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ACADEMIC PROGRAMS

Birmingham-Southern College Catalog 2016-2017

95

one unit in the senior capstone experience, either PY 450; or PY 470/PY 499

immediately followed by PY 472, with PY 470/PY 499 counting as an elective in

the major

Majors should take PY 204 and PY 304 consecutively and as early as possible,

preferably by the end of the sophomore year.

All majors will complete the E. T. S. Major Field Test in Psychology as part of the

senior seminar.

Minor Requirements

The following courses are required (5 units):

PY 101

four elective units in PY, one of which must be at the 300 level

Religion

Bachelor of Arts

Amy C. Cottrill, Keely Sutton, Joseph Wiinikka-Lydon

Religion is a fundamental part of the human experience and an inextricable dimension

of thought, belief, ethics, politics, society, culture, and the arts. The discipline of

religious studies asks how different cultures have put together the worlds in which they

live. Areas of inquiry include the history of local and global religious traditions,

spiritual dimensions of human experience, religious dimensions of culture, and the

place of religion in society. Ultimately, the study of religion helps students to

understand the complex processes by which individuals and groups create meaning for

themselves and imbue those meanings with power.

Religious studies is inherently intercultural and interdisciplinary, and creativity and

connection are encouraged. The department of religion offers courses on topics such as

ecological spirituality, the cultural context of the Hebrew Bible, Buddhist meditation, the

history of Christian thought, religion and gender, religion and film, and religion and

politics. The department also offers opportunities to study Hebrew and organizes

Exploration term study-travel projects to England, India, and the forests of northern

Alabama. All of these offerings share a common focus on inquiring into the religious

worlds that humans create.

Religion students are frequently motivated by concerns about social justice, curiosity

about both familiar and unfamiliar cultures, an interest in religious experience and

practice, and a general desire to understand people more fully. Because the academic

study of religion teaches such valuable and transferrable skills as critical and creative

thinking, effective and purposeful communication, and rigorous research, religion

majors and minors are prepared upon graduation to pursue a variety of vocations: