Religion

The Department for the Study of Religion offers courses on the religious dimensions of human life in societies and cultures from a contemporary, global perspective.  Courses on religion and culture are offered as a way to explore various disciplines and their approaches to the study of religion or to engage in a debate around a theme structured to include both religious and non-religious views.  Such courses may examine a theme comparatively in order to show the views of different religious traditions or a theme may be presented in terms of a debate between religious and non-religious understandings.  Courses on the comparative study of religions include surveys of the major religious traditions of the world as well as courses which compare characteristics of religious life across several religious traditions.  Examining religious diversity in Canada and around the world is also part of the study of comparative religions.  By virtue of its character and history, Saint Mary’s University has a special responsibility to teach courses on Christianity.

Electives

Students seeking an elective may take any Religion course at the 1000 or 2000 level.  Students who have completed 30 credit hours of university course work and have completed a minimum of three (3) credit hours at the 1000 level and three (3) credit hours at the 2000 level may register for a 3000 level course in Religion to complete a degree requirement for an elective at the 3000 level.

Degree Requirements

The Bachelor of Arts (BA) is a well-established, foundational degree and requires the requirements listed below alongside general graduation requirements.

Religion courses at the 1000, 2000 or 3000 level satisfy a humanities requirement in the Arts Faculty; non-Commerce electives in the Sobey School of Business and the humanities requirements in the Faculty of Science.

Major in Religion

Students majoring in Religion must fulfill the following requirements:

The equivalent of thirty-nine (39) credit hours in the Department. Normally, these will be distributed as follows:

Course List

Code	Title	Credit Hours
Select six credit hours at the 1000 level		6
Select six credit hours at the 2000 level from two different traditions (taken from the Traditions courses (A, B and C)		6
Select nine credit hours at the 2000 level from the Issues courses (II)		9
Select six credit hours at 3000 level from the Traditions courses taken in 2 above		6
Select three credit hours at the 3000 level from the Issues courses		3
RELS 3351	Field Research Methods	3
RELS 4481	Theories and Methods in the Study of Religions (Please note this course is offered in alternating academic years)	3
Select three credit hours at the 4000 level		3
Total Credit Hours		39

An overall minimum grade point average of 2.00 in the courses counted toward the major.

Concentration in Religion

Only students in the ninety (90) credit hour B.A. may complete the concentration requirement in Religion.  The required twenty-four (24) credit hours in Religion must conform to the following guidelines:

1. No more than three (3) credit hours may be at the 1000 level
2. Six (6) credit hours must be at the 2000 level from two different traditions (A, B & C) [section III, see courses list below];
3. A total of fifteen (15) credit hours at the 3000 level. Of these:
   • Six (6) credit hours must be taken Tradition courses, building from the Traditions courses taken in 2. above;
   • Six (6) credit hours at the 3000 level from the Issues courses;
   • An additional three (3) credit hours in any 3000 or 4000 level course.
4. An overall grade point average of at least 2.00 must be maintained in the twenty-four (24) credit hours in Religion.

Honours in Religion

An honours student must complete sixty-three (63) credit hours in Religion courses which include:

Course List

Code	Title	Credit Hours
Complete all of the requirements for a Religion major		39
Select three credit hours at the 3000 level from the Issues courses		3
Select three credit hours at the 3000 level from the Traditions courses		3
Select three credit hours at the 3000 level from Scriptural Analysis in the Methods courses (IV)		3
Select nine credit hours at the 3000 level or above		9
RELS 4000	Honours Thesis Research RELS	3
RELS 4001	Honours Thesis Writing RELS	3
Total Credit Hours		63

In addition to the sixty-three (63) credit hours in Religion students must complete at least six (6) credit hours in a language chosen from among:

• Hebrew
• Greek
• Latin
• Chinese
• Japanese
• Arabic
• French
• Spanish
• German

or another language acceptable to the department.

Admission to an honours program normally requires Department approval no later than when a student has completed sixty (60) credit hours.  In addition to the Faculty of Arts requirements for honours, a minimum grade point average of 3.00 in Religion courses is required for admission to, and continuation in, the honours program.

Minor in Religion

A minor in Religion may be completed by taking twenty-four (24) credit hours in Religion as follows:

Course List

Code	Title	Credit Hours
Select six credit hours that may be at the 1000 level		6
Select six credit hours that must be at the 2000 level from the Traditions courses (section III, see courses list below)		6
Select six credit hours that must be at the 2000 level from the Issues courses (II)		6
Select six credit hours that must be at the 3000 level from the Traditions (III) or Issues courses (II)		6
Total Credit Hours		24

An overall grade point average of 2.00 must be maintained in the twenty-four (24) credit hours.

In a Religion minor students must complete at least twelve (12) of the twenty-four (24) required credit hours at Saint Mary’s.

Student Counseling

Students completing a minor, a concentration, a major and honours must have their Religion courses approved by the undergraduate advisor on an annual basis.  In some instances, majors and honours students will be requested to take prerequisites for Departmental courses.  Suggested prerequisites are kept on file in the Department.  With renumbered or restructured courses, students are advised that they are not eligible to take a course for credit if they already have a credit for a comparable course, even if that course was taken at a different level.

Notes: With renumbered or restructured courses, students are advised that they are not eligible to take a course for credit if they already have a credit for a comparable course, even if that course was taken at a different level.

Course Groupings for Majors

Course List

Code	Title	Credit Hours
I. Introductory Courses
RELS 1251	Religion in Contemporary Culture	3
RELS 1252	Religious Diversity in Canada	3
RELS 1351	Love	3
RELS 1352	Death	3
II. Issues Courses
ANTH 3316	Anthropology of Religion	3
ANTH 3366	Worldview: Anthropology Approaches	3
RELS 2211	Religious Lives	3
RELS 2310	Religion and Social Ethics	3
RELS 2325	Myth and Story	3
RELS 2330	Spirituality and Work	3
RELS 2332	Religion and Childhood	3
RELS 2333	Gender, Sexuality and Religion Today	3
RELS 2342	Violence	3
RELS 2343	Jewish Religious Tradition	3
RELS 2347	Ecology and Religion	3
RELS 2826	Monsters	3
RELS 3100	Religion and Development	3
RELS 3101	Law and Religion	3
RELS 3205	The Future	3
RELS 3316	Anthropology of Religion	3
RELS 3318	Ghosts: A Cultural Approach	3
RELS 3330	Spirituality in the Workplace	3
RELS 3348	Ecological Crisis: Religious Perspectives	3
RELS 3349	Science and Religion	3
RELS 3356	Religions in Film	3
III. Traditions Courses
A. Asian
RELS 1222	Religions of Asia (formerly RELS 1220)	3
RELS 2326	South Asian Religious Traditions	3
RELS 2327	The Buddhist Religious Tradition	3
RELS 2401	Religions of China and Japan	3
RELS 3010	Vietnamese Religious Tradition	3
RELS 3337	South Asian Religions and the Arts	3
RELS 3359	Buddhist Paths	3
RELS 3360	Engaged Buddhism	3
B. Christianity and Judaism
ENGL 2327	The Bible and English Literature	3
ENGL 2328	The Catholic Tradition in Modern British Literature	3
RELS 2305	Women in Christianity	3
RELS 2324	World Christianity	3
RELS 2343	Jewish Religious Tradition	3
RELS 2350	Faith in Action: Religion and Social Movements	3
RELS 2377	Introduction to the Bible: Hebrew Scripture	3
RELS 2378	Introduction to the Bible: New Testament	3
RELS 3303	Birth of Christianity in the Ancient World	3
RELS 3311	Jesus Of Nazareth	3
RELS 3312	Theologies of Liberation	3
RELS 3328	The Catholic Church Today	3
RELS 3338	Religions and Art: The West	3
C. Islam
RELS 2323	The Islamic Religious Tradition	3
RELS 2370	Introduction to the Qur'an	3
RELS 3373	Islam in South Asia	3
RELS 3374	Islam in North America since 9/11	3
D. Other
ANCS 3317	Greek Sanctuaries (formerly CLAS 3317)	3
ANCS 3352	Women and Family in Ancient Greece (formerly CLAS 3352)	6
RELS 2353	New Religious Movements	3
RELS 3220	African Diaspora Religions	3
RELS 3354	Indigenous Peoples, Religion, Spirituality and Social Justice	3
IV. Methods Courses
RELS 2370	Introduction to the Qur'an	3
RELS 2377	Introduction to the Bible: Hebrew Scripture	3
RELS 2378	Introduction to the Bible: New Testament	3
RELS 3351	Field Research Methods	3
V. Seminars (4000 level Courses)
A. Issues
RELS 4150	Religion and Globalization	3
RELS 4151/GTRS 6151	Religion and Migration	3
RELS 4333	Religion Race & Gender	3
RELS 4387	Religious Pluralism	3
RELS 4389	Religion and Public Life	3
B. Traditions
RELS 4200	Postcolonialism and Religion	3
RELS 4390	Religion and Society in Atlantic Canada	3
C. Methods
RELS 4481	Theories and Methods in the Study of Religions	3