Topic: create a religion
Order Description
Assignment: Create a Religion/Church
Purpose: Apply the concepts & insights from the course to the creation of a proposal for a new
Church to be organized in Brooklyn, New York.
Task: Develop a proposal with your group for the creation of a Church. You proposal must
address (although you are not limited to) the following questions;
Identify features that are tied to the particular functions of religion as described by Jared Diamond.
Identify strategies for the recruitment and retention of members.
Create an overarching narrative.
Identify rules for entry and exit.
Identify strategies for promoting cooperation among members of your church.
Identify a target group/demographic for recruitment of members.
Describe your relations with and/or your approach to competitors (i.e. other churchs).
Identify rituals and practices that reinforce your groups identity.
Identify a means of economic support for your enterprise.
Resources:
In preparation for this assignment you can utilize the following resources:
Observation of existing churchs
Interviews with existing church leaders
Readings from class
1. Individual: You will prepare a short essay explaining how the Church that you helped develop addresses the key issues discussed in the course regarding the sociological features of religion. You will also be asked to assess the viability of your proposal and reflect on what you have learned from this assignment. Due: 12/9
Individual Religion Analysis
Purpose: To apply the concepts of the course to the analysis of a particular religion.
Overall Question: How vibrant and effective do you think this religion will be and why?
Outline:
1. Brief overview of the main features of the Religion you will be assessing.
2. An analysis of each function. What features of the religion address each of the functions and how well do they do so?
3. Discussion of the overall narrative of the religion.
4. Conclusion.
Notes:
In both your analysis of each function and your discussion of the overall narrative you can use and reference any of the readings from the class as well as outside sources.
You must have at least three references and cite them in your paper. Either MLA or APA formats are acceptable.
Functions of Religion
Supernatural explanation
Defusing anxiety through ritual
Providing comfort about pains and death
Standardized organization
Preaching political obedience
Moral codes of behavior towards strangers
Justification of wars
follow the instructions any questions please contact me.