You should write at least six journal entries of 200-
300 words each (roughly a half-page to a page) at least two for each of these three religions (Buddhism, Judaism, Islam). The journal entries should be typed, double-spaced, and use 12-point Times or Times New Roman font and
standard margins.
Students will keep a journal of reflections on contemporary political events, cultural phenomena, ethical
issues, or intellectual debates pertaining to the five religions we are studying in the course. Students should find two news articles for each religion and write an analysis of what these
articles reveal about the beliefs, practices, traditions, controversies, and developments within the religion in question today. Some questions that might be considered: How does the depiction of the religion in the article reflect things you have learned in the class? What new information about the religion is presented that goes beyond what we have studied? In what ways has the religion, based on the article, responded to or adapted to the modern, twenty-first century world? What does the article demonstrate about the internal diversity or complexity of the religion? Where do you personally stand on the political or ethical issues addressed in the article? What insights have you gained about the religion from reading about its contemporary expressions? News articles about the five religions should be recent, and date no earlier than the last five years. They should be taken from reputable news sources — newspapers and magazines — and not from blogs, social media, and the like. Some recommendations for high quality news sources: The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/topic/subject/religion-and-belief), The
Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion), The Guardian
(https://www.theguardian.com/world/religion), Religion News Service (religionnews.com), AP
News (https://apnews.com/hub/religion), NPR (https://www.npr.org/sections/religion), The Wall
Street Journal, Time, Newsweek, and The Economist. Your journal entries should include
bibliographical citations of each article that you are discussing, making use of either MLA or
APA style.
