R E L I G I O N

The following feature story appeared in the campus publication MOSAIC in January, 1998. Although some of the courses, students, and faculty members referenced in the story may have changed in the meantime, it still provides a full and accurate picture of the Religion department. For the most current course information and faculty listing, we encourage you to visit the department's homepage.

Religion

Examining a phenomenon to make sense of the world

Few topics in American society are more personal or more subjectively understood and embraced than religion. Yet, contends Ellsworth Morton Tracy Lecturer and Professor of Religion Frank G. Kirkpatrick, "Religion is a subject and a phenomenon that can be studied the way scientists study anything else." And, as members of the religion department believe, such objective study also enriches students' understanding of the deeply subjective experience of religion.

Trinity's religion department offers students a diversity of perspectives -- from the historical to the anthropological to the artistic-- to examine carefully a human experience that is both terribly personal and also enormously prevalent. Courses focus on particular religious traditions--Buddhism, Christianity, folk religions, Hinduism, Islam, or Judaism--or cross those boundaries to explore such areas as religion and politics, women's roles in religious traditions, and religious art, for example. As Kirkpatrick notes, "There is virtually no part of human life that is not touched by religion."

But if objectivity is the first lesson of the study of religion, then a kind of intentional subjectivity is the second. As Associate Professor of Religion Ronald C. Kiener explains, religion students should be able to read religious literature not only from an objective, scientific perspective but also with insight as to "how insiders approach the text." Students, he says, must learn how to interpret the sensitivities and subtleties that a person of a particular faith would experience when reading that text.

Deciphering for oneself
The dynamic between the objective and the subjective is a key element in developing a rich and textured understanding of religion and its impact on a world in which 95 percent of the people are guided by some kind of religious outlook. In their analysis of religious traditions, many religion majors say that the most thorough understanding can come from reading texts in the original language. Trinity's religion department offers some language courses (including Hebrew and Sanskrit) and encourages students to pursue others through the modern languages department. Language study "adds a whole dimension" to reading religious texts, says Priscilla B. Viets '98, an Individualized Degree Program (IDP) student. "So much of theology is based on what someone thinks someone said." With knowledge of the original language, she points out, students can decide for themselves what the writer means.

Kristen D. Graham '98 agrees. Graham, who became a religion major with the idea of eventually entering the ministry, took the department¹s introductory course on the Old Testament in the fall of her sophomore year. Greatly inspired by Associate Professor of Religion John A. Gettier, she says she "fell in love with the Hebrew bible." She began studying Hebrew with the burning desire to "know what the actual text said," even if that meant challenging her own personal beliefs. "You need to be honest about the text," she says. "You can't gloss over it and rationalize it and make it conform to your beliefs." While religion students must initially set aside their personal beliefs in order to learn with the objectivity of a scientist, Graham notes that the academic learning often leads to an informed examination of one's own personal beliefs. "It's never bad to have that kind of dialogue," she says.

Graham, who now intends to enroll in graduate school, says that studying religion has taught her "how to critically analyze a text using both primary and secondary sources" and to express her opinion. "The heated class discussions are fabulous for learning how to debate," she says. "You learn to put forth your argument and battle it out in an academic way."

Religion majors--approximately 10 in each graduating class--are required to develop a thorough understanding of two major religions, an ability to make meaningful comparisons among religious traditions, and to write a senior thesis. It is an education that prepares graduates for careers in a variety of areas, including law, medicine, social work, business, and religious vocations. Professor Kirkpatrick observes, "People have religious beliefs and values, and to understand religion helps us to understand them." Says Professor Kiener, "I think recruiters like the idea of someone who can bring thoughtful perspectives to ethical and moral problems in business."

Refining the curriculum
The department is currently going through an evolution, according to Department Chair and Professor of Religion and International Studies Ellison B. Findly. She notes that the department has historically served non-majors with 100- and 200-level courses that cover vital ground in aspects of American studies, Asian studies, women's studies, history, and classics, for example. Now, says Findly, religion faculty members are focusing on providing religion majors with more opportunities for comparative classes, seminars, and other in-depth work. In addition, Professor Kirkpatrick is currently developing a course that will help define the refocused religion department. An introductory survey of the world's major religions, the course will also acquaint students with methodologies for critical analysis of these religions.

The department's efforts to redefine itself are indicative of the religion faculty's ongoing commitment to quality and to innovative teaching. Individual faculty members have established ties with religious communities in Hartford, opening avenues for field trips, internships, and a richer context for learning. Capitalizing on Trinity's technological resources, Professor Kiener teaches his students how to use the World Wide Web for their research and makes class hand-outs and information available on the Web. This spring Professor Findly will use a digitized slide library for her course on Buddhist art.

A presence on campus
The religion department has a definite presence on the Trinity campus, and this is in large part due to a sense of responsibility felt by faculty members. Findly says, "We as faculty need to make a contribution to college life." In recent contributions, Professor of Religion and International Studies Leslie G. Desmangles has developed the Haitian studies program, and Professor Kirkpatrick has taken on the job of director of the College's first-year seminar program. The department often coordinates special events and programs with other academic departments and Trinity's recently established Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life. Findly has been working with Professor of Theater and Dance Judy Dworin and others to put together an interdisciplinary academic and cultural program this spring that includes public lectures and performances, Tibetan painting in conjunction with Trinity's studio arts program, and the creation of a sand mandala by visiting Tibetan Buddhist nuns.

Wojciech Pirog '99, who has a double major in religion and history, says exploring religion is particularly rewarding for college undergraduates who are at an age when "the whole point in life is to tear your beliefs apart and rebuild them." Priscilla Viets, whose senior thesis explores concepts of justice and righteousness in the writing of Isaiah, Micah, and other 8th-century prophets, says that the search for meaning is universal and timeless. Studying religion, she says, "makes you question everything that's been done and makes you ask, 'What should we be focusing on in life? How do we make sense of the world?'"

­Leslie Virostek