Melissa Smith '18 Presents Work on Islam and Religious Philosophy

2017 Oct 6

Melissa Smith '18 presented a paper on the Arab Spring, 9/11, and the first Intifada of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict at the annual Midwest Region of the American Academy of Religion (MAAR) Conference.

Her paper is entitled "Martyrdom and Suicide: A Political Comparison." In combination with information from the Qur'an and personal testimony, Smith's work explores what can be considered martyrdom and what can be considered suicide.

The American Academy of Religion is a national professional organization for scholars of religious studies. The Midwest regional group invites paper proposals for its annual conference from faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students.

Smith said the conference was extremely helpful. "Not only did it allow me to step out of my comfort zone in terms of presenting my work, it also opened my eyes to a lot of different ideas in religious studies," said Smith, an international relations major and a religious studies minor. During summer 2017, she interned with the Nepal State Department of Public Affairs.