Second Essay Topics

1)      Describe the origins of the split between the Sunni and Shi’i branches of Islam.  What caused this split?  What are some of the modern differences between the two groups?

2)      Compare and Contrast the way that two different religious groups use art or dance in their approach to the divine (e.g. some traditions embrace pictorial representations of the divine while others forbid such representations).  These groups do not need to be from different broad religious traditions.  How do the groups explain their stance on the arts, especially if they both draw upon the same textual traditions (e.g. both Judaism and Christianity use many of the same sacred texts)?

3)      Compare and contrast the original nature of humanity (also called “original sin”) in two of the Abrahamic Traditions.  How does that understanding influence, or is influenced by, the theology of the religions?  Provide examples for the last part.

4)      Interview someone, from a religious tradition other than your own, concerning a particular ritual (e.g. birth, puberty, marriage, death).   Briefly describe the ritual and discuss what the ritual meant to him/her.  Conduct research on that ritual, and describe the way in which the ritual did or did not convey the same meaning (as described by the person you interviewed).