The Psalms an Example by

The Psalms by Expert Prof Nelly | 26 Dec 2016 Introduction For the most part of the Bible, the Book of Psalms offers the most variety of topics ranging from advices, prayers, songs, encouragement, promises, worship celebrations, laments, complaints and many others which anyone can relate t its context. As Elizabeth Huwiler puts it, because they are part of the Biblical canon, they can allow us to speak to God in ways that seem daring, and in situations in which we do not know what to say.(Huwiler) Need essay sample on "The Psalms" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed Students Often Tell EssayLab professionals: Who wants to write assignment for me? Essay writer professionals suggest: Essaylab.Com Can Provide You With The Winning Academic Essay Good Essay Writing Company Custom Writing Collage Papers For Sale Write My Essay For Me Cheap Why so many people are attracted to the Psalms and what makes them so interesting? According to Alan Palmer and Debra Reid, there are three main reasons that contribute to the Psalms enduring popularity: (Palmer and Reid) The Psalms reveal a God who has a heart for the arts. Palmer and Reid said that Psalms are alive and attractive because they are so full of music.(p.22) No one can deny the importance and influence of music to anyone. As some people would say, music is the soul of the heart. Music occupies space in ones emotion and heart. The Psalms reveal a God with a passion for poetry. The Psalms are simply poetry set to music according to Palmer and Reid, the explanation for this is that, poetry is the best medium with which to communicate our feelings.(p.22) The Psalms reveal a God who has provided Psalms for all seasons. This means that the context of the book relates to all people from generation after generation as Saint Augustine commented on Psalms, said, here we can see ourselves and our situation, there is nothing we can experience which is not reflected in the writing of the Psalmist. Some verses that are famous among Christians are Psalms 37:4 which say, Delight yourself also in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart. This verse provides inspiration and in most quoted by those who are seeking to achieve something in their lives. Psalms 119:105 is also a favorite verse, it says, Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.(KJV) This verse offers comfort to those who are facing dark moments in their lives. Thus, the Psalms find special place in the heart not only of the Christians but anyone who believe in the Bible and in God. Analysis of the Topic in Biblical Interpretation Carl S. Lewis explained that the Book of Psalms is not doctrinal but merely poems of human experiences that lived and experienced God. He said (as cited in BobDeffinbaugh, Th.M. paper) The Psalms are poems and poems intended to be sung: not doctrinal treatises, nor even sermons. Most emphatically the Psalms must be read as poems; as lyrics, with all the licenses and all the formalities, the hyperboles, the emotional rather than logical connections, which are proper to lyric poetry. The foreword to Warren Wiersbes book Prayer, Praise and Promises, Woodrow Kroll said that the Psalms have always held a special place in the affection of Israel. The people of God rejoiced and lamented together by singing the Psalms. (Wiersbe) The Book of Psalms as he described is more than just a poetical expression of faith of Gods people. It is indeed an expression of the reality of their situation. It is more than just a song, more than just a prayer or an inspiration. It is a real encounter with their God, a deeper relationship and intimacy that had been developed, because God Himself had become real in their lives. Their faith in God proves to be their only but most reliable source of strength. Dr. Huwiler said that the Psalms focus on God, using a magnificent variety of expressions and images. Thus, when one approach God in the manner of the Psalms, he or she will find God as shield, deliverer, listener, destroyer, teacher, refuge, healer, savior, judge, sovereign, king, stronghold, gracious one, who remembers the oppressed, shepherd, rock, eagle and on and on. With regards to the authorship of the Book, David, acknowledged as the dominant author. Scholars however suggested at least five inpiduals who wrote the book including David. They were spiritual men chosen by God to do specific tasks. They were Moses, Asaph, Solomon, and the sons of Korah. Dr. Huwiler noted that some Psalms are spoken by an inpidual (I), while others had corporate speakers (we). But even in the most personal Psalms, the tone shifted from an intimate conversation between the speaker and God to a call or witness to the whole community. The book was a collection of different kinds of poetry spanning many centuries of history. But, it reached its present form in 300 B.C. According to John Wesley, there are four basic collections within the book: (1) The Davidic Psalms (chapters 3-41, 51-70, 108-110, 138-145); (2) The Asaph Psalms (chapters 73-83); (3) The Korah Psalms (chapters 42. 44-49, 84-85, 87-88; and, (4) Songs of Ascents (chapters 120-134) Although, the compilation process is not known. The Psalter grew out of the life of a community of faith as the people used their songs and poetry to worship God.(Bratcher) Thus, though, David is traditionally seen as the dominant author, yet it is better to understand Psalms not in terms of inpidual authorship but as the product of this community of faith who composed, collected and passed on their prayers, hymns, songs and liturgy as a witness to their experience as the people of God.(Bratcher) The importance therefore is not on the persons who wrote them but in the message about what God reveals of Himself to His people and the peoples response to Him. In general, the content of the book was pided in three categories: the lament Psalms, the Thanksgiving Psalms and the Hymns. The Lament Psalms is the most numerous and usually a cry to God from distress, pain or sorrow, either fro the inpidual or the community, and often begins with why and ending in an affirmation of their faith in God. The Thanksgiving Psalms are praises and thanksgiving expressed to God in response to Gods faithfulness, blessings, protection and love that have been experienced. The Hymns are usually praises to God for who He is, as they experienced Gods wonderful and mighty power. What the Book of Psalms Contribute to the Life and Mission of the Church Alan Palmer and Debra Reid in their book Discovered Psalms said, Ambrose of Milan considered the Psalms the height of spirituality, viewing them as a kind of medicine for the salvation of the soul. They said that Psalms are alive and attractive because they are so full of music. The original Greek word Psalmoi, indicated a striking or twitching of the fingers on string. This later came to mean a sacred song accompanied by instruments. Today, the Psalms has become part of the life of the church all over the world in the context of Praise of Worship. The later part of the 20th century saw both the Protestants and Catholic Charismatic church benefited much from the Psalms because of the joyful songs from the Psalms. Choruses such as I will sing of the mercies of the Lord, Great is the Lord, and From the Rising of the Sun, were all beautiful songs literally taken from the Psalms. Palmer and Reid call these joyful songs as Davidic Worship Songs which brought a new dimension of church growth in 20th century. The joyful character of the songs revives ones spirit and brings spiritual filling to ones soul. Traditionally, the early church uses hymnals during worship. Hymnals are good because each hymn was composed out of experience that has served a moral and spiritual lessons or blessings to the composer. They were spiritually inspired to compose the hymns. But, todays generation has quite little if none at all, interest in the hymnal especially young people. They enjoy joyful songs which the Psalms offers. In the research by David Fischer and was lectured by Jon Eyman, they said that the worship and Praise instituted in the Tabernacle of David reappeared in every Old Testament Revival.(Eyman, p.94-95) But the Davidic Worship was not only confined in the Old Testament. The Apostle James declared that the New Testament Church was the fulfillment of the prophecy concerning the restoration of Davids Temple. (Eyman, p.96) The Psalms therefore, reappeared at once in the life of the church inspired by the Psalms in the form of spiritual music during the Praise and Worship. Today, Davids music continues to provide inspiration and revival in the life of the church. The Psalms represents the will of God concerning the worship of His people of all ages, culminating in the worship of the New Covenant people which now embraces all nations.(Eyman, 99) The tabernacle worship of David was marked by singing, rejoicing in the dance, clapping for joy, shouting, worshipping with instruments and prophesying new songs of the Lord.(Eyman, p99) This continues to bring more spiritual blessings and joy to the church until the return of Jesus Christ on earth for His church. Conclusion The Psalms are truly great source of inspiration and spiritual strength if one believes the Bible as the Word of God. It is full of words and praise of Gods promises, assurance, protection, comfort, deliverance, etc. In fact, it is worth-making our daily devotional as in the work of A.C. Gabelin, a Psalm a day keeps worry away.(Wiersbe, preface) Of course, every book of the Bible is equally inspired by God, but one can find that it is quite easy to relate our situation to the Psalms because the experiences of the writers are common and is not far from our own experience. It is indeed a realistic cry of expression of pain brought by the difficulty maybe economically and politically. The songs and promises offer comfort to any who will seriously believe God. The following texts from Psalm 91 offer assurance of Gods comfort and protection. Herewith is the first two and the last three verses of Psalms 91: He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress; in Him will I trust. Because He hath set His love upon me, therefore I will deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation. Work Cited Deffinbaugh, Th.M. What is Psalm? Bible.Org http://www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=513 Dugans Topical Reference Bible (1985) Gordonsville, Tennessee: Dugan Publisher, Inc. Huwiler, Elizabeth. Psalms and Christian Prayer The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti17389.html Palmer, Alan and Reid, Debra. (1998) Discovering Psalms. Cambridge, Great Britain: Crossway Books Leicester Wesley, John. Introducing the Psalms Biblical and Theological Resources for Growing Christians. http://www.crivoice.org/psalmsintro.html Wiersbe, Warren. (1992) Prayer, Praise & Worship. Lincoln, Nebraska: Back to the Bible Worship Symposium Manual. International Worship Symposium Ministry (1993)

Analysis of Shrek 2 essays

Analysis of Shrek 2 essays A fairy tale is a story, either intended for children or narrated to children, concerning the adventures of mythical characters. Nearly all fairy tales have magic and supernatural characters. They have good versus evil; a villain versus a hero and in the end the good always triumphs.Sometimes fairy tales are simply miraculous entertainment but often, fairy tales are disguised morality tales. Fairy tales appeal to children perhaps because of the magical element and children therefore, enjoy watching and listening to them. Younger children are affected by what happens and if they like a character they expect them to win. All fairy tales are made especially for young children and they exclude swearing or any disturbing scenes. This is what the audience would expect from a fairy tale. The Shrek story begins when a fairy tale book opens. The opening sentence of the story is Once upon a time. The music is quiet and classical and suits a fairy tale. The books pages turn until the last page where it closes with and they lived happily ever after. This is exactly what an audience would expect of a fairytale. While the audience are enjoying this quiet moment, the page is ripped unexpectedly and the toilet is flushed, followed by rock music. The scene is changed completely and it erases the fairy tale beginning. Obviously this crushes the audiences expectations for the opening. In the story, Shrek is a big ugly ogre who is hated by everyone and lives alone. In addition he has his own swamp. He seems to be everything you would expect of a fairytale ogre. Shrek lives at the out skirts of the city where there arent many people passing by. He eats what no one else wants to and seems to relish. Donkey takes the role of a noble steed, however he is not a magnificent stallion , but a short, rather quirky looking donkey. He is Shreks friend who gets to know him by accident. Shrek didnt want t...

Brazil and India business environment comparison Essay Example for Free

Brazil and India business environment comparison Essay The United States and Brazil entered into a common agreement targeting to improve democracy in the Western Hemisphere and to bring an accelerated growth in regional trade and development so that the governments of the region can ensure its citizens better scope for greater prosperity. (Common Goals and Challenges in Brazil-US’s Agenda) The prospects for conducting business in Brazil are tremendous in view of its 150 million possible consumers, a hugely diversified economy and a gross domestic product worth of US7 billion. However, till the nation attains improved market and economic reforms, majority of the opportunities for US companies are prone to hover around particular sectors and projects. (Jennings, 14) The closed markets and heavy government interventions marked the economic development of Brazil during the last thirty years. During the 1960s and 1970s, such policies of import substitution and huge levels of international debt generated accelerated growth and industrialization however, giving rise to long term problems like long term economic difficulties, inclusive of high inflation, foreign debt difficulties and non-competitive industries. During the year 1990 the Government of Brazil initiated remarkable market liberalization measures including reduction of trade and investment barriers, declining import duties over 100% to a high of 35% inclusive of an average of 14%. Market liberalization also incorporated several tax and regulatory variations that have been of advantage to the foreign investors. The reduction of taxes on profit remittances and simplification of procedures and withdrawal of some of the disincentives to reinvest the profits have provided increasing scope for business activities in Brazil. As a result, the trend of the reaction of US companies was seen to be remarkable. (Jennings, 14) US companies exported goods of worth $6 billion enabling Brazil to be among the top 20 export markets of the world. The United States tends to maintain the position of being the single country supplier to Brazil constituting about one-third of the total of the Brazilian imports. The telecommunication and informatics market of Brazil extends fabulous prospective for US business, for the equipment manufacturers as well as for the service providers. The Telecommunication sector provides a market worth of $3 billion in Brazil. The US companies have presently extended limited involvement in the telecommunication sector and are exploiting the benefits of extending private networks as well as equipments. The energy sector in Brazil also entails good prospects for US technology as well as equipment. The current agreements and subsequent legislations at higher government levels and the private sectors assures for future prospects. The US equipment manufacturers are encouraged to actually take benefit of the opportunities that already prevail and are prone to expand with regard to the internal demand that promotes the expansion of this sector. (Jennings, 15) The Indian markets along with its over one billion population, provides profitable as well as diverse opportunities for US exporters with the right kind of products, services as well as commitment. Such opportunities are accelerated with the depreciation of dollar in the recent years in relation to its competitive currencies. The infrastructure, high-tech, energy, health care, environmental, transportation as well as defense sector are prone to surpass the tens of billions of dollars mark in the mid-term as the Indian economy tend to globalize as well as emerge stronger. In the year 2005, the total bilateral trade was $26. 77 billion. The US exports to India in 2005 was enhanced to $7. 96 billion, which was a 30. 3 percent growth in comparison to the previous year. (India – Market of the month) The potentiality of India for US companies is promising since India is the second largest small car market of the world; India is one among the three countries that manufactures its own supercomputers; India is the one among the six nations that is able to launch its own satellites and; India is having the second biggest group of software developers immediately after the US. The Indo-US relation is presently growing through a remarkable transition. The two nations which were having a gap between them in political and economic terms during the latter part of the 20th century, presently consider their national goals converging on several areas. (India – Market of the month) Indian tariffs have been decreased considerably since the early part of the 1990s. Irrespective of the fact that the tariff and poor infrastructure entails remarkable challenges for foreign investment and development, the infrastructure needs in India also entail trade and investment facilities for US companies. The best prospects for US firms and US exports on the basis of estimated Indian imports from the US has been earmarked to be â€Å"Airport & Ground Handling, Computer and Peripherals, Education Services, Electrical Power Generation, Transmission & Distribution Equipment, Food Processing & Cold Storage Equipment, Oil & Gas Field Machinery, Pollution Control Equipment, Safety and security equipment, Telecommunication equipment, Textile Machinery, water etc†. (India – Market of the month) Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of State for United States and Celso Amorim, Brazilian Foreign Minister in their meeting on 26th April, 2005 in Brazil had a discussion in relation to the common agenda of the two nations as well as that of the unique challenges which were confronting the entire hemisphere. (Common Goals and Challenges in Brazil-US’s Agenda) Brazil as well as Argentina poses certain particular business challenges to be confronted by the US firms. For example, legal provisions with regard to importing technology materials require payment of duties, tariffs and a value added tax — VAT which is as much as 22 percent of the total cost in Brazil. The business is even more complex in Brazil due to the variation of importation laws from one province to another. The fluctuating currency exchange rates as well as local economic issues pose grave challenges for conducting business. (Business Spotlight: Arrow South America) Franklin L. Lavin, Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, American Chamber of Commerce, New Delhi on May 1st, 2006 remarked that the Indo-US relationship have improved on many fields and have great prospects in the sphere of trade. However, US face remarkable challenges as well. Irrespective of the fact that India has exhibited good trade statistics and the progress in the sphere of economic reforms and are opening markets during the last one and half decade there still need to be improvement in several spheres in order to reflect India’s important part in the world economy. The economic philosophies of Fabian socialism as well as third world nationalism are holding India hostage for many years. As a result of this it has been pointed out that even with 30 percent growth in US exports to India during the last year, India could constitute only 1 percent of all exports of US. The economic reforms in India is in relation to world reforms as a result of this the momentum of India is not impressive in the context of the competition for global attention. (Remarks by Franklin L. Lavin Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, American Chamber of Commerce, New Delhi) The annual US exports of $8 billion dollar is what the US ships to Canada within two weeks. In terms of the US foreign direct investment in India the cumulative figure is only $6. 2 billion at the end of 2004, US being the largest investor while the US FDI in Singapore remains amounts to be $56. 9 billion. Irrespective of the fact that tariff for non-agricultural products have significantly reduced, it still remains at 40% in case of agricultural products. The vibrant IPR regime is considered critical to the enhancement of a creative, technologically advanced economy. Irrespective of the fact that India has opened up a silver of its retail sector to foreign investment, presently, the sector is still considered to be closed to most of the American retailers. US companies required to obviate the aggressive competition exerted by the companies from Europe, Canada, Korea and Japan by knowing how to adapt their products as well as facilitate their activities in order to take advantage of the huge potential in India. (Remarks by Franklin L. Lavin Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, American Chamber of Commerce, New Delhi) The trading companies are generally prone to four types of risk such as strategic risk, operational risks, internal financial risks and compliance risks. (Sadgrove, 83) The trading risks in Brazil are considered substantially greater in comparison to the developed nations. The political risks like dismissal or appointment of a key government minister can exert influence on the value of the share of the company to have fluctuations. The purchase of shares of Brazilian companies is subject to increasing risks of fluctuations in the exchange rates that may exert considerable losses. Exchange rates also have a tremendous impact on the profitability. Inflationary trends also influence much on the profitability by making the services of the company more expensive. (Sands, 27) For US Government, for over several years Brazil has been a bastion of anti communism while the other states of South America seem to be leaning towards communistic. Moreover, the US companies in Brazil never desire to take the risk by means of their operations being disrupted by that of the shipping turmoil. (Fitzgerald, 20) The US companies engaged in outsourcing of their software development to India are prone to be hurt by the industrial espionage and poor intellectual property safeguards. However, India is seen to have a far outstanding cultural and legal climate for IP protection than many other nations offering offshore coding. (Pedraja; Toman, 164) References Business Spotlight: Arrow South America. We have essays on the following topics that may be of interest to you

Problems and benefits of implementing Customer Relationship Management Essay

Problems and benefits of implementing Customer Relationship Management (CRM) in relation to BT (British Telecom) - Essay Example In this essays, I will critically analyze the concept of customer relationship managament and emphasie its importance in regular operations of the organization. The case of British Telcom will be used in order to prove the evidence of provided research and theory. Beginning in the late 1980s, there has been a great deal of research on what exactly customer relationship management means and on what exactly a firm should be doing to implement such an orientation. Information technology offered firms a way to obtain, process, and use individual customer information so that firms would be able to personalize customer experiences. Some scholars have called it â€Å"market orientation.† (Armstrong, Cowan, Vickers, 2005:195 )One set of researchers suggested that customer orientation is a subset of market orientation. Their definition for market orientation is â€Å"the set of cross-functional processes and activities directed at creating and satisfying customers through continuous needs-assessment.† ( John, 2003: 11). Following their lead, market orientation has been treated as being composed of three components: customer orientation, competitor orientation, and interfunctional coordination. Can the terms customer orientation and market orientation be used interchangeably? If we accept the definition of a â€Å"market† (Ennew, Binks, 2003:220) as being a set of potential customers and treat the terms market and customer as synonymous except for the level of aggregation in numbers, then we can use the terms interchangeably. Such an argument does not necessarily negate the three-component structure of the concept of customer focus. To be truly customer focused, the firm has to be driven by the goal of providing the customer with the high-est level of satisfaction. This implies that the firm concentrates on how the customer is better served (by the firm) compared to the competitive offerings and that all processes and activities in the entire firm are integrated

Stress and Health Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Stress and Health - Essay Example e body to any demand whether it is caused by, or results in pleasant or unpleasant conditions†¦We must, however, differentiate within the general concept of stress between the unpleasant or harmful variety, called â€Å"distress† (from the Latin dis = bad, as in dissonance, disagreement), and â€Å"eustress† (from the Greek eu =good, as in euphonia, euphoria)†¦However, the fact that eustress causes much less damage than distress graphically demonstrates that it is â€Å"how you take it† that determines ultimately, whether one can adapt successfully to change.(p.6) Thus, stress may affect an individual positively or negatively. It depends on one’s outlook of the situation. Does stress affect the well being of individuals? This paper attempts a response to this question and provides certain practical solutions that can be used to ease the burden of stress on one’s health. Firstly, today’s society demands that an adult is faced with several responsibilities namely, children, family, work, or one may even be in the process of fostering a social relationship which will require quality time. As Seyle implied distress or eustress is determined by the individual’s perception of the circumstances. For example, an individual who has family responsibilities and is also a full-time student may view the course as a distressing factor because the time lost in attending these courses may have been used to obtain a job that would provide income to attend to the needs of the family. This individual may experience and perceive this lost time as depressing and as a result may respond negatively to the conditions, thus worsening his/her mental and physical well-being. Contrastingly, the same individual could decide to take a different perspective and recognize the value of this time as an investment into procuring a job with better-quality remuneration that could not otherwise be acquired. This student, then by changing his/her viewpoint can reduce the stress level from a

To Lie on the Bottom Essay Example for Free

To Lie on the Bottom Essay There is a reason that World War II and the Holocaust are considered turning points in human history, a point from which everything changed: philosophy, art, music, film, architecture, politics, history, even the very concept of humanity was altered in an often imperceptible way. Something in us died; extinguished by a darkness so all-encompassing and cold that all hope and beauty and reason and love could not survive it, nothing could, not even God himself. This darkness, this ephemeral force worse than death eventually destroyed Primo Levi, but what it couldn’t destroy, was his soul. His soul witnessed and suffered something worse than death, â€Å"a journey towards nothingness, a journey down there, towards the bottom†(Levi, 17) and this tale from the very bottom of hell showed us a side of man never before seen. Dante’s Inferno where there is no God or heaven or right or wrong, but only hunger and despair. A moral hierarchy envisaged by the masterminds of the Final Solution, a cold, remorseless world where the innocent are destroyed and the strong enslaved. A world guided by the â€Å"ferocious law which states: ‘to he that has, will be given; from he that has not, will be taken away’. †(88) The hierarchy of this realm is distant from the rest of humanity, a timeless realm devoid of any remnants of what has been or what is yet to be. A barren, flat, colorless landscape scarred by never-ending paths of metal and wood all leading into the maw of a churning, smoke belching monster marked with a grim, foreboding preface â€Å"Arbeit Macht Frei, work gives freedom†(22). This is Auschwitz, a place unlike anywhere else in the annals of human history, â€Å"This is hell. Today, in our times, hell must be like this. A huge, empty room: we are tired, standing on our feet, with a tap which drips while we cannot drink the water, and we wait for something which will certainly be terrible, and nothing happens and nothing continues to happen†(22). In a place where the old, the young, and the weak are swallowed into the night and are gone forever, in a godless place like this nothing is as it should be. At the top of this mad house lies the most depraved of all, for in this place the insane rule over the sane, and the cold, mechanical fist of the S. S. is law. An extension of the mad-man responsible for this place, they are hand-picked and forged into thoughtless, remorseless killing machines and entrusted with Hitler’s most important goal: the destruction of the Jew. Little is said about these brutal men, they are above the camp and therefore distant from it, the camp to them is merely their work place and â€Å"they behave with the calm assurance of people doing their normal duty of every day. † At times they speak to the prisoners like animals whipping them into attention â€Å"in that curt, barbaric barking of Germans in command which seem to give vent to a millennial anger†, but during the selections when they decide who lives or dies with the slightest glance they are indifferent and speak â€Å"in a subdued tone of voice, with faces of stone†¦ We had expected something more apocalyptic: they seemed simple police agents. It was disconcerting and disarming†(19). Levi would soon discover that despite their outward appearance, these cold agents of doom were the most apocalyptic men on earth entrusted with the unspeakable mission of the destruction of his people. Below the SS men in the next rung of hell resided the ‘Prominenz’, inhabitants of Block 7 in which no regular prisoner has ever entered, they were â€Å"the aristocracy, the internees holding the highest post†(32). Below them were the Reichsdeutsche, the Aryan Germans, and the Kapos â€Å"they were particularly pitiless, vigorous and inhuman individuals, installed (following an investiture by the SS command, which showed itself in such choices to possess satanic knowledge of human beings) in the posts of Kapos, Blockaltester, etc†(89). These individuals established the backbone of authority, doling out punishment with reckless abandon knowing in the back of their heads if they showed the slightest hesitancy or remorse they would be quickly disposed of. Below them resided the rest of the political prisoners and British POW’s who were given special privileges and leniency. Below them resided the Jewish prominents: a sad and notable human phenomenon†¦ if one offers a position of privilege to a few individuals in a state of slavery, exacting in exchange the betrayal of a natural solidarity with their comrades, there will certainly be someone who will accept†¦ When he is given command of a group of unfortunates, with the right of life or death over them, he will be cruel and tyrannical, because he will understand that if he is not sufficiently so, someone else, judged more suitable, will take over his post. Moreover, his capacity for hatred, unfulfilled in the direction of the oppressors, will double back, beyond all reason, on the oppressed; and he will only be satisfied when he has unloaded on to his underlings the injury received from above. (91) These Jewish prominents were particularly hated by Levi and his fellow Jews and this hatred only served to further distance themselves from the rest of the group. Abhorrent as it may seem to abandon your compatriots and become part of the hated ruling class of the camp; the need to survive overrode any moral dilemma, because â€Å"in the Lager things are different: here the struggle to survive is without respite, because everyone is desperately and ferociously alone. †(88) There is no good and evil here because if you are not a prominent you are only ‘the saved and the drowned’. The saved and the drowned are those at the very bottom of hell with nothing between them and gas chamber, only those deemed capable and fit even survive the first day, the others are exterminated immediately. Most who remain quickly succumb to the all-consuming hunger and exhaustion of the camp, â€Å"their life is short, but their number is endless; they, the Muselmanner, the drowned, form the backbone of the camp, an anonymous mass, continually renewed and always identical, of non-men who march and labour in silence, the divine spark dead within them, already too empty to really suffer†(90). They are the forgotten masses of victims, abandoned by the world to their fate and quickly forgotten; no one remembers their names or their faces for they were condemned by all of humanity to a fate worse than death. â€Å"Imagine a man who is deprived of everyone he loves†¦, his house, his habits, his clothes†¦ everything he possesses: he will be a hollow man, reduced to suffering and needs, forgetful of dignity and restraint, for he who loses all often easily loses himself†(27). It’s in this way the Germans destroyed the humanity of a people before killing them further. The drowned are those who are unable to adapt, they sink down deep until it is too late for in this place â€Å"to sink is the easiest of matters†(90). After their children, women, and parents have all been swallowed up and everything they possess stolen, most give up. â€Å"They follow the slope down to the bottom, like streams that run down to the sea†(90). The saved are the few that remain, the ones who still battle for salvation, who have thrown off all moral constraints that hold them back, resolved to fight â€Å"against the current; to battle every day and every hour against exhaustion, hunger, cold and the resulting inertia; to resist enemies and have no pity for one’s rivals; to sharpen one’s wits, build up one’s patience, strengthen one’s will-power. Or else, to throttle all dignity and kill all conscience, to climb down into the arena as a beast against other beasts, to let oneself be guided by those unsuspected subterranean forces which sustain families and individuals in cruel times†(92). Elias, Schepschel, Alfred L. , and Henri, four very different men, all struggling on the own path to salvation, all willing to do anything; they are not good men, for a good man means nothing in here, all the good men died a long time ago or at least ceased to be good, for only scoundrels remain now. The Germans in a sense created â€Å"a gigantic biological and social experiment†(87), an alien world like no other in history, stripped of all moral and ethical boundaries, all reason and justice destroyed, replaced with a twisted, sadistic existence of perceived order masking the uncontrolled debauchery of it all. From this horror only a few are blessed with the talents needed to survive, some like Elias have â€Å"survived the destruction from outside, because he is physically indestructible; he has resisted the annihilation from within because he is insane†¦ he is a survivor†¦ the human type most suited to this way of living(97)†¦ Henri, on the other hand, is eminently civilized and sane†¦ he is extremely intelligent, speaks French, German, English, and Russian†¦ is perfectly aware of his natural gifts and exploits them with the cold competence of a physic using a scientific instrument†¦ there is nothing in the camp that he does not know and about which he has not reasoned in his close and coherent manner†¦ hard and distant, enclosed in armour, the enemy of all, inhumanly cunning and incomprehensible like the Serpent in Genesis†(98-100) Elias and Henri are two sides of the same coin, one physically invincible the other mentally, the rare, extraordinary survivors of a biological experiment gone too far, perfectly molded for the hostile world created to destroy them. They are interesting only in the fact that they are the statistical anomalies of a mathematically-precise extermination process, one which inevitably would destroy even them. Most who survive are not so lucky, not naturally blessed with ability or strength, but simply scratch and claw their way out. They learn quickly, they learn a little German, begin to make alliances with those who have something to offer. They steal when they can, grabbing anything of value, anything that can be traded for in the ‘Exchange Market’, â€Å"where scores of prisoners driven desperate by hunger prowl around, with lips half-open and eyes gleaming, lured by a deceptive instinct to where the merchandise shown makes the gnawing of their stomachs more acute and their salvation more assiduous†(78). These exchanges are necessary to survive, for to try to live with just the meager sustenance given is impossible, the system was created to destroy them, only by breaking the rules can one hope to survive. Often the saved are assisted by civilian workers or gain the favor of a Prominent who provides them with extra food or clothing. One of the few people Primo Levi’s speaks kindly of in the entire book is such a person, a civilian worker named Lorenzo. I believe that it was really due to Lorenzo that I am alive today; and not so much for his material aid, as for his having constantly reminded me by his presence, by his natural and plain manner of being good, that there existed a just world outside our won, something and someone still pure and whole, not corrupt, not savage, extraneous to hatred and terror; something difficult to define, a remote possibility of good, but for which it was worth surviving. The personages in these pages are not men. Their humanity is buried, or they themselves have buried it†¦ The evil and insane SS men, the Kapos, the political, the criminals, the prominents, great and small, down to the indifferent slave Haftlinge, all the grades of the mad hierarchy created by the Germans paradoxically fraternized in a uniform internal desolation. But Lorenzo was a man; his humanity was pure and uncontaminated, he was outside this world of negation. Thanks to Lorenzo, I managed not forget that I myself was a man. (121-122) Lorenzo represents the last vestige of a better world, a glimpse of sanity and reason that seems to no longer exist. He reminded Levi that there still remained a world outside the Lager, where humanity endured; that someday this world would no longer exist and your life would continue, and all that was thought lost forever would be returned to you. The Holocaust was not decided upon with anger, but with a cold, calculating necessity, hell-bent on destroying every Jew on Earth, to extinguish an entire people. To the Germans the Jews were a disease, a parasitic organism, which required extermination. The Jews of America and England, the Jews of the Soviet Union and of Spain, the Jews of North Africa and the Middle East, they were all to be dealt with eventually. This is the mindset of the creators of this alien world. The depravity of the camp; its cruel, ordered madness reflected the depravity and evil that emanated from the souls of those wicked men. The SS were their finest pupils, there most willing executioners, those entrusted with the sacred task of the Nazi regime: the destruction of its enemies, a war against all of humanity. The morals and ethics of their creation were the ethics and morals of Hitler himself, of Reinhard Heydrich, of Adolf Eichmann, of Heinrich Himmler, of Rudolph Hess, the masterminds of this unparalleled killing machine. This is what Primo Levi experienced deep down in the belly of the beast, inside the heart of darkness. The orchestra of the camp that emanated it throughout its boundaries â€Å"the perceptible expression of its geometrical madness†(51), the driving force behind this choreography of the dead. The SS instilled the camp with their notorious character, driven by their remorseless zeal, controlled by their obsessive discipline. The camp is as much a reflection of them as they are a reflection of their creators, the men who molded them into hardened killing machines. The lack of morals apparent in the camp derives itself from the lack of morals apparent in the individuals who created and ran it. The moral codes and fundamental laws of the Lager are based on three basic assumptions which in accordance formed a deranged society: â€Å"the privileged oppress the unprivileged†(44) and â€Å"to he that has, will be given; from he that has not, will be taken away†(88), and most importantly the complete inferiority of the Jew. The Jew was nothing, the slaves of the slaves, and everyone acted to continually reaffirm this assertion. The Kapos, the Blockaltesters, the cooks, the nurses, everyone, even the Jewish prominents constantly reminded the Jews of their inferiority, every rule and regulation instilled it further. For many non-Jews this place is nothing but a prison, they lived in relative comfort with adequate food, clothing, and shelter. As soon as they enter they are made at ease for at least there are many much worse off than they; they are given special privileges and â€Å"are automatically invested with offices as they enter the camp in virtue of their natural supremacy†¦no ‘Aryan’ Haftling was without a post, however modest†(90-91). For them Auschwitz is but a prison, but to the Jew on the contrary, â€Å"the Lager is not a punishment; for us, no end is foreseen and the Lager is nothing but a manner of living assigned to us, without limits of time, in the bosom of the Germanic social organism†(82-83). This ‘manner of living assigned’ to the Jews has the effect of reducing them to their most basic needs, their dignity and integrity stripped from them. When Levi first arrived he is still a man, cognizant and alive, searching in the distance for his loved ones, â€Å"at the other end of the platform; then we saw nothing more. Instead, two groups of strange individuals emerged into the light of the lamps. They walked in squads, in rows of three, with an odd, embarrassed step, head dangling in front, arms rigid. On their heads they wore comic berets and were all dressed in long striped overcoats, which even by night and from a distance looked filthy and in rags. We looked at each other without a word. It was all incomprehensible and mad, but one thing we had understood. This was the metamorphosis that awaited us. Tomorrow we would be like them†(20-21). They are transformed into tired beasts, desperate and alone, aware of only hunger and cold; they show no signs of solidarity or camaraderie, for in the Lager everyone is on his own. They must shut themselves off from reality to survive; they must dispose of all morality and thought before it destroys them. Only in this way can they survive and even then they are guaranteed nothing. They begin to despise themselves, the sad, pathetic faces they see each day, each a reflection of the other, all reduced to ghosts by the machinations of the Lager. This moral hierarchy based on the depraved morals of madmen, sought to destroy the soul of the Jewish people, to torture them into oblivion. They created a monstrous world, where the weak are crushed and the only escape was through the Chimney. This tragedy beyond all comparison in human history told a story. A story that must be told over and over again, no one should be allowed to forget them. Their stories are all the same â€Å"all full of tragic disturbing necessity†¦ simple and incomprehensible like the stories in the Bible. But are they not themselves stories of a new Bible? †(65-66). This new Bible, this new Exodus would renew the life of the Jewish people, and like all the times before they would begin again. They survived â€Å"to tell the story, to bear witness†¦ to save at least the skeleton, the scaffolding, the form of civilization†(41) and with their help the world would be revived, its humanity restored, and that alien world destroyed and those responsible for it punished. The Lager would remain, a stark reminder of â€Å"what man’s presumption made of man in Auschwitz. †(55)

Aspergers Syndrome Essay -- Health, Diseases

In 2009, twenty-six year old, Zev Glassenber, with Asperger’s Syndrome, was a contestant on the Amazing Race. As you learn more about Asperger’s Syndrome ask yourself, â€Å"How did Zev deal with the social stress, physical challenges and constant changes as his raced around the world with his best friend Justin Kanew?† (Bruckheimer, Amazing Race 15, 2009) While Asperger’s Syndrome (AS) has probably been around since the beginning of time, the earliest known research was done by an Austrian Pediatrician, Hans Asperger in 1994. Hans noticed that some of the children that had been referred to his clinic had similar personality and behavioral traits (Attwood, 2007). They were socially awkward, lacked empathy and were physically clumsy. He also noticed they had an intense interest and knowledge of one or few particular subjects. Hans’s work was not well known or used because it was written during World War II, in German and the Journal it had been published in was discontinued. Hans did not live to see his research become an official diagnosis let alone be named after him. Lorna Wing, a British Child Psychiatrist, was the first to use the phrase â€Å"Asperger’s Syndrome† in an article she wrote in 1981. In 1991 his work was translated into English and in 1992 Asperger’s Syndrome was added to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (tenth revision, ICD-10), published by the World Health Organization (Slaughter, 2009). Some experts argue whether AS is really a different disorder or just a milder form of autism (Slaughter, 2009). Many of the traits are the same but the distinct differences are, those with Asperger’s have normal language and intellectual development and make more of an eff... ...to win, and never gave up. He and his partner Justin had a great relationship and worked well together. Many thought Zev would be the cause of their eventual elimination and many admired Justin for his loyalty, support and trust in his friend with AS. Justin was the one that ended up losing their passports in Asia causing them to be sent home. Zev and Justin took 9th place (Bruckheimer, Amazing Race 15, 2009). They were so well liked by viewers that they were given a second chance and participated in season 18’s Unfinished Business. They took first in more legs of the race than any other team and placed fourth overall. They were eliminated after Zev took over an hour to learn a few steps of the Samba in Brazil. But he learned them. (Those darn motor skills) Zev did the race to prove to himself that he could do anything and to inspire others. And he did!

Mary, the Mother of Jesus

Mary, The Mother of Jesus By Angelus Djugash Virgin Mary Jesus is God. Jesus was born to Mary. Mary is the mother of God. St. Luke introduces Mary when the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a virgin betrothed to a man Joseph (Lk: 1:26-27). The virgin’s name was Mary. Virgin means that one does not know human love, but only the love of God. It means that one has no other thought but for the Lord. It means to remain children in the flesh and angels in the heart. It means that one has no eyes but to look at God, and ears to listen to Him, and a mouth to praise Him, hands to offer oneself as a victim, feet to follow Him fast, and a heart and a life to be given to Him. (1) Mary is the Virgin. She is the Only One. She is the perfect One. The Complete One. Conceived as such. Generated as such. Remained such. Crowned such. Eternally such. She is the Virgin. She is the acme of intangibility, of purity, of grace that is lost in the Abyss from which it emerged: in God: most perfect Intangibility, Purity, Grace. 2) Mary, Seat of Wisdom God created Heaven and Earth. Jesus, Son of God is the author of Wisdom. Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus. Thus Mary becomes the mother of Wisdom. King Solomon prophesied Mary in a figurative style by the word wisdom. We read in Proverb â€Å" God possessed me (Mary) at the beginning of His works, from the beginning, before the Creation. From everlasting I was firmly set, in the beginning, before earth came into being, the deep did not yet exist, I was already conceived† in the minds of God. 3) â€Å"For in Mary there is a spirit that is intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, subtle, mobile, clear, unpolluted, distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen, irresistible, beneficent, humane, steadfast, sure, free from anxiety, all-powerful, overseeing all, and penetrating through all spirits that are intelligent and pure and most subtle. For she is a breath of the power of God, and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her. For she is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image of His goodness. Though she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things; in every generation she passes into holy souls and makes them friends of God, and prophets. For she is more beautiful than the sun, and excels every constellation of the stars. Compared with the light she is found to be superior, for it is succeeded by the night. She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other, and she orders all things well. (4) Though she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things; in every generation she passes into holy souls and makes them friends of God, and prophets. For she is more beautiful than the sun, and excels every constellation of the stars. Compared with the light she is found to be superior, for it is succeeded by the night. She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other, and she orders all things well. (4) Mary, the seat of Wisdom, would remember what was said, â€Å"When He marked out the foundations of the earth, I was beside him, like a master workman; and I was daily His delight, rejoicing before Him always, rejoicing in His inhabited world and delighting in the sons of men. † (3) Immaculate Mary God created Adam in His own image. (5) Therefore, Adam was the only man created by God ‘Immaculate’. The Lord God formed the woman Eve out from the rib of Adam. (6) They lived in grace at the Garden of Eden. In eternity God knew that they would err and disobey. He had the plan to redeem the first parents and their generations. For that He had to born as a human being. He chose His mother an eternal Virgin and Immaculate. The most Blessed Virgin Mary was preserved immune from all stain of original sin. (7) It was granted from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God. The Father blessed Mary more than any other created person ‘in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places’. He chose her ‘in Christ before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless before Him in love’. (8) She is ‘redeemed, in a more exalted fashion, by reason of the merits of her son, Jesus’. In the year 1858 when Our Blessed Lady appeared to St. Bernadette in Lourdes on March 25th, She said to her, â€Å"I Am The Immaculate Conception (Que Soy Era Immaculate Councepcion)†. She has been Our Immaculate Mother. She will ever be so until we climb up in the ladder of purity imitating her. (1) Chapter 6 – The poem of the Man-God, Page 39, Vol. 1 (2) Chapter 5 – The poem of the Man-God, Page 32, Vol. 1 (3) Proverb – 8:22-31 (4) Wisdom – 7:22-30 & 8:1 (5) Genesis – 1:27 (6) Genesis – 2:22 (7) Catechism of the Catholic Church – 491 (8) Catechism of the Catholic Church – 492

Viral Marketing: Effectiveness and Implementation

Word-Of-Mouth Marketing: Effectiveness and Implementation Submitted by: Spandana Araga Marketing II Term Paper How it works Advertising agencies and marketing experts get paid big money to create ads that are unforgettable. But getting those ads seen and getting people to talk about them are two of the biggest challenges facing any advertiser these days. It is a common misconception that memorable marketing campaigns require big budgets. Somewhere along the line, marketers came up with a brilliant solution: let the customers spread the word themselves.Word-OfMouth Marketing(WOM), also known as Viral Marketing consists of advertising campaigns and messages that depend on peer to peer forwarding. WOM plays on the common sense that when a person likes something, they want to talk about it. They create a potential for exponential growth like a â€Å"virus†, and hence the name. Trusav et al (2009) in a study of WOM versus traditional marketing found that WOM referrals have a strong impact on new customer acquisition. The long-term elasticity of signups with respect to WOM was estimated to be . 3. The elasticity for WOM is approximately 20 times higher than that for marketing events and 30 times that of media appearances Effectiveness of WOM According to the article, â€Å"Word-Of-Mouth Marketing will change your business† by Hedges and Chung word-of-mouth marketing â€Å"gives brands a powerful and influential way to engage their target audience. The article talks about how consumers are very vocal about their views especially when it comes to personal care products like cosmetics.Projections by eMarketer predict 72 million U. S. adults will regularly give WOM advice about products or services in 2011, up from 65 million in 2006. There are 3. 5 billion WOM conversations occurring daily in the U. S. , according to the Keller Fay Group. Though 92% of these conversations are through off line means- face to face or phone- a vast majority of the influencer s depend on the internet to get more information and make decisions.From plain old word of mouth, now with the use of social networking sites such as facebook, youtube and twitter, the effects of viral marketing campaigns can be amplified. For example Barack Obama got the youth to vote, a task many thought impossible, by utilizing social networking sites. He accomplished this by strategically tapping into nearly every major social media outlet. At the time of Obama's inauguration in January 2009, the President had 3 million friends on facebook, 3000 videos on Youtube and several followers on twitter and myspace.Implementation Though most marketers will agree that WOM is an effective marketing tool, surprisingly, not many choose to utilise it. A CMO Council survey found 56% of senior marketers saying their companies have no programs to track or propagate positive WOM. Marketers would benefit by keeping track of what is being said about their product and learning ways to infiltrate, i nfluence and spark conversations about their products. Word of Mouth Marketing Association outlines some positive WOM guidelines. The first is creating communities and connecting people.This can be in the form of creating user groups and fan clubs, supporting independent groups that form around your product, hosting discussions and message boards about your products. Avon hired Communispace to create a private online customer community, where the company can develop and maintain relationships with its brand advocates. Another guideline is motivating brand advocates and evangelists to actively promote a product by providing recognition and tools to active advocates, recruiting new advocates, and teaching new advocates about the benefits of the products and encouraging them to spread the word.For example WOM services such as SheSpeaks and BzzAgent are a great way to recruit new brand advocates and engage them into the brand. The initial conversation starter is product sampling, but lo ng-lasting relationships can be formed. It is of outmost importance to engage in transparent conversation. WOM campaigns work best when the marketer can engage in two-way conversation with consumers. Some simple ways to execute include creating blogs and other tools to share information or participating openly on online blogs and discussions.For a brand to build an impactful WOM online or off -line campaign some touch-points need to be defined. First the marketer needs to identify who the â€Å"Talkers† are-the ideal brand advocates who will tell their friends about the brand. This target group has to be defined and then be wooed to become true advocates for the brand. Next, the â€Å"Tools† have to be identified- the campaign mediums or resources through which the message can travel (online, off-line or integrated).An effective tactic to make the message spread faster is to disguise the message as something which is entertaining and interesting enough that it begs to be passed around. It needs to be remembered that viral marketing is not about the product but about the message. Next it is to be decided how the brand owner will be â€Å"Taking Part†- how the marketer should directly or indirectly join the conversation while being careful not to be heavy-handed and giving thousands or millions of potential customers a platform to interact. An important final step is â€Å"Tracking†.It has to be decided on how the research will be collected, analyzed, disseminated and utilized to best impact the brand. A mistake many marketers do is rushing into a WOM campaign without a clear strategy or vision. There is a dangerous flipside to WOM- in the absence of an authentic, wellconstructed brand message, consumers will unleash their own impressions which could be positive or negative to fill the void, and today’s speed of light communication platforms enable those homemade brand messages to travel at lightening speed.Brands must fiercely protect the brand assets and remain loyal to the core brand identity in order to gain the respect of the masses. Profitable brands can be built on deploying WOM smartly. The online success of the beauty brand e. l. f. Cosmetics is a good example. Joseph Shamah, the brand’s CEO says that WOM has been very effective for them and more than 80% of their customers say they heard about the brand from a friend.

Famine and Affulence Essay

Famine and Affulence Essay Famine and Affulence Essay While I was reading singer’s article I was having a hard time really understanding his point of view and grasp what he was trying to convey in the article. I personally do not share the same points or moral beliefs so it made it extremely difficult to relate to the article. I believe singer’s article is primarily about how we can make simple changes in our life styles like, not buying designer clothing for fashion and the appeal to looking cool but, rather out of necessity for warmth and protection. By looking into our self and establishing a standard for everybody that we all should give something back to famine societies whether it is 1 dollar or 100 dollars but, not to the point where you start to hurt yourself or you immediately family either just enough where you still provide sufficiently for yourself and your family but, also the care of a famine society where someone does not have the luxuries that we have or the abilities’ to care and need for them selfà ¢â‚¬â„¢s and their loved ones. His arguments are what are the moral implications of this moral situation? While at the same time he states he will not be morally neutral and argue for his moral position that he takes. Secondly he argues that if we have the power to prevent something bad from happening that we ought, morally, to do it. While singer is defending his moral stand point and hoe his beliefs are tied into his article, singer, also makes some very good counter arguments on his position with his position on them as well. Beginning his paper you get the strong scene that he has a very strong moral stand point on the power to prevent something bad to happen. If we have the power to stop something bad from happening weather it is near or far why would you choose not to? You can take something with little moral siginanifance like a wet out fit to save something with a very high siginanifance like a young boy drowning in a shallow lake or you can give to famine charities where that will feed and clothe someone for a week and provide warmth and comfort. As he mentioned weather you are near or far the point is the same but you may have a different moral standpoint if it was rather far than near. Secondly is the proposal of the drastic revision of the moral scheme. While he is not taking a neutral stand point but rather his own conclusion and while he stats that it is a moral point of view that makes us look beyond our own interests of our own society. While at the time the article was written it was not feasible for this to work but in today’s society we as a whole have the power and abilities’ to make this a very real possibility for countries and famine society’s that are still in need of help and support. Lastly singers has another point he really came off as the relative suffering and finding a permanent solution to the ever growing population and inserting a standard guide line on number, to prevent and maintain a healthy manageable population. Singers concept on m arginal utility at the moderate level is defined as giving to the society to a point where our self’s do not fall below that margin our self’s while at the same time providing a balance back to society however, it will likely stay at the high marginal utility and even though we have the means to stop and prevent and stop most bad things from happening we choose to stick to our own morality and not see the out sides. Singer also mentions duty and charity and how the two are seemingly the same and at the same time have become so different over time. Charity is something we do to help and support other who need it as well gives a scene of pride but, singer claims there is no real thing as a true charity due to all of the strings that are now attached on the other hand there is duty and that is something you are obligated to due. He mentions that they help and hurt each other because if there is too much charity they the lack of duty is prevalent and if there is lack of ch arity then the obligation of duty

Book Report #2 for Rabbi School Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Book Report #2 for Rabbi School - Research Paper Example It is through intelligent inquiry into the nature of reality that the phenomena begin to emerge as an important part of understanding the existence of man. In a section that he calls The Disparity of Soul and Reason, Heschel (1976) begins by suggesting that we are far more aware of what is unknown at an earlier time in life than aware of what is actually known. He makes emphatic statement that â€Å"Soul and reason are not the same† (Heschel, 1976, p. 7). This sets the stage for an understanding of how the unknown is such an important part of the acceptance of faith. In addition, he makes an argument for the idea of how it is so easy to lose track of a sense of amazement, sending reason over the wonder that evokes the sense of God within the soul. As he introduces his thoughts, he has created a sense of admonishment to those who would fail to see the world through the sense of wonder that comes from the grandeur of the essence of God. The author is adamant about the problem of human beings trying to use reason instead of depending on faith. Heschel (1976) turns the tables in terms of how companionship between man and God takes place, stating that God intends for man to have a place in companionship with Him. Eventually, he wrote that ‘God is unwilling to be alone, and man cannot forever remain impervious to what He wants to show† (Heschel, 1976, p. 91). He emphasizes the originality of each relationship that individuals create with God. It is through an inability to be able to understand God that brings us closer as the inconceivable ability of the existence of God becomes the basis on which to assert that He is real. There is a point where he goes back to discussing the concept of God and how man often constructed concepts of gods that were more human than divine. Heschel (1976) quotes Xenophones who wrote â€Å"Homer and Hesiod have ascribed to the gods all the things that are shame and a disgrace among mortals,

The effects of the Ottoman Empire on modern day Crete Essay

The effects of the Ottoman Empire on modern day Crete - Essay Example Crete, therefore, has a rich history that informs how individuals strove to build a better world for the rest of the human population. The past struggles of the Cretan people define their modern culture. Multiple events helped create the Cretan culture. To begin with, conquests have made the modern day Crete. This mainly occurred due to the wealth associated with the Island as different parties sought to gain economically from Crete. In addition, religion hugely influenced the development of the region. This occurred in terms of religious conversion and religious conflicts. Notably, Islam and Christianity informed the cultures and attitudes of the residents of Crete. In addition, intervention by international parties influenced the development of Crete. Modern Cretans have a culture of self-defense and self-reliance. In this sense, the citizens believe that they should assume the responsibility of their own lives. In such a nation, individuals slightly delineate from politics since they believe pure hard work relieves one from poverty. Self-reliance is notable in the military culture of Cretans. For instance, a significant number of surveys note that every household in Crete owns at least one gun. These guns are either legal or illegal. In the 17th century’s rebellions against the Christian rule, the Ottoman authorities usually responded by executing several bishops and Christians. In turn, the Greeks attacked the Turkish people. It is notable that there were huge casualties on both sides of the war. The Muslims who migrated into the northern fortified towns experienced famine that consumed almost 60% of the population (Kyriakopoulos, 2008). These experiences seemed to have forged an attitude among Cretans that the state mig ht not always protect them. In this turn, they ensure their own security by owning guns. The Cretans have a contemporary language that borrows heavily from the region’s development. In as much as the general