Guidelines
Choosing a Tradition

  • You are expected to choose a religious tradition other than your own. If you are Christian it cannot be Christianity. If Jewish the tradition must be outside of Judaism, and so forth. Your choice must be approved by me.

  • The tradition should be selected by Tuesday, February 5 to give you time to prepare for the first quiz on Thursday, February 14. Also we will be using the various traditions in class to examine themes, e.g., death and the afterlife, religious thought, rituals, forms of community, and so forth. Please inform me of your choice either in person or via e-mail.

  • Where possible, you are encouraged to deepen your understanding by visiting locations in the region where the tradition is practiced, e.g., the Hindu Temple in Colonie, Buddhist monasteries in the Catskills, Islamic mosques, and so forth. Be sure to be sensitive to the customs and sensibilities of the communities which you might choose to visit. For further information on this you should consult How to be a Perfect Stranger : a Guide to Etiquette in Other People's Religious Ceremonies edited by Arthur J. Magida in the Standish Library (Ref BL41 .H668 1996 V.1 and V.2).

  • You might consider the following sources in your initial search for a religious tradition:

-- World wide web sites such as the Academic Info Religious Gateway, the Virtual Religion Index, and the Wabash Center for Internet Resources. If you are interested in a native (tribal) religious tradition, you might consult the Links to Aboriginal Resources, the Center for World Indigenous Studies, Nativeweb, and Native American Sites.

-- Lawrence S. Cunningham's The Sacred Quest contains relevant information. This might be a good way to get into this book which is required reading anyway.

-- Of course, I am willing to discuss your choice with you. Just make an appointment and we will chat.

  • The tradition which you choose should be broad enough so that materials about this tradition are easily available in the library and on the Web. This is especially important if you choose a native religion. Some tribes have very little written about them. I can help you here if you have any doubts.

  • You might want to focus on a major sub-tradition within a larger tradition rather than tackling the entire tradition itself. Some examples of this include

    • Christianity: Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Protestantism.

    • Judaism: Orthodox, Conservative or Reform Judaism.

    • Islam: Sunni or Shiite Islam

    • Buddhism: Theravada, Mahayana (Zen, Pure land) or Vajrayana.

    • Hinduism: Bhakti (devotional), classical Upanishadic or village Hinduism.

  • A significant portion of the final examination will be related to your tradition.

Project Criteria

  • On Thursday, April 24 you will turn in to me a tradition project paper of 10 to 15 pages. Prior to this, on Thursday, April 3 you will send me a progress report via the Assignments function of Blackboard on your project.

  • The project report (due on April 24) will address the following issues within the religious tradition which you have chosen:

    • What form does religious thought (systematic, mythic) take within your tradition? How does this thought handle death and the afterlife?

    • How is religious action (ethics, ritual) expressed in your tradition? Do death and the afterlife fit into this action?

    • What form does religious community take in your tradition? How does your tradition influence the society or societies of which it is a part? How do the dead fit into in this religious and social community?

    • How is the religious imagination of your community expressed in artistic forms? How is this carried out in myth, ritual and community? Do the dead appear in religious art or performance?

  • Your preliminary report (due on April 3) will consist in the following:

    • What have you done so far? What books, web sites, visits and so forth have you consulted to this point?

    • What have you discovered relating to the topics outlined above to this point?

    • What problems have you run into? What don't you understand or what confuses you? This is where I can be most helpful to you in my response to your report.

    • What do you plan to do next? What areas that you have not covered are you going to cover? How do you plan to do this?

  • If you have any questions about the above guidelines or criteria feel free to contact me either via e-mail, phone (4235) or appointment.

HAPPY HUNTING !!

This page updated on January 22, 2008.

 
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