Apologetics Application Paper – Final
Apologetics Application Paper Instructions
Choose a non-Christian worldview (see page 2 of these instructions for the worldviews you may choose from). Write a paper that evaluates the worldview using the method described in the Groothuis text, that defends Christianity, and that demonstrates a working knowledge of the assigned course readings and accomplishes the following goals:
- Summarize the worldview by using the main categories of belief discussed in the assigned course reading (see Groothuis Chapter 4 for some of the main categories of belief: ultimate reality, source of authority, human beings, source of morality, etc.). This section of the paper must be approximately 600 words.
- Use Groothuis’s criteria for evaluating worldviews (see Groothuis Chapter 3) in order to reveal the significant ways in which the selected worldview fails in providing a rational, livable, comprehensive system. This section of the paper must be 600-750 words.
- Evaluate Christianity by the same criteria. Show that Christianity is a better (both intellectually and existentially), more reasonable alternative to the worldview selected, and that Christianity is more likely to be true. By using the same evaluation criteria as given in the previous section, this will show that Christianity does not suffer from the same flaws as the worldview you evaluated. This section of the paper must be 600-750 words.
- Defend key aspects of the Christian worldview. The defense must take into consideration the beliefs and perspective of the worldview you have selected; and must demonstrate a good working knowledge of the standard arguments as presented in the course materials. This section must include significant discussion on at least 2 of the following subjects: the problem of evil, several arguments for the existence of God, defense of the resurrection of Jesus, defense of objective truth and/or moral values. This section of the paper must be 750-1000 words.
These four requirements will form the basis of the structure of your paper and must be treated as four separate sections in the body of the paper. In addition to these requirements, the paper must have a proper introduction, conclusion, and follow the structure of a standard academic essay. The introduction must include a clear thesis statement—a main claim about the worldview that provides unity to the overall presentation. Including both the introduction and conclusion but not the title and bibliography pages, the total length of the paper must be 2800 – 3300 words (including the main text only, not footnotes, front matter, or the bibliography).
Given these instructions, the basic outline for your paper should be as follows:
I. Introduction
II. Summary of the Worldview
III. Evaluation of the Worldview
IV. Evaluation of Christianity
V. Defense of Christianity
VI. Conclusion
Instructions continued next page
Worldview Choices – Choose one of these three worldviews to write about in this paper:
- Scientific Naturalism
- Secular Humanism
- Postmodernism
Outside Research (Required)
Course textbooks may be used. In addition to these, at least 10 high-quality, scholarly sources must be used. A scholarly source is one that is published in print by an academic publisher, university, or scholarly society. Academic journal articles and books are acceptable sources. Many scholarly sources are available in both hard-copy printed format and electronic form through the Jerry Falwell Library. Articles appearing on scholarly websites published and maintained by universities or scholarly societies (such as the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) may be used, but generic websites (such as bible.org, CARM.org, Wikipedia, personal websites, blogs, etc.) must not be used. While less than ideal, it is permissible to use a few websites that contain articles written by people who hold to the worldview you are writing about, even if these websites do not strictly fall into the definition of “scholarly.”
Given the nature of the assignment, you must consult and use several sources written from a perspective that defends the worldview of your selected target audience. Liberty University’s online research tools can be used, which will provide full-text electronic copies of print sources.
This assignment will be completed in 3 parts:
- Parts 1 and 2 are designed to help you develop the building blocks of what will become your final paper. Both Parts 1 and 2 will be submitted on the submission forms provided in Blackboard. Each submission form indicates the instructions and requirements for that part of the assignment – and the submission froms must remain unchanged with the exception of the required content that you type on the form. Attempted submissions that do not use the provided submission form will not be accepted for credit. Each of these parts is designed to help you write a final paper that meets the requirements stated in these instructions. For each part, you must download the form and save it on your computer with a new file name using your last name and the assignment name. Then, type your content directly on the form (without making any other changes to the form) and submit the form in Blackboard using the links provided.
- The final paper must conform to the requirements named above. All aspects of the final paper must follow current Turabian format and the current version of the School of Divinity Writing Guide.
Submit the Apologetics Application Paper – Part 1 by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Sunday of Module/Week 3.
Submit the Apologetics Application Paper – Part 2 by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Sunday of Module/Week 5.
Submit the Apologetics Application Paper – Final by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Friday of
Module/Week 8.
APOL500 Apologetics Application Paper FINAL Grading Rubric (180 total points)
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Criteria |
Levels of Achievement |
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Content 70% |
Advanced 92-100% (A) |
Proficient 84-91% (B) |
Developing 1-83% (< C) |
Not present |
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Introduction |
11 to 12 points The introduction displays an advanced ability to construct a good introduction. The introduction clearly identifies the topic of the paper and identifies the worldview to be examined. A clear, strong thesis is offered which makes an evaluative claim about the topic worldview. A brief overview of the paper’s content and structure is offered. |
10 points The introduction displays a proficient ability to construct a good introduction. The introduction identifies the topic of the paper and identifies the worldview to be examined. A clear thesis is offered which makes an evaluative claim about the topic worldview. A brief overview of the paper’s content and structure is offered. |
1 to 9 points The introduction displays a developing ability to construct a good introduction. The introduction identifies the worldview to be examined. A clear thesis is offered which makes a claim about the topic worldview. A brief overview of the paper’s content and structure is offered. |
0 points The paper does not contain an introduction that meets expectations. |
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Summary of the Worldview |
19 to 21 points Content displays an advanced understanding of the worldview categories of belief, and the ability to analyze the topic worldview in order to apply those categories to a summary of that worldview. Each point of summary is accurate and focused. |
18 points Content displays a proficient understanding of the worldview categories of belief, and the ability to analyze the topic worldview in order to apply those categories to a summary of that worldview. Each point of summary is accurate and generally focused. |
1 to 17 points Content displays a developing understanding of the worldview categories of belief, and the ability to analyze the topic worldview in order to apply those categories to a summary of that worldview. Each point of summary is generally accurate, with few errors. |
0 points
Does not display an understanding of how to summarize the beliefs of the worldview in terms of the categories of belief. |
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Evaluation of the Worldview |
19 to 21 points
Content displays an advanced understanding of the evaluation criteria, and the ability to analyze the topic worldview in order to apply those criteria to a preliminary evaluation of that worldview. Each point of evaluation is accurate and focused. |
18 points
Content displays a proficient understanding of the evaluation criteria, and the ability to analyze the topic worldview in order to apply those criteria to a preliminary evaluation of that worldview. Each point of evaluation is accurate and focused. |
1 to 17 points
Content displays a developing understanding of the evaluation criteria, and the ability to analyze the topic worldview in order to apply those criteria to a preliminary evaluation of that worldview. Each point of evaluation is mostly accurate and focused. |
0 points
Does not display an understanding of how to evaluate the worldview using the evaluation criteria. |
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Evaluation of Christianity |
19 to 21 points
The evaluation of Christianity is a direct parallel to the evaluation of the topic worldview. Content displays an advanced understanding of how to apply the evaluation criteria to an objective and fair evaluation of the Christian worldview. Each point of evaluation is objective, accurate, and focused. |
18 points
The evaluation of Christianity is a direct parallel to the evaluation of the topic worldview. Content displays a proficient understanding of how to apply the evaluation criteria to an objective and fair evaluation of the Christian worldview. Each point of evaluation is objective, accurate, and focused. |
1 to 17 points
The evaluation of Christianity is somewhat parallel to the evaluation of the topic worldview. Content displays a developing understanding of how to apply the evaluation criteria to an objective and fair evaluation of the Christian worldview. Each point of evaluation is accurate. |
0 points
Does not display an understanding of how to evaluate the Christian worldview using the evaluation criteria. |
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Defense of Christianity |
19 to 21 points
Content displays an advanced understanding of the elements necessary to defend Christianity, and the ability to apply arguments and apologetic elements from the course materials to a clear defense of Christianity. Each point of defense is clear, concise, and focused. |
18 points
Content displays a proficient understanding of the elements necessary to defend Christianity, and the ability to apply arguments and apologetic elements from the course materials to a clear defense of Christianity. Each point of defense is clear, concise, and focused. |
1 to 17 points
Content displays a developing understanding of the elements necessary to defend Christianity, and the ability to apply arguments and apologetic elements from the course materials to a clear defense of Christianity. Each point of defense is clear. |
0 points
Does not display an understanding of how to apply arguments in a defense of Christianity. |
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Conclusion |
10 points
The paper demonstrates an advanced ability to write a proper conclusion. The conclusion refocuses on the paper’s thesis, and gives a clear and concise overview of how the contents of the paper supported the thesis. The conclusion does not introduce new arguments or content. |
8 to 9 points The paper demonstrates a proficient ability to write a proper conclusion. The conclusion focuses mainly on the paper’s thesis, and gives a clear overview of how the contents of the paper supported the thesis. The conclusion does not introduce new arguments or content. |
1 to 7 points The paper demonstrates a developing ability to write a proper conclusion. The conclusion focuses mainly on the paper’s thesis, and gives a clear overview of how the contents of the paper supported the thesis. The conclusion does not introduce new arguments or content. |
0 points
A proper conclusion is not present. |
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Research |
18 to 20 points The paper demonstrates an advanced ability to find and use high-quality, relevant scholarly works. The paper’s content interacts with sources in a substantive, meaningful way. Sources are used to support the paper’s argument, but are not used to provide substance in place of the student’s own original work in the paper. |
17 points The paper demonstrates a proficient ability to find and use high-quality, relevant scholarly works. The paper’s content interacts with sources in a substantive way. Sources are used to support the paper’s argument, but are not used to provide substance in place of the student’s own original work in the paper. |
1 to 16 points The paper demonstrates a developing ability to find and use high-quality, relevant scholarly works. The paper’s content interacts with sources in a substantive, meaningful way. Sources are used mainly to support the paper’s argument, but are generally not used to provide substance in place of the student’s own original work in the paper. |
0 points
Does not display an ability to find or interact with relevant scholarly sources. |
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Structure 30% |
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Grammar, Spelling, and Style |
18 to 20 points
The paper demonstrates an advanced ability to utilize correct grammar and spelling, and a clear style. Correct spelling and grammar are used throughout. Content is concise, focused, and clear. Proper terminology is used throughout. |
17 points
The paper demonstrates a proficient ability to utilize correct grammar and spelling, and a clear style. Correct spelling and grammar are used throughout. Content is concise, focused, and clear. Proper terminology is used throughout. |
1 to 16 points
The paper demonstrates a developing ability to utilize correct grammar and spelling, and a clear style. Spelling and grammar are mostly correct. Content clear. Proper terminology is used, for the most part. |
0 points
Grammar, spelling, and other elements of style do not meet expectations. |
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Logical Arrangement |
18 to 20 points
The paper demonstrates an advanced ability to arrange content into a cohesive paper, with a clear, logical flow and smooth transitions between ideas, paragraphs, and sections. The arrangement of content creates a paper that is unified, coherent, and focused on the paper’s thesis. |
17 points
The paper demonstrates a proficient ability to arrange content into a cohesive paper, with a clear, logical flow and smooth transitions between ideas, paragraphs, and sections. The arrangement of content creates a paper that is unified, coherent, and focused on the paper’s thesis. |
1 to 16 points
The paper demonstrates a developing ability to arrange content into a cohesive paper, with a clear, logical flow and smooth transitions between ideas, paragraphs, and sections. Content is coherent, with the various elements clearly related to one another. |
0 points
The arrangement of content elements is not logical or clear. |
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Formatting |
13 to 14 points Formatting adheres to Turabian and School of Divinity standards in every respect. |
12 points There are few formatting errors that do not distract the reader from the content. |
1 to 11 points There are several formatting errors that distract from the content. There are aspects of the formatting that do not convey a clean, neat, professional appearance. |
0 points
There are a high number of formatting mistakes. The paper does not have a professional appearance. |
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Professor Comment |