 "Photo: MCT")
Washington University will offer a Pluralism, Politics and Religion Program in Paris beginning this June, in collaboration with the University’s Pluralism, Politics and Religion Initiative.
Students participating in the program will take two classes in France for a total of six University credits. The first class, “Politics and Religion in Contemporary Societies,” taught by Professor of Anthropology John Bowen, will relate to immigration, religious pluralism and state politics in France and the rest of the European Union.
“Politics, Religion and Art in Antiquity: Representations in Paris,” the second class, will be taught in the Louvre and other French museums by Anthropology and Archaeology Professor David Freidel. The course, which will focus on antiquity religion and politics, will allow students to travel to a number of cultural and historical sites in Paris, including the Musée d’Orsay, a local Catholic church, a newer evangelical church, the oldest Mosque in Paris and a synagogue.
“[The purpose of this program] is to give University students a chance to learn on site about religion and politics in Europe,” Bowen said.
Anthropology Professor Carolyn Sargent expects students to find the program a valuable opportunity.
“This is an opportunity to explore political and religious dynamics as they play out among the diverse populations residing in France today and also to investigate the political and religious themes reflected in the art and architecture of past civilizations,” Sargent said.
Some students, including freshman Peter Bohlen, have already shown interest in such issues—an interest that will facilitate the use of the Pluralism, Politics and Religion Initiative (PPRI) study abroad program.
“I think religion and politics are a pertinent [issue] in France because France is becoming more and more secular and religion is having a more diminished presence,” Bohlen said.
Likewise, freshman Daniel Rubin agreed that attending the program could help tremendously in understanding contemporary European culture.
“Paris is my favorite city and I look forward to learning about how different religions affect their political system,” Rubin said.
While this is the first year that PPRI has been expanded to offer programming for undergraduates, the University offers an exchange program between graduates from the French University École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE) and University graduate students.
“We currently have graduates at Washington University working together with [EPHE] students, and then that group will all be in Paris for spring semesters,” Bowen said.
The initiative also has a strong presence on campus, featuring conferences and lectures open to the student body.
This fall, Michel Wieviorka, a scholar from the EPHE social sciences department, spoke at the University on anti-Semitism in France. Later this spring, the University will host another conference relating to multiculturalism and immigration in Europe.
Students interested in applying to the summer study abroad program should complete their application, which includes short essays and a recommendation, by Dec. 8.
Be the first to comment on this article!