RELI448 All Assignments Latest 2020 MAY

RELI448 Comparative Religions

Week 1 Assignment  

Perspectives Essay

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.

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  

Comparison-Contrast Essay

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  

Interview Essay

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.)

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  

Analytical Essay

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)