Religion, Society and Culture

This degree will equip you with the skills to understand religion and its power to shape the human condition. You will engage with the role of religion in a wide range of contexts, including politics, literature, bioethics and war.

Theoretical perspectives are applied to a variety of specialist topics – from fundamentalism in the USA to sacred landscapes in northern India; the role of Islam in modern Britain; Pentecostalism in sub-Saharan Africa; and death rites across the globe. Urgent current ethical questions are studied, and you will be encouraged to arrive at well-informed and reflective positions on topics such as the environmental crisis, end-of-life issues, poverty and warfare.

The course enables you to better understand the world we live in, and to explore the forces that shape our own attitudes, hopes and fears. In turn, it will empower you to go out into the world to make a difference for the common good. You can also apply to add a placement year or a year abroad to your degree, increasing the course from three years to four.

In the first year, modules are intended to provide the foundational understanding and skills necessary for work in theology and the study of religion.

In the second year, there is a much greater choice of modules to allow you to pursue your own interests within theology and religion by building on the understanding and abilities you have begun to develop in the first year.

The third year includes a dissertation that allows a deep, independently driven, exploration of a topic of your choice.

Year 1
Core modules:
Islam Observed: Ethnographic Accounts of Muslim Practice introduces the study of Islam from an anthropological perspective. The module aims to develop an understanding of the diverse forms of Muslim religious life in the contemporary world and to foster an appreciation of the complex relationship between the local and the global in Islam.

Worldview, Faith and Identity outlines established approaches to the study of religion. The module introduces ideas of identity, faith and worldview as foundations for religious thought and practice.

Introduction to the History of Christianity looks at the history of Christianity and to its relationships with its social and cultural contexts including the representation of different periods, different regions, different social groups such as historically marginalised groups, and different methodologies.

In recent years, optional modules have included:
People and Cultures
Societies in Transition
Classical Sociology Theory
New Testament Greek
Introduction to Christian Theology
God and Evil
God and the Good: Philosophy of Religion and Ethics
Introduction to Bible: Texts, History, Culture
Year 2
In recent years, optional modules have included:
Death, Ritual and Belief
Science and Theology: Exploring the Interface
Religion in Contemporary Britain
Atheism, Belief, and the Edge of Reason
Myth and Meaning: The Structural Analysis of Mythology
Research Project and Colloquium in Theology and Religion
God and the Universe of Faiths
Sacred India: Land, Politics and Identity
Sects, Prophets and Gurus.
Year 3 (Year 4 if undertaking a placement year or year abroad)
In your final year, you will submit a dissertation on a related topic of your choice, approved by an academic advisor. The dissertation allows you to explore in depth a topic of special interest to you.

In recent years, optional modules have included:
Religion and Film
Emotion and Identity in Religion
Christian Fundamentalism and the Modern World
The Historical Jesus
Christian Tradition and the Practice of Politics
Jesus Christ in the Twentieth Century
Religious Diversity in African Contexts
Religion, Media and Popular Culture

Modules are assessed by essays and end-of-year examinations, some by a combination of the two. Forty per cent of your degree will be assessed by coursework.

Our curriculum places a strong emphasis on self-directed learning and you will be provided with reading lists, handouts, suggestions for preparation and other online materials to guide you in your independent research.

In your final year, you will submit a dissertation, which allows you to explore in depth a topic of your choice.