Religious Studies (GTRS)

Both Theology and Religious Studies are multidisciplinary fields of scholarly inquiry with different but overlapping histories, methodologies and theories. This course will require students to examine the theories and methods and engage in conversation about the relationship of the two disciplines. The distinctive ways in which the two disciplines have developed and continue to engage each other in Canada will be the focus of the second part of the course.

This course is a research seminar examining issues about historical and current issues involving religions in Canada and especially Atlantic Canada. Special emphasis will be given to comparative studies of Canadian themes in relation to North American and International patterns.

Students will engage in library and/or field research and the writing of a thesis under supervision of a thesis committee made up of a director and two readers. The student must satisfy the supervisor that thesis research and all other methodological and disciplinary preparation for the successful handling of the thesis topic have been completed. Supervisors may require a demonstration of language competence or extra course work as preparation for the treatment of thesis topics. Students will publicly defend their thesis, following which a final grade will be determined by the thesis committee, reconstituted as the defense jury for an oral defense. This normally includes the recommendation of the external reviewer of the thesis.

Technology has allowed for unprecedented movements of people and information resulting in profound changes in the way religious traditions are practiced. Students explore some of the key themes in the study of globalization of religions, like diaspora and transnationalism, in order to understand how globalization has affected the way traditions are practiced and understood.

This course explores the relationship between religion and migration in three distinct stages: the aspiration to migrate, the capability to move, and integration into a new community. Through case studies from different religions (Indigenous, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism) and regions (Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America), the course aims to show that migration is not solely an economic or political phenomenon but also embedded in religious cultures and resources.

Directed Reading courses are designed to permit graduate students to do individual course research on topics in Religious Studies.

In lieu of a thesis, student not intending to pursue higher graduate study may choose to do an applied research project (equivalent of 1 semester course) or Practicum. Each student is required to complete a project, under the supervision of a faculty member, involving real-world application of the theory and methods of religion and/or Theology. The project will be undertaken in conjunction usually with a religion affiliated agency working either locally, nationally or internationally. The student, in consultation with her/his supervisor and the relevant agency, designs and carries out a suitable research activity. The student prepares a suitable proposal beforehand, including a letter of agreement by the host agency, engages in the research and writes a final report on the results.

This course examines the role, both actual and potential of religion in development. The two main objectives are: (1) to examine theoretically what religion has to offer to contemporary debates about the nature of development; and (2) to explore the ways in which religions have contributed and are actually contributing to development on the ground in developing countries.

In Canada and in countries around the world, interpreters of religious pluralism frequently situate their analysis of religion within social theories about secularism, pluralism, globalization, multiculturalism and human rights. This course will examine those theories and their impact on the social location of religions and religious diversity in multicultural societies.

In this course we will examine the gender aspects of religious traditions in South, Southeast and East Asia. Women are often portrayed in such roles as daughters, mothers, wives, goddesses, demonesses, temptresses, Buddhas and bodhisattvas. This portrayal is upheld by cultural systems in which both men and women participate, and can best be understood by a critical analysis of the societies in which these religions are embedded. Attention will be given to the ways that gender informs religious institutions, individual identity and practice, and the historical development of Asian religious traditions.

This research seminar is focused on the issues of “doing ethics” in multicultural, multifaith contexts. Students will learn how to conduct critical inquiry into methodological approaches and sources used when religious voices are included in attempts to create a common good.

The course will explore Orientalist representations of religious traditions as an objective “other”. Special focus will be given to the ways in which Humane scholars, religious writers and the interpreters of sacred texts contribute to the formation of various forms of Orientalism.

An historical examination of the relationship between religion and society in Atlantic Canada from the beginning of European settlement to the present. Themes to be considered include religion and the formation of regional/ethnic identities, religion and politics, religion and movements of social reform, and the impact of secularization on Atlantic Canadian society. Topics will be examined in the broader context of Canadian history and the evolution of the trans-Atlantic world.