Topic: A recent historical event or cultural change related to religion.
Sources: At least two recent scholarly sources analyzing the issue in one or two religions. (please do not rely on online sources for your paper but on proper academic books and peer-reviewed academic articles)
Focus: Examine essential information about world religions and analyze the relationship between changing culture and religion.
Suggested Topics
Views and responses on women’s rights
Views and responses on the ecological crisis
Views and responses on genetic modification
Views and responses on modern business/capitalism
Views on war and violence
Views on understanding different religions or interreligious dialogue
And many others!
Note: You cannot choose your own religion as the focus of your paper. For example, if you’re a Christian, you should write about the ecological crisis from Buddhist and/or Islamic perspectives.
Students will work based on the proposal that they submitted before.
Please remember that this is an academic paper. Please review the writing guidelines and example paper carefully!
Please use Microsoft Word and submit it in a Word file.
Please make sure to have these formats:
All written work is to be typed in Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spaced.
The papers should have one-inch margins and no extra spaces between paragraphs.
The papers should use footnote citations in the Chicago Manual Style.
Usage of A.I. Policy: The inappropriate use of A.I. is prohibited in this class. It will be regarded as an honor code violation. On writing assignments (such as reviews, discussion posts, essays, research papers, etc.) and presentations (such as a speech or presentation), students may use tools that generate content such as outlines, bibliographies, summaries, prose, or creative writing. However, the use of these tools must include the appropriate acknowledgments and citations. Your citation should include the full prompt that you provided to the generative AI. For example, please cite like this in your footnotes whenever you use A.I:
“Can you improve my post’s grammar?” prompt. ChatGPT, accessed 13 Feb. 2024 version, OpenAI, Assessed August 08, 2025.
“What is the book that talks about Karl Marx’s theory of religion?” prompt. Gemeni, 13 Feb. 2024 version, Open AI, Assessed August 08, 2025
Writing your notes, discussion posts, or papers without citations is not allowed. Content that contains more than 30% AI-generated material, as determined by our AI detection system, will be considered a violation of the honor code. So, please do not rely on A.I too much.
(Late work will not be accepted. If so, our late policy will be applied according to our syllabus.)
Rubric
Final Paper
Final Paper
Criteria Ratings Pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Thesis
100 pts
Full Marks
0 pts
No Marks
100 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Research Analysis
100 pts
Full Marks
0 pts
No Marks
100 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Application/Creativity
100 pts
Full Marks
0 pts
No Marks
100 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Form/Organization
100 pts
Full Marks
0 pts
No Marks
100 pts
Total Points: 400