Religion emerges with the very beginnings of human consciousness as exhibited in grave sites and cave paintings. It has been part of all societies and cultures past and present, and today is important in contemporary politics, global economics, and personal psychology. Religion has been an inspiration for peacemaking and social progress and has been a force for violent conflict and social regression. In studying religion, we see a central aspect ofwhat constitutes our societies, cultures, humanity, and personhood. The study of religion at The College of Wooster proscribes no particular religious perspective or tradition, but explores the broad dimensions of the many forms of human religiosity.
Religion asks questions of meaning, purpose, and value.
Studying religion involves using many different sources, including accounts of the human response to transcendence, ritual expressions of devotion, and textual traditions that account for and explore the mysteries of life, death, and afterlife. In the classroom and in your independent work, the department's faculty and students will help you to examine the impact that religious inquiry, inquisitiveness, institutions, insight, and involvement has upon the individual, communities, and society at large. The Department of Religious Studies invites you to join the ranks of scholars of religion. We want you to envision your coursework and I.S. not simply as proof of your mastery of method, or of your cogent command of the existing literature on any given topic. While these are worthy goals, we want to push you further.