I think one of the most interesting points that came up in class is how we often treat Religion Studies differently than other fields. It is considered a sensitive topic, largely because of how complex and ingrained religious identities are. Because of this sensitivity, it is treated differently than Biology, or Physics, or even other Humanities fields such as English or History. But the case is that diversity is needed in all of these fields. No one field should be made up entirely of people whose identity is so strongly ingrained in what they teach that they cannot teach it from a secular, academic perspective. If Islamic Studies or Jewish Studies or any other field is made up of people who identify with that people and bring that identity into all of their work, then we struggle to help others learn about that group and how it genuinely functions. You run into the risk of teaching theology more than religion. You do not need to be an outsider to study a certain group within the field of religion, but you should be able to put on your “outsider” hat in order to observe how that group functions and takes its place in the larger scheme of humanity.
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