"Report on Religious Field Research"
* Submit your choice for Assignment 2 to your professor for approval by Week 5.
Write a 5–7 page paper (1000–1250 words) about your religious field research into an “unfamiliar” religious tradition.
You are to pick one (1) of the religions studied (with which you are not very familiar) and do one of these three (3) things:
- Attend a religious service, or
- Visit a religious education center and interview a member of that faith, or
- Attend a “virtual religious service” and complete additional research (for a list of services, see Appendix A)
The paper will address the following points:
- Discuss any misconceptions you had about the religion you researched.
- Analyze how your prior understanding about this religion was altered (if at all) through your encounter.
- Discuss whether you believe misconceptions about other people’s religion are common and explain why or why not.
- Recommend at least one (1) step that could be taken to minimize misconceptions people have about religions not their own.
Keep the points to be covered in your paper in mind during your
religious field research to help guide your encounter. The purpose of
your field research (whether actual or virtual) is to test your own
assumptions about this religion.
Pay attention to what is
important to people inside the religion, what they do, what they
profess, how they act, what they value, what they talk about, and what
they tell you about their religion. The easiest way to understand what
is important to someone else is let them tell you about their faith,
their traditions, and their religious practices. The most important
thing to do is to keep an open mind and listen. No matter which of the
three routes you take for your field research, you will be looking for
the same information.
A note about attending religious services in person:
Please keep in mind that if you choose to attend a religious service in
person, you are a guest and should be as respectful as humanly
possible. While you may be attending the service from the perspective of
an objective (and hopefully inquisitive) observer, most of the other
people will be attending the service as part of their religious
practices. Please do the following before you go:
- Call the place you wish to attend and ask if it is okay to attend as an observer
- Ask if someone could (or should) act as a host when you attend
- Ask
if anyone would be willing to speak with you after the service to
explain what happened and to answer a few questions about the basics of
the religion
The format of the paper is to be as follows:
- Typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman font (size 12), one-inch margins on all sides, APA format.
- In-text
citations and a References page following APA Style, even if the only
source you are using is the textbook. Any other sources must be
documented using in-text citations and included on the References page.
- In
addition to the five to seven (5-7) pages required, a title page is to
be included. The title page is to contain the title of the assignment,
your name, the instructor’s name, the course title, and the date.
Note: You will be graded on the quality of your answers, the
logic/organization of the report, your language skills, and your writing
skills.
Click here to view the grading rubric.