ReligionWise Introduction

What is ReligionWise and why should you listen? Also--what to expect this inaugural season!

For more about the Institute for Religious and Cultural Understanding, visit www.religionandculture.com.

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Episode Transcript

Chip Gruen (00:09):
Welcome to ReligionWise, my name is Chip
Gruen. I'm the Director of theInstitute for Religious and
Cultural Understanding atMuhlenberg College, and I will
be the host for this podcast. Itis my pleasure to welcome you
into this newest programminginitiative of the Institute.
The basic premise ofReligionWise, is that there are
professionals out in the worldwho think about religion quite a
lot. They might be scholars,teachers, they might work in

(00:31):
museums, and they interact withreligion in lots of different
ways and affect the way that wethink about religion in the
world. One of the challengesthat we face, however, is that
the connection between the workof these individuals, and the
public conversation moregenerally on religion is not
always clear. Our goal in thispodcast is to help draw out the
connections between theclassroom, the library, or any

(00:53):
of these professions to thelived experience of those who
don't think about religionprofessionally.
So the general outline that wewill follow on ReligionWise is
to start in the particulars theexpertise of our guests, whether
they be a scholar or a teacher,or work in a cultural
institution, like a museum orthe theatre. Then ask, so what?
That is, how is this work moregenerally relevant or important?

(01:16):
And then finish by asking whatare the implications for this
work for listeners in theirinteractions with diverse
religious and culturalphenomenon our world.
In this the inaugural season ofReligionWise, we'll talk about a
wide variety of issues withprominent scholars and thinkers
in the field of religion. We'llthink about Sikhism in America,
a history of anti-Semitism andphilosophy of religion.

(01:42):
This has been ReligionWise, thepodcast produced by the
Institute for Religious andCultural Understanding of
Muhlenberg College. For moreinformation, and additional
programming, please visit ourwebsite at
religionandculture.com. There,you'll find our contact
information, links to otherprogramming, and have the
opportunity to support the workof the Institute.

(02:04):
ReligionWise, is produced by thestaff of the Institute for
Religious and CulturalUnderstanding of Muhlenberg
College, including ChristineFlicker and Carrie Duncan.
Please subscribe to ReligionWisewherever you get your podcasts.
We look forward to seeing younext time.