Department of Religion Studies

'The Way we Think, the Way we Organize Ourselves'

The religion studies department is committed to the academic investigation of religion as an intrinsic and vital dimension of human culture.

The scholarly study of religion is an integral facet of a liberal arts education. The student of religion is engaged in the critical and interpretive task of understanding patterns of religious thought and behavior as aspects of the human cultural experience.

Religion studies is interdisciplinary in that it draws upon humanistic and social scientific modes of inquiry.

These include historical, philosophical, sociological, anthropological, and psychological perspectives. Religion studies is a cross-cultural, comparative discipline concerned with the character and significance of the major religious traditions of the world. The student of religion confronts ethical problems and basic issues of value and meaning raised by modern multicultural and technological society.

Alumni Perspectives

Jordan Eyal '13 14G

Jordan Eyal talks about why she chose a religion studies major and how her time at Lehigh has benefitted her work as Assistant District Attorney for the City of New York.

Tazeen Ali '10

Tazeen Ali was a double major in religion studies and biology. She is now on the faculty at Washington University in St. Louis, where her research and teaching focus on Islam in America, women’s religious authority, and Islam, gender, and race.