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> If a department from a reputable university like Oxford calls itself the theology department, you're telling me that they're wrong and they aren't actually a

> If a department from a reputable university like Oxford calls itself the theology department, you're telling me that they're wrong and they aren't actually a theology department, they're something else instead? If Harvard was founded a hundred years earlier they'd likely call their chemistry degree a bachelor's of alchemy, yet we'd all understand that they had just retained the name for historic reasons. Does anyone actually use the word theology to mean the secular academic study of religion?

foldr 9y ago
But the major would still be called 'theology', which is the relevant fact in relation to these statistics. And yes, people do use the word theology to mean that. I mean, check the first two sentences of the wikipedia article: > Theology is the critical study of the nature of the divine. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. Or see what theology departments have to say about it: https://www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/field/field_document/Theology%20Course%20Brochure.pdf https://www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/field/field_document...
- Alex3917 9y ago
  The link to the Oxford PDF supports what I'm saying, that they don't offer degrees in theology. Instead they call the program 'theology and religion.' See also that even though Harvard has a theology school, they don't actually offer undergrad degrees in theology: https://college.harvard.edu/academics/fields-study/concentrations https://college.harvard.edu/academics/fields-study/concentra... It's really no different than going to medical school, where you can take a class on homeopathy and probably even do a concentration in complementary and alternative medicine, but they sure as hell aren't going to offer degrees in either of those.
  - foldr 9y ago
    >The link to the Oxford PDF supports what I'm saying, that they don't offer degrees in theology. Instead they call the program 'theology and religion.' I really don't see how that supports what you're saying. If theology was regarded as equivalent to homeopathy (which is a comparison you could only make if you were completely ignorant of theology), then Oxford would not be offering degrees in "theology and X" any more than they offer degrees in "homeopathy and X". See also lots of other references to theology degrees that you could easily find by googling: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/subjects/what-can-you-do-theology-degree https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/subjects/what-c...

foldr 9y ago

But the major would still be called 'theology', which is the relevant fact in relation to these statistics. And yes, people do use the word theology to mean that. I mean, check the first two sentences of the wikipedia article: > Theology is the critical study of the nature of the divine. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. Or see what theology departments have to say about it: https://www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/field/field_document/Theology%20Course%20Brochure.pdf https://www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/field/field_document...

Alex3917 9y ago
The link to the Oxford PDF supports what I'm saying, that they don't offer degrees in theology. Instead they call the program 'theology and religion.' See also that even though Harvard has a theology school, they don't actually offer undergrad degrees in theology: https://college.harvard.edu/academics/fields-study/concentrations https://college.harvard.edu/academics/fields-study/concentra... It's really no different than going to medical school, where you can take a class on homeopathy and probably even do a concentration in complementary and alternative medicine, but they sure as hell aren't going to offer degrees in either of those.
- foldr 9y ago
  >The link to the Oxford PDF supports what I'm saying, that they don't offer degrees in theology. Instead they call the program 'theology and religion.' I really don't see how that supports what you're saying. If theology was regarded as equivalent to homeopathy (which is a comparison you could only make if you were completely ignorant of theology), then Oxford would not be offering degrees in "theology and X" any more than they offer degrees in "homeopathy and X". See also lots of other references to theology degrees that you could easily find by googling: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/subjects/what-can-you-do-theology-degree https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/subjects/what-c...