Thank you.

As the semester comes to an end, I wanted to take the time to say thank you for reading all of my blog posts! I can't believe that our class is almost over! I gained a whole new perspective on religions that I didn't really know about (Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam) and I started to question the ideas of Jesus and Christianity.  My eyes were opened to aspects of my religion that I had never noticed before. With the Jesus unit, I was particularly fascinated with the idea that Jesus did not necessarily know that he was starting a new religion; he was just a normal man whose his main teaching was to show quality and respect for people. In this way, I think Jesus and the prophet Muhammad are connected with their similar mentalities. Besides this, I was very intrigued by the point that the Bible’s stories are meant to be just that- stories. They should not be taken too seriously.  The Historical Jesus adds more to the Jesus that I thought I knew and makes him all the more intriguing and interesting.  

The reason I chose this class was because I wanted to become more enriched with the culture of the world; I wanted to stray away from my focus on my life in America. I think that as a college student, I am trapped in a bubble in which I don't really know what is going on in the world around me unless I experience it firsthand. I don't want that to be my mentality. I think learning about other religions and other cultures provides such an enriching experience to a person’s mind. Studying abroad last semester was my inspiration to take this class in the first place. I will never forget my amazing journey to the Middle East when I met new people, experienced new religion, and heard new languages. The glorious adventures and captivating sunsets will be vivid in my mind forever.