News & Events

Graduate and undergraduate students from any program at McMaster can apply for the Freeman Family Bursary for Study at Hebrew University for a summer, semester, or academic year. Awards up to $12,000.

The Department of Religious Studies and the Socrates Project recently hosted a remarkable 2019 Goldblatt Lecture with Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Psoy Korolenko (New Jersey-Moscow) and historian Anna Shternshis (University of Toronto).

Globe and Mail letter from Ellen Badone argues for respectful language around mental illness.

Congratulations to John VanMaaren (PhD 2019) on beginning his new position as the Assistant Director of Academic Support, Grants, and Fellowships at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

Looking to continue your studies with a focus on Jews and Judaism in antiquity, modernity or in contemporary cultures? Here is a new overview of our Department’s offerings in these areas at the MA or PhD level.

Friday, December 6, 2019, 4-6pm, University Hall 122 Lecture by Prof. Sasaki Shizuka (Hanazono University): "An Outline of the Analytical Study of Adhikaraṇa in the Vinaya Texts"

Dr. Jeremy Penner (PhD 2010) begins a new position on December 1 as Senior Library Assistant for the Near and Middle Eastern Department at Cambridge University Library, England.

Congratulations to Michael Johnson on his reception of an Azrieli Foundation International Postdoctoral Fellowship.

Professor Anita Hannig (Brandeis University) will deliver the 2019 Harry Lyman Hooker Lectures and the Hannah History of Medicine Unit and Medical Humanities Speaker Series and Grand Rounds.

2019 Lillian and Marvin Goldblatt Lecture in Jewish Studies: The Department of Religious Studies in conjunction with the Socrates Project presents Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Psoy Korolenko (Moscow-New York) and historian Anna Shternshis (University of Toronto). Wednesday, October 23, 2019, 7-9 p.m.

The Department is pleased to announce that Dr. Ellen Amster, Hannah Chair in the History of Medicine, is joining the department. Welcome, Dr. Amster!

The Religious Studies undergraduate degree programs have a NEW name and a NEW look! Join the Department of Religious Studies on Wednesday, March 20, 4 - 6 p.m. in the foyer of University Hall as we celebrate the re-naming of our undergraduate programs.

In celebration of Women's Day, the Department of Religious Studies will be hosting Women's Wiki Day and Happy Hour. Friday, March 8, 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., University Hall 122

Rakugo has entertained generations of Japanese since the 17th century. From ghosts to geisha, samurai to salaryman, a solo performer brings scores of characters vividly to life in tales punctuated by various tones of voice, gestures, and facial expressions with a folding fan and hand towel as his only props. Monday, February 4, 7 p.m. join the Department of Religious Studies for a special performance by Yanagiya Tozaburo III.

The department of Religious Studies invites you to a presentation by Dr. R. Steven Notley (Nyack College, New York)

It is with great sadness that the Department of Religious Studies announces the passing of Dr. Yun-hua Jan. He was a respected scholar and is survived by his wife Siu-fung, his sons, Chien (Helen) and Kang (Sharon) and six grandchildren.

Looking to add another course for Term 2? Check out Religious Studies 2J03

It is with great sadness that the Department announces the passing of Dr. John Arapura. He passed away peacefully on November 30, 2018 in his 99th year. Beloved husband of the late Protima. Loving father of Donu (Mona).

Congratulations to Dr. Matthew Thiessen on the publication of his edited volume (with Dr. Lori Baron of Saint Louis University and Dr. Jill Hicks-Keeton of the University of Oklahoma) entitled The Ways that Often Parted, a volume of essays in honor of his doctoral supervisor, Dr. Joel Marcus.

The department of Religious Studies invites you to a presentation by Larisa Reznik (Goucher College, Baltimore)

Congratulations to Dr. Daniel Machiela from the Department of Religious Studies on the publication of Genesis Apocryphon and Related Documents in James Charlesworth's The Dead Sea Scrolls: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek Texts with English Translation (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2018).