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Philosophy of religion Research Assignment

Philosophy of religion

Response Paper Instructions

Having completed the unit of philosophy of religion, you are now ready to respond to an article written by an actual atheist. This article titled “On Being an Atheist,” was written by H. J. McCloskey in 1968 for the journal Question. McCloskey is an Australian philosopher who wrote a number of atheistic works in the 1960s and 70s including the book God and Evil (Nijhoff, 1974). In this article, McCloskey is both critical of the classical arguments for God’s existence and offers the problem of evil as a reason why one should not believe in God. Please note the following parameters for this paper:

Your assignment is to read McCloskey’s short article found in the Reading & Study folder in Module/Week 7 and respond to each of the questions below. Your instructor is looking for a detailed response to each question.

The response paper is to be a minimum of 1,500 words (not including quotes) and must be written as a single essay and not just a list of answers to questions.

The basis for your answers must primarily come from the resources provided in the lessons covering the philosophy of religion unit of the course (Evans and Manis, Craig, and the presentation) and these sources must be mentioned in your paper. You are not merely to quote these sources as an answer to the question—answer them in your own words.

You may use other outside sources as well, as long as you properly document them. However, outside sources are not necessary. Each of the questions can be answered from the sources provided in the lessons.

While the use of the Bible is not restricted, its use is not necessary and is discouraged unless you intend to explain the context of the passage and how that context applies to the issue at hand in accordance with the guidelines provided earlier in the course. You are not to merely quote scripture passages as answers to the questions. Remember this is a philosophical essay not a biblical or theological essay.

While you may quote from sources, all quotations must be properly cited and quotes from sources will not count towards the 1,500 word count of the paper.

You may be critical of McCloskey, but must remain respectful. Any disparaging comment(s) about McCloskey will result in a significant reduction in grade.

Please note that this paper will be submitted through SafeAssign, which is a plagiarism detection program. The program is a database of previously submitted papers including copies of papers that have been located on the Internet. Once submitted, your paper will become part of the database as well. The program detects not only exact wording but similar wording. This means that if you plagiarize, it is very likely that it will be discovered. Plagiarism will result in a 0 for the paper and the likelihood of you being dropped from the course.

Specifically, you must address the following questions in your paper:

McCloskey refers to the arguments as “proofs” and often implies that they can’t definitively establish the case for God, so therefore they should be abandoned. What would you say about this in light of Foreman’s comments in his “Approaching the Question of God’s Existence” presentation?

On the Cosmological Argument:

McCloskey claims that the “mere existence of the world constitutes no reason for believing in such a being [i.e., a necessarily existing being].” Using Evans and Manis’ discussion of the non-temporal form of the argument (on pp. 69–77), explain why the cause of the universe must be necessary (and therefore uncaused).

McCloskey also claims that the cosmological argument “does not entitle us to postulate an all-powerful, all-perfect, uncaused cause.” In light of Evans and Manis’ final paragraph on the cosmological argument (p. 77), how might you respond to McCloskey?

On the Teleological Argument:

McCloskey claims that “to get the proof going, genuine indisputable examples of design and purpose are needed.” Discuss this standard of “indisputability” which he calls a “very conclusive objection.” Is it reasonable?

From your reading in Evans and Manis, can you offer an example of design that, while not necessarily “indisputable,” you believe provides strong evidence of a designer of the universe?

McCloskey implies that evolution has displaced the need for a designer. Assuming evolution is true, for argument’s sake, how would you respond to McCloskey (see Evans and Manis pp. 82–83)?

McCloskey claims that the presence of imperfection and evil in the world argues against “the perfection of the divine design or divine purpose in the world.” Remembering Evans’ comments about the limitations of the conclusion of the cosmological argument, how might you respond to McCloskey’s charge about the teleological argument?

On the Problem of Evil:

McCloskey’s main objection to theism is the presence of evil in the world and he raises it several times: “No being who was perfect could have created a world in which there was avoidable suffering or in which his creatures would (and in fact could have been created so as not to) engage in morally evil acts, acts which very often result in injury to innocent persons.” The language of this claim seems to imply that it is an example of the logical form of the problem. Given this implication and using Evans and Manis’ discussion of the logical problem (pp. 159–168, noting especially his concluding paragraphs to this section), how might you respond to McCloskey?

McCloskey specifically discusses the free will argument, asking “might not God have very easily so have arranged the world and biased man to virtue that men always freely chose what is right?” From what you have already learned about free will in the course, and what Evans and Manis says about the free will theodicy, especially the section on Mackie and Plantinga’s response (pp. 163–166) and what he says about the evidential problem (pp. 168–172), how would you respond to McCloskey’s question?

On Atheism as Comforting:

In the final pages of McCloskey’s article, he claims that atheism is more comforting than theism. Using the argument presented by William Lane Craig in the article “The Absurdity of Life without God,” (located in Reading & Study for Module/Week 6), respond to McCloskey’s claim.

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Biblical World View Assignment Paper

Biblical World View

For this assignment, you must write a 600–1,000-word essay addressing the following prompt:
The unity of the Bible is demonstrated through the Divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit on the human authors of Scripture. The study of theology uncovers and articulates the unity of all the biblical texts when they are taken together. From the list of approved doctrines to address, demonstrate the unified nature of the Bible by tracing that doctrine through the four major plot developments of Scripture.
For example, The Bible describes God as love in 1 John 4:8. The way to interpret “God is love” is to look at the biblical story that reveals God’s character through His actions. When looking at the idea of love through the four major plot movements in Scripture we see God’s love demonstrated in His creation of humanity, His patience with humanity after the fall, His sacrificial death to redeem humanity from the fall, and His restorative work through preparation of the heavenly home. (This example would be substantiated and demonstrated with biblical support, and be elaborated on within the essay.)
Assignment Requirements:
1. Discuss the major movement of the biblical narrative/story, its main character, and its implications for understanding the unity of the biblical books.
2. Choose two topics from the approved topics list that are presented in Biblical doctrine with attention on how these theological topics unfold through the through the four major plot movements of Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration.
3. Using your theological examples, share the implications that these examples provide humanity’s relationship to God.
4. Incorporate at least 2 theological references in your paper using course resources.
5. Incorporate at least 2 relevant biblical references.
6. Write a clear introductory paragraph including the
thesis statement. A summative concluding paragraph must also be included.

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Women in Christianity Essay Paper Available

Women in Christianity

Women had an ambiguous citizenship status in the ancient Mediterranean: while not considered politically-active citizens (meaning, for instance, non-voters and not allowed participation in the military), they gave birth to citizens, cemented alliances, and facilitated the passing of family name and property. Throughout Classical Antiquity, in both Greek and Roman civilizations, women were defined by their belonging to a family – they were always daughters, sisters, wives, and mothers of men, rather than individuals in their own right. Indeed, traditional Roman naming practices did not allow women a name of their own, but rather gave them a feminine version of the family name – e.g., the daughter of someone named Claudius would be named Claudia. Multiple daughters would then be numbered – e.g., Claudia Prima (the first), Claudia Secunda (the second), etc. Early Christianity, however, while valuing traditional women’s roles as wives and mothers, also allows us a glimpse of newfound freedoms that women could claim, rejecting the societal expectations.

For this essay, you will read the Passion of Perpetua and Felicity, a portion of which was written by Perpetua herself. Also, you will read selections from Paul’s Epistles, which address specifically women’s roles in the church.
Passion of Perpetua and Felicity:
http://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/perpetua.asp

Selections from Paul’s Epistles:
View the selections listed below:
1 Corinthians 11: 2-6
1 Corinthians 14: 34-35
1 Timothy 2: 8-15
1 Timothy 5: 1-16
Philippians 4: 1-3

Based on these texts and course materials only, what were the roles that women could take in the early church? What were the expectations for women in different stages of life? In what ways were women able to lead and serve their communities? Last but not least, in what ways did their participation in early Christianity reject or challenge the roles traditionally expected of them in Greco-Roman society?

Please make sure that your essay has a clear
introduction with a thesis statement/argument,
body paragraphs that use specific examples to prove aspects of your thesis statement, and a conclusion that considers the big-picture implications of your argument for the history of ancient civilizations.

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Sport as a Religion Essay Assignment Available

Sport as a Religion

Let’s ASSUME sport is a RELIGION-

WHY??? Describe Sport as a Religion and why can we say that.

Did you connect Sport and Religion in HS/Jr High-

Did you see others use RELIGION with SPORT?

Should SPORT AND RELIGION be kept separate? WHY??

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

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Genealogy of Jesus from all four Gospels

Genealogy of Jesus from all four Gospels Take one, two, three, or all four Gospels and write out three (3) things that are happening in each chapter.

So, for Matthew, you would go chapter by chapter, write out three things in each of the 28 chapters. It would look something like this:

Matthew 1:

The Genealogy of Jesus begins with Abraham.
Joseph did not want to divorce Mary for being pregnant but an angel told him to anyway.
Jesus is born.

Matthew 2:

Magi from the east visit King Herod to find where Jesus is.

2, 3….etc……

That’s how I want you to do this. Note that I wrote COMPLETE SENTENCES. So don’t write, “Genealogy of Jesus” but us e a VERB to make it a sentence: “The Genealogy of Jesus begins with Abraham.”

For each Gospel that you complete (no partial credit) you will get an additional 1 point–so 4 points total of you do all four.

I will let you do the same for the book of Acts (1 point) and for 2 of Paul’s letters–Romans and 1 Corinthians (1/2 point each because they are shorter).

Now you have a total of 6 (!!) extra credit points you can earn. That means you can go from a 58% (F) to a 64% (D). Or an 89%

(B+) to a 95% (A).attachments

Muslim public affairs interest groups

Muslim public affairs interest groups.

Description
papers analyze an interest group seeking to influence domestic policy at any level of government. Papers must apply theories and readings explored in class. Length is 8-10 pages plus bibliography and title page.

Format: double-spaced, 1-inch margin, 12- point font, Times New Roman. References should follow the APA citation style.

You must organize your paper around at least 4 sections:

1.Introduction (provide background on your topic, discuss its importance, explain how this project will advance our understanding of organized interests)

2.Literature Review (what has already been written about your topic in the scholarly literature; what are key themes in the literature; what is missing in the literature)

3.Analysis (provide supporting evidence for your argument; identify a counterargument and show why it is less convincing than your own claim; insert relevant course readings conceptually into your analysis)

4.Conclusion (identify your key findings, possible directions for future research. Link relevant course readings to your conclusions.)

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Blacks and Jewish relationship Project Paper

Your final assignment will be a close analysis of a historical or contemporary figure, a historical event, a news story, or a cultural artifact that deals with the issues explored in class. The analysis must be based on a strong, original scholarly argument. This project will not be a traditional essay, although it will require serious research and it must include a paragraph articulating your argument. Your project can be in the form of a digital presentation (e.g., PowerPoint), a website, a song, a YouTube video, a painting, a comic book—you decide! Be creative. No matter how you choose to convey your ideas, we will be looking for a project that makes a strong argument and uses scholarly evidence to support it. Your project must be accompanied by an annotated bibliography . **** i don’t want a power point, bid on the order and talk to me if you have any better idea on the project, project must be related on the material we learned in the course, ( i will provide the material , articles in the files.) and the format requirement for the annotated bibliography.

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African Traditional Religion Essay Paper

African Traditional Religion

The following six points need to be identified and then laid out in a way that can be translated over into a 15-20 slide PowerPoint presentation (including brief speaker notes along with each one)

1. Name of the Native American community or African Tribal Religion and the historical religious beliefs and practices of that group.

2. How historical beliefs and religious practices have been influenced (positively or negatively) by the dominant surrounding culture. Include specific examples.

3. Current religious beliefs and practices and the part they play in the daily life of a typical member of the community.

4. Elements of the traditional religion that a Christian would need to consider when sharing the Christian faith/gospel with a person from this community.

5. Evaluation of the impact does European policy has had on Tribal Religion beliefs and practices.

6. How current and future governmental policies could impact personal beliefs and practices of that community in the future.

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Application Project on Salvation Assignment

Application Project on Salvation

One of the most important things about theology is that it should not become locked in an ivory tower, hidden away from those without academic training. The focus of this project will be helping communicate key theological ideas to those who do not understand them or see their relevance to daily life. You have the option to pursue this goal through one of two modes: you will EITHER
a) help prepare a group video that will the classical loci of theology (salvation) to those in the church, OR
b) prepare a series of application insights explaining the classical loci of salvation to those in the church.
Whether you are doing a) or b), you will start with a paper (part 1) and then do your choice (part 2).

Basic Requirements/Information:
– Each of you will a two-part project:
o Part 1. a 1500 word paper summarizing the theological topic AND
o Part 2. EITHER a video OR a 1500 word application paper.
– This Project is worth 180 points.

PART 1 ~ Paper:
Before preparing the video or application project, you will each individually prepare a ~1500 word summary of the key ideas about topic of theology (salvation) you focus on in Part 2 of the project, with sections explaining, among other things:
1) what are the main ideas and biblical verses that inform this area of theology, and
2) how the idea of the Trinity informs the topic.

Notes:
• This is an academic paper so you should have citations to at least 4 academic sources (contemporary and historical—patristic, medieval, reformation). I highly recommend consulting key sources like Treier and Elwell, eds., Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 3rd ed. (Baker 2017), as well as the course textbooks.
• You should follow the SBL/Chicago/Turabian style guidelines and include a bibliography.
• Don’t just explain the video or your application project, give a short paper about the theological topic.

PART 2 ~ Video/Application
While the first part of the project is an individual paper, you have the option in part 2 to participate in a group project (with the video) or an individual project (with the application).

Video Option:
You are encouraged to do this in groups of 3-4. The video should reflect these items/concerns:
• The video (posted to YouTube) should be 5-10 minutes long. Each additional minute past 10 minutes will lose 10 points per minute.
• Your intended audience is expected to have only minimal understanding of basic Christian ideas.
• The “essentials” of the area should be clear, though you can focus on an important aspect of the overall topic, addressing the non-essentials or heterodox views.
• The video should address why this topic is important and how it relates to the life of the church and to the world at large.
• The video should be interesting (not merely a lecture, as if you are repeating the lecture notes). To this end, you may integrate other video clips, though external content should not dominate and you should be aware of copyright issues.
• IDEAS: Interviews of Christians/non-Christians, animation with voice-over (e.g., PowToon), rap battle, slam poetry, subtitled parody using a foreign film clip, etc.

If you choose the video project, at the end of your paper you should assess the work of the other members of your group by assigning them an A, B, etc. according to their effort of participation in the video.

Application Option:
You will individually prepare a ~1500 word description of what it looks like to live out the reality of that doctrine, in addition to the part 1 paper. If you choose the application project, the total length will therefore be about 3000 words: Part 1 Paper (1500) + Part 2 Application (1500). The Part 2 write-up should have two sections:
1) You should develop at least 4 substantive examples of what it would look to live out that doctrine practically, so each practice should be about 250 words each. You should have at least one individual and at least one corporate practice. (Don’t ignore biblical and Trinitarian ideas.)
2) You should describe how you personally engaged in some of the practices that you described and how that helped you understand the doctrine which you were engaging. A minimum of 3 weeks of personal practice is necessary. While you will write the paper individually, you are especially encouraged experiment with these practices in groups (groups of students, in your local church, etc.).

To help your thinking, you might consider consulting works like these:
Beth Felker Jones, Practicing Christian Doctrine: An Introduction to Thinking and Living Theologically (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2014).
Mark Scandrette, Practicing the Way of Jesus: Life Together in the Kingdom of Love (Downers Grove, IVP, 2011).
Keith L. Johnson, Theology as Discipleship (Downers Grove, IVP, 2015).

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Contending for Islam Essay Assignment

Contending for Islam

Examine the section of “Working with Evidence” entitled “Contending for Islam.”

Write an essay based on any three of the four document excerpts in that section, addressing one of the following question-clusters:

—1)hat are the core concerns that divide these authors? What historical circumstances might help to account for the very different understandings of Islam that are reflected in these documents?—–2)

How do you think Kemal Ataturk would have responded to later Islamic modernists such as Sheikh Kabir and/or Saira Khan?—————– Your thesis statement should reflect the question-cluster you have chosen. Be sure to base your response on the documents themselves and the information provided in the preceding chapter. Between 1000 and 1200 words in length

Double-spaced, using a normal-sized font, such as Times New Roman 12-point

Properly cited: Cite sources—whether directly quoted, paraphrased or summarized–using Chicago-Style citation

Use appropriate scholarly sources rather than dubious sources such as Wikipedia

Plagiarism free: Contain no plagiarism whatsoever; any plagiarized material will receive zero points and may result in further action as per College policy

Submitted to the course Dropbox in Word .doc, .docx, or in .rtf format

Be sure that your essay actually points to evidence from the documents. Show me, don’t just tell me.

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