Do It Publicly :: social issues

Do It Publicly With talk shows ruling day-time television, people are left with little choice but to watch this humiliating form of entertainment. Turn the television on in the afternoon and you will find a large variety of talk shows to choose from. "Maybe we have become a nation addicted to hearing our neighbors' seamy personal problems"(You 40). Personally, I feel it is both the lack of choice and the attraction to other peoples problems. Many of the topics on talk shows are degrading to our society. If person came to America for the first time and watched television, they would probably see a talk show. The model a talk show would give of American society is horrifying. For example, a common talk show topic is teens having multiple sex partners at young ages. However, not all teens are sexually active at such a young age. For this reason talk shows are misleading not only to foreigners but to children and young adults who are learning about morals and our society. In a letter to the corporate CEO's distributing these programs, William Bennett and Senator Joseph Lieberman asked: "Would you want your young children to view a program showcasing the sexual adventures of a 14-year-old girl who married her 71-year-old foster father"(Flint and Wharton). To those who do not tune into these shows this discription may sound like an exaggeration; however, it is not. This is exactly the type of topics on some shows. Not only are half the shows ridiculous with topics of deceit, revenge and "extreme behavior", but some of them are false(Flint and Wharton). On the Jerry Springer Show a Canadian comedy troupe went on the show and created a story. The story was that one of the men had an affair with his baby-sitter. After the show appeared on television, the troupe members went to the press saying how they deceived the program and its audience(You 52). Some people will do anything to be on television. Some shows trick people into situations. The Jenny Jones show has had several episode entitled "Secret Crush". In these episode secret admirers are revealed to her guests. In some cases her guests are displeased with their secret admirer. I can remember one episode that I watched. A woman was surprised by a man who had a secret crush on her. She was very disturbed when she realized who he was. Do It Publicly :: social issues Do It Publicly With talk shows ruling day-time television, people are left with little choice but to watch this humiliating form of entertainment. Turn the television on in the afternoon and you will find a large variety of talk shows to choose from. "Maybe we have become a nation addicted to hearing our neighbors' seamy personal problems"(You 40). Personally, I feel it is both the lack of choice and the attraction to other peoples problems. Many of the topics on talk shows are degrading to our society. If person came to America for the first time and watched television, they would probably see a talk show. The model a talk show would give of American society is horrifying. For example, a common talk show topic is teens having multiple sex partners at young ages. However, not all teens are sexually active at such a young age. For this reason talk shows are misleading not only to foreigners but to children and young adults who are learning about morals and our society. In a letter to the corporate CEO's distributing these programs, William Bennett and Senator Joseph Lieberman asked: "Would you want your young children to view a program showcasing the sexual adventures of a 14-year-old girl who married her 71-year-old foster father"(Flint and Wharton). To those who do not tune into these shows this discription may sound like an exaggeration; however, it is not. This is exactly the type of topics on some shows. Not only are half the shows ridiculous with topics of deceit, revenge and "extreme behavior", but some of them are false(Flint and Wharton). On the Jerry Springer Show a Canadian comedy troupe went on the show and created a story. The story was that one of the men had an affair with his baby-sitter. After the show appeared on television, the troupe members went to the press saying how they deceived the program and its audience(You 52). Some people will do anything to be on television. Some shows trick people into situations. The Jenny Jones show has had several episode entitled "Secret Crush". In these episode secret admirers are revealed to her guests. In some cases her guests are displeased with their secret admirer. I can remember one episode that I watched. A woman was surprised by a man who had a secret crush on her. She was very disturbed when she realized who he was.

My Life as a College Student

GORDON KUSSI TABIRI English Writing: From Start to Finish My life as a college student Seven years ago I gained admission to pursue a B. A program in one of the prestigious universities in Ghana. The name of the university is Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). I was offered a four year bachelor degree program leading to a degree in Sociology and Social Work. Thus, I read BA Sociology and Social Work. I was so happy at the time because of two reasons.One was that, I had tried twice to be admitted into the countries universities but refused until finally the third time of which I succeeded. The second reason why I was happy was related to the fact that I had the opportunity to continue my education to a level that I had always dream about. My first year as a fresher on campus was very interesting for me. I was to read sociology and social work as a major and Geography as my minor.I therefore registered for my courses for the first year which included subjects s uch as introduction to sociology, traditional social structure of Ghana, introduction to human geography, development of geographic thought, introduction to physical environmental systems, communication skills, introduction to computers, and ethics and etiquette in traditional systems. I read these subjects for the first and second semesters as my first year program. I attended all lectures, wrote my assignments and the years exams. The results of the exams came and I had a Cumulative Weighted Average (CWA) of 59. 17.I was so disappointed about my results and decided to make better grades no matter what it takes to do so. I wrote the second semester exams and improved upon my performance by obtaining a CWA of 60. 32. I realized the fact that increasing the hours of my studies yielded good results. My second year on campus was very exciting. This was because I made very good friends and also had acquainted myself with campus life in general. I had a good friend by name Christian Boat eng who happens to be an old classmate at Akrokerri College of Education where we both obtained our diploma in basic education in the year 2001.Christian was very instrumental in my life on campus because he taught me how to study for long hours. We actually took similar courses together in the first two years of our education in KNUST College. We were also roommates for three years and shared a lot of things together. My second year courses also included literature in English, introduction to geomorphology, theory and practice of geography, principles of cartography, concepts and theories in sociology, social structure of modern Ghana as well as the nature of social work. The courses were very challenging especially those related to geography.I had a successful year and also improved on my performance. This second year was very significant to my life because it was during this period that I decided to read a master’s program after graduation. That year helped me realized a l ot of my potentials and also changed my perception of life in general. My third year in KNUST also saw me reading courses such as perspectives in sociological theory, research methods, theoretical framework for social work methodology, industrial sociology, medical sociology, and also bamboo and rattan processing.I enjoyed reading these courses especially industrial sociology, medical sociology as well as sociological theory. During my third year, we were made to drop our minor course, so I concentrated only on the major which was sociology and social work and also other borrowed courses. I also managed to secure the same room on campus with my friend, Christian. We both studied hard and had very good grades in our third year exams. We also had lots of fun on campus until school vacated. Christian was actually based in Kumasi which is the city in Ghana were KNUST was located whereas I was also based at Accra, the capital city of Ghana.In view of this, I spent most of my school holid ays in Accra with my family. During the long vacation after the end of the third year, I had an attachment with Tetteh Quashie Memorial Hospital situated at Akuapem Mampong. I was attached to the social welfare department of the hospital where I performed generic social work. It was a great experience since I had practical training in dealing with social welfare cases of clients at the hospital, district court and the district family social welfare cases. My mentors taught me so well that by the time I finished my attachment, I had developed a passion of working as a social worker someday.After my attachment, I prepared for my final year academic work. On arriving on campus for my final year, I registered for courses such as social psychology, social development, human resource management, approaches to counselling in social work, environmental sociology and a long essay dissertation. I had actually started writing my BA thesis in the third year of my studies. My topic was, â€Å"t he role of non-formal education to the contribution of the social and economic development of Ghana: a case study of the Ejisu- Juaben Municipality†.It was a great and challenging topic to write, in that there wasn't much literature on the subject of non-formal education. Owing to that, I researched the web widely in writing this project. My supervisor by name Mr. Barnie gave me all the directions and support so well that I obtained an excellent grade in this long essay. I was very excited because I was constrained by time in combining my academic work with writing of this thesis. In spite of all the challenges, my hard work paid off with me obtaining very good grades in all my final courses I took.Thus, I completed all my forth year course exams and was ready for graduation. We were to graduate exactly one month after completion of all the necessary course requirements. I was among one of the students who were to graduate with second class upper (honors) degree in sociology a nd social work. During graduation, my uncle and a cousin of mine accompanied me, and it is a day that I will never forget in my life. I dressed neatly in my graduation gown and went through the ceremony very happy of my accomplishments. After the ceremony I took several pictures with friends and my family and we had a great party after the occasion.I would never forget my experience on campus because it transformed my life. My general outlook of life has changed tremendously. I now understand that I have great capabilities as well as weaknesses. My college experience has contributed in shaping my personality today. I have learnt to work hard to overcome my weaknesses as well as develop my potentials and capabilities. This is the reason that I had saved money to pursue a master’s program in Switzerland to be able to actualize my dreams and aspirations in life.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer: a Pastor’s Response to Nazism.

Scholar, theologian, professor, pastor, visionary, double agent, conspirator, and martyr are some of the attributes associated with Dietrich Bonhoeffer. The manner in which Dietrich was reared lent a hand to the path he took as a young man, his family having the means to properly educate him and his siblings gave him a thirst for knowledge. That thirst lead him to pursue an academic career as a theologian, and later his work as a theologian lead him to be a pastor. Bonhoeffer lived in the midst of a severe moral and political ineptness yet he continued to hold to the truths of Scripture while his fellow countrymen were walking the slippery slope of Nazism. The ideals Bonhoeffer held to heart were constantly under attack from the oppressive government under which he lived. The result of this oppression was at first productive in the development of Dietrich's theology and his resolve to teach the next generation of pastors to hold true to the gospel in the midst of oppression. Later this oppression led Bonhoeffer to leave Germany for the United States this trip was short lived as Dietrich soon resolved he must return to Germany upon his return he joined a conspiracy to assassinate Adolf Hitler. Bonhoeffer's decision to conspire against Hitler ultimately led to his imprisonment and death. Dietrich Bonhoeffer was born in February 1906 to Karl Bonhoeffer and Paula von Hase Bonhoeffer. Karl Bonhoeffer was an esteemed professor of neurology and psychiatry at the University of Berlin and also served at Chairte Hospital in Berlin serving in the psychiatric unit. The Bonhoeffer family consisted of eight children including Dietrich, there were four boys and four girls. There were 3 older boys, Karl-Friedrich, Walter (who perished in World War 1) and Klaus. The older girls were Ursula and Christine, Dietrich had a twin sister Sabine and to complete the family was Susanne. Karl Bonhoeffer was an agnostic while Paula came from a family of theologians. â€Å"The household was not notably religious. The conventional Bible-story Christian nurture was supplied in the children's early years, the two governesses were pious young women, a simple blessing was always asked at table- and that was it. Dr. Bonhoeffer and the older children were all of scientific or legal bent; an unaggressive agnosticism prevailed among them. †[1] Coming from the environment stated above made things interesting when as a young teenager Dietrich informed his parent that he wanted to study theology. This came as a shock to his family as they thought he would pursue music due to his abundant skills in this area. His father thought the sedentary life of a pastor was not a good fit for his son, but after seeing how he lived he knew that it was the right path for him. Paula Bonhoeffer was trained as a teacher at the university and home-schooled all her children until they were ready to enter the German Gymnasium which was a college preparatory school. Dietrich started his study of theology at Tubingen at age seventeen. He excelled in his studies to the point that he finished his dissertation, titled Sanctorum Communio; â€Å"The Communion of Saints,† by the time he was twenty-one years of age. Over the next few years Dietrich would travel to Barcelona, Spain back to Berlin, and then to the United States. While in the United States he studied and taught at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He did all this traveling because he was too young to be ordained. This gave Dietrich the ability to pursue his studies more and focus his career on teaching and not pastoring a church. While in New York he made a habit of worshipping with an African-American congregation and teaching Sunday School. While in the United States he also was introduced to many ideas such as pacifism, social justice, and ecumenism. â€Å"He (Dietrich) encountered a pacifism that was rooted in the Sermon on the Mount- personified in the French theologian and friend Jean Laserre. [2] The idea of pacifism is one that Dietrich accepted whole heartedly he believed that man could not justify war. His pacifism lead to an internal struggle when the Nazis came to power and started to persecute and kill the Jews. During his years of study Bonhoeffer became acquainted with the teachings of Karl Barth. Barth and his writings influenced young Bonhoeffer to pursue theology to it's fullest and not be boxed into the lib eral theology taught at the University of Berlin. Bonhoeffer struck up a friendship with Barth that lasted until the end of his life. Dietrich would spend time with Barth at his home in Bonn and they would talk theology, they would criticize each others work and challenge each other in their views of what it means to be a Christian and a part of the church. These meetings continued even after Barth moved to Switzerland in the face of Nazi persecution. These meetings and letters helped Bonhoeffer explore his theology outside the bounds of the university. Upon returning from his year of sabbatical in New York Dietrich continued his teaching position and the University of Berlin. This was all happening about the same time Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime was slowly gaining power in the government and in popularity among the people. When Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany things were started to change but the full extent of the Nazi's plan was not yet revealed. Dietrich saw that trying times were ahead for those who were God seekers, this was due to the fact that shortly after the political election there was a call for church elections. Among the churches in Germany there were conflicts over the rise of the Nazi party. There were some pastors and Bishops who would not preach Nazi propaganda, so Hitler called for church elections to fill the offices with his supporters. There was some resistance to just letting them take over but this small remnant did not have control over the mob. With the church now under control of the Nazis, those who saw a great contradiction between Nazi Christianity and true Christianity were left with no option but the start their own church. This was allowed by the Nazis but they kept a close eye on them. This new group was called the Confessing Church they were an evangelical remnant that had not been persuaded by the masses. On the day of the church election Dietrich preached this, â€Å"of you who have lost your church, †¦ let us go together in search of the eternal church. †[3] This group of believers who opposed the Nazis were trying to speak reason and the truth of Scriptures to the German people. Dietrich was among the founding members of the Confessing Church and helped pen the Bethel Confession which was their statement of belief. He used the formation of the Confessing Church to push his passion for ecumenism among the churches. In 1933 while the Confessing Church was forming Dietrich decided to take a post in London. Some of his colleagues like Karl Barth accused him of leaving his church while it was burning, but Dietrich thought he needed some time away because his thoughts were not well received even among friends. While in London he pushed for ecumenical relationships between the churches in England and elsewhere to condemn the German Christian Movement which allowed the Nazis to take control of the church. To this end he was not very successful. He also caught the eire of church leaders in Germany who sent Theodor Heckel the foreign affairs minister to London to instruct Bonhoeffer to not engage in ecumenical activity not authorized by Berlin, a warning not heeded by young Dietrich who was just twenty-seven years of age in 1933. After two years in London Dietrich returned to Germany, the Confessing Church had lost it's momentum. The Confessing Church was still going and since it was not recognized as a state church it had to train its pastors in an underground seminary. The church invited Dietrich to lead their seminary called Finkenwalde. It was here the Dietrich wrote the books Life Together and The Cost of Discipleship. The former came from his time as the leader of Finkenwalde Seminary. The latter is a study of the Sermon on the Mount. In 1936 Dietrich was declared a pacifist and an enemy of the state by Theodor Heckel. For the next few years Dietrich lived in the community of Finkenwalde with his students and taught them monastic and communal living as they open the Scriptures together to prepare these men for the ministry in the true church that was opposing the counterfeit church of the German Christian Movement. They had a few years of great ministry that was funded by benefactors who believed in the ideals of the Confessing Church. In 1938 Bonhoeffer was banned from Berlin, two years later the Gestapo came and closed down the seminary and arrested some of its pastors. At this time Dietrich was offered a position to teach at Union Theological Seminary in New York, an offer he initially accepted. Dietrich was trying to escape in to the safety of the United States to avoid serving in the military and having to deal with living under the oppressive Nazi regime. Upon arriving in the U. S. Dietrich worked with German refugees and emigrants, a job that posed my challenges for him. Bonhoeffer wrote in the Cost of Discipleship, â€Å"'Costly grace is the sanctuary of God,' he writes. And, ‘faith is only real when there is obedience. ‘[4] These words tugged at Dietrich's heart because he knew where he should be and what God had called him to do but choose the easy road. â€Å"on June 30, 1939, Dietrich wrote these words to Paul Lehmann, ‘I can hardly find it in my heart to tell you that †¦ I have had to decide to return to Germany,'†[5] The words here seem to echo the actions of Jesus in John 4:4 â€Å"and he must needs go through Samaria† (KJV). This has the same idea as Dietrich and his return to Germany. Jesus could have gone around Samaria as all the Jews did, but he had a divine appointment with that woman at the well and the people of Samaria. Dietrich was having the same feeling that he must return to Germany but he did not have to. He was living what he had written â€Å"faith is only real when there is obedience. †[6] The following was written to Dietrich's friend Reinhold Neibuhr in a farewell note, â€Å"I have made a mistake in coming to America. I must live through this difficult period of our national history with the Christian people of Germany. I will have no right to participate in the reconstruction of Christian life in Germany after the war if I do not share the trials of this time with my people. †[7] This shows God's call for Dietrich to follow him. Dietrich and his friends knew he was returning to a hostile place where he would be either be drafted into the military or face severe persecution. Upon his return to Germany Dietrich made contact with his brother-in-law Hans von Dohnanyi who was a member of the military counterintelligence service called Abwehr. The Abwehr was the center of a small German resistance whose goal was to assassinate Hitler and overthrow the government. Dietrich was given a role as a double agent in the Abwehr in 1940, from that point he was fully integrated into what was called the German Resistance. He would have secret meetings with pastors and leaders from other countries as he pretend to be gathering information for the Nazi government, while really plotting against them. It is at this point where people have trouble following Bonhoeffer's theology and reconciling his beliefs with his actions. There are a couple of ways to deal with this portion of his life. Looking at these two seeming seemingly incompatible thought processes one could assume that Bonhoeffer had fallen off his rocker but it helps us to see how he reconciled this. Bonhoeffer precisely advocates patience when he puts forth as a concrete command of God the saying ‘resist not evil. ‘ By this he means: struggle against the enemy, but avoid idolizing him. Keep him unimportant . Failure to struggle is submission to the enemy and not to God. †[8] As Bonhoeffer looked at the situation he must resist the evil that was surrounding him, and to do that he would have to go to extreme measures and challen ge the ideals he came to hold so dear in the midst of such moral depravity. He saw resisting evil as a command in the loose sense. Dietrich wrote about a religionless Christianity in which a mature Christian steps outside the structure of the church and enters the world to enact change through the things he has been taught and learned from Scripture and the church. Woelfel writes the following about Bonhoeffer: â€Å"As the integrated man that he was Bonhoeffer pioneered ‘religionless- Christianity' indeed as well as in word. His full secular involvement in the German Resistance during the war is the supreme example, but throughout his life he was a vigorously world affirming Christian. [9] This idea of religionless Christianity lets a follower of Christ fully engage his world while leaving the confines of the church. This was one ting that Bonhoeffer had lived at as well as wrote in his final years. Many look at Bonhoeffer’s writings in Prison and his work titled Ethics and see the man who was deeply committed to his faith and also a man who was torn by what was an ethical Christian to do in the m idst of such atrocities that were being committed by the Nazis. A look back at Bonhoeffer's life brings this into full view as stated thusly, â€Å"for it was while Bonhoeffer was trying to explain his own participation in the lying and double dealing of traitors that he developed the beginnings of what has since become known as situational and contextual ethics: the right and the good and the true seen not as immutable objectives, but as qualities of any action which is appropriate to the loving will of God as the particular possibilities of the immediate situation permit. [10] The argument here is that of when one looks at the situations that they are faced with and think to themselves what is right in the eyes of God. Bonhoeffer was living and arguing that as a Christian we should act in a way that is appropriate for a Christian living in the will of God. Bonhoeffer's was face to face with one of the most reprehensible political regimes in the history of the world, you choose one of two camps, there were those who just threw up their hands an d said there is nothing I can do. The other group were those who said this is unacceptable and do whatever is in their power to fight for what is right in God's eyes. Dietrich was arrested on April 5, 1943 after the documents were discovered that he and his brother-in-law were illegally helping Jews. He would never be a free man again for his part in the German Resistance. He was imprisoned at Tegel military prison for a year and a half to await trial in that time more documents came out that pointed to Bonhoeffer as part of the conspiracy to kill Hitler. In light of this evidence he was transferred from Tegel to a house prison and eventually to Buchenwald concentration camp in February 1945. Approximately two years after his initial arrest information from the chief of Abwehr journals were read by Hitler who in a rage said that all conspirators should be killed. On April 9, 1945 Dietrich Bonhoeffer was hung at Buchenwald concentration camp. He left behind in his legacy his letters to friends and family from prison, and his work Ethics which had yet to be published before his death. When one looks at the life and times of Dietrich Bonhoeffer they see a complex man whose thirst for knowledge and truth were fostered from a young age. As a young man he set is feet on the path of a theologian to open the Bible and pull out the truths laid there in. His study of theology was intellectual yet practical he sought to open the Scriptures and pull Jesus out of them. Bonhoeffer came of age in the pre-third Reich era, but as a young man he came face to face with the Nazis and their oppressive ways. Dietrich used this time in his life to expand his study of theology to grow more matur e in his faith to blaze a trail for himself among his peers. He fought with the social and political issues of his day and sought to fight injustice with truth and intellect but these proved to be ineffective. His work as a theologian was well known among the Confessing Church and it's followers. As Dietrich tried to fight for what was right and true he saw the moral compass of his country go askew. After he had tried all he could he became convinced that the only way to free Germany from this slippery slope was to overthrow the government by assassinating Hitler. His writings have opened the door to the study of ethics when faced with moral depravity, what it means to be and live as the church, and what it costs to follow Christ. His teachings and theology have had an impact from the time they were published into the present. His thought helped usher in a new generation of theologians and how one can see their relationship to the church, culture and community and live and teach in such a way that Christ is on display. Bibliography de Gruchy, John W. â€Å"A Concrete Ethic of the Cross: Interpreting Bonhoeffer's Ethics in North Americas Backyard,† Union Seminary Quarterly 58, no. 1-2 2004. Dramm, Sabine. Dietrich Bonhoeffer: An introduction to his thought. Translated by Thomas Rice. Peabody: Hendrickson. 2007. Ellingsen, Mark. Bonhoeffer, Racism, and a Communal Model for Healing† Journal of Church and State 43, no. 2 Spring 2001. pp 237-249. Gushee, David P. â€Å"Following Jesus to the Gallows,† Christianity Today 39 April 3, 1995 pp. 26-32. Hunt, George L. , ed. Twelve Makers of Modern Protestant Thought. New York: Association Press. 1971. Pp 93-110 Klassen, A. J. , ed. A Bonhoeffer Legac y. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing. 1981 Mehta, Ved. The New Theologian. New York: Harper Colophon, 1965. Miller, Patrick. â€Å"Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Psalms,† The Princeton Seminary Bulletin 15, no. 3 (1994): 274ff Schliesser, Christine. â€Å"Accepting Guilt for the Sake of Germany: An Analysis of Bonhoeffer's Concept of Accepting Guilt and its Implications for Bonhoeffer's Political Resistance† Union Seminary Quarterly Review 60 2006 no. 1-2. pp. 56-68 Schonherr, Albrecht. â€Å"Dietrich Bonhoeffer: The Message of a Life,† Christian Century, November 27, 1985, pp. 1090-1094. Woelfel, James. Bonhoeffer's Theology: Classical and Revolutionary. Nashville: Abingdon Press. 1970. ——————————— [ 1 ]. George L. Hunt, ed. , Twelve Makers of Modern Protestant Thought (New York: Association Press 1971), 97. [ 2 ]. Sabine Dramm Dietrich Bonhoeffer: An Introduction to His Thought (Peabody, Mass Hendrickson Publishers, 2007), 9 [ 3 ]. Ibid, 157 [ 4 ]. David P. Gushee, â€Å"Following Jesus to the Gallows,† Christianity Today 39, April 3, 1995, 31. [ 5 ]. Ibid [ 6 ]. Ibid [ 7 ]. Ibid, 30 [ 8 ]. A. J. Klassen, ed. , A Bonhoeffer Legacy (Grand Rapids: William B. Erdmans Publishing, 1981) 355-356. [ 9 ]. James Woelfel, Bonhoeffer's Theology: Classical and Revolutionary, (Nashville: Abingdon Press 1970) 253. [ 10 ]. George L. Hunt, ed. , Twelve Makers of Modern Protestant Thought (New York: Association Press 1971), 107-108.

The Friars essays

The Friars essays Lawrences works details how the mendicant orders arose before and during the thirteenth century. Europe supported the establishment of the church, implemented change and reform leading to heresy and separation. Lawrence regards the revolutionary situation (page 225), as one resulting partly by the growth of towns and the general population. Due to social changes within medieval Europe itself it sought control and threatened the stability of the Church and of the religious beliefs of the people. In a way, the rise of the mendicant orders at this time is an answer to the problems in this situation. Mendicant orders are seen by Lawrence as a revolutionary answer to a potentially revolutionary situation (page 225) because of the long-term effect to help preserve the church hierarchy. This sometimes was in conflict and even become partly incorporated into that hierarchy themselves. Although, to some extent the mendicant orders were innovative, they cannot be seen as itself revolutionary. In order to be considered revolutionary, they would have had to overthrow the previous church order and perhaps replacing it with a new one. But mendicant order did nothing of the sort. The establishment of monasteries and schools allowed them to later become part of the Catholic Church, government system. The Friars were well trained in theology and pastoral skills which is why they were chosen by the papacy to completely destroy the religious beliefs that opposed the orthodox views (page 188). At this time religion in the West was a relatively new concept. The friars are noted to have had some importance in the Inquisition: suppressing the heresy (Websters New World Dictionary, 249). Developing... out of... measures... to combat the dualist heresies... rampant in France and in northern and central Italy by the middle of the twelfth century. (Page 189). Here the Church used i...

Undertaker

Undertaker Undertaker Undertaker By Maeve Maddox After reading my recent article on caretakers and caregivers, a reader asks, How about explaining the particular use of another kind of â€Å"taker†-an undertaker, as in mortician or funeral director. If the business that is being â€Å"undertaken† [is] that of burying the dead, why don’t we call other professional services such as banker, realtor, physician, â€Å"undertakers† as well? The easiest answer to this question is that at one time we could have used the word for other service providers, but in current usage, undertaker has dwindled to only its present specialized meaning. In the 14th century, an undertaker was a â€Å"helper.† Wycliffe translated Psalm 53:6 as â€Å"The Lord is undertaker of my soul.† In the 17th century, undertaker had more than one meaning: an investor a person who acts as security for someone else in a business undertaking a baptismal sponsor. In the 19th century, undertaker could refer to: a subcontractor an investor. a book-publisher a play producer Undertaker with the meaning, â€Å"one who makes a business of carrying out the arrangements for funerals† was already in use in 1698. By 1884, someone could write, â€Å"You look as solemn as an undertaker.† Such is the human aversion to death that words closely associated with burial tend to be abandoned for other uses. The noun shroud, for example, started out in English with the meaning of â€Å"clothing.† In Aelfric’s translation of Genesis 45:22, God gives Adam and Eve â€Å"twa scrod† (two shrouds) to cover themselves. By the 16th century, shroud had taken on the meaning of â€Å"white cloth or sheet in which a corpse is laid out for burial; a winding-sheet.† Note: Shroud in the sense of â€Å"a set of ropes, usually in pairs, leading from the head of a mast and serving to relieve the latter of lateral strain† was in use in the 15th century. The ropes â€Å"clothed† the mast. Coffin is another word that started out with a general meaning that had nothing to do with death: â€Å"basket.† In a 14th century sermon referencing the miracle of the loaves and fishes, the left-over food filled â€Å"twelve coffins,† but by 1525, coffin had taken on the specific meaning of â€Å"the box or chest in which a corpse is enclosed for burial.† In the United States, funeral directors came to feel that the word coffin was too creepy for consumers, so they decided to change the name to a more pleasant word: casket. In its original sense, a casket is â€Å"a small box or chest for jewels, letters, or other things of value, itself often of valuable material and richly ornamented.† For example, the Franks Casket in the British Museum is a beautiful little 8th century chest made of whale’s bone and carved with scenes depicting the Adoration of the Magi, the Emperor Titus, Romulus and Remus, and Weyland Smith. The coffin-to-casket evolution in the U.S. is an example of a pretty word taken as a euphemism for something unpleasant, which in time comes to acquire the same unpleasantness it was supposed to obscure. At least one meaning that used to be attached to undertaker is still to be found in another â€Å"under† word, underwriter. Sometimes public radio announcers refer to their sponsors as underwriters. And in one sense, we are all â€Å"undertakers† when we undertake a new project. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Rhetorical Devices for Rational Writing10 Colloquial Terms and Their MeaningsHow Do You Fare?

Living in McMinden Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Living in McMinden - Essay Example She complains about the rigidness of many of the social groups in her school and notices that there appears to be a divide between people of different socio-economic status. She also feels alienated due to her ethnicity. She describes being a part of one of the first Hispanic families in town. She complains that there is not much communication between the different groups. Jenny's comments are interesting as they bring together a large varieties of different types of alienation. Growing up can be hard to do in a general way, but Jenny is perceptively analyzing both class and ethnic differences in her school. In my own experience in high school I noticed people like Jenny and saw that they had a hard time. I did what I could to help them. I grew up in a small town like McMinden, a town that was changing, and can sympathize with her feelings about the negativity at school. Suzanne provides another perspective. She clearly cares about her children, but could perhaps be described as a So ccer Mom. She is clearly exhibiting signs of role expectation for her children. She wants her children to be like her father. The path to accomplish that goal is through school athletics. She doesn't speak about what her children want, only what she wants for them. It is clear that her heart is in the right place. She seems to be a product of a difficult life and is facing up to the challenge of being a divorced mother.

Small Business Innovation Research Programs Case Study

Small Business Innovation Research Programs - Case Study Example Towards this direction, it is noted that ‘a framework based on wisdom rather than knowledge alone provides strategic options for paradigm development in the field of small business and entrepreneurship research’ (Mathys et al., 2005, 657) - a field similar with the one to which the article under examination refers. The current paper focuses on the analysis of the article ‘Technological Entrepreneurship and Small Business Innovation Research Programs’ by Kropp, Fredric, and Zolin, Roxanne. The above article was published in 2005 in the academic journal Academy of Marketing Science Review. In accordance with the authors’ statement, the above article focuses on ‘the conceptual role that government technology programs can play in facilitating the process of technological entrepreneurship’ (page 1). The case of the ‘Small Business and Innovation Research (SBIR) program - United States’ (page 1) is used as an example of the potential support of the stage to the small businesses. The article shows the various methods available to small businesses that are interested in using governmental programs for the development of their performance - it is also explained how these programs could lead to the increase of profitability of firms in various industrial sect ors. The overall effectiveness of these programs is criticized - the authors suggest potential measures that could be used by firms that need to improve their performance – either in the short or the long term – through relevant governmental programs. The value of the article cannot be doubted; however, there are a few points that should be reviewed. Suggestions are made and relevant criticism is developed making sure that any assumption is appropriately justified with reference to the text and to academic material with similar content. The authors use a specific theoretical model, the one created by Lumpkin and Dessin 1996 in order to show the effects of government programs on the improvement of performance of firms that operate in the technology sector – the special reference is made on the firms of small size.