Speaker at the Forty Years of Religious Studies at Davidson College talk on 10/26/2022, Professor William Mahony, Ph.D., is the Charles A. Dana Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at Davidson College and is notable for his study of religions in India.
Professor Rachel Pang, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Davidson College moderated the talk and asked Professor Mahony questions. These included basic introduction questions for Professor Mahony, before shifting to his areas of focus, and the progress of religious studies here at Davidson College. Following the conclusion of Professor Pang’s questions, Professor Mahony remained on the floor to answer questions directly from the audience and to expand on answers to previous questions. Professor Mahony’s goal during this talk was to review the development of religious studies and programs available at Davidson College over his 40-year-long tenure and to share information regarding these programs with other individuals who may have otherwise been unaware.
In the past, the topic of religious studies of any sort struck me as irrelevant to my academic interests, or even to education itself. While I am a Protestant Christian, I believed that studying one’s religion belongs outside of the classroom. I understood the importance of possessing knowledge of religion but did not consider it necessary or useful to be offered in higher education. Professor Mahony’s answer to one of the questions asking “What drove students to take these courses?” reversed my point of view on this subject. At a liberal arts college such as Davidson, a substantial focus is placed on developing a well-supplemented worldview. Mahony explained that students at Davidson College tend to seek out religious-studies courses in an effort to “understand what it means to be human.” As religion has been a part of the human race for all of recorded history, this made perfect sense to me. It was both a simple truth and a simple answer, yet I had still never even considered this, even as I attended this school, whose education system revolves around maximizing one’s worldview.
I was surprised to leave Professor Mahony’s talk with a newfound interest and respect for religious studies within both the education system and my own academics. I had expected to enter and exit with fresh information regarding the progression of the religious department at the college, but not to form a legitimate interest in what they have to offer. The questions asked by Professor Pang were chosen with the intention of Professor Mahony providing his knowledge of religious studies as a whole and its development at the college, but also to spark interest in the audience within this topic, as I now see. Looking around at several other students, I noticed expressions that seemed to display similar thoughts. While this talk might not have been oriented at gaining new students in religious-studies courses at Davidson College, I believe there is a considerable chance of some, including myself, enrolling in at least one such class in the future, as a direct result of this enlightening presentation.
