...Religion in Singapore Singapore’s government has been applauded for its approach to attracting business and fostering social harmony, while simultaneously censured for being too restrictive and even dictatorial in its approach to public policy. Media coverage on the topic of religion in Singapore has been varied in both its tone and the sources from which it is derived; news media stationed outside of Singapore’s boundaries have depicted a largely positive view of interfaith relationships, while domestic media outlets have stressed the unrest caused by religious divisions amongst Singaporeans. Historically, Singapore was known as a port-city with an “entrepôt” style economy, primarily due to its proximity to major South Asian, commodity-exporting countries. Today, Singapore’s favorable tax laws continue to make it a central figure in the South Asian economic landscape. Singapore is a country of roughly 5.5 million people and, due to economy and geography, is a culturally diverse city-state. Primarily Chinese, Indian, and Malaysian peoples comprise Singapore’s citizenry, with western businessmen representing a small sliver of the population and a large portion of the country’s wealth. Religious diversity within Singapore remains high; an estimated 83% of the population subscribes to a religious belief system. There are five predominant faiths within the country, with no one comprising more than 30% of the population. In aggregate, members of Buddhism, Christianity, Islam...
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...personal books. They believed that reading was significant and the library was a common benefit to society. Although Franklin was educated as Presbyterian, he treated all religion with respect. He believed that even the worst of religions had some good. Franklin did not let his religion tie him down. He often did not attend public worship and thus received admonishment from his minister. Once Franklin heard his minister’s five points he became conflicted. As a result he withdrew from his church and wrote his own prayer entitled “Articles of Belief and Acts of Religion” Franklin’s most arduous project was his attempt at moral perfection. He established his thirteen virtues to guide himself onto the right path. By charting his journey for moral perfection, Franklin was able to examine himself and learn from his faults. However as time went by, Franklin realized that it was not possible for him to become perfect. He acknowledged his failure and pointed out that his journey toward moral perfection shaped him to become a happier man. Franklin concluded in his memoir that pride was a moral imperfection that was difficult to subdue. Franklin uses ethos to establish credibility as role model for the young men of America to become successful. By highlighting his own experience with family, education, morals, and religion, Franklin establishes his authority on success. The library that Franklin began from scratch served to emphasize the importance of contributing to society and education...
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...Star-crossed lovers is a phrase for the archetype of couples who are tragically separated by their socio-economic status, faith, culture, or family despite true love. The idea is that these relationships are already doomed from the start. Couple’s true instinct and love is pit against societal rules. The phrase “star-crossed lovers” was first coined by famous playwright William Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet, “From forth the fatal loins of these two foes, A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life.” (Shakespeare 1-6). However, Shakespeare is far from the only author with this concept. This same archetype is found in many traditional stories from all over the world and is still widespread in today’s culture. We feel for these characters,...
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...Music raises the soul of man even higher than the so-called external form of religion…That is why in ancient times the greatest prophets were great musicians. – Hazrat Inayat Khan, “The Mysticism of Sound and Music” Without doubt, Bob Marley can now be recognized as the most important figure in 20th century music. It’s not just my opinion, but also, judging by all the mainsteam accolades hurled Bob’s way lately, the feeling of a great many others too. Prediction is the murky province of fools. But in the two decades since Bob Marley has gone, it is clear that he is without question one of the most transcendant figures of the past hundred years. The ripples of his unparalleled achievements radiate outward through the river of his music into an ocean of politics, ethics, fashion, philosophy and religion. His story is a timeless myth made manifest in this iwah, right before our disbelieving eyes. There will come a day when music and its philosophy will become the religion of humanity…If there remains any magic it is music. Unlike mere pop stars, Bob was a moral and religious figure as well as a major record seller internationally. To whom does one compare him? In a recent Sunday New York Times Arts and Leisure lead story, Stanley Crouch makes a compelling case for Louis Armstrong as the century’s “unequaled performer,” excelling not just in his instrumental inventiveness but in his vocal style as well, transforming the way music was made and listened to, and influencing...
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...My Cultural Place Our world is full of cultural places. To understand what this means, the word places needs to be defined. Places, in the geographical sense, is defined as an ongoing composition of traces. Traces are anything left behind by people. This could be marks, residues, or remnants left by cultural life. These traces could be material things or it could be of non-material things. Material traces are something you can physically see and touch like buildings, graffiti, signs, or statues. Non material traces could be things that we hear, smell, taste, or feel. Everyone’s cultural place is different. The actual location of the place may be the same but the way each person views the place is different. For me, my cultural place is California, more specifically southern California....
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...In John Sayles’ Lone Star, the main character Sheriff Sam Deeds is deeply in love with a teacher name Pilar Cruz. Their relationship did not start as adults, but when they were still children way back in high school. Although their relationship might seem to be a normal man-woman relationship, we see that there is more to this unusual relationship. Throughout the movie Sayles hints at this unusual relationship such as when Pilar says, “I was on the playground with all the other kids, but I thought he was only looking at me.” This shows that she was special, different from the rest of her peers and hints at the ending of the movie. By the end, we see that the two are actually siblings. John Sayles uses their unusual relationship to challenge the way we and society view sexual taboos and makes us question what is a sexual taboo and what makes it so wrong. A sexual taboo is a “code” created by society that should never be broken and in the case of Sam Deeds and Pilar’s, they have broken the sexual taboo of incest. They fell in love as kids and continued to carry that love within them, even after they have been separated for a long period of time. Although they have broken this taboo, the blame cannot be put on them. Near the end of the movie, Sam says, “Yeah, and my mother was a saint. For fifteen years the whole damn town knew he had another woman on the side. Stole ten thousand dollars to set her up in business. But hell, what's that? You got a problem? Buddy'll fix it. Facing...
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...John Green The Fault in Our Stars BACKGROUND INFO BACKGROUND AUTHOR BIO Full Name: John Michael Green Date of Birth: August 24th, 1977 Place of Birth: Indianapolis, Indiana Brief Life Story: John Green was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. Immediately after his birth, Green’s parents moved to Orlando, Florida. During his youth, he attended Lake Highland Preparatory School, a boarding school near Birmingham, Alabama. Later, he attended Kenyon College where he graduated in 2000 with a double major in English and Religious Studies. After graduating from Kenyon, Green worked in a children’s hospital while he enrolled in divinity school with the intention of becoming an Episcopal Priest. He never attended divinity school, however, because his experience working in the hospital with children suffering from life-threatening illnesses inspired him to become a writer. He lived in Chicago for several years, writing book reviews, writing for radio, and working in publishing. During this time he wrote his first novel, Looking for Alaska (2005) to immediate, and increasing, success. He followed that first novel with An Abundance of Katherines (2006), Paper Towns (2008), and The Fault in Our Stars (2012), which reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list for children. Green currently lives in Indianapolis with his wife and two kids, where he continues to write, produce videos, and speak publicly about an array of topics. chronicle his artistic journey in making the film adaption of his novel...
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...Natural World Determinism • The universe operates by a set of natural and unalterable laws of cause and effect. • Events are the result of other events and circumstances • Human choices and actions are conditioned by these circumstances • Free will is an illusion, even for gods. Determinism Natural World Gods Humans Responsibility • Are Fatalism and Determinism not abrogation of responsibility? • “Its not my fault… it is the will of the gods.” • If we can praise the divine for good… If we thank God for the good shouldnt we blame him for the bad must we not blame the divine for the bad? Personalism • Humans are individuals possessed of free will • Free will means self-determination • But if humans are the agents of their own fates, are they also responsible for anything that happens to them? Existential Personalism Natural World Gods Humans Humanism • Man is the measure of all things. • Our perception of the natural and the divine are merely conveniences of our own creation. • We create reality to suit our needs. Greek Zeitgeist • Divine law can be known. • If divine law is absolute, the best course is to live within divine law • Yes, the gods are fickle, but they usually act in accordance with divine law Three Maxims Basis of Greek Morality. These are Greek...
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...magic, strays from God, is seduced by an adulterous woman, and ultimately breaks the chivalric code by lying to the Green Knight. The pentangle, also called the “endless knot,” (630) is a five-pointed star enclosed in a circle, worn as an amulet to “avert evil from or bring fortune to the wearer” (Talisman, OED). Writer Eliphas Levi says that when the pentangle is pointing up it represents spiritual dominance over the material. Presented the other way, the physical world rules over the spiritual -often associated with dark magic (Pentagram, Wikipedia). This parallel foreshadows the trickery played on Sir Gawain by the Green Knight. The Green Knight challenges Gawain to a “Christmas game” (283) in an attempt to humble Gawain, tempting him with worldly pleasures and proving that even the greatest of knights are not perfect. Upon finding the Green Chapel, Gawain suggests that “Here might / The devil himself be seen / …at black midnight” (2186-8). Comparing the Green Knight to the devil proves accurate because at the end of the play, the Green Knight confesses that “the count of your kisses and your conduct too, / And the wooing of my wife—it was all my scheme!” (2360-1). Describing the midnight as “black” (2188) parallels the black magic present throughout the play. In some religions the five points of the pentangle have come to represent the four...
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... Faultline between English and French For many years, hostility has existed between the two largest ethnic denominations in Canada, the French and the English. To understand the cause of this continuing bitter saga, one must take a journey back in time. Throughout the Canadian history, the issue of separation of the nation between two big dominate groups have never been suppressed due the deprive of sovereignty. As the British successfully defeat the French and took control of the New France, there was still a continual threat of separation from the French, which naturally developed the fault line between English and French. There were many occasions where French and English Canadians clashed. Though the British adopted different acts and laws to grant the fairness between two cultures include founding factors such as religion, language and values, the crack between the two groups were still there. In recent crisis, the conflict of “sovereign’s independence” even sharpen after the newly elected Quebec Premier, Pauline Marios taking the office. On March 7,2013 the National Post published an article stating the Quebec Premier Pauline Maoris and Education Minister Marie Malabo has ordered an outside research body, the Cole national d’administration publique, to “define the problems” raised by intensive English instruction and examine its impact on students’ success in other subjects (“Quebec puts brakes on intensive English language program” 2013)...
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...RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE? By Peter Antes. This article looks at why people who have religious experiences never “...saw a person who was totally unknown in the respective religious context where the apparition took place.” (Antes 3). Why don’t people ever see the God(s) from other religions, why do some people “...see Kali or Durga, while in Christian contexts, if the vision is that of a woman, St. Mary is seen instead.” (Antes 3). This thesis is rather profound in the fact that almost every religion claims to have religious experiences and divine visions, but never of the God(s) from other religions. An interesting contrast shown in the body of the article is between Madeleine Le Bouc, and Ramakrishna. The former, was said to be quite mad by Doctor Pierre Janet while the ladder was considered a saint. Antes points out that “...they had similar types of experience which, according to their surrounding milieus, found very different explanations: a medical one in terms of mental illness in the secular context of France, and a religious one in the Indian context of Hindu spirituality.” (Antes 2). By using this approach, the findings will be more valid as this argument explores “...the field of Psychology of Religion.” (Antes 3). There is an example that uses Paul’s conversion to Christ as a kind of example that is supposed to possible falsify the thesis. The example states that Paul did not believe in Jesus but had a vision of him and was converted. In the conclusion Antes states that...
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...vehicle accident and is on life support. He is hanging in the balance between life and death. On one hand she loves her father very much and would want nothing more than for him to come back from his vegetative state and become full of life once again. On the other hand, he has no insurance and is taking food away from her children’s mouths every day that he is kept alive on life support. This is an age-old quandary; is it murder, is it helping a loved one, is it self-preservation? A man finds out that at the age of 34 he has cancer and has less than 6 months to live, he still has the ability to make decisions and decides that he wants to kill himself but is a devout Catholic. With suicide being considered a serious sin within the Catholic religion, what can he do? Wouldn’t it be easier if there were people that had the job or career in which they carry out such situations? “Assisted Suicide is the common term for actions by which an individual helps another person voluntarily bring about their own death. “Assistance” may mean providing one with the means (drugs or equipment) to end their own lives, but may extend to other actions.” Wikipedia puts it in pretty simple terms. There are three states within the U.S. that have legalized Assisted Suicide; Oregon, Montana and Washington. All three states have different legal barriers and very strict rules that must be followed in order for the Assisted Suicide to go forward without any repercussions. There are also many countries throughout...
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...In the twentieth century, the lives of millions of people were lost or negatively impacted when the beliefs of Adolf Hitler were expressed into a traumatic event titled the Holocaust. People that followed the Jewish religion, often called “Jews”, were believed to be inhumane by Hitler and the German Nazi party and were forced to their own deaths, regardless of their age, gender, or race. Individuals in concentration camps were traumatized to the point where they became unafraid of death; they saw it as a part of everyday life. Artists, philosophers, critics and musicians all have developed different ways of expressing their thoughts and feelings towards the Holocaust and each of these representations are relevant in their own individual aspects....
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...------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14 The Bible Among the Myths: Unique Revelation or Just Ancient Literature?. By John N. Oswalt. Grande Rapides, MI: Zondervan, 2009. Introduction Oswalt begins by discussing the origins of this book. How that at the close of the Second World War people had begun to re-evaluate some of their long held beliefs. As Oswalt would have said their paradigms began to shift. As this shift began people such as Albright and his students say a major difference between Jewish religion and the other religions of the ANE. As time passed this pendulum began to swing in the other direction, scholars no longer found the major difference in the religions but began to view them as variation on the other major religions found in the ANE. Judaism was only a few steps down the evolutionary ladder from the other religions of the ANE. As scholars began to look at the religion of the ancient Israelites, they found concepts that were troubling to them in the light...
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...feel strong and feel amazing,” says Williams,” (To change the World). Serena’s way of expressing her mindset has affected and changed the way people see life. “Her goal was to do something special and really understand the challenges that our community faces. We both agreed that doing a trauma center would be really amazing. I really admire her tenacity and the way she handles herself on and off the court. She’s so inspiring and she’s never forgotten her roots” (Change the World). Her victories bring amusement into crowds and a sense of motivation for the unreachable. She wanted to demonstrate that no matter what the dream was or how “good to be true” it seemed to be, one was capable of achieving anything — regardless of race, religion, or sex. As a colored woman, Serena showed what women were capable of, that woman could surpass anything, and that woman were just as worthy as being a champion in a sport, just like men. “Serena Williams' has influenced young girls to pursue sports. How many women...
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