...Christianity and Paganism vs. Buddhism ENG 121 Tara Faircloth Mrs. Jalbert May 23, 2011 In today’s world there are many religions. Most of the religions are based off of one specific religion. Even though they may be similar to each other they are also different. I have chosen to write my paper about three religions or faiths these religions would be Paganism, Christianity, and Buddhism. I have chosen to write about these three because they all have similarities to one another as well as differences. As you are reading this paper you will learn about each of these religions or faiths, what they have in common, and what makes them different. To begin my paper I am going to discuss the faiths of Paganism and Christianity. In today’s world Approximately 400,000 people practice Paganism and seventy five percent practice Christianity. Paganism is the base religion or faith of all faiths that have become of the world. Paganism dates back to the Roman Empire. It is a faith that is based on nature and its practices are used every day. Paganism has many gods or goddesses that they look to. Paganism nowadays is believed to be evil but in all controversy it is not and actually shares its faith and practices with Christianity. It has its own stories that are similar to the stories of Christianity such as the Garden of Eden, forbidden fruit, the snake in the Garden of Eden as well as the great flood. Paganism also shares holidays with Christianity such as Easter, Christmas...
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...Paganism VS Christianity Paganism VS Christianity Jeff Pierce University Of Phoenix Online (Axia) Frank Muller February 25, 2012 World religions have become a great debate in the last hundred years. People push their religion on any one that is willing to listen to the person that is explaining their belief system that they practice. The religion for this paper is Paganism. Paganism or Neo-Paganism is a newer version of the old religion of Paganism. Paganism is a religion that has really no temples other than Mother Nature and father sky. Pagans believe in the world around them and worship everything. There may have been temples for the religion long ago but they have been ether forgotten or fade into the annals of history. Pagans were one of the first organized religions of the world. The fact of the matter is that Paganism is one of the few oldest religions that are still practiced. The interviewee for this paper is Mrs. Cassella. Mrs. Cassella has been practicing Paganism since the age of fifteen. The method for this interview was over the phone on at Saturday at my place of residence. There was no particular site do to the fact that her religion is primarily practiced in the outdoors. Her child hood was open as far as religion was concerned. Her father jumped around from religion to religion no really settling on one. At the age of fifteen she was introduced to Paganism from a child hood friend who...
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...Paganism is a group of religions, while Wiccan is just one. Wiccans and Pagans are not terms to describe sexual outsiders, devil worship or the practice of harming people or animals. Wiccans and Pagans practice earth based worship. Most Wiccans practice witchcraft, however not all pagans practice witchcraft. Paganism does not have a founder, Wicca does. In Paganism, you do not have to practice witchcraft. In Wicca, witchcraft is usually practiced. A person who considers themselves a Pagan, usually is Polytheistic. Polytheistic means one believes in more than one deity, whether that is a god or goddess. In Wicca, some believe in just a God, some believe in just a Goddess, and some believe in both. There are even some who believe in a number of gods and goddesses. Both Wicca and Pagans use many objects in their practices or studies. Both Wiccans and pagans will use what is called Magikal tools. These are known to include...
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...changes culturally as time progresses. The epic poem initially begins as a story symbolizing Pagan ideas and beliefs. As time advances, the epic poem gradually evolves into a story involving Christianity. The latest variation of Beowulf tackled various issues society encounters in our modern world. Overall, Beowulf is an ever-changing epic. Elements of Paganism is seen numerous times throughout the epic poem. Many examples of Paganism is seen in Beowulf’s character. Beowulf’s character is written as a hero. In Pagan society, heroes fight or go to war for fame or to be remembered when they meet their death. This was Beowulf’s purpose for volunteering to leave Geatland to venture to Denmark to end evil. Many characters possess superhuman strength. Beowulf and Grendel are prime examples of characters with superhuman strength. Beowulf displays his abilities when he swims underwater for hours without gasping or oxygen. Grendel displays his superhuman abilities with his incredible strength as he murders Danish soldiers. The symbolism of Good vs Evil displays with Grendel and Beowulf’s gruesome duel. Within the many examples of Paganism, Christian aspects also appear in Beowulf. An example of Christian faith in the poem is when Beowulf and his troops arrive in Denmark to battle Grendel, the group thank God for the safe ride to Denmark. A major example is Beowulf’s character. Beowulf’s heroic personality and decisions consider him to be a God-like figure. In his battle with Grendel, Beowulf...
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...corruption. As a result through several primary source documents, religion is seen to be corrupted and as a root of death and war. In a letter from Martin Luther, a protestant reformer, he gives off a brief example on how the church becomes corrupted to Pope Leo X. “ These things are clearer than the light to all men: and the Church of Rome, formerly the most holy of all churches, has become the most lawless den of thieves, the most shameless of all brothels, the very kingdom of sin, death, and hell; so that even the Antichrist, if he were to come, could devise any addition to its wickedness”(p.2).1 Luther was pointing out how the Roman Catholic church, which was once pure, became fraudulent to what it used to be and that even the devil himself couldn't make this place any more sinful. It was distorted to the point that any one who spoke out against it, such as Martin Luther did, would be either killed or persecuted. Religion had turned from being able to worship, into having control, as the church became wealthy through unreasonable taxation and the sale of indulgences. Also the Pope as a figure was supposed to be compared to god, which compared to scriptures in the bible, would be unethical and paganism. If the most supposedly holiest man himself was practicing a sense of paganism, there was indeed corruption. Moreover because of religion there were many deaths attained. If you were to be mutinous and speak out against the belief system you would be killed. Things were supposed...
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...the empire. In Eusebius’ Oration in Praise of Constantine he asks, “who has instructed…unnumbered multitudes of all nation, to live in the contempt of death…expecting God’s award to the righteous and the wicked, and therefore true to the practice of a just and virtuous life?” (Eusebius 5). Constantine had united those with differences under Christianity by instruction. However, Eusebius later said, “how shall we enough admire that steadfast firmness of soul which strengthened, not merely his immediate followers, but their successors also…in the joyful endurance of every infliction, and every form of torture, in proof of their devotion to the Supreme God?” (Eusebius 6). Eusebius attributed the prosperity of Christianity under Constantine by strengthening the souls of Christians to endure and challenge the power that would punish them for their name, which often led to...
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...Comparative Religions Comparative Religions: Reflection Essay Luckily we live in a country where we are free to express ourselves religiously however we choose to. I was born into the Greek Orthodox branch of Christianity and have remained a Christian my entire life. Different religions have always interested me; I have even studied extremely different beliefs than my own such as Paganism and Wicca. As noted in the textbook, there are eight different elements in which religious beliefs can manifest, such as: A belief system, community, central myths, rituals, an ethical system, emotional experiences, material expressions of religion and sacredness. (Malloy, 2010, p. 6) Some people may feel that their religious beliefs are larger influenced by each of these eight elements, while others may only be influenced by a select few. I grew up in a very Christian household. My mother was a Christian, that’s what she always said even though she was Roman Catholic. I later learned that she meant she had strong beliefs in Christianity, while not adhering to some of the Roman Catholic beliefs. I would strongly agree that the element of community really played a significant factor on my initial belief in Christianity. Since I was surrounded by an entire family whose belief was in Christianity and around people that talked constantly about Jesus Christ being our savior, I was heavily persuaded into the belief system that is Christianity. As I was raised, my family would tell...
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...Eng 201 September 7, 2012 Analysis of Christian and Pagan Themes in Beowulf The heroic poem, Beowulf, written circa ninth century after the Common Era (C. E.), presents a bloody chronicle of a king’s role in the violence and tumultuous Germanic tribes shortly after the Roman Empire’s expulsion from the low countries of Northwestern Europe. Evolving from oral narrative’s, Beowulf’s origins, while traceable to a general place and time in history, remains obscure, and comes to modern readers through a manuscript written around the year one thousand C. E.. Written in the language of the Anglo-Saxons, Beowulf, namesake for the title, defeats three monsters, Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and finally after many years of ruling his lands, a dragon. While fictional, the author weaves the main plot centering on defeating these vicious adversaries with a mixture of both pagan and Christian customs. Beowulf illustrates numerous biblical references and Christian influences, while simultaneously reflecting a core of Germanic pagan customs. Christianity and its religious elements, alongside, pagan customs and practices, play a fundamental role in the heroic poem, Beowulf’s narrative. Grendel, the monster that terrorizes Hrothgar’s great Hall of the Hart, traces his lineage back to Cain, one of the two sons of Adam and Eve. Cain commits the first murder according to Christian teachings, slaying his brother, Abel (The Holy Bible, Genesis 4-8). Grendel sprang from, “Cain’s clan, whom...
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...most and is hallowed highly by people due to his violence in battle. These characteristics of Beowulf seem to separate the poem from Christianity. Although the poem appears to be originally pagan, Beowulf is a Christian poem in terms of its historical background, biblical allusions, and the characters’ beliefs and reliance on God. First, the author of Beowulf lived in a period when the transformation from Germanic paganism to Christianity occurred. When Beowulf was written, the old paganism was dying out, and the influx of Christianity from Europe and Ireland had taken place. “This transformation reached every level of society and affected nearly every aspect of daily life” (Streissguth 83). Due to this Christian influence, people had to make a radical change, discarding the old beliefs that value courage, vengeance, and violence in gory battle. The poet of Beowulf was also a part of this drastic change of the era. The “nameless author undoubtedly was a Christian” (Bloom 1). We can observe the author’s Christian quality when he blames people who return to paganism in the poem: “Sometimes at pagan shrines they vowed offerings to idols, swore oaths that the killer of souls might come to their aid and save the people. That was their way, their heathenish hope; deep in their hearts they remembered hell. The Almighty Judge of good deeds and bad, the Lord God, Head of the Heavens and High King of the World, was unknown to them” (Beowulf 175-183). The poet...
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...the Bedouin. Mecca was simply the largest, most affluent trading location of that time, and Medina was simply “an important agricultural settlement” 1. Life in these Bedouin tribes was divided by a clan system; related families formed clans, clans would form tribes, and leaders and councils would be elected for the tribe by the tribe. One major aspect of Arab Bedouin belief was that they “placed great emphasis on tribal ties, group loyalty or solidarity, as the source of power for a clan or tribe” 2. However, the Bedouins in Arabia did not see an importance for anything that did not happen during a person’s lifetime, and didn’t believe in many standard religious beliefs, such as reincarnation or divine judgment from greater beings after death. This meant that morality was not of much importance, and Muhammad aimed to fix that when he became the prophet. At the age of forty, Muhammad traveled up to a cave in the mountains. He traveled there to think about how he could better his life and fix the problems of his society. It was here that the archangel Gabriel flew down to speak to him, and this is most likely part of the reason that Islam holds morality as a strong staple. Means of communication were adopted into Islam as a way to spread the religion. A tradition from Mecca “was that of the mu'allaquat (literally "the hangings")….poets and writers would hang their writings on a certain wall in the city” 3. This was taken by Islam with the creation of the Quran, Monotheism existed...
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...Christian Dream Interpretation Author Barbie Breathitt, described as a “respected teacher of the supernatural manifestations of God,” has just released a new book entitled “Dream Encounters,” in which she claims Christians can have access to a secret dream language that God uses to reveal “hidden knowledge” to believers. In this book Breathitt tells believers they will be enabled to use the “revelation” obtained from God through their dreams in order to unlock their “destinies” and live lives in which they are “productive, responsible, successful, prosperous, loved and fulfilled” (p. 138).i According to Breathitt, this is done by decoding information that God has “embedded” into our dreams and through which he continues to communicate with us in personal, ongoing revelation. But there are three significant problems with what Breathitt teaches, and I will attempt to develop why these issues are unsupported by Scripture. The three problems are as follows: 1. Breathitt’s teaching is more in alignment with a pagan and superstitious—even New Age— worldview than Christian 2. Breathitt puts forth the idea that each believer has a “destiny” waiting to be unlocked, accessed, known and lived out, an idea that is contrary to the teaching of Scripture—that, as Christians, we have no “rights” to our lives. And finally, 3. Breathitt's teaching about ongoing, personal revelation from God goes against the clear teaching of sola scriptura, which is that God speaks to us through scripture alone...
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...path. Although Beowulf is viewed as a superhero, Hrothgar, does not hesitate to present Beowulf with the best advice that he can muster. Hrothgar’s guidance is essential in outlining the basic and most vital themes of the epic. He warns Beowulf about overweening, resenting tradition, and dishonoring customs, among many other points. As seen in this passage, the themes of wyrd, paganism, and heroism are clearly distinct in Seamus Heaney’s Beowulf through the harrowing adventures retold. The concept of wyrd, or a sense of inevitable doom, is a central theme in Beowulf, demonstrated by the constant reminder that the destruction of events or people will most definitely occur. When Hrothgar bestows his advice upon Beowulf, it is stated that “ancestral possessions/ and the goods he hoarded are inherited by another/ who lets them go with a liberal hand”, which clearly exemplifies a belief in ultimate ruin (ll 1756-7). Despite the honor that one must earn in order to receive such goods, once one dies it no longer has any meaning, showing how gloomy the Anglo-Saxon society was in it’s outlook about death. Additionally, Heorot Hall, the great meade hall built my Hrothgar’s men is not exempt from this concept. Although Heorot Hall is described as “the hall of halls”, it is also stated that it is “awaiting a barbarous burning” (ll 78-3). This great meade hall seems to be exceptionally well built and stalwart since it is described as being towering with extremely high and wide gables...
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...states that “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” it is “highly readable” carpe diem poem. Ketteler points out that it also contains underlying messages such as “uplift”, “waste no time”, and “live your life to the fullest”. Despite the optimistic view, Ketteler also shows a more serious side to the poem that talks about death and decay, very much like “cycle of life.” She talks about the blend of idea of Christianity and Paganism ritual. Ketteler mentioned that life is paradoxical and full of dilemmas, that one thing connects/leads to another. Overall, there is no one perspective of the poem, whether is encouraging virgins to lose their virginity, living life to the fullest, use time wisely, or follow dreams. To Ketteler there are no specific way to put it. Ketteler brought up a good point that there is no one way to interpret “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time.” Just the title itself, it can be looked at in various ways, such as virgins should not waste time and should go explore sexual counterparts, or value the time as virgins because it wont last forever (until marriage). In the article, life and death are at constant conflict, as time passes, death is near but yet it says to cherish the present. Overall, much of “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” revolves around time as the main theme of the...
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...resulting death of Lupito causes Tony to begin his transition into adulthood. The death of Lupito is Tony’s witnessing of the evil and corruption that is entailed with the world, causing him to contemplate on “how [he would] ever wash away the stain of blood from the sweet waters of [his] river!” (Anaya 23) Anaya uses the river to symbolize the contamination of Tony’s purity, a loss of his innocence, that begins him on a long road to self-identification and independence. Tony’s second encounter with loss and death comes when he rushes home to warn Ultima of Tenorio’s ill-intentions, he crosses the bridge before his home only to hear the gunshot which wounds Narciso. The use of bridge crossing gives a well-rounded symbolic adaptation of an individual’s self-growth and identification, however it is not the only one Anaya uses. Later on, Tony crosses a hard social boundary when he absolves Florence, an agnostic, of his sins. Tony’s decision causes strife amongst his friends; however, Tony after experiencing his very own strife first hand is able to find that relief in defending Florence. He stands his ground for “what [he felt] was to be right and was not afraid” (Anaya 214). Tony’s decision causes him to finally step even more towards the end of his innocence and is brought more forward towards the final stages of developing into an independent individual. Márquez’s “The Handsomest Drowned Man In The World” boundary between land and sea signifies the borders between life and death as...
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...Greeks | Romans | Greek city-states were separated from one another by countryside; all surrounding water. | Rome was inland on one side of the Tiber river. The Italic tribes did not have hills of the countryside to keep them out of Rome. | Most Greek buildings were made with mud, wood, plaster, and stone. These buildings did not stand over long periods of time. Save for the textures of marble and limestone they used to construct their temples which some still remain. | Romans used too marble and limestone in the construction of their buildings, but their greatest contribution was the perfection of the use of concrete. The strong, but light-weight material allowed them to larger and freer flowing structures. | Most of the remaining Greek structures are temples built to honor both their art and their gods. While decorative on the outside they were very plain within. Greek architecture was more rectilinear. This usually consisted of a pediment supported by columns set on a plinth for base. | More Roman structures stand today greatly due to their advancement in material technology. Roman structures were both decorative on both the inside and outside to reflect the pursuit of pleasure which was an essential part of Roman culture. Roman buildings were more complex, as they are credited with the mastering of the arch and dome type constructions, made possible by their skills with concrete. | Classical Greek sculptures are idealized from the human form, focusing on balance, symmetry...
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