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Exploring religious traditions in all of their complexity

Religious Studies Program

We explore religious traditions through comparative, contextual and thematic studies. Our courses are built on the established scholarly tradition of the study of religion as an academic, as opposed to a confessional, pursuit.

New Courses Spring 2025

Ezra Cornell statue facing A.D. White statue and Goldwin Smith Hall, fall color on the trees
  • Sex and Sexuality in Islam (RELST 2555) MW 10:10-11:25

  • Anti-Judaism and Anti-Semitism in Historical Perspective (RELST 2656) MW 10:10-11:25

  • Gospel & The Blues: A Black Women's History II, 1973-2023 (RELST 3422/6422) W 11:15-1:45

  • Islamic Mysticism: Life, Love, and History (RELST 3448/6338) MW 1:25-2:40

  • Religion and Social Life (RELST 4110) W 2:00-4:30

  • Topics in South Asian Culture and Literature (RELST 4414/6602) W 12:20-2:15

  • Martin Luther King, Jr. (RELST 6865) F 11:15-1:45

Spring 2025 Class Roster

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Engage & Support

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Major in religious studies

Interested in a specific religious tradition? Want to learn more about religious rituals throughout history and in the contemporary world? Consider an undergraduate major or minor in religious studies!

Earn honors in religious studies

The honors program is open to religious studies undergraduate majors who have done superior work and who wish to devote a substantial part of their senior year to advanced, specialized, independent research and writing of a thesis.

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Take a class

Start with "Religion and Ecological Sustainability" (RELST 2273) or "Sensational Religion" (RELST 2276) or take one of the many other courses or seminars we offer.

Apply for a summer fellowship

Given in honor of Gelek Rimpoche the Weiner Family Summer Fellowship supports funding for summer experiential learning and research for an undergraduate student studying Buddhist practice.

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Add a graduate minor in religious studies 

Cornell graduate students working in fields related to the study of religion are welcome to apply for the Religious Studies Graduate Minor in the Cornell Graduate School

The minor is designed to offer students in relevant major fields the opportunity to delve more deeply into religious studies, build an intellectual community around the study of religion, and prepare themselves professionally for academic positions in a religious studies department.

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Support religious studies at Cornell

Your support enables the program to enhance the experience for undergraduate students. Gifts can help fund lectures and conferences, student research, distinguished speakers, and other program priorities. We will greatly appreciate and immediately put into use any gift, no matter the amount.

Give to Religious Studies

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