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My question is a little of base compared to the typical questions asked in the forum but I figured you are the best person to ask about a degree in religious studies. I've always found reading about history and religion fascinating. I am a very serious Catholic and normally my face is always in a Catholic related book. I just truly enjoy educating myself. My question is, as a formal education, what would a potential graduate do with a degree in religious studies?
Gene, some people go into counseling, others into academia, some become authors, speakers and even media personalities, and yet others find themselves in a library type setting. (My old medical doctor, now deceased, first got a Ph.D. in philosophy!)
Myself, I find that having the doctorate really helps with many aspects of my life. A Ph.D. basically has to learn how to think critically. Regardless of the subject area, he or she (hopefully) acquires tools that can not only be applied in a bookish way, but in a socially beneficial way too. As the New Age enthusiasts might put it, in a "transformational" way.
Feel free to follow up.
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Answers by Expert:
Michael Clark, Ph.D.
Expertise
I'm a progressive Catholic--not a liberal, conservative nor a single-minded critic of Catholicism. I simply believe that adults in the 21C should use the mind God gave them and not just repeat ancient and medieval modes of thinking.
I can probably help with questions that intelligently and respectfully question those aspects of Catholicism that are not infallible. But if you're looking for someone to vigorously defend or perhaps refute Catholicism as a whole, that's not me. So please ask another expert.
Experience
I run an educational website earthpages.org and know what the web has to offer. I might suggest hyperlinks and/or book titles as I have a Ph.D. in Religious Studies and a considerable personal library.
Publications
Print Media:
My table from "Religions and Cults" at earthpages.org is reproduced with permission in L. Lindsey, S. Beach and B. Ravelli, Core Concepts in Sociology, 2nd ed., p. 157
World Wide Web:
My online article "Letter to God" coauthored with Buddhist monk, E. Raymond Rock, appears on several different spirituality-based websites, including http://tinyurl.com/db7a5o
I've interviewed, as a Christian, a self-proclaimed mystic: http://tinyurl.com/cawykr
My articles appeared at the former New View magazine nuvunow.ca and are published at earthpages.org.
Education/Credentials
Ph.D. in Religious Studies
M.A. in Comparative Religion
B.A. Hon. in Psychology/Sociology
For more info, please see my CV and letters of recommendation and my blog at michaelwclark.com.
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