Writing Assignment 2 Parameters and Standards
Summary: All religions have places (or spaces) that are considered important for their adherents. Often called
“sacred or religious spaces,” these locations can take many forms and serve a variety of functions. They
can be structures that are utilized by the faithful in ritual and/or ceremony, shrines to commemorate
special places, landmarks of religious significance, or areas of terrain considered important. For this
writing, compose an essay in which you explore one of the religious spaces (or places) provided below.
Describe the place and its history, explaining why and how the adherents of a particular religion use it.
Be sure to pay attention to all the details in the rest of this document before writing. Here are the options
from which you will choose only one to explore:
• The Western Wall (Judaism)
• Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela (Christianity)
• Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (Islam)
• Harmandir Sahib (Sikhism)
Quick View Checklist (all of this is discussed in greater depth in the Parameters section that follows):
□ Select only one (1) of the sacred spaces listed above as the subject of your essay.
□ The sacred space is discussed in terms of history, purpose/meaning, features, and usage.
□ The paper structure is that of a standard college essay.
□ Research sources are academic, scholarly, or scriptures and doctrines of the religion.
□ Include an MLA formatted bibliography of at least 3 sources.
□ Quotes are limited to religious scriptures or doctrines only and can be no more than 10% of the paper content.
□ Submission is at least 600 words (bibliographies are not a part of the word count).
□ Contains appropriate sentence and paragraph formats, proper grammar, and correct spelling and punctuation.
□ Demonstrates original writing skills.
□ Submission is provided in the Writing Assignment 2 dropbox by the due date posted in the Time Schedule.
Parameters: Here are the complete parameters of this research assignment:
SACRED SPACE – Select only one (1) of the following sacred spaces to explore: The Western Wall
(Judaism), Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela (Christianity), Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (Islam), or Harmandir
Sahib (Sikhism).
CONTENT – You should describe each sacred space in terms of history, purpose, meaning, features, and
usage. This conversation should focus on how the sacred space is an example of the religious tradition
that utilizes it. For example, think about the follow questions during your research: Why was this structure
made? Why is it in this specific spot? Who was responsible for building it? What does the space mean to
the people of the religion? Why and how do the adherents of the religion use it? Are there specific
activities, props, and/or dietary aspects associated with this space? Are there certain times when this space
is utilized? To what extent do the people participate in events at this space? You do not need to address
all these questions; rather, the idea here is that you have demonstrated extensive cross-cultural knowledge
through a description of the space, its history, its use, and its meaning for the adherents of a particular
religious tradition. Deductions of up to 30 points will be made for errors related to the categories of Sacred
Space and Content.
ACADEMIC WRITING – This paper should be done in a traditional essay format: introduction paragraph,
two to three content paragraphs, a conclusion paragraph, and then a bibliography of sources consulted.
Additionally, the essay is expected to conform to academic writing standards (i.e., demonstrate the use of
proper sentence and paragraph formats, proper grammar, and correct spelling and punctuation). Up to 20
points will be deducted for these errors based upon their frequency and severity.
RESEARCH – You are expected to do academic research for this assignment. This is not an opinion paper,
it is a research paper. To that end, consult and cite multiple sources (at least 3) to illustrate depth of
research. These academic or scholarly sources should be peer-reviewed journal articles or books (library
resources), primary sources (sacred literature and official religious documents), or authorized
publications of recognized religious organizations. The research sources consulted are to be provided in a
Bibliography conforming to the MLA (Modern Language Association) format. For more information about
the MLA format visit: https://spcollege.libguides.com/MLA_8th. For useful research information you
should see spcollege.libguides.com/world_religions. There will be deductions of up to 10 points for
research and citation errors.
WORD COUNT – Your submission is required to be a minimum of 600 words, but no more than 1200
words (Bibliographies do not count as a part of the word count). Submissions larger than 1200 words or
fewer than 600 words will receive no points. A college paper needs to demonstrate the skill of being
thorough, yet concise.
ORIGINAL WRITING – Your paper is to demonstrate original writing (see this conversation in the
Syllabus). In short, do not use the words of another as this can be considered plagiarism and may result
in a failing grade and possible honor code disciplinary action. Additionally, it is unacceptable to submit
your own work (in whole or in part) from another class or a previous attempt of REL 2300. For more
information, visit https://www.spcollege.edu/current-students/student-affairs/student-right-to-know.
QUOTING – Quotes are limited to primary source materials only (such as a verse from sacred literature) and
should constitute no more than 10% of the paper content. In other words, quotes can only come from
religious scriptures or documents, and should be used sparingly. You need to develop the ability to take
the information that you would quote and express it in your own words as this is how to demonstrate
understanding. Any quotes will need to have internal documentation done to MLA standards:
owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/. Deductions will be assessed based upon the severity of the
errors, with the points coming out of the “subject and content” section above.
DUE – The essay is due by the date posted in the calendar. Any assignment submitted late for any reason is
subject to a 5 point per business day late deduction, up to an assignment maximum of 30 points deducted.
After the paper has been graded based on the categories above, the late points will be deducted.
SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS – Students are required to submit the paper electronically to the “Writing
Assignment 2” dropbox in MyCourses. Submissions to this dropbox are subject to an originality check
through TurnItIn, a website that scans papers for signs of plagiarism and issues a report to the student and
instructor. Please note that the allowed file types are MS Word, WordPerfect, Postscript, Acrobat PDF,
HTML, RTF, and plain text. No other file types are accepted. I will grade and provide a response to you
within seven to ten days of the assignment due date.
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