What value has an idea of immortality that includes the certainty of personal death?
What value has an idea of immortality that includes the certainty of personal death? D.Z. Phillips Immortality as an existence after death. Is the existence afterward physical or non-physical? Immortality of the soul in connection with divine interception and providence. Answers to these questions are reasons (proposed by Phillips) why our society conforms itself the way it does. "a reason why we should be good" (Phillips 1970:41). Phillips suggests that the notion of immortality is the product of mistakes; "Mistakes about the grammar of concepts such as 'self', 'I', 'existence', 'death', personal identity', etc., and mistakes about the characteristic roles of moral considerations." (Phillips 1970:41). However are these conclusions mistaken? Belief in immortality of the soul linked with moral considerations and beliefs. Belief in the immortality of the soul does not necessarily mean a belief in (bodily) survival after death. Phillips believes that to truly understand immortality one must understand the language surrounding it. "The experience, indeed, which takes place through expression." (Phillips quoting D.M. MacKinnon 1970:42). Links to Wittgenstein. He also proposes that the terms used when arguing for the immortality of the soul and the belief in it, are too narrow. Christian belief and its eternal life language? "Eternal life is not to be equated with
What are the main differences between Sikhism and Jainism?
TUTORIAL 5 'JAINISM' 19 November 2003 A1: What are the main differences between Sikhism and Jainism? Jainism is a religion of severity. Its goal is passionless detachment, reached only through the most severe and disciplined lifestyles, culminating in death by voluntary self-starvation. The aim is to achieve the goal solely by self-effort without the help of God or gods; Although these self-imposed austerities often include benefit for others. Jains have long been active in promoting public welfare. They are known especially for their endowment of schools and hospitals for people and animals. 'Ahimsa' meaning non-violence is the basis of Jainism. Sikhism based on a loving and ever-present God experience in the here and now is much less concerned with 'other worldliness'. The stress is on this life, this existence and achievement of a state of physical/spiritual equipoise through constant engagement in the Divine Being (Naam). The Sikh religion is perceived as possessing two basic features, one being a mystical aspect the other more aggressive, military and world affirming. Jains constitute what is the only major religion in the world that is unconditionally vegetarian. The Sikh book of Laws, the Rehat Meryada only rejects the eating of
Paul was born in Tarsus, c. 5 A.D., which, today, is in south-central Turkey, approximately 12 miles from the Mediterranean coast. Tarsus
Paul's Life-Long Journey by Michael D. Bruno Student Number 49567 BIBL424- ACTS Dr. Rick Rasberry Jacksonville DLP July 5-10, 2005 Paul was born in Tarsus, c. 5 A.D., which, today, is in south-central Turkey, approximately 12 miles from the Mediterranean coast. Tarsus was a prosperous city in the province of Cilicia and a part of the great Roman Empire. The city of Tarsus had fertile soil for agriculture and a prominent position at the south end of the Cilician Gates. It maintained an excellent shipping harbor of Rhegma, which enabled strong connections with the Levant. Tarsus was also fortunate to maintain an established university that was known for its teaching in Greek philosophy. Paul was a Roman by birth and a Jew by lineage. In addition, Paul was from the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews and in regards to the law, a Pharisee. "Jerome, the 4th century theologian and historian, informs us that tradition has it that Paul's family had emigrated to Tarsus from Galilee around the time the Romans conquered Palestine in 63 B.C.. Sometime later, as his family gets established in the Hellenistic city, they also acquire Roman citizenship, which required land and property ownership; signs of at least relative affluence at this time."1 Around 15-20 B.C.2, Paul is sent to Jerusalem to study in the school of Gamaliel, established by the famed teacher of the law,
Modernity's Madness and Manifestations of Masochism and Malice: A Demand for Irrational Self-Love, Forgiveness, and Faith.
Modernity's Madness and Manifestations of Masochism and Malice: A Demand for Irrational Self-Love, Forgiveness, and Faith Word count 3349 Fyodor Dostoevsky's birth-year representatively embeds him in two events that determine Russia's course for the next hundred years; Alexander Pushkin, at sixteen years old, became Russia's first national poet in 1815 and in 1825 the Decembrists' failed coup d'etat of Nicholas I, the country's one shot at democracy and exoneration from serfdom, initiated a 'Frozen Society', marked by harsh censors and absence of reform. Nikolai Gogol appropriately arrived in St. Petersburg from rural Russia in 1837 when Pushkin died following a duel in timely fashion to claim Pushkin's title. The trinity of Russian Romantic writers not only share styles which coalesce to form the great tradition now known as Russian Literature, but would also uniquely define themselves as representatives of their people. That creating and finding identity in St. Petersburg, both Russian capital and 'Window to the West', was perplexing and difficult for its people is demonstrated by a cursory analysis of the aforementioned writers' related, while idiosyncratic, tendencies and meaningful characters. Joseph Frank, in his five volume oeuvre, explicates the natural influence of Pushkin and Gogol on Dostoevsky. Russian literature from the 1830s was strongly influenced by
In this essay, I will be focusing on why there is a trend of increasing number of people being converted to Christianity in Singapore society.
Introduction Religions dictate our way of life based on our belief in the God or gods of a particular religion. Many religions encourage their followers to convert non-followers to the religion as a way of unifying humankind with a common way of life. For a small island-state like Singapore, one observes not only ethnic, but also enormous religious diversity. In Singapore, traditional Chinese religions like Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and ancestor worship1 still command over 50% of the population. Christians make up around 15% of the population, while another 15% are Muslims. Hindu and other folk religions constitute about 5%, and the remaining 15% of the population are non-religionists. While traditional Chinese religions such as Buddhism and Taoism still maintain a stronghold among the Chinese, Christianity has experienced a rapid growth since the Second World War especially among the younger, English-educated generation. Between 1950 and 1964, the Anglicans, the Methodists, the Presbyterians and the Brethren planted more than 100 new congregations. Subsequent establishment of Christian schools, at both primary and secondary levels, contributes both to the educational system as well as the religious expansion. Islam is closely associated with the Malay community. Taoism and Buddhism are seen as a part of the traditional Chinese culture. In order to find out more
What is Freud's explanation for the existence of religion? To what extent does it provide a scientific explanation of religion?
What is Freud's explanation for the existence of religion? To what extent does it provide a scientific explanation of religion? Freud exemplified the products of the revolution in nineteenth century science and the accompanying Enlightenment period in European history. This was also the era of Charles Darwin and the philosophers of the Enlightenment. Freud's contribution to this revolution was his initiating an irreversible shift of focus of study from the physical realm of the brain to the mental realm of the mind. Thoughts, feelings, motivation, behavior were all now subjected to minute, scientific, rather than philosophic, scrutiny. It did not take Freud long for him to apply his new found knowledge to the understanding of religion. Psychiatry prior to Freud was basically a sub-specialty of neurology in that severe mental illness and its assumed organic basis, rather than everyday thought and behavior, was the major subject of enquiry. The development of a psychoanalytic mode of thought inevitably resulted in its application to the understanding of one of the most important aspects of western civilization, and that is religion in all of its diverse and manifold expression. Sigmund Freud reacted against religion in its formal expression (E.g. Church, liturgy, the belief that God lives in the heavens etc.), but at the same time he sought to internalise key religious
The evil eye bead
Table of Contents - Abstract..............................................................................................................1 2- Introduction........................................................................................................1 3- Common sense about the evil eye bead.......................................................... ..3 4- The evil eye bead in term of axis of symetrey...................................................6 5- The evil eye bead in term of multiculturalism...................................................9 6- Conclusion........................................................................................................11 7- References........................................................................................................12 8- Appendix........................................................................................................... ABSTRACT This paper explores the evil eye bead, used by many cultures to provide protection from the evil eye,in tems of axis of symetry, multiculturalism and common sense. The evil eye bead is an object which has been developed because of the evil eye bead. Thus, this belief has been focused on this study owing to the relationship of it with the evil eye bead. In this paper, it is suggested that there are three shadows of the evil eye bead; anxiouty abouth
The matrix from the perspective of Buddhism and Berger's theory
The matrix from the perspective of Buddhism and Berger's theory This essay analyzes the recent film The Matrix from the perspective of modern-day myth-making. After a brief plot summary of the film, I note the well-documented parallels to the Christian messianic narrative of Jesus. I then go on to highlight the often overlooked parallels to the Buddhist existential analysis of the human condition. In particular, I note a remarkable resonance between The Matrix and the fourth century (C.E.) philosophical school of Buddhism known as Yogacara. By highlighting the syncretic or combinative nature of the film's symbolic narrative, I submit The Matrix as a cinematic example of the dialectical process of myth-making by means of Peter Berger's theory of socio-cultural construction. Humans are mythologizing and, as Peter Berger would suggest, "world-building" creatures. We appropriate elements from our past and present to fashion epic narratives and myths for a variety of existential, sociological, and religious ends. Myths are not fixed narrative forms, however. Studies of traditionally oral cultures evidence considerable elasticity in the details of a particular myth. And history also demonstrates that myths often evolve as a result of cultural diffusion and contact. Myths are constantly adapted to new cultural contexts and worldly realities. While the invention of writing inspired
What is the significance of Plato's choice of the dialogue form?
What is the significance of Plato's choice of the dialogue form? Plato is known throughout history as the author of some of the most poetic, lively, interesting and probing dialogues ever written. Not only are they crucial in the philosophical development of the western world, they are also literary classics in their own right. But, to what extent was this success dependent on the form in which Plato chose to convey his teachings: the dialogue form? Why did Plato use the dialogue form rather than straight poetry or prose like his contemporaries? The central character in Plato's dialogues was usually Socrates. Despite knowing very little factually about the historical Socrates, academics are largely agreed that he did actually exist. Socrates was a historical figure, famously put to death by the Athenian State for corrupting the young and for trying to introduce new Gods. Although these were the official reasons for his death, it is likely that the real reason was political, due to his relationship with the Oligarchy Party. Even before falling foul of the Athenian State, Socrates was never a popular figure due to his annoying habit of stopping people in the street to question them in detail about philosophy in a style similar to that depicted in Plato's dialogues. Socrates himself never wrote a word; however, the philosophy of the historical Socrates seems to have been
Natural Law.
Natural Law The term "natural law" is ambiguous. It refers to a type of moral theory, as well as to a type of legal theory, despite the fact that the core claims of the two kinds of theory are logically self-determining. According to natural law ethical theory, the moral standards that govern human behavior are, in some sense, objectively comes from the nature of human beings. "According to natural law legal theory, the authority of at least some legal standards necessarily derives, at least in part, from considerations having to do with the moral merit of those standards."1 There are a number of different kinds of natural law theories of law, differing from each other with respect to the role that morality plays in determining the authority of legal norms. "Belief that the principles of human conduct can be derived from a proper understanding of human nature in the context of the universe as a rational whole. Although voluntarists suppose that God could will anything at all, Aquinas held that even the divine will is conditioned by reason. Thus, the natural law provides a non-revelatory basis for all human social conduct. Modern appeals to natural law are the foundation for social thought in Grotius and Pufendorf."2 As stated earlier, there are many different understandings of "natural law" and the Church's understanding of natural law is based upon with human intellect
