REL 331 Online Research Paper
The minimum requirements are:
Research essay writing service – MLA style
1,500 word count (no maximum)
Five sources cited
Word count stated on the first page (five points deducted if
this is missing)
Refer to the Resources link for information on Research essay writing service – MLA style
format.
The topics must be relevant for this course, but that is a
very broad criterion.
Religion is a âfield of fieldsâ: it includes religious
reflection, philosophy, history, literature, art,
music, and so on. For this course, with its premium on
personal experience, you may wish to
write a paper on some meaning-related issue that is
currently important to you. For example:
âHow do I relate my faith in a good God with all the
suffering in the world?â
âWhat about Christianity (or Islam, etc.) is most important
for me?â
âWhat sort of religious experience should I give my
children?â
âHow can I as a gay person live a religious life?â
âIâm divorced and remarried; what place is there for me in
the Catholic Church?â
In these examples there would of course still be a need to
cite relevant sources, give reasons,
and try to justify your views.
There are the usual topics such as:
Meditation, mysticism, psychology, and religion (William
James, James Fowler, Ken
Wilber).
Music (ancient or contemporary â Gregorian Chant, Negro
Spirituals, Praise songs) or
architecture (cathedrals, Quaker meeting houses).
A time period: Florence at the time of the Renaissance, the
Sixties in the US.
Individual persons and their challenges: Thomas Merton, Leo
Tolstoy, Teresa of Avila,
John of the Cross, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, John
Kennedy, Lech Walesa, John
McCain, Barack Obama.
Ethical and social justice issues: capital punishment, just
war, stem cell research,
national health care, abortion, birth control, assisted
suicide.Grading Research Topics – Criteria
Characteristics of a very good paper:
Integrates personal observation and knowledge in an
insightful way.
Provides concrete examples from the sources to support
observations and
interpretations.
Integrates prior readings.
Uses parenthetical documentation (Research essay writing service – MLA style) to show how the
sources are being read
and to document sources.
Shows tolerance and humility.
Has correct spelling and grammar.
1,500 or more word count.
Characteristics of a good paper:
Integrates personal knowledge and observation in a relevant
way.
Refers to examples from the sources to support observations
and interpretations.
Refers to prior readings in a relevant way.
Uses parenthetical documentation (Research essay writing service – MLA style) to show how the
sources are being read
and to document sources.
Has largely correct spelling and grammar
Shows tolerance and humility to authors, classmates, and
instructor.
1,500 or more word count.
Characteristics of an acceptable paper:
Has a personal response to the sources.
Alludes to sources to support position.
Uses parenthetical documentation (Research essay writing service – MLA style) to show how the
sources are being read
and to document sources.
Has spelling and grammar that need improvement.
Shows tolerance and humility.
Minimum of 1,500 words.
Characteristics of an unacceptable paper:
Does not have a personal response but simply repeats
material from other sources.
Does not document sufficiently or at all.
Does not have minimum word count.
Is late without prior arrangements being made.
Black American Catholics on the Path to Sainthood
Liturgical Leaders Black American Catholics on the Path to Sainthood There are several Black American Catholics who are in the early stages on the path to sainthood. We spoke briefly about some of these men and women in class, and some of you did a similar assignment last year in Liturgical Planning. This assignment is […]
