Undergraduate Programs
The Department of Religious Studies offers an online major and minor as well as specialized concentrations such as in Religion and Nonprofit Leadership.
Faculty & Research
The faculty and students of the Department of Religious Studies at University of Tennessee, Knoxville engage is a wide range of research. We specialize not just in a wide range of geographical areas and historical religious traditions, but also a variety methods and approaches.
Events & Programs
The Department of Religious Studies at University of Tennessee, Knoxville hosts speakers and programs on a wide range of topics including endowed lectures in Judaism, Islam and Hinduism.
Charles H. Reynolds Distinguished Alumnus/a Award
Charles H. Reynolds served as department head from 1980 – 2001. In the wake of his passing on January 25, 2017 [TN Today | Knoxville News-Sentinel] the Department decided to create an award in his honor. Because he stayed connected to many of his former students, we decided to honor a distinguished alumnus or alumna each year. The award is handed out at the Graduation and Awards Ceremony in the spring.
Our 2024 winner is Rev. Larry J. Sykes, Jr., an alumni from the class of 2009.
Religious Studies in the News
- The Conversation: ‘Buddha’s foster mother played a key role in the orphaned prince’s life – and is a model for Buddhists on Mother’s Day’
Prince Siddhartha with his foster mother Mahaprajapati. A 1910 painting by Maligawage Sarlis. Photo by MediaJet, 2009 via Wikimedia Commons Megan Bryson, University of Tennessee Mother’s Day offers an opportunity… Read more: The Conversation: ‘Buddha’s foster mother played a key role in the orphaned prince’s life – and is a model for Buddhists on Mother’s Day’ - Religious Studies Honors Alumnus Educator
The Department of Religious Studies has named High School Director Sean Blevins from Annoor Academy of Knoxville the 2025 recipient of its Charles H. Reynolds Distinguished Alumnus Award. “He demonstrates… Read more: Religious Studies Honors Alumnus Educator - Video Games Offer New View for Religious Studies
The study of religion is taking some students to the gaming lab at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, allowing them to simulate field work and actively engage with questions about mythological narratives, transformations, and more.
Upcoming Events
Podcasts
- A Poetics of Nature: Religious Naturalism, Multiplicities, and Affinities
- Partners in Sacred History: The Nonhuman Other in Early Islam
- The Atrocity of Hunger
- Interview with Melissa Wilcox on Queer Religiosities
- Spirit Guide: African Islam, Social Justice, and the Rub of Modernity
- Spirit Guide: Tracy Pintchman on the Goddess Without Boundaries
- Kline Interview with Adam Kotsko: What is Political Theology
- Interview with Marla Frederick on Religion, Race, and Education