April 2012
29 posts
Prof. Jackson's Recent Piece in the Huffington... →
Rev. Murray's Memoir Now Available through... →
ALUMNI PROFILE: Derek Schujahn, Operations...
By Alex Tilsley
As a freshman at USC, Derek Schujahn learned quickly that Aerospace Engineering, his declared major, wasn’t the right fit. Searching for an alternative, he stumbled upon a class in Judaic Studies.
“I loved it so much,” he says. “It turned my whole heart around to studying the motivations of human behavior in terms of religious sentiment. From that moment on, from the spring of...
Reminder: RELIGION IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE: JAPAN AND...
Conference Convenors: Lori Meeks (USC) and Duncan Williams (USC)
27 APRIL: Film Screening
Abraxas (Director, Naoki Kato, 2010)
In his youth, Jonen was a punk-rock musician. Now he’s a Buddhist monk with a wife and five-year-old son. During his career-day speech at a local high school, however, Jonen has a public breakdown that leads to a deep depression when he realizes the importance of music...
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: Mark Kaufman, D.D.S.
By Ali Mendoza
Dr. Mark Kaufman, a religion major from the class of 1979, always knew that he wanted to be a dentist. “Everyone who wanted to be a dentist went into the biology major. People told me its what I had to do. I had a rebellious nature and did not want to do that.”
Temporarily suppressing his rebellious nature, the young Mark Kaufman started his USC experience with general education...
"Do You Have Faith in the Media?" by Profs. Diane... →
Dean Soni Interviews Rev. Chip Murray on the... →
Student Achievements
We are delighted to share news of recent student achievements with you. First, we would like to announce that sophomore Karissa Masciel has won a Mellon Mays award. Senior Jennifer Escobar received the award last year and is currently completing research on Pentecostalism in Los Angeles. Karissa and Jennifer are both considering graduate school in religious studies. Secondly, we have confirmed...
USC Spectrum to Host Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, April...
The Art of Living Foundation, International Association for Human Values, USC Spectrum, USC’s Office of Religious Life, USC Yoga and Service Club presents
Close Encounters of the Screen Kind: Investigating the Role of Human Values in Hollywood Storytelling
Admission is Free to USC Students, Faculty and Staff; Advance tickets available at USC Spectrum, Tutor Campus Center #427.
April 18,...
Undergraduate Symposium for Scholarly and Creative...
By Alex Tilsley
Parin Patel, a senior majoring in business and archeology (a major housed in the School of Religion), has spent the past two years analyzing and cataloguing artifacts from USC’s collection. Patel has focused on pieces that deal with Gandhara Buddhism, scrupulously examining every detail to decipher the meaning and significance of each artifact.
“It’s amazing being able to hold...
Paid Research Opportunities for REL Majors!
IRG-CRCC CALL FOR UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH ASSOCIATES
Summer 2012 (2-3 positions) or Academic Year 2012-13 (2-3 positions)
The Interdisciplinary Research Group (IRG) of the Center for Religion and Civic Culture (CRCC) is searching for students to participate in research projects related to religions and religion-related issues.
Summer positions: 20 hours per week for at least 6 weeks (start...
Religion in the Public Sphere: Japan and the...
SATURDAY 28 APRIL
Time: 10:30 AM – 5:00 PM
Location: Tutor Campus Center, Room 227 (The Rosen Family Screening Theatre)
CJRC Inauguration Symposium RELIGION IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE: JAPAN AND THE WORLD
Morning Session
10:30 AM – 12:45 PM
“Post 3-11 Religion in Japan”
Susumu Shimazono, Professor, University of Tokyo; former President, Japanese Association for Religious Studies
Respondent: Donald...
CJRC to Screen New Japanese Feature Film about a...
Film Screening ABRAXAS (Director, Naoki Kato, 2010) In his youth, Jonen was a punk-rock musician. Now he’s a Buddhist monk with a wife and five-year-old son. During his career-day speech at a local high school, however, Jonen has a public breakdown that leads to a deep depression when he realizes the importance of music to his life. In an attempt to raise Jonen’s spirits, the compassionate chief...
Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies to Host a...
This conference is part of an on-going research project the Institute has been supporting since 2006 called The True Wealth of Nations (TWN). This project has been led by Dan Finn, Institute trustee, economist, and theologian who teaches at St. John’s College in Minnesota, and Paul Caron, who is a former Institute trustee and was head of J. P. Morgan in Switzerland and Belgium. They have formed a...
New Book Published in Honor of Prof. Zuckerman's...
From the Brill website (http://www.brill.nl/puzzling-out-past):
Puzzling Out the Past
Studies in Northwest Semitic Languages and Literatures in Honor of Bruce Zuckerman
Edited by Marilyn J. Lundberg, Steven Fine, and Wayne T. Pitard
Bruce Zuckerman has transformed the way we look at ancient Semitic inscriptions. Through his efforts, the most important inscriptions...
WatchIntroduction to Islam: Professor Sherman Jackson
Video by Mira Zimet
REL Professor Sherman Jackson Named among the...
The King Faisal Chair in Islamic Thought and Culture in USC Dornsife has been recognized for his work bridging the gap of understanding between Muslims and non-Muslims.
By Ambrosia Brody April 2, 2012
Sherman Jackson, King Faisal Chair in Islamic Thought and Culture, and professor of religion and American studies and ethnicity in USC Dornsife, has been named for the second time among the...
Signs of Christian Authority in the Pre-Modern...
Sponsored by the Interdisciplinary Working Group (IRG) of the Center for Religion and Civic Culture (CRCC) at the University of Southern California (USC)
April 12 (2-5 pm) & April 13 (10-5 pm) Doheny Library 241 USC
This informal conference and workshop brings together historians, art historians, and scholars of religion to consider the many ways that pre-modern Christians...
REL Majors: Here's your chance to get published!...
Writing a fabulous paper for one of your upper-division REL courses? Consider entering the Theta Alpha Kappa Essay Competition! Winning essays are published in the Journal of Theta Alpha Kappa.
To view last year’s journal (and last year’s winning essays), stop by Prof. Meeks’ office hours (Mon./Tues. 1:00-1:50 pm in ACB 130). Once our new lounge is complete, we will leave...
2012 Graduate Fellowship Awards Competition
Attention REL seniors: If you are planning to attend a graduate program in religion or theology next fall, you may be eligible to compete for the TAK (Theta Alpha Kappa) Graduate Fellowship Award. Please notify Director of Undergraduate Studies Lori Meeks if you would like to compete for this award (meeks@usc.edu). And faculty, if you know of a student who may be eligible, please let us know.
...
Prof. Meeks Wins Book Prize
Hokkeji and the Reemergence of Female Monastic Orders in Premodern Japan, by Lori Meeks, has been awarded the Association for Asian Studies’ (AAS) 2012 John Whitney Hall Prize. The award was announced at this month’s AAS annual meeting in Toronto.
Hokkeji and the Reemergence of Female Monastic Orders in Premodern Japan is a volume in the Kuroda Institute’s Studies in East Asian...
Religion in Los Angeles: Buddhist Painting Exhibit...
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art will open Paths to Enlightenment exhibition at its Pavilion for Japanese Art, East Wing on April 12.
This installation of paintings from LACMA’s permanent collection presents the uniquely blended mix of religions in Japan, whose populace was historically offered a variety of paths to spiritual understanding or deliverance from damnation.
Zen...
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Alumni Spotlight: Mike O'Sullivan, Reporter
By Alex Tilsley
After Haiti was struck by an earthquake in January 2010, Mike O’Sullivan was one of many reporters who departed for the small Caribbean country. Along with other journalists went searching for stories at hospitals or destroyed homes. Unlike many others, however, O’Sullivan also went to church.
O’Sullivan, who earned his Ph.D. in Religion and Social Ethics from USC in 1981 and now...
Reminder: Embrahim Moosa on campus this Thursday
Professor EBRAHIM MOOSA (Duke University)
“The Politics of Virtue: Law, Ethics, and the Public Sphere in Contemporary Islam” Thurs., April 5, 9:30-10:50 am, THH 102
Prof. Moosa will present this lecture as part of Prof. Sherman Jackson’s REL 137 course, Introduction to Islam. All REL students are welcome, but seating may be limited.
Meet Our New Religion Staff Writers
Ali Mendoza is a second-year graduate student working on a Master’s degree in Communication Management at the Annenberg School of Communication. She is passionate about studying how the nature and business of communication are changing, especially in regard to television and internet media. She works as a Production Manager for both USC Spectrum and USC Performance Venues, and she is...
