ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT

The Department of Religious Studies at Whittier College provides students an opportunity to study the world's religions in one of the most religiously and ethnically diverse places in the world: greater Los Angeles.

Our program, which focuses on three major course areas—Global Religions, Religions: Comparisons & Contrasts, and Religion: Cultural Critique—develops students' understanding of both the global aspects of religious traditions and the specific ways in which those traditions are embedded in local environments, especially the local southern California environment. The program views religion as a social institution and sees the inquiry into religious practices and beliefs as an occasion for becoming self-conscious about theoretical issues in the study of religion. The study of religion at Whittier College also contributes to the student's self-knowledge and/or search for meaning and values.