Read one of the following books and write and essay that (1) discusses how this book deals with theological themes in comparison to how Migliore deals with those themes; and (2) explains how you approach those themes in light of the book and Migliore. In short, think of the paper as a thoughtful dialogue between Migliore, the author of the book you choose, and yourself. The paper should be approximately 2500-4000 words (but can be longer), double-spaced, with one-inch margins, and 12 point type (preferably Times New Roman). These books can be found either in our library or through interlibrary loan.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer The Cost of Discipleship
John Cobb Praying for Jennifer (available on-line at http://www.religion-online.org/cgi-bin/relsearchd.dll/showbook?item_id=622)
Robert Brizee Where in the World is God?
Marcus Borg The God I Never Knew
C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity
Val Webb Why Were Equal: Introducing Feminist Theology
Hans Kόng The Christian Challenge
James Cone A Black Theology of Liberation
Students are welcome to talk to me about other options not listed here.
General Points Regarding Writing Papers:
avoid using "man" and "mankind" when you really mean human or humankind
avoid using contractions--the paper should be somewhat formal
write your paper as if your reader was unfamiliar with the book
when quoting a biblical text, e.g., "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God," the only citation you need is that Book chapter:verse. In the example above it would be Matthew 5:8. You do not need to cite the actual Bible you got it from (e.g., HarperCollins Study Bible). You should indicate, by abbreviation, which translation you are using, e.g., NRSV, NIV, KJV, etc. The only time you need to cite the actual Bible you are using is when you are referring to material in the footnotes or introductions, i.e., all non-biblical material. When citing the non-biblical material, you should follow standard citation format for an edited book.
citations should always include page numbers if the source is paginated
citations of web sites should be complete--for example, if you are referring to material found at http://www.lyon.edu/webdata/groups/rph/rph130/index.html don't put http://www.lyon.edu/webdata/groups/rph/ only
Do not use quotations to make a point; use them to support a point you make, e.g., about the author's perspective
It is not enough simply to list all the works consulted at the end of a paper. All information and ideas which a student finds from the works consulted must be specifically cited at the point in the paper where that information is included.
papers should always be double spaced
each page of your paper should have a page number
for my classes, you do not need to have a cover sheet (save a tree)
be sure that your paper is signed and pledged
in my classes, I prefer that you refer to yourself as "I" rather than as "the author of this paper" or "we"
The paper is due by April 17