Dr. Victor Matthews, Dean of the College of Humanities and Public Affairs and Professor of Religious Studies, published his 19th (!) book, Experiencing Scripture: The Five Senses in Biblical Interpretation. Recently, Adair Seifert interviewed Victor for The Missouri State Journal. Victor’s primary academic field is in Biblical Studies, specifically the Old Testament/Hebrew … [Read more...] about Dean Victor Matthews Publishes 19th Book
The MSU Graduate College recently awarded the Distinguished Thesis Award in the Humanities to Mr. Riley Brown, who graduated in spring 2022 with a Master's Degree in Religious Studies. Riley’s thesis is called “A Nation of Priests: Authority, Expertise, and the Religious Nones,” and he argues therein that the religiously unaffiliated are akin to self-appointed experts in … [Read more...] about Religious Studies Graduate Wins Distinguished Thesis Award!
Dr. Vadim Putzu is on sabbatical and updates us on his research in Italy: In the past two weeks I spent some time in Apulia, the “heel” of Italy, where I was invited to be a scholar in residence with the University of Salento (https://international.unisalento.it/departments/humanities) and the Jewish Museum of Lecce … [Read more...] about Wine and the Divine in Jewish Mysticism – News from Dr. Putzu in Italy
Dr. Vadim Putzu, Religious Studies Associate Professor specializing in Judaism, is on sabbatical. Here he shares some of his experiences: Since I am currently on the Isle of Elba (off the coast of Tuscany, Italy), I decided to follow a lead provided by our graduate student, Cody Yanez. Last semester, Cody took my “Intoxicating Religions” course, which explores the … [Read more...] about Making New Wine in Ancient Ways
Missouri State University's Department of Religious Studies is the official host of the Midwest American Academy of Religion (AAR) Conference to be held virtually this year on Thursday-Friday, 22-23 April, and Thursday-Friday, 29-30 April. We are thrilled to be hosting so many brilliant scholars, educators, and colleagues over the next two weeks at this year's regional AAR … [Read more...] about Midwest AAR Conference Begins!