Essays on Believing

Introduction

Maslow calls resilience “ordinary magic.” But in reality, there is nothing magic at all about resilience. Resilience is not even a natural human intact or behavior, it is one that is learned over time and influenced by one’s environment. People are not born naturally resilient. The behavior is an adaptation necessary from their surroundings as they grow and change. Simply, Resilience is a learned behavior.

Infants are not naturally resilient

Starting at the beginning of our life, in infancy, individuals are not naturally resilient. Take for example infants. Infants have a wonderful ability to adapt to their environment, to change and move according ...

Slavery was a part of the American culture for almost a whole decade (1776-1865), and during that time, many people had to suffer inhumanly for the only solid reason of being a bit different from someone else. There is no way of wiping the past from the memories of those who have struggled, which means that the terror of slavery will always be a part of the human history. As the experience shows, world history is far from being pretty. It has presented its evils so many times that merely counting them would take ages. Every major society, every ...

The Purpose of Apologetics

The modern word “apologetics” is derived from a Greek word which has the meaning of defending, making a reply in order to give an answer and legally defend. Originally, the notion “apologia” implied a defense in a legal way which was given as a response to the accusation. In its modern usage, apologetics has a wider range of meaning. In its wide scope of meaning, apologetics is a Christian theology branch which aim is to provide the defense of authority of Christianity, divine origin and rational justification of Christian faith claims. The goal of apologetics is to persuade of ...

3.08.2016

Alfred, Lord Tennyson is a vivid representative of the Victorian period in the history of England, and particularly, the English literature. Together with the English society he was witnessing the industrial development of the world and together with the Victorian community he felt hostile towards these changes. For these convictions he was highly appreciated by the members of the Victorian society and the Queen herself. We will analyze two of his poems, which reflect his attitude to biological and geological progress – “In Memoriam” and “The Epic”. The poem “The Epic” tells us about a Christmas Eve and four ...

Faith, being an intangible concept, is almost indefinable. But there are theologians, like Soren Kierkegaard and Paul Tillich, who dared to define faith and its role in everyday life. There are similarities and differences between the interpretation of Kierkegaard and Tillich of faith, and some critics are not contented with or opposed to their ideas, particularly as regards the subject-object division. This paper argues that a thorough, critical analysis of the ideas of Kierkegaard and Tillich regarding faith will demonstrate both theologians remaining devoted to the conflict between the finite world and the infinite, unbounded realm. Kierkegaard often emphasizes ...

“The Sufficiency of Christ”

Paper Due Date The Beginning One day a man was warned that there were severe storms coming. As the man sat in his living room reading, he heard a ruckus on the street and went to the window. When he looked out, he saw a jeep with rescue workers who called to him to climb in and they would save him from the impending floods. The man declined help, saying, “No thanks. I’m waiting for God.” The flood began by filling the streets and covering the bottom floor of the man’s house, so he climbed the stairs ...

According to Gettier, the conditions of knowledge that have generally been accepted by philosophers are 1. What they know is true in and of itself, 2. The person believes it, and 3. The person has some sort of justification for believing it. Therefore, if one has a justified true belief, then one knows something. Nevertheless, he finds these conditions unacceptable for two main reasons. The first one is that one can be justified in believing something that is not true. Furthermore, he believes that when one establishes logical causal associations, these may falter as well. He provides two cases ...

The prohibition of marijuana has for long been a subject of heated debates, arguments, and counter-arguments regarding the effects of such action around social and political circles. Many argue that the use of marijuana makes an individual intoxicated which results in feelings of anxiety, fear, and panic. Others argue that marijuana-induced intoxication leads to impairment of the memory, negatively affecting coordination and reaction time. Legalization of marijuana is believed to be a good thing since it will lead to the collection of larger amount of tax revenues and lower government spending. In spite of the fact that a large ...

And their purpose, key verse(s), themes, objectives, context.

And their purpose, key verse(s), themes, objectives, context. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are the Four Christian Evangelists  and the authors of the four Gospels in the New Testament. The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are defined as the Synoptic Gospels, as they include many identical stories, sometimes even in the same progression. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are called evangelists, people who announce good news, as their books are to tell people the "good news" ("gospel") of Jesus Christ. The Gospel According to Matthew is the first gospel book of the New Testament. It tells the ...

As a young Kuwaiti, I broke my hand while riding my bike. I was about ten years old, and I lost control of my bike, crashing into a tree. I came home, and told my parents that I thought I broke my hand. As I was very young, I was not sure what a broken hand felt like. However, I insisted that there was something wrong, and that I thought I broke my hand. Both my father and mother looked at my hand, looked at each other, then at me, and said, “We don’t think you broke your ...

The Apology chronicles a speech given by Socrates in response to charges brought against him in Athens Greece. Socrates was brought to trial around 399 BC for a myriad of charges. This hearing was recorded by his student Plato and is believed to be the most accurate, even though Xenophon's Memorabilia gives an account of the proceedings. The modern day connotation of the word apology, derived from the Greek word apologia is defined as “a regretful acknowledgement of an offence or failure” (Oxford Dictionaries). Where this definition is concerned, and with careful analysis, one cannot refer to this hearing ...

Violence and Revenge

Violence and revenge only hurt people. Human beings are known for their innate desire for revenge, which makes vengeance part of our survival mechanics. However, those with mental illness pose more danger of harming others since they are driven by their subconscious mind to revenge against physical and verbal abuse and could use weird forms in the process. Revenge is often cruel, lustful and insatiable to the extent that a provoked mentally ill person would do anything to ensure they make others pay for physical or verbal abuse. Such acts of violence and revenge pose major problems in the ...

Medicare and Medicaid are designed to supplement the private insurance industry in covering the American population. They are both federal programs, where Medicare is designed for people over sixty five or with a severe disability and Medicaid is designed for people with low income. These programs are meant to ensure that regardless of your particular situation, your healthcare needs will be met. These two programs were introduced by the Johnson administration in 1960s. “Since 1965, some 112 million Americans have been covered by Medicare; in 2006, 43 million were enrolled. In 1967, Medicaid served 10 million poor citizens; in ...

The article “Self Making as Public Spectacle: Bodies, Bodily Training and Reality TV” is written by Bree Hadley, from Queensland University of Technology, Australia. It is published in “Scope: An Online Journal of Film and Media Studies” in Issue 24, October 2012. The article starts with the commentary on how reality TV shows has penetrated the media and its definitions of what real people are like has taken the society by a storm. Reality TV has recently exploded into the mainstream media and has taken over our televisions. It has already been written about extensively how these reality TVs ...

The Role of HRM in Hospitality

Jerpi (2016) discusses that there are many issues related to HR in the hospitality industry. These issues include management skills, company procedures and policies, and training. The author states that as far as management skills, that many within the industry are often promoted without receiving the necessary training to actually do their job. As such, there are managers within hotels and other hospitality related businesses who do not have the specific skills and/or training to deal with issues related to customer service. It appears as though human resources departments along with individual supervisors are recommending that people get promoted ...

Poverty and Religiosity as Bridges to other Faiths

Poverty does not choose who to strike or who not to, and neither does it focus on one religion over the other. However, many people believe that poverty is dictated by a specific religion, a speculation which is not true. This discussion will focus on the following characteristic that explains religion and poverty as a bridge to other faiths; Intense Social Stratification, Omnipresence of Poverty, The Transience of Life, and Philosophical Detachment with Africa as the specific community.

Intense social stratification

Social stratification is the act of forming hierarchies among people so as to distinguish one group from another. Most of these ...

While social class impacts nearly every area of our lives, we do not often realize how deeply in impacts our education. Moreover, we do not realize the growing social gap is something that will not end, regardless of how often we are told that it is closing. Children born into low-income families are at a disadvantage, often from the moment they are born. The socialization experienced by low-income students in comparison to high-income students and the perception of their social classes often changes the impact of education on either individual. The article, “Why Does the Gap Persist,” indicated many ...

Abstract

The book The Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice was written by the most famous poet of the world, William Shakespeare. This is a story about love, jealousy, and revenge. Othello, the protagonists in the story, is a Moor and a general in the army. His role in the Venetian army makes him a significant figure. Upon his promotion, Othello became the main victim when Iago and Rodrigo connived against him in order to destroy him. The jealousy of Rodrigo powered his hatred towards the man. Othello’s downfall was almost assured because of Iago’s flawless plotting ...

Gun ownership in the U.S. faced several controversies because some people were from the idea on the implementation of the gun control laws while the others opposed the idea. The proposed second amendment of the gun control is based on both the advantages and the disadvantages, but it is possible to identify some truth in it. Therefore, an individual’ understanding depended on their interpretation and the facts well known to them. One of the cons was that the gun control laws did not deter crime, but gun ownership deterred (Lott, 2013). The Liberals believe that they can solve this ...

Descartes, Hume, and the author of Ecclesiastes express some form of skepticism. From their reading and arguments, we understand the extent of their skepticism and how they differ. In this paper, we will express the form of skepticism from Ecclesiastes, Descartes, and Hume. We will proceed ahead to illustrate how their skepticism differs. Moreover, we will provide insight into the different problems that the three philosophers are trying to confront with their respective versions. Furthermore, we will give viable reasons why Descartes version is the most plausible compared to the arguments of other authors. Furthermore, there might be a ...

I chose to do a research about children and their well-being which includes the relationship they have with their parents. There are many ways in which children can be tricked and abused and everything has to be done to prevent that. People who are supposed to teach and guide the children might be those who try to abuse them in the first place. There is trust involved and children feel safe with these people because their parents trust them as well. However, the situation is such that children get abused in various forms without even noticing it until it ...

Introduction

Political ideology is a dominant dogma that helps to shape the party activities and what the people that support it believe in. The dogma remains the main philosophy that shapes the party’s slogan and thoughts in everything they promise people to trust them with power (Jillson 8). On the other hand, political sociology is the promise of the party to respond to social problems that affect the people and render solutions as guided by the political ideologies. Democratic Party has been a very popular party in the United States of America alongside the Republican formed in 1928, making ...

Throughout life, one has many experiences. Some of these are formative, allowing one to become a better person, while others only leave you with knowledge of diverse kinds. There are many different situations where one can learn varied aspects of the human experience. Nevertheless, educational courses do not always have this effect. Sometimes, theory can only serve on paper, without having direct correlation to one’s life. However, this was not the case with the philosophy class we have just culminated. I feel that this course has given me a new outlook on life, and enhanced it slightly. I ...

Monsters are creatures that everyone is told that lurks in the darkness of the night. They are hideous, grotesque creatures and would kill you as soon as they look at you. It is something inhuman that has no regard for life, life, and anything good in the world. Mary Shelly brought to life a monster in her novel Frankenstein. She lures the audience into believing that the monster Victor Frankenstein created is the true horror of the novel. However, if one were to examine the deeds of Victor Frankenstein he would take the honor of being the real monster ...

It is an accepted fact nowadays that our current society is largely dependent on cyber technologies. Majority of people store their personal files and information online, do transactions over the Internet, and use the World Wide Web as one of their primary forms of communication. Aside from people, many companies and economies are powered by the internet. Thus, it can be said that the internet is an indispensable part of today’s society. Despite this fact, the World Wide Web is still largely unprotected due to its status as a free and autonomous system, free from any governing bodies ...

1. Why it is reasonable for a survivor of the holocaust to continue believing that God exists The Holocaust was an atrocious experience to the individuals that went through it. A survivor of the Holocaust must have suffered the pain of losing loved ones and going through pain and torture at the hands of fellow human beings. However, despite the suffering, it is reasonable in my view for a survivor to continue believing that God exists because of the following reasons: a) God created the universe, and in creating human beings, He gave them free will with consequences for ...

Abstract

The aim of this survey is come up with data that will expound and provides facts about the care given to this group of people in the society. This paper is objective and seeks to address the needs that are in this community and how they are connected to military experiences. It further provides obligations for the veterans based on the bible. This section is faith based and provides extensive information on biblical mandates. On another note, this study shows different organizations within this community that work towards fulfilling these obligations. A survey is conducted and a few militants ...

Abstract

Mermaids have remained the creatures of mythology for quite some time now, and they are also being featured in many of the present day movies and TV shows apart from the children’s cartoons. That is all well for we know that these media are a work of fiction, but shockingly enough, the subject has very recently come up but this time, the classification has not remained in the genre of fiction. Today people are asking if mermaids could actually exist or if the myths had come out of a few very overactive imaginations. The controversial issue has become ...

Every person has a worldview in life, and it may be described in different ways depending on the individual. A worldview can be defined as a set of beliefs an individual has about a major question in life such as if God exist, the way he looks, how can a person know God, is there life after death, and how to differentiate between right and wrong among others. There is the need to refer to the Holy books such as the Bible and Quran to get the answers to the inescapable life questions. The biblical worldview is composed of ...

Euthanasia is the deliberate assistance by medical staff to a terminally ill patient to end his life so as to end his or her suffering. Euthanasia should be made legal since the patient has a right to avoid the suffering he or she will undergo leading to death. Under the Procon website, there are a few reasons that oppose euthanasia in the United States. They go contrary to my earlier view that euthanasia should be legalized in the United States. First, killing of patients by the medical staff is considered illegal under the Hippocratic Oath. Doctors take this oath ...

Philosophy and God

Philosophy and God

Abstract

The issue whether God really exist or it is just an imagination created in minds of people has been debated for centuries. Many scientists and philosophers believe that God does not exist. They have challenged believers to scientifically or logically prove that God really exists. Ontological arguments have been put in place by theology philosophers with the aim of proving, logically and scientifically, the existence of God. Philosophers such as Anselm and Aquinas have put across some logical arguments to prove that God really exists. On the other hand, some atheists such as Bertrand Russell have ...

Theaetetus is a middle-period dialogue by Plato (Smith 53). Plato is determined to be precise but there some ambiguities and difficulties in his terminology. Therefore, Theaetetus fails to provide a fulfilling account of knowledge even though knowledge plays an integral role in Plato’s philosophy. I disagree with the claim that “knowledge is nothing other than perception”. Plato’s general point in Theaetetus is that perception in not tantamount to knowledge (Smith 69).

Section 1

Claim: “Knowledge is nothing other than perception”. In Theaetetus, Plato opposes the notion that “knowledge is perception”. He handles the definition of knowledge ambiguously in the ...

Faith is one of the central tenants of the Christian religion. One of the greatest depictions of this concept in film can be found in Darren Arofnosky’s Noah. In this non-traditional retelling of the classical Biblical story, there is an emphasis on the eponymous character trusting God to the greatest extents. He tries to go as far as possible with respect to what he perceives to be the will of God. This includes almost destroying his family in the process. In fact, it is only at the end that he finally reconciles with his family. He had been ...

Introduction pp.3-4

Bella and Luke – Chapter 1: Bella p.5 Bella and Luke – Chapter 2: Luke p.6 Bella and Luke – Chapter 3: Bella and Luke pp.7-9 Explanation of plot summary and choices pp.10-12 Introduction For this assignment I have chosen topic number 2; “Write your own version of the Cinderella story, structuring your re-telling around the element(s) of the story that seem most significant or interesting to you. You can tell the story from the point of view of one of the characters or use third person narration. Think carefully about what specific aspects of the story you decide to emphasise ...

Response Paper

Response Paper The presence and existence of God is seen in our daily lives through the practices and the relevant undertaking that we pass through without knowledge of how successfully they pass. To be aware of God, however, implies that one is certain of the belief in His dominical that surrounds every human being, and in everything that is in the universe. McCloskey in his article, “On Being Atheist” attempts to provide proof that the existence of God is not true; with various claims why atheism is a much easier concept to understand compared to theism (McCloskey, 1968). However, ...

According to Socrates, “The unexamined life is not worth living”, which does reflect philosopher’s vision he adhered to throughout his life. The Matrix and Philosophy essay draws connections between the movie The Matrix and philosopher’s own life story. As Socrates stated, his mission was to “wake up” the people of Athens, which was his hometown. He commenced this mission by applying the Socratic Method, which is the “process of asking questions until the person either contradicts himself or makes a mistake”. According to the Oracle at Delphi, Socrates was the wisest man in the whole world, and ...

The dictum “unexamined life is not worth living”, is a famous dictum uttered by ancient Greek Philosopher, Socrates, during his trial for corrupting the youth and impiety, for which he became subsequently sentenced to death. The quote was reported by Plato in his Apology, which is a recollection of Socrates’s speech with the jury during Socrates trial. It is regarded as a resolution of Socrates to choose death rather than escape to exile in Thessaly or commit to silence, to live. The Socratic attitude in the dictum can be traced back to the statement of the oracle Phythia ...

History

The Great Depression of 1930s has played a very important role in changing views of Americans regarding labor and unions. There were many people employed, but after elections of the year 1932, the focus of government and courts shifted towards pleasing the labor. In the year 1935, National labor Act was passed. This act is also known as Wagner Act, which justified the rights of labor or workers for changing their representatives in democratic manner and gives right of bargaining collectively with employees. This act has ensured protection of labors from injury and interruptions by removing unrest from the ...

In her research, Janet Shibley Hyde argues that women and men have significantly more similarities than differences, despite the common belief in the opposite. This issue has been gaining more interest lately because of the growing attention to gender inequality issues and the increasing popularity of the women’s empowerment movement. Indeed, men and women has been divided by stereotypes strengthened by numerous pseudoscientific books for a very long time, and the main concern the scientific community has is about the effects of such stereotypes on women’s and men’s well-being and success in life that can be ...

Introduction

The World Bewitched (1965) was written by Bekker to outline theological and philosophical viewpoints that challenged the notion that ghosts, devils, and angels had an influence on historical events, as well as nature.The story was written at a time when Christianity was being perfected in England and the rest of Europe. During this time, The World Bewitched (1965) was written, Bekker served as a minister in Amsterdam. Protestants needed a philosophical and theological approach to accentuate the assumption that God was the ruler of the world. The need to project God as the authority while discrediting the influence of ...

10. There is plenty of evidence of divine design on planet Earth. The intricacy of design and processes in the world is massive. When considering this, it is easy to see how it must have been ‘designed’ by an Higher Intelligence. However, Darwin’s theory of evolution explains the intricacies in the world without the need for a divine force.

11. The Design Argument claims that an Higher Intelligence exists which designed and created the Universe. Pre-Darwin, the Design theorists claimed that evidence for this was in the apparent design of nature. Following Darwin’s theory, the Design ...

Abstract

The protestant ethic or what is commonly known as the protestant work ethic is a concept used in economics, sociology and history. It largely attributes much of its theory from the works of Max Weber. This ethic basis its arguments upon the emphasis by the Calvinist on the usefulness of hard work, which according to the Calvinist is part of one’s worldly success and calling and a sign of individual salvation (Grossman, 2006, pp.128- 131). Weber’s ethic therefore, is a study of the relationship that occurs between the spirit of modern capitalism emergence and the ethics of Protestantism.

Introduction

Martin ...

At the beginning of the play it rapidly becomes clear that Nora’s husband Torvald Helmer is very dominant and that he treats Nora like a child. It is interesting that this takes place at Christmas, a time devoted to the pleasing of children and a time of dreams and fantasy, for Nora is essentially trapped within a dream world where everything is safe and things are just how they should be. This is essentially because she relies upon her husband to protect her from the vagaries of the outside world with its harsh realities and risks. To a certain extent it could be ...

The primary characters of Shakespeare’s plays typically have an element of tragedy to them: some unfortunate outcome for them that occurs either despite their circumstances or because of them. In the case of Othello, the titular character is a tragic figure whose race leads many, including Iago, to scheme against him and lead to his downfall. In this essay, the character of Othello will be examined in terms of his race and behavior, through the lens of G.K. Hunter's "Othello and Color Prejudice." Here, Othello is presented as a black man who is a heroic figure, constantly fighting against the perceptions ...