Examines religious thought and rituals and the Diaspora in a comparative context. Topics include traditional religions, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism in Africa, and the Diaspora. Emphasizes the transformation of religions practiced in Africa when African captives were forced into the three slave trades affecting the continent of Africa: trans-Saharan, Indian Ocean, and transatlantic.

Critically engages religion, race, and power through a variety of methods (e.g. cultural history, ethnography, and lived religions). Race is centered as a pivotal social category to be explored in relation to different religious expressions, political engagements and theories of power.

Examines the methods, disciplines, and theories employed in the academic study of religion. Focuses on major theories of religion employed in the discipline of religious studies, including historical, psychological, anthropological, and sociological approaches. Introduces students to the primary methods of research in the academic study of religion.

Explores the broad interdisciplinary spectrum of African American and Africana studies. Provides an introductory overview of the field and offers an opportunity to identify areas for more specific focus.

Offers a historical and thematic overview of the most widely recognized religions in the world today. Focuses on the formative periods and historical developments of the great religions, ritual practices, and the differing ways in which they answer the fundamental religious questions. Considers ways in which religious practitioners have attempted to understand the nature of the world, human society, and a person’s place within them.