergraduate and graduate student performers in Religious Studies. The 2018 Russell Jaberg Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement by a graduating religion major, went to winner Austin Young. The runner-up for the award was Malcolm Devers. Congratulations Austin and Malcolm for your […]
Religion news is a beat in its own right. At the same time, religion as a category is not independent or sui generis. It is implicated in politics, society, science, culture, and many other fields of understanding, study, and news. The religion news this week comes from a variety of sources covering it from a variety of […]
Lies, lies, and other religious news. Religion news isn’t all bad. Nor is it all good. This week’s news tends to lean toward the more scandalous, investigative, and questionable side of things with accusations leveled at a top institutional atheist leader, claims that halal slaughter is inhumane, and the “culture of lies” surrounding Donald Trump. So you’ve been warned, […]
Read more "Lies, Lies, and Other Religion News: April 20, 2018"
Religion is a diverse object of study. Some people even argue that religion is not an object of study. At the very least, if there is a thing to the thing of religion, we can agree that it is a varied thing. The religion news round-up this week testifies to that fact. This week’s news includes […]
Read more "Give us news from ALL the religions: April 13, 2018"
It’s not the sort of thing you hear everyday — the government was working with a televangelist to discredit Martin Luther King Jr. It maybe sounds a bit crazy… But if you study religion, you know things can get weird quickly. Or, at least, you think they are weird. The truth is that they are […]
Read more "A Televangelist Plot & The Americanization of Coptic Christianity: April 6, 2018"
The study of religion can take you anywhere. This week’s news goes to show it. Some Christians are boycotting what they see as “satanic ice cream.” Other Christians are shielding potential deportees from being sent back home. Still, others are rallying around Trump or marching in the streets for gun control. Religion is not something […]
Read more "Satanic Ice Cream & Sanctuary Churches: March 30, 2018"
Hipster — a person who follows the latest trends and fashions, especially those regarded as being outside the cultural mainstream; can often be seen wearing alternative and ironic clothing, sipping on craft beer, and making plans to move to Austin, TX (a.k.a. Hipsterville U.S.A.). Humor aside, this week’s religion in the news illustrates how religion […]
The Religion Graduate Students hosted an incredible conference this past weekend that focused on the theme of Religion & Power. Scholars from across the U.S. — and Mexico — as well as those from disciplines outside religious studies including political science and history, gathered Saturday morning to discuss how religion negotiates unequal power relations, aids […]
Read more "Scholars from U.S., Mexico, Discuss Religion and Power at Conference"
Religion and power. That’s the theme for our 3rd annual RGSA Conference this weekend at UF. It’s also the theme of religion and the news this week. From the way in which Evangelical Christians and Trump are getting along (or not) to the threat of violence against Muslims as a sign of national identity, these […]
The canonization of Latin American Catholic hero Oscar Romero is a big deal and for those who study religions of Latin America (like we do!) it’s a significant moment to take note of. So too are stories about Hindu nationalism and the rewriting of history (especially for our Religions of Asia students) and Muslims saving octopuses in […]
Read more "Of Muslims, Octopuses, & Latin American Saints – Religion in the News: March 9, 2018"
Hope and despair, death and life. Religion explores, navigates, and brings both to its practitioners, observers, and students. This week’s RELIGION IN THE NEWS testifies to the full range of human experiences and emotions, from the good to the bad to the in-between: CULTURAL DISINtegration (SIGHtings) PRAYER & A PACKING PASTOR (RNS) A SHORT HISTORY OF TECH […]
Read more "Hope & Despair, Death & Life – Religion in the News: March 2, 2018"
The graduate program in the Department of Religion at the University of Florida (#UFReligion) is designed to prepare students for careers in academia, public service, non-governmental organizations, and various forms of advocacy work in the popular and public sphere. Our desire to connect our academic study of religion to the real world is helped along […]
Religion unites. Religion divides. Religion takes part in peace. Religion plays a part in violence. Religion is neither wholly positive, despite the prognostications of some evangelists. Nor is religion wholly negative, despite the prognostications of certain evangelists. Religion is. The headlines from this week testify to that fact from the Olympics in South Korea to […]
Religion news isn’t confined to the U.S. It’s a global phenomenon with impact in places across the continents. You’ll see that clearly in this week’s religion news round-up. You’ll also notice the prevalence of religion in popular culture — in video games and on television, religion continues to rear its head and be a relevant […]
It no longer seems surprising that religion rears its head in politics — on both the right and the left — and especially in the United States. But you may be surprised that religion pops up on your social media feed, on your movie screen, or on your bookshelf in the form of a text […]
Despite the overblown claims of some, religion is powerful and persistent, and it shows no signs of disappearing. It provokes heartfelt commitment, eloquent expression, forthright action, and intense debate. For both practitioners and observers—for everyone who wants to be informed about the world around them—religion is an intensely curious phenomenon that calls out for better […]
New year, new stories…many centering on religion and many more with religion angles. Get ready, because we are kicking off this year’s “Religion in the News” post with a whole slew of religion headlines: Looking back on religion in 2017, looking forward to 2018 (BAYLOR) TOP RELIGIOUS ARcHITECTURE in the world (RNS) Islam could be U.S.’s second largest […]
Remember that ole’ “secularization thesis?” You know the one, that idea that traditional religions would go by the wayside in the industrialised world? Well, anyone who still reckons that’s the case hasn’t read the headlines recently. In fact, this week we’ve almost got too much Religion in the News! From Muslims in South Korea to sausage […]
Dr. Gayle Lasater Pagnoni is the Program Director at the Boniuk Institute for Religious Tolerance at Rice University. She is also a Gator, with a doctorate from #UFReligion. Her background includes degrees in Anthropology and International Relations, and a Master’s in Latin American and Caribbean Studies with an emphasis in Sociology. Her specialties focus on religion […]
This week’s Religion in the News stories focus on the 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. Don’t know exactly what that is? Check out the stories below. We also have a bonus on why Muhammad Ali converted to Islam… Reformation debate continues in brazil, not germany (Washington Post) GLobal protestantism more “global” than you realize (Gordon Conwell) […]
Religion has always been with us. And it isn’t going away. Throughout history, it has expressed the deepest questions human beings can ask, and it has taken a central place in the lives of virtually all civilizations and cultures. Indeed, even today, we find religion everywhere we turn. In order to illustrate how relevant religion is […]
Religion has always been with us. And it isn’t going away. Throughout history, it has expressed the deepest questions human beings can ask, and it has taken a central place in the lives of virtually all civilizations and cultures. Indeed, even today, we find religion everywhere we turn. In order to illustrate how relevant religion is […]