MJ Rubenstein
In her course, Colonizing Space: Exploration, Extraction and Inhabitation, Mary Jane Rubenstein, Dean of Social Sciences and Professor of Religion and Science, examines prescient questions concerning the ideological history and colonization ethos of the Apollo era, and how these ideas may play out in future exploration: “What is the idea of “manifest destiny,” and what does it have to do with outer space? Would planting a flag on Mars amount to claiming it as territory?”
MJ has long been interested in exploring where religion, mythology and story-telling surface unexpectedly and work in ways that are not immediately obvious. “Religion gets people at their most invested. Things people do connected to their religious identities tend to be deeply formative and impact how they orient themselves in the world. When I arrived at Wesleyan 18 years ago, I began to learn about developments in the sciences, particularly related to cosmology—the study of the universe at its broadest scale, and in quantum and particle physics. These fields began to suggest simultaneously that we may live in one of a multitude of universes. It became impossible to ignore the fact that multiple universes could have profound implications on the way we think about religion, and vice versa.”
Wesleyan’s open curriculum has allowed Rubenstein to flesh out these concepts with fellow faculty in the Astronomy, Philosophy, History and Earth and Environmental Sciences departments, leading to a class on God and the Multiverse. Further, she credits the commitment and openness of Wesleyan students with pushing her to be a better thinker and educator. “Our students are exemplary. Rather than taking an instrumentalist approach to education, they take a receptive approach. They demonstrate a generosity that allows them to be changed by learning. Their warmth, intellectual curiosity, and sophistication helps them to be honest with each other, and resolve conflict together.”
Mary-Jane Rubenstein is Dean of the Social Sciences, Professor of Religion and Science, and is affiliated with the Philosophy Department and the Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program.