SOPHIA MILESTONE: Approaches to Studying Religions Unit 4 Challenge 2.

You manage a busy department store in a metropolitan area. Both your workforce and customers come from a diverse neighborhood. As part of your store's community outreach you give tours to small school groups, most of t ...

You manage a busy department store in a metropolitan area. Both your workforce and customers come from a diverse neighborhood. As part of your store's community outreach you give tours to small school groups, most of them religious, once a month. Your boss always makes you remind school groups not to steal. He says it's as simple as saying, "Don't steal. Stealing is bad." You’ve found students are much more responsive when you refine your message towards the group. Select the message that is most likely to resonate with an Islamic perspective on morality, ethics, and sin. "It's important to follow the rules and not steal from the store..."  "because you will be judged on Judgment day for actions like stealing."  "because it is a commandment not to sin."  "because it goes against the natural flow of the world."  "because it will result in good Karma for your deeds."  "because it is part of your duty to your family and society."  "because you should disconnect from the material world and not want these goods." As you lead the school group around the store, a student asks about the large earth friendly section in the store. The short answer is that the products sell really well, but you decide to touch upon why the products seem to sell so well. "Well almost all societies and religions hold the earth and our environment as a special resource. The reasoning and actions differ a little between people, but at our core, all humans seem to care about the earth." Match the following statements regarding the environment to the religion that holds the belief. = Correct Answer = Incorrect Answer Christianity Buddhism Islam Humans should strive for balance by maintaining a stable environment. Humans should respect the earth and maintain balance between the spiritual world and matter. God gave humans dominion over the This study resource was shared via CourseHero.comearth, so we should be good stewards of the environment. HINT Consider how the environment fits into each of these religions' perspective or worldview. As the tour is wrapping up, you always walk through the break room. You can't help but overhear a conversation by three co-workers talking about their personal beliefs. One sales representative, Jim, says, "Do you really believe that God cares about whether you have problems or not? I certainly believe that God exists; all you have to do is look at the magnificent creation around you. But I don't think God worries about what happens in our daily lives." (A) Deism is the belief that God was responsible for creation, but that a person can't really develop a personal relationship with God. School group tours always seem to leave you hungry, and seeing how it's already 1:30, you decide to get lunch at the food court in the basement. You order a BBQ pulled pork sandwich and sneak a bite while still in line. It's so delicious you can't help but want to share it with somebody else. You see your co-worker, Adi, sitting at a table and join her. You offer her a taste of your sandwich and are surprised when Adi refuses. Your curiosity gets the best of you and you can't help but ask Adi why she doesn't want any of your delicious sandwich. She explains that she is a vegetarian and does not eat meat. Adi's religion does not have any specific rules regarding the consumption of meat. Instead, many people from her religion just choose not to eat meat. Adi's religion is most likely (A) Hinduism . As you continue your conversation, you can't help but notice Tim and Jin enter the room because they are loudly sharing a good laugh. These two representatives come from two different sides of the world and have very different religious backgrounds. Even with those big differences, they have become best friends and treat customers very similarly. Another thing they have in common is that they both attempt to avoid sin. One representative, Tim, views sin as a transgression against divine law. He is probably from a/an (A) Abrahamic tradition. As the manager of a busy department store in a metropolitan area, you recognize that both your workforce and customers come from a diverse neighborhood. December always seems to be the busiest month in the store. At first you thought it was all Christmas shoppers, but now you are not so sure. You notice that some shoppers are much more careful about the number and type of purchases they make. "The spiritual approach in (A) Buddhism depends upon lessening one's attachment to sensual pleasure and physical goods. Therefore, the follower of this religion is advised to pay close attention, often in meditation, to craving for pleasure and material possessions." Having looked at sales for the month of December, you realize that a fairly large percentage of your customers must be Jewish, because sales of Jewish religious items, such as the menorah, were high during the month. You're curious how the company's sales have changed over time and decide to look back at the accounting records for the last 15 years. This approach of looking backward to see how things have changed is similar to the (A) historical approach to studying religion.