Why Iowa?

Learn to think, write, and speak with care about sensitive topics involving religious and cultural differences—and do it at Iowa where writing is the bedrock of what we do.

Develop a deeper understanding

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Learn from experts across fields

See yourself here

Be part of a community of students interested in exploring religion intellectually and culturally. Tap into Iowa's writing and research infrastructure and work with faculty to publish knowledge and findings.

Gisell Torres portrait

 

"Having great professors in the Religious Studies department has been such an enriching experience. The curriculum is diverse, delving into the complexities of worldwide belief systems and deepening my understanding of other cultures and perspectives." 

- Gisell Torres

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Join a network of graduates who have gone on to pursue exciting careers in law, health care, business, community, academia, and more. You'll leave this program a more nuanced thinker with a deep understanding of how religion impacts our world.

News and announcements

kristy nab han-warren

Dr. Nabhan-Warren selected as senior mentor for Young Scholars in American Religion Program

Friday, October 11, 2024
Kristy Nabhan-Warren, professor in the Department of Religious Studies, hopes the Lilly Endowment mentor role with the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture will allow her to continue to inspire the next generation of scholars.
photo of alumna Kayla Renee Wheeler

Alumna Kayla Renée Wheeler named Young Scholar in American Religion

Friday, September 6, 2024
Kayla Renée Wheeler, alumna of our PhD program, has been awarded membership in the prestigious Young Scholars in American Religion program.
photo of Reverend Doctor Don Davis holding a book and smiling

Rev. Dr. Don Davis awarded for distinguished service

Thursday, August 8, 2024
Davis is being awarded Wheaton College's 2024 Alumnus of the Year for Distinguished Service to Society. “Jesus said if you throw a party, do it for the people who can’t pay you back.” When Rev. Dr. Don Davis ’88, M.A. ’89, paraphrases the parable of the wedding feast from Luke 14, he means it. He will soon celebrate the 50th anniversary of his time in ministry and currently serves as the senior executive advisor to the president at World Impact, a global organization dedicated to training pastoral and ministry leaders in urban churches.

Events

D&D Night with Religious Studies promotional image

D&D Night with Religious Studies

Wednesday, October 16, 2024 5:00pm to 9:30pm
Gilmore Hall
Come enjoy a night of adventure, comradery, and food! Register as an individual or as a group- any UIowa student is welcome. You can bring your own 5th-level 5th edition D&D characters, or you can play one of our premade characters. DMs and campaigns will be provided.
Classics Colloquium: "The Queerness of the Iliad's Temporality" promotional image

Classics Colloquium: "The Queerness of the Iliad's Temporality"

Friday, October 18, 2024 4:30pm to 6:00pm
This lecture offers a new reckoning of time in Homer’s Iliad by drawing upon queer theorizations about temporality, which distinguish normative “straight time” that is structured by reproductive heterosexuality and looks towards a future associated with children from “queer time” that is shaped by different logics and either disallows the future altogether or imagines a radically unfamiliar future. It argues that the Iliad constructs a straight temporality of patrilineal continuity as a valued...

Cemetery Walk with Professor Brandon Dean

Saturday, October 19, 2024 1:45pm to 2:45pm
Learn how to “read” a cemetery, explore the porous boundaries between the living and the dead, meet the Black Angel, and more!
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