The document discusses the exploration of the relationship between science and religion, highlighting the importance of spiritual growth and biblical literalism in the context of a religious quest. It outlines assignments that require students to engage with quality sources, develop insights through discussions on topics like the attributes of God, the problem of evil, and personal reflections on religious matters. Various sources and models are suggested to aid understanding, emphasizing the need for proper citation and the quality of insights derived from these studies.

1. We’ve begun exploring the difference between science and
religion and facts and beliefs in the discussion threads along
with the Week 1 reflection paper on beliefs. This thread
explores what spiritual growth means (need compelling
definitions from those quality sources) and how are discussions
fit. The images of rooms in a house or possible paths to take or
a journey and our work in this thread deepens the central point
of a religious quest as growing spiritually.
In week five the concept of biblical literalism is
examined in regards to an informed, living Word of God
foundation, which is not easy, nor short term, nor isolated is the
mature, experienced, and prayerful interpretation of Sacred
Scriptures. But this is one of several points that we should note
and then study in reference to a mature faith and biblical
studies. (This is a good point to include in the Week 3 Written
Assignment!) (Biology is another point to relate to our work!)
Just as we were born small, defenseless, incapable of speech
and had the capacity for understanding but knew nothing,
human development (each of us) needed to physically,
emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually needed to grow,
deepen, and progress through stages that take time. See
Kohlberg’s Model of Moral Development that might provide
some insights in graphical form.
Also, check out the lecture for this week to aid in our work.
Thoughts and sources, class?
1
Religious Quest – RELS 1325
Rev. Paul Hudec, PhD
Week 3 Written Assignment (quiz/journal, etc.)

2. This assignment will provide evidence regarding mastery of the
important concepts of the material through the end of this
portion of the course including references (sources) as they
refer to each item below. This is a formal paper which is
different from the Week 1 informal, reflection paper. Citations
linked to sources are required in each of the following topics.
Organize the paper with a header or section title and (you can
use single-spacing rather than double-spacing if you’d like)
with any references to the text and other sources identified as
footnotes or as endnotes or in a proper documentation style at
the end of this short paper.
This is not a memory test or assessment on persons, places, or
things, but on the quality sources discovered and the material
these sources provided along with insights gained in the
discussions that logically flow from these sources.
What expert and professional sources have you found in these
first three weeks that aid your efforts in this course Religious
Quest and how have they helped (list each and what insights
have they provided)?
What is the religious quest and how do the attributes of God as
discussed in the discussion threads fit within that quest?
What is spiritual growth and what models were explored in the
discussion threads?
How does science inform the religious quest?
Each answer to the above questions should be at least ½ page
(single-spaced or 1 full page if double-spaced). This assignment
should not be more than 5 pages in (narrative) length because
this is an assignment, not a final paper. (Do not count the title
page or the reference page in the length.) You must cite sources

3. within the narrative and include a reference page of all sources
used at the end (APA format). Feel free to use each question as
a heading in your paper.
Do not simply copy complete paragraphs or sections from a
source(s) as the answer. I want to read how you’ve come to
understand the material and are able to arrive at insights for
living today. You must include citations within the narrative
indicating the sources that provided the facts or insights and
using APA Style a reference appears in parentheses (author,
year) with the period after the ending parenthesis. Also, note
that you must have a Reference page. See the example.
Use Times New Roman 12pt (as the font and size) for this
assignment.
Insert page numbers in the upper right corner of this
assignment. Paginate the assignment in the upper right corner
of each since the default setting has no page numbering.
Complete the written assignment and post it to the Assessment
for this week so I can annotate and grade it using MS Word
format. See the sample title page for a guide for this
assignment and please use it, but make the changes to reflect
your work. Be sure to run Spell Check before submitting your
paper.
(A sample title page for this assignment follows on the next
page. The items in the parentheses are to be changed to reflect
your information.)
Religious Quest, RELS 1325

4. Week 3 Written Assignment
By (student name)
For Rev. Paul Hudec, Ph.D., M.A.P.S., M.B.A.
(day month year)
SAMPLEReferences
(Notice that I used Heading 1 as the format for this final page of
the paper and this will be important in creating a Table of
Contents that is required for the final paper.)
Cunningham, L. (2013). Toward a Definition of Religion. In
The Sacred quest: An invitation to the study of religion (Sixth
ed.). New York: Nancy Roberts.

5. Shahrestani, A. (2013 May 23). What Makes Things Holy? |
Plato's Socrates. Retrieved November 8, 2015, from
http://hubpages.com/education/Holy-Plato-Euthyphro-Socrates-
philosophy-religion
Comments on the written assignment:
Be sure to cite the required reading materials in your reference
list and in the narrative as they apply.
Use the full citation information as provided in the example not
just the URL.
WEEK TWO DISCUSSION
Attributes of god
http://www.qcc.cuny.edu/SocialSciences/ppecorino/PHIL_of_R
ELIGION_TEXT/CHAPTER_1_OVERVIEW/Attributes_of_God
.htm
I believe God is Omnipotent. God demonstrates his
power over the world numerous times throughout the
Bible. Many stories, from Abraham delivering the Jewish
slaves from Egyptian rule, to destroying the world with the
flood. We don’t know God’s plan or methods, yet we still
try. In our attempts to understand and identify God we question
God’s power. If God is All Mighty, then why is there evil? We
must first understand where we are and the purpose of
earth. The great dragon was hurled down, that ancient serpent
called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He
was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him (Revelation

6. 12:9). The belief of some Christian faith is that earth is a
spiritual prison or a City of Refuge. Where the sinners of
heaven have been casted and sentenced to death. Through that
same power that banished us from Heaven is the only power that
can grant us forgiveness and allow our return home.
The Beneficent Being attribute of GOD. I hear people saying,
God is so good he blessed me with some material gain or good
fortune. Are we saying that those are what blessings are? What
does the Bible say? Jesus used the word “blessed” four times in
a row (nine times in a row in Matthew’s account in Chapter
5). In every case in Luke’s Gospel, the word is followed by an
adjective that describes people that most of us would consider
anything but blessed: the poor, the hungry, etc. We would
probably consider them cursed (Klein, 2018). With that in mind
the goodness of God isn’t how we as people perceive
good. God’s goodness comes from the opportunity to earn
blessings and be forgiven for our grievous sin. We all have that
opportunity, so God is always good.
God possess the attributes that have been described, just not by
secular comprehension. We must view spiritual issues with
spiritual eyes not worldly ones. If we do that, only then can we
begin to understand and see those attributes come true. When
we were children, we viewed situations from a child’s
perspective. I remember getting grounded for not following the
rules or doing my chores. At the time I was very upset and felt
like my parents were bad because the things I couldn’t do,
others could. As I grew up, I realized that my parents were
giving me tools to succeed in life and doing what was best for
me. Once my perspective changed, I understood that I had good
parents. In the same way if we change our perspective, we will
understand the attributes of God.
Klein, J.L. (2016). Is God Good All the Time? Or Only When

7. we Feel Blessed?
The Holy Bible, new international version, (1984). Grand
Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House.
Science helps in our quest
Throughout our journey of growth and discovery, it is evident
that we encounter various rich sources of insights that influence
our approach to life and specifically in matters regarding
religion and science. Individually, we all have different
perceptions regarding life and its constituents but considering
the fact, that we all liv in a community full of other individuals,
it is evident that we can influence or gain influence from the
society (TED, 2006). Personally, one of the greatest influences
in my view of religion and science is the concept of the cynic or
cynicism. Notably, through cynicism, one believes that the
reason and purpose of life is to live in virtue and coincide with
the requirements of nature around us. Just the same way the
Ted talk highlighted on how the environment around their
family was, it was the leading factor to her belief about religion
and science.
Noteworthy, both religion and science are effective in providing
us the facts concerning the world but in other cases, they
oppose each other regarding some facts. In such cases, it will
then entirely depend on the individual’s background and how
their self-discovery journey dictated them to conduct
themselves. Furthermore, as a cynic, through reasoning of the
creatures, individuals are made able to gain happiness through
an intense training as well as living in accordance with the
natural order of life individually whereas declining every
conventional lust for sex, wealth, and fame (McLuhan,
2015). In doing so, we attain our morals in religion since our
lives are not dictated by material ownerships, but our individual
believes. Hence, it drives us to lead a simple life that is not
based on our possessions.

8. TED. (2006). Letting go of God | Julia Sweeney.
Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtIyx687ytk
McLuhan, E. (2015). Cynic satire. Cambridge Scholars
Publishing.
WEEK 3 DISCUSSION
The Problem of Evil
In our natural ways of living, it is evident that we all encounter
the problem of evil where the reaction we offer is entirely
dependent on our quest for what is best for our lives. Through
our religious quest, we are made possible to evaluate any evil
based on our ethical and moral perspectives on the type of evil
we are faced with. In such a case, the problem of evil together
with suffering amongst each of us in the world tends to pose a
very serious and complex inquiry that challenges our belief on
the existence of the perfect God (Nick Trakakis,
N.D.). Moreover, the main challenge projected is if God were
Omniscient, it means that He knows of all scenarios of the
existence of evil among us. The Omnipotence of God questions
about His mightiness and powerfulness when we are
encountered with evils that cause horrible experiences to us and
why He does not do something to eradicate all evil and
sufferings in us.
Notably, since God is termed as all perfect both morally and
ethically, it raises complexities on why He does allow evil to
prevail and not do a thing about it. It is all clear that the world
is filled up with evil and suffering and at the same time, God’s
existence is conveyed to us by different individuals and in
different ways. However, it is these facts regarding evil and
suffering among living creatures that seem to conflict with the
orthodox theists claim that a perfectly good God exists
(Howard-Snyder, 2016). As a result of these challenges posed
regarding whether God exists or not, it leads us to the conflict
of the problem of evil. Logically understanding this issue, we

9. cannot deny the existence of a supernatural being but the main
concern is the intention and perfectness of this being. I believe
in the existence of God and that all these evils faced are as a
result of the natural order of life.
Howard-Snyder, D. (Ed.). (2016). The evidential argument from
evil. Indiana University Press.
Nick Trakakis, (N.D.). The Evidential Problem of Evil; Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Australian Catholic
University, Australia. Retrieved from
https://www.iep.utm.edu/evil-evi/
The Search
Unfortunately, I don't have the ability to watch the NG series
here in Korea. The Old Testament accounts for the story of the
10 plagues of Egypt. These plagues were used to force the
Egyptian Pharaoh to release the Israelites. The Passover was a
ceremony to be conducted by the Israelites in the manner
described by God. This would serve as a sign for God’s people
and the plague of the First Born would not befall upon
them. This tradition has grown and is one of the most important
rituals for observant Jews. Is it just an Old Testament
practice? Jesus told his disciples “I have eagerly desired to eat
this Passover with you before I suffer” (Luke 22:15). The
Passover meal that Jesus desired is what we know today, as the
Last Supper. Jesus kept the Passover in the New Testament
times. Therefore, it isn’t just an Old Testament ritual.
I have never heard of the cult of Mithras before this
class. Mithras is a name for the sun god of the

10. Romans. Merriam-Webster defines a cult as a religion regarded
as unorthodox or spurious. Based off that definition in my
opinion most religions that we have today began a cult before it
became widely accepted. I remember when the Jehovah’s
Witnesses would come to our home as a child my parents
referred to them as a cult. Now it’s an accepted well-known
religion. I came across an article describing how to recognize a
cult. The following
article https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/06/th
e-seven-signs-youre-in-a-cult/361400/ suggested a seven step
method to identify cults. I believe in freedom of religion. We
have the right to believe what we want if we don’t hinder or
cause harm to others. I respect all religions who respect
others. That’s why we have faith. Faith enables us to stand
firm in those beliefs without “proof” so to speak.
InspiringPhilosophy. (2016, September 17). Jesus vs Mithra.
Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muM7Uk40iRE
Dan Gilgoff, (2011, April 18). Explain it to me:
Passover Retrieved
from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlSVShBAVtw
History.com Editors. (2009, November 9). Passover. Retrieved
from https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/passover