Graduate Theological Union
Buddhist Studies
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Purpose
Buddhist Studies is a joint effort between GTU and the Institute of Buddhist Studies. Interested students can earn a M.A. in Buddhist Studies or focus on Buddhist Studies in the Cultural and Historical Studies of Religion doctoral program.
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Faculty
Core Doctoral Faculty
JUDITH A. BERLING • GTU (Chinese and comparative religions) • Interreligious learning; student centered pedagogy; interreligious education and theologial education; East Asian spiritualities.
SCOTT MITCHELL • IBS (Buddhist Studies) • Buddhism and the West; Buddhism and modernity; post-colonial studies of religion.
RICHARD PAYNE • IBS (Japanese Buddhism) • Esoteric Buddhist ritual; Indian Buddhist philosophy of mind; philosophy of language and epistomology; Buddhism and cognitive science.
SEIGEN YAMAOKA • IBS (Buddhist Studies) • Shin Buddhist Ministry; Shin Buddhist Religious Education; Pure Land Buddhism in Japan and the U.S.
Consortial Faculty
LISA GRUMBACH • IBS (Buddhist Studies) • History of Buddhism; Shinto and Japanese religions; religion and landscape.
DAIJAKU KINST • IBS (Buddhism and Pastoral Care) • Foundations & development of Buddhist pastoral care, chaplaincy, counseling in interfaith context; critical foundations for effective interfaith dialogue; interface of traditional Buddhist psychology and contemporary psychoanalytic perspectives; the teachings of Eihei Dogen: Buddha Nature, Time and Self; contemplative development and the experience of Trust.
DAVID MATSUMOTO • IBS (Buddhist Studies) • Jodo Shinshu history and thought.
Degrees
M.A.
A specialized program offered by the GTU and the Institute of Buddhist Studies
Overview
Students in the program are required to take a breadth of courses in Buddhist Studies, while also gaining an exposure to other religious traditions and a variety of approaches to the study of religion. The course of study culminates in a thesis in which the student demonstrates his/her grasp of a specialized area of study within a broader context, either Contemporary Shin Buddhist Studies or Buddhist Studies generally.
Ph.D.
Buddhist Studies is one of three tracks offered within Cultural and Historical Studies of Religion Ph.D. program.
