Blackboard Assignment #3.  Select one of the following prompts, and write a paper of 3-4 pages double spaced of your own...

Blackboard Assignment #3.  Select one of the following prompts, and write a paper of 3-4 pages double spaced of your own reflection on it:

 

1.  In many religious traditions of the world, splinter groups or “spinoff” sects have ended up declaring themselves as completely new religious traditions, with only selected strands of intersection that tie them to their original community.  Do you see this trend happening with sectarian groups in Islam, like the Shi’a and Sufi communities?  Or do you envision relationships between the majority Sunni community and these groups being strengthened over time?  

 

 

2.  We have explored the ways that Western systems of analysis, like feminism and orientalism, have influenced thinkers in the Muslim world who write about the status of women and members of the LGBTQ community.  Based on what we know about the history and theology of Islam,  the status of minority sects, and women’s voices in Islam, what can Western secular society learn from Islamic feminism?