Final Exams

Final Exams:

Sec. 25: Final Exam: Mon 5.23 from 12:15 – 1:15 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Sec. 8: Final Exam: Tue 5.24 from 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Week 16: Tue 5.10/Thu 5.12 – Confucianism

Developed by the Chinese philosopher Confucius, over 2,000 years ago, Confucianism is religion and philosophy based upon strict ethical codes.

Week 16: Tue 5.10/Thu 5.12 – Confucianism*
Class: Class wrap-up
Due: RESEARCH PROJECT

*Last regular class meeting of the semester.

Week 18 (Final Exams):

Sec. 25: Final Exam: Mon 5.23 from 12:15 – 1:15 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Sec. 8: Final Exam: Tue 5.24 from 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Week 15: Tue 5.3/Thu 5.5 – Scientology

Though not an official church leader, Tom Cruise has been the celebrity face of Scientology for decades.

Week 15: Tue 5.3/Thu 5.5 – Scientology*
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: ARISTOTELIAN ANALYSIS (EXTRA CREDIT)

*It is advised you be up to slide 12 in your Research Project this week.

Upcoming:

Week 16: Tue 5.10/Thu 5.12 – Rosicrucianism*
Class: Class wrap-up
Due: RESEARCH PROJECT

*Last regular class meeting of the semester.

Week 18 (Final Exams):

Sec. 25: Final Exam: Mon 5.23 from 12:15 – 1:15 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Sec. 8: Final Exam: Tue 5.24 from 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Spiritual News 4.28

• Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene  claims Catholic Church is controlled by Satan (TheWrap)
• Study: Conspiracy theory believers tend to be more religious (PsyPost)
• On eve of Eid, LGBTQ Muslims fight for recognition and respect (USA Today)
• These Christian leaders are pushing for a more sex positive faith (Washington Post)
  
• BYU student defies school by sewing pride colors into her robe (People)
  

Aristotelian Analysis (Extra-Credit)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I could just see him sitting on his suitcases, near the front door of my house. And I said to him, ‘I'm sorry, God, it's not you. It's me. It's just, I don't think you exist. I mean, God, look at it this way: it's really because I take you so seriously that I can't bring myself to believe in you. If it's any consolation, it's sort of a sign of respect. So, you know, sit here as long as you want to, stay for a while, if you need to, there's no big hurry.’

And slowly, over the course of several weeks, he disappeared."

                                                                                —Julia Sweeney, Letting Go of God

***

"I once listened to an Indian on television say that God was in the wind and the water, and I wondered at how beautiful that was because it meant you could swim in Him or have Him brush your face in a breeze. I am early in my story, but I believe I will stretch out into eternity, and in heaven I will reflect upon these early days, these days when it seemed God was down a dirt road, walking toward me. Years ago He was a swinging speck in the distance; now He is close enough I can hear His singing. Soon I will see the lines on His face."

                                                                                        —Donald Miller, Blue Like Jazz

In Letting Go of God, devout Catholic Julia Sweeney slowly comes to embrace a new identity for herself: atheist. Through years of study and experience, she comes to the realization that the cherished religion of her youth can no longer be reconciled with an increasing sense of doubt, so she leaves her faith behind. In contrast, Donald Miller forges his own path toward God in Blue Like Jazz. Miller, a believer who had lost his faith, wrestles not only with the very concept of God, but his relationship to Him. Eventually, he comes to embrace a friendlier and more loving image of God than the one he was raised with. 

Though their accounts are autobiographical, both are imbued with rhetorical appeals. For this extra credit assignment, apply Aristotle's Modes of Persuasion to EITHER Sweeney's Letting Go of God or Donald Miller’s Blue Like Jazz. In three short answer responses (one paragraph each), find examples of Ethos, Pathos, and Logos in Sweeney's or Miller’s story. Use specific examples from the monologue or book as evidence of these appeals.

A presentation on Aristotle's Modes of Persuasion can be found HERE. 

This assignment is worth up to 10 points.

Required: 

• 1-1.5 pages
• MLA Style, plus works cited page
  

Due: Thu 5.5 (no submission window)

Week 14: Tue 4.26/Thu 4.28 – Evangelicalism

In 2020, 80% of white Evangelicals cast their ballot for Trump

Week 14: Tue 4.26/Thu 4.28 – Evangelicalism*
Class: Multimedia presentations; Lecture—“The Self-Reflection Essay and ePortfolio: A How-To”
Due: REFLECTION 4

*It is advised you be up to slide 8 in your Research Project this week.

Week 15: Tue 5.3/Thu 5.5 – Scientology*
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: ROGERIAN ARGUMENT; ARISTOTELIAN ANALYSIS (EXTRA CREDIT)

*It is advised you be up to slide 12 in your Research Project this week.

Week 16: Tue 5.10/Thu 5.12 – Rosicrucianism*
Class: Class wrap-up
Due: RESEARCH PROJECT

*Last regular class meeting of the semester.

Week 18 (Final Exams):

Sec. 25: Final Exam: Mon 5.23 from 12:15 – 1:15 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Sec. 8: Final Exam: Tue 5.24 from 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Spiritual News 4.21

• In viral speech Michigan senator calls out the “performative nonsense” of Christians who use faith as a weapon (Newsweek)
• A Pennsylvania school board denies an after-school Satanist Club after recently allowing a Christian club to operate during school hours (USA Today)
• Tennessee city refuses atheist group's demand that crosses on city property be removed (Christian Post)
• Buddhism making inroads in the Latino community in Southern California (Guardian)
• Marvel's Moon Knight resurrects Egypt's ancient gods (WinterIsComing) 
  

Reflection 4: Picking and Choosing—On Cafeteria Spiritualism

In the 21st century, a person might find comfort in Buddhist incantations, be inspired by the environmental reverence of Wicca, and admire the Quaker emphasis on self-reliance only to combine them all into a unique, personalized belief system. This is the contemporary phenomenon of so-called "cafeteria spiritualism" (sometimes called "salad bar spiritualism"). It is the practice of individuals customizing faiths, or parts of them, to fit their individual needs. In earlier times, followers of a devout faith generally accepted all aspects of that religion on the basis that true believers wholeheartedly embraced every related tenants. Not so today. In the 21st century, Americans routinely pick and choose the aspects of a faith, or faiths, that best fit their needs. Thus, Gen Z Americans are less likely to prescribe to a specific religion, opting instead to identify themselves as the ubiquitous "spiritual, but not religious." What do you think of cafeteria spiritualism? Does it make more sense in a pluralistic society, such as ours? Or should we return to the old days, when a Catholic was a Catholic and a Jew was a Jew, etc? Finally, have you, or anyone you know, partaken in this style of faith?

Include at least two of the following in your discussion:

• "Most Americans Pick and Choose Religious Beliefs" (Christian Post)
• "Salad-Bar Christianity" (Christianity Today)
• "Deliver Us From Salad Bar Religion" (Reformed Theology)
• "Gen Z is Keeping the Faith. Just Don’t Expect to See Them at Worship." (Religion News)
• "Is Spirituality Replacing Religion?" (Deseret News)

Required: 

• 1.5 pages
• MLA Style, plus works cited page
  

Submission Window: Thu 4.28 - Tue 5.3 (via Canvas)

Week 13: Tue 4.19/Thu 4.21 – Wicca

Wicca draws on the pre-Christian, nature-based traditions of northern and western Europe.

Week 13: Tue 4.19/Thu 4.21 – Wicca*
Class: Multimedia presentations, Guest speaker—TBA

*It is advised you be up to slide 4 in your Research Project this week.

Upcoming:

Week 14: Tue 4.26/Thu 4.28 – Evangelicalism*
Class: Multimedia presentations; Lecture—“The Self-Reflection Essay and ePortfolio: A How-To”
Due: REFLECTION 4

*It is advised you be up to slide 8 in your Research Project this week.

Week 15: Tue 5.3/Thu 5.5 – Scientology*
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: ROGERIAN ARGUMENT; ARISTOTELIAN ANALYSIS (EXTRA CREDIT)

*It is advised you be up to slide 12 in your Research Project this week.

Week 16: Tue 5.10/Thu 5.12 – Rosicrucianism*
Class: Class wrap-up
Due: RESEARCH PROJECT

*Last regular class meeting of the semester.

Week 18 (Final Exams):

Sec. 25: Final Exam: Mon 5.23 from 12:15 – 1:15 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)

Sec. 8: Final Exam: Tue 5.24 from 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. (Details TBD)
Due: SELF-REFLECTION ESSAY AND ePORTFOLIO (SUBMIT VIA CANVAS BY 8 P.M.)