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Instructor: Dale Sturm Summer office hours: T 3:15-4:30 pm
Office: TAY 202B Th 3:15-5:30 pm
Phone: 496-1445 F 9-11:30 am
E-mail:
Religion 431
Doctrines of the Gospel
Summer 2007
Texts
LDS Editions of The Standard Works B Please bring your scriptures everyday.
Doctrines of the Gospel Student Manual
Text of the various talks we will be discussing. These will be available to you on Blackboard.
Grading
1. Attendance (240 points) and Reading (220 points)
Attendance: B You will receive 10 points for every day you are present with your
scriptures.
B You will receive 1 point for every day you are present without your
scriptures.
B Zero absences will earn you a bonus of 50 pts
B Seven absences will incur a loss of 100 points.
B Each additional absence will incur a loss of 100 points.
Please be on time, remain alert and attentive, and plan on staying for the whole hour. Please bring your scriptures and the readings everyday. Also, please don’t do work from other classes during our class. Coming late, leaving early, passing out, playing games or having text message conversations on your laptop, cell phone, PDA, etc., or doing other work will probably be counted as an absence.
Reading: Please read all of the quotes and at least 5 of the scripture passages from the chapters assigned. Note that with some topics there is also a talk included as part of your reading assignment (each of the talks is available to you on Blackboard). You will report on the daily roll whether or not you have completed the full reading assignment for the day. You get 10 points for being prepared by having read all of it. You must read all of it to receive any points—there is no partial credit for reading.
Each of the items listed above will be recorded by you on the roll. Please make sure you get your scores on the roll. Also, remind me to pass it if I seem to be forgetting. Check your scores on Blackboard frequently to make sure they have been transferred accurately. I will be happy to make corrections anytime during the first two weeks after the date of the item. Thereafter, we are stuck with what is recorded in Blackboard.
2. Assignments (440 points)
Daily Journal Entries (220 points)
In advance of every class session, you will write a brief journal entry (approximately 200 words) where you record your thoughts, reactions, and impressions. You will submit your journal entry via Blackboard before class begins. You will receive 10 points for completing and submitting your journal entry.
Quote Sheet (90 points)
To develop and practice the skill of figuring out the truth about a doctrine, you will formulate a specific doctrinal question and then research it using the tools we will discuss in class. The product of your research will be a quote sheet in which you include at least 5 quotations. 4 of them must be from current or former members of the First Presidency or Quorum of the Twelve. You may include 1 quote from another source such as another General Authority or General Officer of the Church or a recognized scholar.
Doctrinal Essay (130 points)
To further develop and practice the skill of figuring out the truth about a doctrine, you will:
1) select a different doctrine from the one you used for the quote sheet.
2) research it just as you did for the quote sheet.
3) write a brief essay in which you teach the doctrine using the quotes and your own thoughts, examples, etc. jus t as if you were teaching it to a friend or in a talk. Be sure to include appropriate citations for any quotes. Also include a Reference list as the last page.
3. Content Mastery (175 points)
Quizzes (100 points) – Almost every Wednesday (see the syllabus for exact dates) you will take a five-question quiz about the previous two class sessions. Each quiz will be worth ten points. Ten quizzes X ten points each = 100 pts.
Mid-term (25 points) – The mid-term is quite unique. You will not take a test—I will. The test will be over your names. Your task is to help me learn your name. Tell me your name over and over. Try to drop in on me some time during office hours. Have a brief conversation with me when you see me on campus, etc. You will receive the points when I take a test in class in which I will say everyone’s name.
Final (50 points) – The final will be worth 50 pts. If you don’t need the points, you don’t need to take it.
Grading Scale
Attendance 240
Reading 220
Assignments 440
Content Mastery 175
1075
A = 1075-1003 B+ = 968-931 C+ = 858-823 D+ = 750-715 F = 642 and below
A- = 1003-967 B = 930-895 C = 822-787 D = 714-679
B- = 894-859 C- = 786-751 D- = 678-643
Daily Schedule
Date / Class Discussion / Quizzes and Due Dates / Additional Reading4/16 / Syllabus
Ch. 1 Divine Truth
4/18 / Ch. 2 Revelation / Dallin H. Oaks, “Revelation”
4/23 / Ch. 3 God the Eternal Father
Ch. 4 Jesus Christ, the Son of God / Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Father and the Son”
4/25 / Ch. 5 The Holy Ghost
Ch. 16 The Gift of the Holy Ghost / Quiz 1
4/30 / Ch. 6 Our Premortal Life
Ch. 10 The Purpose of Earth Life
5/2 / Ch. 7 The Creation
Ch. 8 The Fall / Quiz 2
5/7 / Ch. 9 The Atonement of Jesus Christ / Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Atonement of Jesus Christ”
5/9 / Ch. 11 The Agency of Man / Quiz 3 / Dallin H. Oaks, “Freedom and Free Agency”
5/14 / Ch. 12 Prayer and Fasting
5/16 / Ch. 13 Faith, a Power that Centers in Christ / Quiz 4
5/21 / Ch. 14 Repentance / Richard G. Scott, “Finding the Way Back”
5/23 / Ch. 15 The Covenant of Baptism
Ch. 16 The Sacrament, a Memorial Ordinance / Quiz 5,
Quote Sheet due / Excerpts from:
Robert D. Hales, “The Covenant of Baptism”
Dallin H. Oaks, “Taking Upon Us the Name of Jesus Christ”
5/30 / Ch. 17 Obedience, a Law of Heaven
6/4 / Ch. 18 Spiritual Rebirth: True Conversion / Bro Sturm takes the name test!
6/6 / Ch. 21 The Foreordination of Covenant Israel and Their Responsibilities
Ch. 24 The Scattering and the Gathering of Israel / Quiz 6 / Russell M. Nelson, “Children of the Covenant”
6/11 / Ch. 22 The Apostasy
6/13 / Ch. 23 The Restoration of the Gospel in the Dis- pensation of the Ful- ness of Times / Quiz 7
6/18 / Ch. 25 Priesthood: What it is, How it Works
Ch. 26 The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood / Boyd K. Packer, “What Every Elder Should Know—And Every Sister As Well”
6/20 / Ch. 27 The Law of the Sabbath / Quiz 8
6/25 / Ch. 28 Celestial Marriage
Ch. 29 The Importance of the Family / Gordon B. Hinckley, “What God Hath Joined Together”
6/27 / Ch. 30 Death and the Postmortal Spirit World
Ch. 31 The Redemption of the Dead / Quiz 9,
Doctrinal Essay due
7/2 / Ch. 32 The Resurrection and the Judgment
Ch. 33 Kingdoms of Glory and Perdition
7/9 / Ch. 36 The Lord’s Second Coming
Ch. 37 The Millennium and the Glorification of the Earth
7/11 / Get caught up / Quiz 10