Religious Studies

The academic study of religion is a vibrant and vital part of OU’s liberal arts curriculum. It is in this discipline that we attend to the ways humans all over the world think about questions of life and death; engage in processes of making meaning, manifesting joy, and of grieving; and create and respond to cultures and institutions of power. Students emerge from our major with a strong foundation in deeply culturally-grounded critical thinking, an ability to interrogate and critique forms of power, and a nuanced understanding of the human condition. Our majors and minors have gone on to pursue careers in a wide variety of fields and professions including especially law, medicine, nonprofit work, and education. No matter what their line of work, our alumni are prepared to honor difference, embrace complexity, and lead with integrity. 

It is very important to all of us in Religious Studies to see students develop intellectually, find and follow their intellectual and academic interests, and develop their personal and career aspirations during their undergraduate years.  We are a warm and welcoming community of scholars and mentors with a commitment to education as well as to the success of the students who pass through our courses and our doors on the way to becoming educated and critically-thinking citizenry, whatever their career choices.  Our commitment to your education is directly linked to our hopes and aspirations for the quality of your life, including the quality of your intellectual life after you leave OU and for years beyond.

We take great pride in our graduation rates; we have no attrition and we invest in the success of our students at several levels.  What that means is simply that you're not a statistic.  We are interested in far more than checking you off a list or clicking on an online box once you've graduated.  We measure success by a host of factors beyond the achievement of a diploma.

Please explore this website to learn more about the Department of Religious Studies at OU. Our faculty offer courses in a variety of specializations leading to a BA degree, and we offer an inviting, welcoming, and rigorous scholarly community.  Welcome!

Make Your Mark on the World with a Religious Studies Degree!

Prospective Students:  Learn all about the Department of Religious Studies at OU and everything we have to offer.

Make Your Mark on the World with a Religious Studies Degree!

Also, you can check out how to set yourself apart with RELS & Pre-Law or RELS & Pre-Med.

Religious Studies majors and minors:  Access more information on degree requirements, scholarships, study abroad, available courses and more on our Religious Studies Student Resources page.

The Department of Religious Studies invites all interested students to attend our monthly RELS Student Lunch with guest Prof. Marie Dallam on Friday, Nov. 15 at 12:30 p.m. in the RELS Conference Room (Robertson 118). Lunch is provided. Prof. Dallam, Professor of American Religion and Culture in the Dept. of Religious Studies and the Honors College at OU, will discuss on "Religious Studies Classes in Prison: The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program."

You are invited to a featured scholars panel hosted by the Arts and Humanities Forum on Monday, November 4th from 5 - 6 p.m. on the 9th floor of Dale Hall Tower in the Community Room.  The event will be moderated by Department of Religious Studies Assistant Professor Wendy Mallette with guest speakers Dr. Janet Jakobsen (Claire Tow Professor Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Barnard College, Columbia) and Dr. Melissa Wilcox (Professor and Chair of the Religious Studies Department at the University of California, Riverside) and is titled "Parody and Possibility: Feminist, Queer, and Trans Studies in Religion."

This event is free and open to the OU community.

This year, the department will continue to host our monthly student pizza lunches with exciting guest speakers relevant to our students.  Students, the fall semester pizza lunches will be on the following Fridays this semester at noon:  August 23, September 20, October 18, and November 15 in the Department of Religious Studies Conference Room (Robertson 118).  Join us for our first lunch on Friday, August 23!

The Department of Religious Studies invites all interested students to attend our monthly RELS Student Lunch with guest Prof. Alan Levenson on Friday, Sept. 20 at 12:30 p.m. in the RELS Conference Room (Robertson 118). Lunch is provided. Prof. Levenson is the Schusterman/Josey Chair of Judaic Studies with the Dept. of History at OU, and he will speak on "Teaching the Bible in Public Schools: Issues of Pedagogy and Constitutionality."

Congratulations to our very own Religious Studies senior Caroline Perkins for presenting research-in-progress at the OU UReCA (Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity) Forum last Friday!

UReCA provides financial support, mentorship, and presentation opportunities to undergraduate students of all disciplines who wish to engage in research and/or creative activity. You can find out more here: https://www.ou.edu/ureca

RELS Fall 2024 Newsletter

The Department of Religious Studies is proud to announce that Camille Carlington, a University of Oklahoma multidisciplinary studies spring 2024 graduate with a focus on religious studies and psychology, has been awarded the Council on Undergraduate Research arts and humanities scholarship for 2024. The CUR supports undergraduate student research and creative inquiry projects at any stage of development up to and including presentation. The goal of the funding is to encourage diverse, innovative, and engaged undergraduate research in arts and humanities. (You can find out more about the CUR arts and humanities student scholarships here: https://www.cur.org/.../arts-and-humanities-student.../ .)

Camille's project is called 'Reverence Reimagined: Opening The Pews For Diversity.' It aims to highlight how marginalized communities, specifically Black queer communities, navigate traditional religious paradigms and cultural resistance within normative spaces. This exploration underscores the importance of Black performance art as both a beacon of defiance and a vivid display of art imitating life. Congratulations, Camille and well done!

The Department of Religious Studies is proud to announce that Caroline Perkins, a University of Oklahoma junior majoring in Religious Studies and English, has been awarded the American Academy of Religion Undergraduate Research Grant for 2024.  This grant program supports undergraduate students conducting research on religion under the supervision of an AAR member. (You can find out more about the grant program here.)  OU's Department of Religious Studies Associate Professor and Chair Deonnie Moodie will supervise Caroline's research project, and Caroline will conduct ethnographic research at four different megachurches in the American south in the summer of 2024.  Congratulations, Caroline and well done!

Hello Religious Studies community,

Please see this thoughtful tribute to Tom Boyd posted by the Dodge Family College of Arts.

Also, the OU Department of Religious Studies has received a few inquiries on how to donate to the scholarships in Dr. Boyd's name as a memorial to Tom and to his dedication to teaching and his students. If you would like to make such a contribution,  The University of Oklahoma Foundation has established a giving page dedicated to Dr. Boyd.

Dear OU Religious Studies community,

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Professor Emeritus Tom Boyd.  Prof. Boyd was a David Ross Boyd Professor of Philosophy at OU and was an integral part of  building the Religious Studies Program at OU along with his partner, Rev. Barbara Boyd.  Our deepest condolences go to Rev. Boyd and their family.

In memory of Dr. Boyd's legacy,

The Department of Religious Studies

Congratulations to Prof. Vishanoff and his colleagues for receiving a grant from the Templeton Religion Trust!

David Vishanoff is part of a team of scholars at OU, the University of Kansas, and Pepperdine who have been awarded a quarter-million-dollar grant from the Templeton Religion Trust. The grant will provide extra research time throughout 2024 to read, consult with specialists, and hold a conference on the relationship between the virtue of intellectual humility, the virtue of courage, and interreligious understanding. This interdisciplinary teamwork will bring new perspectives to Dr. Vishanoff’s long-term project on Sacrificial Listening.