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To study religion is to explore systems of meaning and ways of life, both ancient and contemporary. The academic study of religion is a multidisciplinary field that aims to increase awareness of and knowledge about the world's religious traditions by walking the crossroads of the humanities and the social sciences. A whole spectrum of disciplines, including history, anthropology, philology, sociology, philosophy, and still others, provide the analytical tools for scholars and students of religion to engage the entire variety of the world's religious cultural phenomena. Also known as religious studies, the academic study of religion examines religious life across cultures and historical periods without concern for the objective validity of any particular set of beliefs.
The Department of Religion at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa is a small and intimate department of eight core faculty members, five lecturers, 18 graduate students, and approximately 40 undergraduate majors. The Department specializes in Eastern and Pacific religious traditions; however, several faculty and staff members are experts in Western religions, most notably Christianity and Islam. Undergraduate majors are offered courses in all of the world's major religious traditions, as well as more specific fields of inquiry, such as new religious movements, witches and witchcraft, sex and religion, and the meaning of existence.
In addition to having a diverse undergraduate program, the Department is one of the world's premier institutions for M.A. training in Asian and Polynesian religions, with strengths in a wide range of areas, including:
- Buddhism in Japan and the West
- Japanese religions in modernity
- Islam and Christianity in Asia
- Hinduism and Indian religions
- Hawaiian and Polynesian religions
- Daoism, religious iconography, ritual theory
- Practical application of religious ethics in contemporary society
- Textual criticism of sources in Indian, Japanese, Chinese, and Polynesian languages
The University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa is located just south of beautiful Mānoa Valley on the island of O‘ahu. The central location of Hawai‘i in the Pacific, halfway between the United States and Asia, has resulted in it becoming one of the most religiously diverse places in the world. The active religious culture in Hawai‘i includes traditional Eastern, Western, and Pacific religions; as well as a variety of sects and new religious movements. Students have the opportunity to complement their classroom education with direct observation of a variety of religious practices. The combination of the unique expertise of the faculty and staff with the diverse religious culture of Hawai‘i is what distinguishes the Department of Religion as an extraordinary place to pursue higher education in this field.
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Faculty
