Devry RELI448 All Week Assignments Latest May 2019 Question # 00601111 Subject: Education Due on: 05/09/2019 Posted On: 05/09/2019 11:44 AM Tutorials: 1 Rating: 5.0/5

RELI448 Comparative Religions

Week 1 Assignment: Perspectives Essay

Due Sunday by 11:59pm
Points 25 Submitting a file
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Required Resources

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 1

Lesson

Minimum of 2 scholarly sources (1 for the etic view, and 1
for the emic view. Your source for the emic view should come from someone who
writes with authority in the religion you chose. For example, if you chose
Buddhism, you could use a quotation from His Holiness, Dalai Lama XIV).

Instructions

Make sure to read the lesson this week to learn about etic
and emic perspectives so that you can appropriately apply them in this
assignment. In an essay, apply the etic and emic perspectives to your own
religion or a religion with which you have some familiarity.

How would your tradition be described etically? Remember
that this is an outsider’s perspective of what can be measured, studied, or
observed.

How would it be described emically? Remember that this is an
insider’s perspective as seen by practitioners

Make sure that you are using at least one source for each
approach and include citations from the assigned readings and additional
scholarly sources.

Click on the following link to view an example:

Link: Shinto Example

Etic

Shintoism is the indigenous religious practice of the
Japanese archipelago. Having no specific founder, the practices and belief of
Shinto (the Way of the Gods) can be traced to Japanese pre-history (Molloy,
2018, p. 246). As an animistic tradition, 1Shinto is focused on the veneration
of nature spirits, the worship of ancestors, and observance of seasonal rites.
What can be called the primitive form of Shinto was strongly related to the
formation of an agricultural culture… Shinto developed from the worship
(matsuri) 2performed in relation to the agricultural activities engaged in by
those communal societies (Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai, 1985, p. 147). Though there are
no universally held doctrines in Shintoism, there are some unifying practices
and texts. The Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters) and the Nihon Shoki
(Chronicles of Japan) both relate the myths of Japan’s creation and the
subsequent emergence of culture and society (Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai, 1985, p.
1-11). 3These texts provide the foundation for the nature-based religions that
would eventually become Shintoism, including some of the 3earliest recorded
prayers to the kami (gods, or nature spirits), called norito (Molloy, 2018,
p.253).

Central to Shinto practice is the idea of matsuri, or worship
of the kami. Matsuri can have multiple forms and purposes, including
“beseechings, giving thanks, presenting offerings, divination, announcing,
praise, and making vows (Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai, 1985, p. 232).” Sometimes special
celebrations, or festivals, are also referred to as matsuri, as they serve as
offerings to the kami.

Traditionally, Shinto has marked the seasons with special
practices, particularly for planting and harvesting rice… Because respect for
nature is at the heart of Shinto, 4reverential objects and small shrines are
sometimes placed in the midst of forests, in fields, or on mountains (Molloy,
2018, p. 257). It is not uncommon to find such small shrines, called kamidana
(lit. table for the god), in Japanese homes. In offering daily prayers at these
small shrines, the Japanese people connect with the indigenous practices of
revering the natural world.

Emic

To further explore the beliefs and practices of Shinto, we
can observe comments that are made about Shinto belief, as it is expressed by
those who follow Shinto’s principles. 5On the subject of worship: Matsuri is a
service presented to the kami, it is submission, and it is a point of contact
between kami and human beings. It is a time when unity is achieved between the
kami and human worshiper, a oneness between kami and man. In order to achieve
this oneness, purification and sanctification are required, and a performance
of worship with true heart and true mind (Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai, 1985, p. 235).
Shinto priest, Yukitaka Yamamoto says, Shinto reflects an awareness of the
Divine that calls for man to live according to the Kami so that he can find
happiness and fulfillment in experiencing the basic joys of life… The human
6soul inclines naturally toward the Kami and 6can be cultivated to become more
deeply-related through the right kind of activities. This is a matter for
attention every day. People seeking to be close to the Kami should work at
showing cleanness, brightness and diligence in all they do and should seek to
cultivate harmony in personal relations. (Kami no Michi, 1987). Having no
founder, and no overarching hierarchical authority, Shinto allows for syncretic
practice, rejecting nothing that supports the basic joys of life, and which
brings human beings closer to the Divine. 7A Shinto believer who denounces
other religions is not a real Shinto believer. A real Shinto believer can be at
home in a Shinto shrine at New Year, a Buddhist Temple at the Obon festival for
the souls of the ancestors or a Christian Church on Christmas Eve. All of these
make individual sense. They are authentic. They complement each other. This
principle applies not simply to religion but to all the cultures of mankind
(Kami no Michi, 1987).

Match Overview

1Observation based on analysis of religious text

2Observed historical development of Shinto

3Observation of available texts

4Observation of traditional practice

5Understanding of the meaning of the principles – not direct
statement of principles from religious texts.

6Belief about religious traditions.

7Shows relationship to the religions around it.

References

Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai. (1985). The World of Shinto. Tokyo:
BDK.

Molloy, Michael. (2018). Experiencing the World’s Religions:
Traditions, Challenge, and Change, Seventh Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Yamamoto, Yukitaka. (1987, Spring). Kami No Michi: The Way
of the Kami – The Life and Thought of a Shinto Priest. Retrieved from
http://www.tsubakishrine.org/kaminomichi/index.html (Links to an external
site.)Links to an external site.

Writing Requirements (APA format)

Length: 350-500 words (not including title page or
references page)

1-inch margins

Double spaced

12-point Times New Roman font

Title page

References page (minimum of 1 scholarly source)

RELI448 Comparative Religions

Week 3 Assignment

Week 3 Assignment: Comparison-Contrast Essay

Due May 26 by 11:59pm
Points 200 Submitting a file
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Required Resources

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 4

Lesson

Minimum of 4 scholarly sources (at least 2 for Hinduism
& 2 for Buddhism)

Instructions

Select one of the following pairs and compare and contrast
these ideas in the religious traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism:

Self/No-self

Samsara/Nirvana

Karma/Rebirth

Your paper should include an introduction and thesis that
clearly states your central claim, thoughtful examples and analysis in your
body paragraphs, and a conclusion to finalize your thoughts.

Writing Requirements (APA format)

Length: 1200-1400 words (not including title page or
references page)

1-inch margins

Double spaced

12-point Times New Roman font

Title page

References page (minimum of 4 scholarly sources)

RELI448 Comparative Religions

Week 5 Assignment

Week 5 Assignment: Interview Essay

Due Jun 9 by 11:59pm
Points 150 Submitting a file upload

Required Resources

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Review chapters as needed

Lesson

Link (library article): Talking About Religion – How to Do
It Right (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Instructions

For this assignment you are required to sit down for a
conversation with someone whose religious identity differs from your own (this
means that if you identify as Christian, for example, you should find a
conversation partner who does not identify as such). The purpose of this
exercise is for you to engage with someone else in conversation. That means
that you will not only ask questions, but you will hopefully answer questions
about your own beliefs, as well.

Review the article for this activity, “Talking About
Religion – How to Do It Right” (link in Required Resources), for some
guidance on how to engage in conversations about religion before meeting with
your partner. You may also wish to share this information with your partner.

In this exercise, you will listen to the ideas of someone
who you identify as religiously “other.” You will share your own
ideas and report on what you learned. This would include what you learned about
your conversation partner’s beliefs, and how those beliefs compare to your own
religious upbringing and/or current practice.

The report should give a description of the major topics of
discussion and a detailed summary of what you learned. As part of your
assignment you should include the following:

Describe your conversation partner’s beliefs. Some things to
consider include the following:

What are the material expressions of their tradition
(statues, paintings, music, etc.)?

Do they see any conflict between the stated beliefs of their
tradition and their own beliefs?

Based on your partner’s description, which theory of the
origin of religions (Week 1) offers the best explanation for their approach to
religion?

What challenges can your partner identify that their
religious tradition faces in the modern world? Do they feel that their
tradition is responding positively?

Is the tradition focused on belief (orthodoxy) or behavior
(orthopraxis)?

Apply the 8 elements of religion from Week 1.

Provide some cultural and historical context for the
religious tradition of your conversation partner. (It is important that you do
some research before you have your conversation so that you are able to ask
informed questions that come from genuine interest.) Make sure you use
citations in your discussion of what you learned from your research.

Compare your partner’s beliefs and practices to your own
religious upbringing and/or current practice. This is to be done in the report
not as a debate with your partner.

Conclude with your personal reaction to this experience and
any additional questions that came up after your conversation. Be kind!

This is a formal academic paper so pay careful attention to
the basics of writing a good English composition.

Writing Requirements (APA format)

Length: 1000-1200 words (not including title page or
references page)

1-inch margins

Double spaced

12-point Times New Roman font

Title page

References page (minimum of 1 scholarly source)

RELI448 Comparative Religions

Week 7 Assignment

Week 7 Assignment: Analytical Essay

Due Jun 23 by 11:59pm
Points 200 Submitting a file
upload

Required Resources

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 8, 9, 10

Lesson

Minimum of 6 scholarly sources (at least 2 for Judaism, 2
for Christianity, & 2 for Islam)

Please review criteria for scholarly sources.

Instructions

In a short essay, complete the following:

Explain the historical relationship between Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam. What are their geographical connections? What are
their historical timelines?

Analyze the historical relationship between Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam in order to make an argument about the similarities and
differences between the three religions. Select one main example from the
following list on which to focus your comparison: the nature of God, the nature
of Jesus, Holy Books, or Salvation. Your analysis should span multiple
paragraphs and utilize specific examples.

Conclude by examining the current relationship between
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam today. How has globalization influenced or
affected the current relationship?

Your paper should include an introduction and thesis that
clearly states your central claim, thoughtful examples and analysis in your
body paragraphs, and a conclusion to finalize your thoughts.

Writing Requirements (APA format)

Length: 1200-1400 words (not including title page or
references page)

1-inch margins

Double spaced

12-point Times New Roman font

Title page

References page (minimum of 6 scholarly sources)