Religious Studies

Patte, an internationally acclaimed biblical scholar and teacher, with a focus on the ethics of biblical interpretation and an emphasis on the contextual character of any interpretation of the Bible, died on Sept. 2, 2024, in Nashville. He was 85. Read More

Four students will be Keegan Fellows and travel the world for one year, and for the first time, Vanderbilt has also awarded four students a Keegan Fellowship to travel in summer 2024. The Keegan Fellowship reflects the promise from the university and Keegan Fellowship alumni to provide transformative global experiences that foster the growth of future leaders. Read More

Judith Weisenfeld, professor of religion at Princeton University, will give a talk titled “Spiritual Madness: Race, Psychiatry and African American Religions” on Tuesday, Feb. 7, at 4:30 p.m. in Buttrick Hall, Room 102. The event is hosted by Vanderbilt’s Department of Religious Studies. Read More

Tony K. Stewart has been awarded the Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy Book Prize by the Association for Asian Studies for his recent monograph, "Witness to Marvels: Sufism and Literary Imagination." Read More

Vanderbilt University’s commitment to hosting threatened and displaced scholars is highlighted in a new publication by the Institute of International Education. A senior lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies is among the scholar profiled. Read More

Faculty members Rebecca K. VanDiver and Phillip I. Lieberman are the only professors in Tennessee to receive 2019 Summer Stipends from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Read More

Read about recent faculty and student awards, appointments and achievements. Read More

New insights into how disease and impurity were viewed in first-century Jewish society suggests scholars may need to reevaluate how they interpret Jesus' interaction with people affected by leprosy. Read More

The Rev. Beverly A. Asbury, who worked tirelessly as Vanderbilt's first chaplain to eliminate racial- and religious-based hatred and to promote inclusion and respect for others, has died. Read More

Jelena Bogdanović, a leading historian of medieval art and architecture at Iowa State University, will discuss "The Canopy and the Byzantine Church" April 14 at the Divinity School. Read More

Associate Professor of the History of Christianity Paul Lim will discuss the significance of the Reformation on struggles over human rights and equality in 2018 when he delivers the Bogitsh Lecture at Vanderbilt Divinity School Feb. 22. Read More

Many incarcerated South Africans find religion in prison, found undergraduate Zoe Psakis. Read More

Researchers from a variety of institutions who study the Late Antiquity will be on campus Oct. 19-20 for a consortium in which Vanderbilt faculty across many academic disciplines will participate. Read More

Specialists on Islam will come together Sept. 7-9 at Sarratt Student Center to discuss the historical and contemporary facets of being Muslim in a wide variety of locales and language communities. Read More

Learn more about Valerie Hotchkiss, who became Vanderbilt’s university librarian Aug. 1. She serves as the executive administrator of the Jean and Alexander Heard Library as well as a professor of religious studies in the College of Arts and Science. Read More

A pastor who is a civic leader and a priest who has been a leader in higher education have been named the 2016 Divinity School and Graduate Department of Religion Distinguished Alumni/ae. Read More

Read about the latest faculty and student awards, appointments and achievements. Read More

A memorial service is scheduled Aug. 7 at Glendale Baptist Church for Peggy Ann Brainerd Way, a pioneering diversity advocate in higher education who taught at Vanderbilt Divinity School. Read More

The Vanderbilt University Fine Arts Gallery is pleased to announce a recent gift from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation of two photographs by Shirin Neshat, which are intended to spark cross-cultural dialogue about international issues and religious and political divides and to facilitate collaboration between academic departments at the university and the gallery. Read More

The evolution of coolness and black masculinity will be discussed at a two-hour forum at the downtown Nashville Library Feb. 27. Read More