SOPHIA MILESTONE: Approaches to Studying Religions Unit 4 Challenge 1

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Approaches to Studying Religions Unit 4 Challenge 1 There is a PTA (parent-teacher association) meeting tonight at Lincoln High School. As a member of the PTA, you meet bi-monthly to discuss school ... business and help advise the school on tough issues. As you arrive at the school, Angelique, a good friend of yours, pulls you aside to explain one of tonight's issues. The new social studies teacher has a new unit for his U.S. Government class that covers hot button topics. Some of the parents are worried that his class conflicts with religious beliefs. Angelique is shocked that in a secular country there are still clashes between religious beliefs and practices and secular law. You explain to Angelique that these kinds of issues still often come up. Which two of the following are examples of conflicts between the secular laws of the U.S. government and religious practices? The conversation with Angelique got you thinking about how this new teacher is explaining war. Topics such as World War II seem pretty straightforward, but other conflicts such as the Bosnia-Herzegovina War are much more complex. In World War II, the United States made an ethical decision to intervene with the mission to stop Hitler. The horrible truth about the way he was treating Jewish people was not all public, but it still seemed best for the world if the United States stepped in. The U.S. also intervened in the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Religion was probably not the cause of the conflict that resulted in the death of many civilians. In the Bosnia-Herzegovina war of the 1990s, a mass killing, called (A) ethnic cleansing , of Bosnian Muslims took place. However, their religious identity was not the primary reason they were targeted. Another issue that might come up in the PTA meeting is the organization's finances. Recent fundraising efforts have been more successful than expected. This means the group is running a surplus, bringing in more money than what has been spent. You are fairly certain that one board member, Sarah, will argue to give some of the money to families in need. " (A) Zakat " is the practice of giving part of one’s wealth away to those in need. This practice comes from the (B) Islamic religion. Another member of the PTA, Barry, will probably not like Sarah's view. Barry always wants the group to turn the small surplus into a large surplus by investing it. You recall him saying last year, "We've been running a lean PTA here for a number of years so it is nice to have a little cushion in case something comes up. Personally, I'd rather have a big cushion. Instead of giving money away we should invest it in a bank and earn interest" You are fairly certain Barry's idea will stir up quite the conversation. Match the religion to the statement matching the religion's view on interest. • use of peyote • cannibalism • practice of polygamy • private prayer in homes • immigration • voting rightsD Islam Hinduism Judaism • A. "I'd rather not invest because making any sort of profit is bad." • B. "I'd rather not because making money on interest could cause bad karma." • C. "I'd be ok with it since I see no problems with earning interest." • D. "I'd rather have us enter a joint venture with somebody to make money rather than just earn interest." Another issue that is sure to come up during the PTA meeting is that the school has been having problems with vandals. These vandals are breaking into the school, destroying windows, writing on the walls, and stealing computer equipment. Match the religion with its appropriate view on evil and these hurtful acts. Confucianism Daoism Islam • A. The order of society (and therefore, society itself) is destroyed by evil acts. • B. Some people are influenced by evil spirits, and therefore commit evil acts. • C. When individuals commit crimes and evil acts, they will eventually be judged for their actions. • D. The natural order of life is disrupted by evil acts. The last issue the PTA will probably discuss is school lunch. The PTA has been working with the school's cafeteria to modernize its offerings. Almost everyone is on board with making the lunches more healthy, but not everyone thinks that offering a vegetarian option is worth the hassle. Angela is one of the strongest advocates for a meatless option because her kids don't eat meat. You empathize with Angela because while your kids aren't vegetarians, they do eat a special diet. Many religions have a tradition of religiously-based dietary restrictions, but (A) Buddhism and (B) Hinduism have the strongest tradition of vegetarianism. D B C A CThe PTA meeting went better than you anticipated. Once you get home, your partner, Pat, asks you to explain how the meeting went. Pat asks about whether or not you took notes at the meeting, as the minutes of the meeting are important to review. Pat would like to see those minutes, in order to be able to study the actual events and discussions that occurred. You smile to yourself as you realize that Pat has a similar approach to a method used in studying different religions. A(n) (A) Exegesis is the study of religious texts in order to interpret their meaning. [Show More]

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