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Department ofReligious Studies

Religion involves the human search for ultimate meaning.

Not only a matter of belief, religion also is a primary mode for creating a sense of belonging and influences the entire scope of human societies, including ethical and political systems. Religious Studies engages the stuff of life and culture: faith and history, theology and ethics, texts and ritual, science and technology, art and literature, race, ethnicity and gender. We study Christianity and Catholicism, but also Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and other traditions, including atheism, both local and global. In the Religious Studies Department, our teaching and research are suffused with a deep commitment to social justice and care for the earth itself. The study of religion intersects with virtually every other approach to understanding the world and ourselves.

About Our Program

The Department of Religious Studies offers a degree program leading to the bachelor of arts in religious studies. The department also offers a minor program for those who wish to concentrate in theological and religious studies. In keeping with the University's commitment to the Catholic faith tradition, the department offers a variety of courses in Scripture, history, and Catholic theology. Faithful to the Jesuit tradition of liberal education and engagement with other religions, the department offers a wide breadth of courses in various religious traditions and methodologies for the study of religion. The department also offers courses as part of the undergraduate Core Curriculum, at both lower-division and upper-division levels. Courses are clustered in three areas: Theology, Ethics, and Spirituality (TESP); Scripture and Tradition (SCTR); and Religion and Society (RSOC).
 

As a double major in RS and Political Science, I am very interested in engaging with the intersection of the two fields; primarily in regards to the way religious beliefs can directly influence the political attitudes of both leaders and the general public alike.

Bjorn Thyrring '20

Faculty & Staff

Department Chair
Academic Department Manager
  • Academic Department Manager

    408-554-4547 | Kenna Hall 323F

Beyond the Classroom

Navigate here to Religious Studies Conversations

Faculty and students gather quarterly to discuss and reflect on a topic.

Navigate here to Living Religion Collaborative

Our aim is to connect students with local religious and spiritual practitioners and communities. We explore what religion is in and around our campus, what it does in the everyday lives of people, and what they do with religion and spirituality.

News & Events

Our Stories

Coming Events

Life After SCU

Kelby Uebelhor '21

Kelby Uebelhor '21 has been accepted to Yale University's Philosophy of Religion program, with an offer of a full-tuition scholarship with a stipend. Since graduating from Santa Clara University, Kelby has been an aide at a local elementary school helping students who need additional guidance in reading or mathematics. Aside from that, he has been reading texts that deal with psychological research on both Western and Eastern mysticism.
 

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