Unis are killing the critical study of religion, and it will only make campuses more religious

Wed, 28 Jul 2021 05:26:45 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://theconversation.com/unis-are-killing-the-critical-study-of-religion-and-it-will-only-make-campuses-more-religious-164402>

"Global developments in tertiary education suggest the critical scientific
study of religion is endangered. One of the departments slated for
extinguishment amid the pandemic-related upheavals was my own at the University
of Sydney. This reflects a trend that has captured the academy in Australia and
worldwide.

If we take South Australia as an example, over the past decade programs for the
critical study of religion at the University of South Australia have been
almost completely extinguished, while programs in theology, such as at
Flinders, find their future assured. On the east coast, studies of religion
programs at the universities of Queensland, Monash, Deakin and Newcastle have
been wound back greatly, bled into “multidisciplinary” programs, or closed.
Departmental identities have been terminated. What isolated staff are left
teach just a handful of electives.

In the United States, Boston and University of California Berkeley have wound
down or shut their programs, as has Stirling in the United Kingdom. A range of
American colleges are just not teaching religion critically any more."

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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