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Imagine going on a spiritual journey searching for the true meaning of life and appreciating the value it brings through understanding the world and all it has to offer.  

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What is the value of studying Religion & Theology?

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They both give meaning to life. We can understand the world better through cultures, political & social structures. Religion is a spiritual connection to God; whereas, Theology is the study of God or "Fides quaerens intellectum" which means "Faith seeking understanding"

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"On Religion" by John Caputo & "Christianity without Superstition" by John McQuiston II

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Our very first quiz on the readings of Caputo and McQuiston. Unfortunately, I did not have my books to prepare for the quiz, but Dr. Lopez understood my circumstances and excused me.

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Studying increases brain knowledge and understanding

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The academic study of religion is a multidisciplinary and analytical exploration of various aspects of religious beliefs, practices and traditions. Examples of this Determinate and Indeterminate Religion. Determinate religion is considered as historic, confessionalism, traditional type religions such as Islam, Hindu, Judaism and Christianity to name a few. Indeterminate religion is a basic structure of human experience, being not confined to a traditional religion.

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This segment of the class during the second week of February 2024 was "enlightening". I had never heard of "The Enlightenment" before, but based on the timeline, it happened around the 1750s, the medieval period. The Enlightenment or Modernity (same word used interchangeably) is also known at the Age of Reason which was a cultural, intellectual and philosophical movement that emerged in Europe. I learned about the Paradigm of Modernity, which is a fairly effective way to break up the power of the Church, the King and Tradition which would pave the way for modern emancipated thinking and democratic society. "I think, therefore I am".

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Something that is not false...must be true

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We learned variations of what truth meant to us in class. Lessons learned included that truth is relational meaning that it is a relationship between the consciousness of mind and reality. Absolute Truth was another term which meant to "absolve". The truth absolves from all limitations, conditions, circumstances and perspectives. Absolve means to remove in which we remove all the conditions under which it is possible to know the truth.

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Writing up our reading guides had pros and cons for me. The pros were the fact that I could write in my own words the understanding of what I read in the books and the slides Professor Lopez talked about in class. From the con perspective, it was a little challenging in understanding John Caputo's writings and reflect on what he wrote about. John McQuiston was a little easier to understand. I personally liked taking notes in class and participate in the class discussions which was definitely helpful especially for quizzes.

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I always get nervous when it's testing time

Focus, remember and do my best!

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I enjoyed learning about signs, symbols and rituals. Signs and symbols are powerful and capable of transcending the boundaries of verbal expressions. Symbols transforms lives. It effectively organize our way of being in the world. For example, the American Flag. When we see the flag, we participate in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or sing the National Anthem at a ballgame. All cultures have rituals that give shape to people's common life together. Ritualizing is an inherent aspect of human nature. For example, something as simple as putting a Christmas tree up and decorating the house together as a family or saying your prayers at night before going to bed. Rituals are a repeated act with a symbolic form.

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No school, no books, no homework, no tests...WOOHOO!!!

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Back to the books, homework, and quizzes

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As the school year is coming to a close, not only has attending JCU been enlightening, but this class called "Sacred Quest" has been too. When I first signed up for the class, I just knew that it would be about possibly meditating, taking a journey through writing and discussions about what a sacred quest meant to us. It was the complete opposite with the exception of having discussions. Learning the difference between religion and theology gave me clarity even in my own spiritual walk. The various topics discussed were informative and guiding such as the Language games, the symbol and visceral reaction chart, characteristics of rituals, and "A Daughter's Song" to name a few. I loved the interaction we were able to have with each other in class during small group discussions. Everyone in class got involved once we came together as a whole and we learned a lot from each other's perspectives on the various topics. This class wasn't about lecturing majority of the time which was good, because after 10-15 minutes of someone talking, could lose my attention if it's not interesting enough. Having handouts, and watching videos to related topics brought truth to power in having better understanding of what "Sacred Quest" was really about. Out of the three books we had to read, I liked "Christianity without Superstition" by John McQuiston the best, because he spoke in a language that even a kid could follow and understand especially when talking about "death" and understanding what life after death is and what it means. Even this project of the Digital Course Journal was fun to do. I was nervous about it because I was facing the unknown. I had never heard of Padlet, but once I logged into it, it reminded of working on a PowerPoint or Google slides, but just a little simpler. I'm just glad I took plenty of notes to remind me that I can always reflect back on what I learned and understand what I've learned throughout this course.

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I chose this instrumental piece because it reminds me to "be real" when searching for inner peace, journeying on a quest for more knowledge and understanding and seeking God to guide me through this path called Life. It's been a great semester. Thank you Dr. Lopez.