M. Keely Sutton

Associate Professor of Religion

Office:

Berte Humanities Building 106

Contact Information:

Box 549025
Birmingham-Southern College
900 Arkadelphia Rd
Birmingham, AL 35254
Office Phone: (205) 226-4973
Office Fax: (205) 226-3089
E-mail: [email protected]

Brief Career Background:

Keely Sutton is Assistant Professor of Religion at Birmingham-Southern College. She teaches about a variety of traditions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. Additionally, she is interested in issues concerning the intersection between religion and social justice, and addresses such issues in classes like Wealth, Poverty, and Religion and Modern Religious Conflict. She is also the academic coordinator of the BSC Poverty Studies Distinction and one of the creators and co-coordinators for the BSC Mindfulness Program.

Educational Background:

BA in Philosophy and Religion, Appalachian State University
MA in Religion, Wake Forest University
Ph. D. in Asian Cultures and Languages, The University of Texas at Austin

Areas of Academic Interest:

Dr. Sutton’s general areas of interest include South Asian religious traditions, Islamic and Islamicate traditions (especially in South Asia), Arabi-Malayalam and Malayalam literature, interreligious dialogue and interactions, pluralism, and contemplative pedagogies.

Research Interests:

Dr. Sutton’s current area of research is the Muslim song literature of Kerala, India known as Mappila pattu. She is particularly interested in the ways in which this literature illustrates the development and shifting of religious boundaries over time, how political and social pressures influence such shifts, and how poetry/song and literature give insight into the experiences of minority populations.

Courses Taught:

RE 150 Religious Conflict and Peace
RE 210 Islamic Traditions and Cultures
RE 222 Religions of Asia
RE 225 Modern Religious Conflict
RE 270 Wealth, Poverty, and Religion
RE 275 Buddhism
RE 276 Sacred India: Traditions of Hinduism
RE 288 Meditation
RE 300 Explorations in Religious Identity
RE 341 Blurred Religious Boundaries
RE 343 Gurus, Gods, Shamans, and Saints
RE 470 Senior Seminar in Religion
PVS 470 Poverty Studies Capstone Project

E-Term:
Internships in Community and Social Change
Islam and Hip-hop
The Portrayal of Islam Culture in Film