Address a contemporary religious debate in the public sphere (gay marriage; public wearing of bi religion in schools; etc.) Your essay will present two sides of a debate. You can choose any public debate that focusses on religion. Your task is not to decide which side is right, but to think about what the debate tells us religion in the modern world. This is to say that I am less interested in your opinion about the debate, than I al your insight into what the debate tells us about religion and its place in public discussion.
Given that it is a short essay, just focus on two different positions in the debate, even though there are often n than two distinct parties engaging in important public debates.
First, present the content of each side of the debate. What is each side arguing? What is their concern? What stake for them?
Then, ask more analytical questions that may shed light on the way religion is debated in public. I give some examples below, but you may come up with others that are best suited to your topic.
• What does the debate tell us about religion in the modern world? • How does each side define or characterise religion? What are the differences in their definitions? Which deli more aligned with the way religious studies defines religion? • Who makes up the groups that have come into conflict? Are there interesting coalitions/alliances (e.g., religi. groups that would normally keep their distance from one another)? Were their groups that you thought would opposed to a specific position but are not? You should also tell us which major participants in these debates y WON’T be focussing on, just to give us a sense of the scope of the debate. • What does each side cite as the bases of their authority? (Bible, rationality, constitutional laws, etc.) • What role does the state play in the debate? • How do the groups respond to each other? That is, how do they describe, and counter, the views of their opponents? • What is at stake in the debate? Who are the winners and losers? • What vision do they have of the role of religion in the public sphere?
• What vision do they have of an ideal society? That is, what sort of society are
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