Humanities and Social Sciences

School of Communication, Arts and Critical Enquiry

Religion and Spirituality Studies

What is Religion and Spirituality Studies?
Religion and Spirituality Studies is a study area in the Arts Program at La Trobe University Bendigo. It explores the fundamental questions with which humankind has grappled throughout history: 'Who am I?', 'Where did I come from?', 'Does life have a meaning?', 'Does God exist?', 'Is there life after death?', 'How can I know anything?', 'What is knowledge?', 'What is the nature of mind?', 'What is the relationship between meaning and language?', 'What is the proper basis of morality?' These types of questions are considered in the light of both philosophy and religion.

It presents students with an opportunity to study the great philosophical ideas, debates and schools of thought all the way from Homer and Plato down to the present. Its wide range of units include the academic and comparative study of the religious traditions of both East and West and study of such diverse phenomena as myths, rituals, cosmological systems, sacred texts, traditional iconographies and social institutions, as well as the inter-relationships of philosophy and theology.

Why study Religion and Spirituality Studies?
Broadly speaking there are three main reasons why people pursue a study of the philosophical and religious traditions of the world: 1) to explore the "big questions"; 2) to develop their own path; and 3) to understand the world they live in and the people with whom they share this world. Academically, PRS develops the key skills of research, analysis, comprehension, essay writing, argument, and logic, and the fundamental human attributes of understanding and empathy.

It offers students the opportunity to pursue a more or less conventional course in Philosophy or Religious Studies or, indeed, to mix the two together in a way which reflects the interests of the individual student. The discipline encourages students to develop and deepen their own thinking, and the Socratic method is often used in the classroom.

Enquiries should in the first place be directed to:
Dr Harry Oldmeadow, coordinator, phone +61 3 5444 7592 h.oldmeadow@latrobe.edu.au or the Administrative Officer Ms Debra Amarant +61 3 5444 7225 d.amarant@latrobe.edu.au.

News and Events
Philosophy and Religious studies seminar series

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