History of Religions
The History of Religions explores the importance of religion in the historical processes that make up world history. It situates religion in its historical and socio-political contexts as part of the interplay of forces that constitute the story of humankind, and acknowledges the role of religion in shaping and being shaped by that story.
Honours Bachelor of Arts
Program Plans
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Tip Sheets
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- Historian
- Curriculum Specialist
- Mediator / Conflict Resolution Specialist
- Interfaith Minister
- Media Analyst
Admission Requirements
Regional Requirements
Admissions RequirementsLife in History of Religions
Buzz Around Campus
Kristen Bos initially resisted going into the field of Indigenous studies. “I started out in archaeology and wondered why it was that I and so many other native friends and scholars were doing work in either anthropology or archaeology,” says Bos, an assistant professor in UTM’s Department of Historical Studies.
In 1914, a Buddhist priest worked in secret, translating a sacred text into a forbidden language, publishing it using a printing press smuggled into Kathmandu from India. From that act of defiance grew a century-long movement of resistance that finally saw the ban on the Newar language lifted in 2007.
From Nutella to Nintendo, a summer history course at U of T Mississauga is challenging students to consider how everyday products fit into capitalist culture. The History of Capitalism (HIS212H5) is a second-year history course offered over the summer semester.
Sample Courses
What is religion? How should we study it? This course gives students the opportunity to ask the big, messy questions about religion, and to see how scholars know what they know about it. Students will learn key theoretical ideas and research methods.
A study of the historic relationships between religion, magical practices, and astrological beliefs.
An examination of how religion is portrayed in literary, visual, and performing arts.
Other Programs to Consider
Philosophy
Our philosophy program cultivates general intellectual virtues of critical thinking, clarity of thought, writing and communication, and creativity in approaching difficult problems. Our philosophical reflections are also guided by critical engagement with the views of great thinkers like Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, Quine, Kripke, and many others.
Diaspora & Transnational Studies
Diaspora and transnational studies examines the historical and contemporary movements of peoples and the complex problems of identity and experience to which these movements give rise as well as the creative possibilities that flow from movement.
Anthropology (HBA)
Anthropology is the study of humankind from its beginnings to present. In practice, the discipline divides itself into several subfields, each of which focuses on different aspects of human life across space and through time.