The Religion Department: An Online Learning Platform with Andrew Mark Henry and Andrew Ali Aghapour

About this episode

This episode features a discussion with the co-founders of The Religion Department about their online learning platform for the academic study of religion.

The Religion Department is an online learning platform dedicated to the academic, nonsectarian study of religion, created by the team behind Religion for Breakfast — the YouTube channel with over a million subscribers. Co-founded by Dr. Andrew Mark Henry and Dr. Andrew Ali Aghapour, The Religion Department offers guest lectures, multi-week seminars, and guided reading courses taught by scholars of religion, all designed to make university-level religious studies accessible to anyone, anywhere. Inspired by creator-driven platforms like Dropout TV and Nebula, The Religion Department is built on a user-funded model that compensates scholars fairly for their teaching and expertise. Current offerings include a guided reading of Attar's twelfth-century Sufi masterpiece The Conference of the Birds with Dr. Patrick D'Silva, a 52-week course on key concepts in religious studies led by Dr. Henry, and many more upcoming programs. In this episode, we talk with the co-founders about how Religion for Breakfast grew into something bigger, what The Religion Department offers, and why they believe the academic study of religion deserves a home beyond the traditional university. Learn more and…

People in this episode

Host: Marshall Poe

Guests: Dr. Andrew Mark Henry, Dr. Andrew Ali Aghapour

Topics covered

• online learning
• religious studies
• academic platforms
• nonsectarian education
• scholar compensation

Keywords

• online learning
• religion
• education
• scholars
• nonsectarian

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Religion for Breakfast, The Religion Department, American Academy of Religion

Books & works: The Conference of the Birds

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