...Women in the Quran and the Sunnah Prof. 'Abdur Rahman I. Doi In Islam there is absolutely no difference between men and women as far as their relationship to Allah is concerned, as both are promised the same reward for good conduct and the same punishment for evil conduct. The Quran says: "And for women are rights over men similar to those of men over women." [Noble Quran 2:228] The Quran, in addressing the believers, often uses the expression, 'believing men and women' to emphasize the equality of men and women in regard to their respective duties, rights, virtues and merits. It says: "For Muslim men and women, for believing men and women, for devout men and women, for true men and women, for men and women who are patient and constant, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and women who give in charity, for men and women who fast, for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in Allah's praise, for them has Allah prepared forgiveness and great reward." [Noble Quran 33:35] This clearly contradicts the assertion of the Christian Fathers that women do not possess souls and that they will exist as sexless beings in the next life. The Quran says that women have souls in exactly the same way as men and will enter Paradise if they do good: "Enter into Paradise, you and your wives, with delight." [Noble Quran 43:70] "Who so does that which is right, and believes, whether male or female, him or her will We quicken to happy life." [Noble...
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...killings are the killing of women by her husband or family members when she has, or is suspected of, having dishonoured the family by adultery or other acts deemed inappropriate by the cultural values of the family. While the practice of honour killing has been in practice for some time, it has lately become more visible as cases that deal with honour killings have been appearing in Canadian courts. The Vancouver Sun reports that honour killings have been on the rise in Canada, or at least brought to the forefront of legal courtrooms and the media, as “first generation Muslims struggle to balance strict, old world ways of their parents with a desire to fit into a more liberal society (Cohen).” Problems arise when people charged for murder plead for leniency on account that the killing was done to defend their family’s honour (Massinon). For many “honour killers,” the act of killing in defence of family honour allow for a “full or partial defence against criminal ruling” in their countries of origin (Cohen). If honour killing is indeed considered a moral and ethical behaviour in one’s culture, to the extent that such actions are supported by a country’s law, could such an action then be considered moral? Using the approaches of utilitarianism, deontology and virtue ethics, this paper attempts to determine the morality of honour killing and argues that the practice is immoral. The tradition of honour killing exists to deter the behaviour of adultery by women. In cultures that condone...
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...with the aggregate happiness of all beings capable of experiencing pleasure or pain including nonhuman animals. They consider the principle of utility to be the act, which produces the greatest balance of good over evil. Utilitarians consider both the happiness-producing and unhappiness-producing consequences of several alternative actions before deciding on one. A nineteenth century philosopher Jeremy Bentham created a checklist called the hedonic calculus. Bentham designed what he termed the hedonic calculus to enable people to measure the overall happiness- or pleasure-producing consequences of actions in terms of their duration, intensity, certainty, propinquity, fecundity, purity, and extent. This tool would not work in today’s society because happiness or pleasure as we know it would be difficult to measure on a numeric scale. There are two forms of utilitarians. Act utilitarians directly apply the principle of utility to each case as it arises. Rule utilitarians apply the principle of utility to general rules of action rather than to particular actions. Act and rule utilitarianism contain numerous flaws. They cannot predict the future. They can use life experiences to attempt to predict outcomes but there is no certainty that these predictions will come true. Utilitarianism is not always concerned with justice, beneficence or autonomy for an individual. In some instances it will be necessary to...
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...Law and Justice in the Rise of Civilization Individual city and states began to unite under common leadership. To create a perfect empire is a challenge task to those who attempting the task. To conquer and control the new empire come up with its own problems. In order to reach a perfect society , Ruler must aware that the key to the success is the code of conduct or the law to govern his or her society. Justice is essential to regulate peaceful and tranquil society. To solve this issue , most rulers from the past enacted laws with brutally consequences for the culprit. The Code of Hammurabi was written by Hammurabi , the Ruler of Babylonian Empire (1795-1750 BCE), which was a code of conduct for citizen of this empire to follow. It was carved on a large stone and clearly shown the cause and the consequences of an action led by a person. He was intend to bring the virtuous in to his land and eliminate all the iniquitous people from the land. The Writings of Master Han Fei was a writing of Master Han Fei , a Chinese Philosopher (280-233 BCE), that express his idea of Legalist thinking. Which later guided the customary of Qin Dynasty’s Shihuangdi. The basic principle is based on the equality of the people. “High and low would have no distinction”, The right is to bestow rewards and the wrong is subject to be condemn. Both sources have the similar thought of bringing an empire to a righteous state by enact a harsh law. In the Code of Hammurabi , Laws are clearly...
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...Ethicists have written their own theories of virtue ethics to try and address some of the issues. Aristotle’s teachings of virtue have been criticised by J.L Mackie, Louden and Sidgewick for being too vague for actual application. Sidgewick said that it ‘only indicates the whereabouts of a virtue’. Benjamin Franklin’s Virtue Ethics attempts to address the vagueness of Aristotle’s teachings. Franklin was a utilitarian who believed that all actions should bring about the ‘greatest good for the greatest number’- he believed that in order for this to work everyone must develop certain moral qualities that will help guide them to follow the principle of utility. His list of virtues is comprised of 13 ethical qualities that he considers to be Virtuous in a person- all of which are explained. An example of one would be ‘Chastity’ which he describes as ‘rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness or weakness, or to the...
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...man, or that the civilization which has hitherto taken place in the world has been very partial. I have turned over various books written on the subject of education, and patiently observed the conduct of parents and the management of schools; but what has been the result?--a profound conviction that the neglected education of my fellow-creatures is the grand source of the misery I deplore, and that women, in particular, are rendered weak and wretched by a variety of concurring causes, originating from one hasty conclusion. The conduct and manners of women, in fact, evidently prove that their minds are not in a healthy state; for, like the flowers which are planted in too rich a soil, strength and usefulness are sacrificed to beauty; and the flaunting leaves, after having pleased a fastidious eye, fade, disregarded on the stalk, long before the season when they ought to have arrived at maturity. One cause of this barren blooming I attribute to a false system of education, gathered from the books written on this subject by men who, considering females rather as women than human creatures, have been more anxious to make them alluring mistresses than affectionate wives and rational mothers; and the understanding of the sex has been so bubbled by this specious homage, that the civilized women of the present century, with a few exceptions, are only anxious to inspire love, when they ought to cherish a nobler ambition, and by their abilities and virtues exact respect. In a treatise, therefore...
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...is a branch of philosophy addressing questions about morality. Ethics is divided into two different ways of looking at the morality of humanity. They are Consequential and Non-Consequential. CONSEQUENTIAL ETHICS In Consequential Ethics, the outcomes determine the morality of the act. What make the act wrong are the consequences. It says, it will be legitimate to lie in order to get out of a serious problem, such as to save a persons life. In other words a white lie is fine. So the essence of morality is determined by the result or outcome of the act. NON – CONSEQUENTIAL ETHICS In non-Consequential Ethics, the source of morality comes from something else: law, God’s law, moral law, sense of duty, and your definition of what is the virtuous thing to do. All those considerations are built into the act itself before you could think of consequences, before it makes it right or wrong. One classic example is this system is lying. Lying could be wrong because in one system, it’s a violation of the nature of speech. It’s wrong to use a lie to achieve a good end. Simply put, a lie is a lie, is a lie. Egoism – Utilitarianism – Pragmatism Egoism - Means, act in your own self-interest. Utilitarianism - Do that which is moral only if the act produces the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people. There are two brands of Utilitarianism: 1. Act Utilitarianism- Do the act. No consideration of before or after. Do what is called for now, and consider what action will...
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...Ethics Barb Butzen Ashford University PHI 208 Instructor Nicholes 11/01/2013 Ethics Ethical theories are based on questions of how humans should behave with each other. These theories give guidance and define what is right and wrong and how such behavior can aid in building a unified society. There are three major types of ethical theories; deontological, utilitarian, and virtue ethics and each theory brings with it a different set of strengths and weaknesses. While the three types of ethical theories contain great meaning, time has shown that universal ethical principles cannot be achieved because ethics is a learned behavior and cultural relativists will argue that right or wrong is decided by each individual culture. Deontological Theory Immanuel Kant is a philosopher most famous for his rationalism of the deontological theory. According to Kant, deontological theories are based on a duty that humans have a moral obligation to behave according to certain principles or laws. Kant questions what the fundamental source of morality and duty is, as well as what actions are committed by humans to justify an evaluation of those actions as right or wrong. Kant’s conclusion is that the ability we possess to rationally make decisions and our free will is the source of morality. Kant further concludes that rationality is the only action that can dictate the rules of morality (Kantian, n.d.). Kant’s categorical imperatives are certain rules that are a requirement...
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...learning from instruction in the quest to find liberty and virtue (Van Camp, 2014). The commonality and link between these is that essentially liberty is freedom and freedom has the ability to lead to happiness, as well as to find what is good in an individual thus virtue, if liberties are not given to women in the form of logic and education there lacks the freedom to find ones virtue (Powell, 1996). Jim Powell elaborates by quoting Wollstonecraft, “Wollstonecraft called for eliminating obstacles to the advancement of women, “Liberty is the...
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...Question: Critically assess the common idea that women in traditional Chinese society were powerless over their own lives. Introduction This paper critically assesses the common idea of powerlessness over the lives of women in traditional Chinese society. The paper includes 4 parts: (A) Chinese words; (B) Confucianism and Women; (C) The Three Obediences and Four Virtues; (D) Women Traditional Treatment. In these 4 parts, the reasons why women would be oppressed and hectored in rural China would be investigated and how they were treated would be clearly revealed. (A)Chinese Words ------------------------------------------------- First, the concept of the value difference of male and female shown in the formation of Chinese words would be analyzed. Males are high-valued because of bringing good luck and fortune while females are low-valued because of bringing bad luck and troubles. In this section, some examples of Chinese characters will be analyzed to reveal the values, opinions and signification over women in traditional Chinese society. ------------------------------------------------- Chinese words (Hanzi) were created by the inspiration of the meaning behind, the sound of it, or the shape and appearance of it (Wikipedi ,2012). These are all shown in the structure of the words. Hanzi reflect the culture of China and emphasize the family- based relationships. (Linda, 2001) According to the first Chinese dictionary《爾雅》(Erya) published 2000 years ago, there...
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...SCIENCES DEPARTMENT NAME : LIMPO NAMAKAU COMPUTER NO : 11053909 COURSE : CVE 3020 LECTURER : MR. CHIDONGO PHIRI TASK : ASSIGNMENT (1) ONE LENGTH : BETWEEN 12 and 30 TYPED PAGES DUE DATE : 30th JANUARY, 2014. QUESTION : Critically discuss how the study of Public Legal Education would help school managers analyse the following; i). Public Nuisance ii). Negligence of girl child iii). Abortion Practices iv). Examination Malpractice Without rules and regulations, society would be impossible to have because freedom without boundaries results in anarchy which means total confusion. From birth, human beings’ lives, safety, health and peace are controlled by law. It is for this reason that this piece of work seeks to critically discuss how the study of public legal education would help school managers analyze public nuisance, negligence of the girl child, abortion practices and examination malpractices. According to Johari (1989), law is a set of rules which society develops for itself to control the behaviours of its members towards one another. Migel et al (2005) defines public as something that is not owned privately but in common, while legal is a word used to refer to issues, things, activities or information to do with how or what the law requires (Cooper, 1978). For a rule to be recognized as a law there should be a way of compelling people to obey it and this is done by imposing penalties or punishment to the law breakers and rewards to the wronged...
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...Introduction The ongoing emancipation of women has been an important development since its first efforts in the 12. and 13. century. When we look at present-day society there are still some obstacles that have to be overcome and gender equality is still not fully established. Nevertheless, western society in particular has come a long way, by taking major steps towards remedy of social and political shotcomings. In the last hundred years of the early modern period, however, there were still severe inconsistencies when it comes to gender equality in society’s judgement as well as legislative and judicial approaches. A poem that took on those injustices was Lady Mary Wortley Montagu’s Epistle from Mrs. Y(onge) to Her Husband, in which Montagu...
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...Buddhism current issues and class handout Current Issues and Class Handout Religion can be defined as “a system of thought, feeling, and action that is shared by a group and that gives the members an object of devotion; a code of behavior by which individuals may judge the personal and social consequences of their actions; and a frame of reference by which individuals may relate to their group and their universe” (Religion, 2013). The world is made up of many different religions that share common practices and beliefs with one another and this paper will examine common characteristics that Buddhism shares with other religions as well as discuss how Buddhism has responded to challenges in the modern and what has changed about the roles of women in Buddhism over time. Buddhism Buddhism is an ancient religion that originated in India from the experiences noted by Siddhartha Gautama, a “mortal prince born miraculously to Maya who was kept from all the evil and misery of the world throughout his youth” ("Siddhartha Gautama," 1996). Siddhartha was forbidden to leave the royal grounds; however one day he disobeyed those order given by his father and visited a nearby town where he witnessed what is known as the four passing sights. The four passing sights were “an old man, crooked and toothless, a sick man, wasted by disease, and a corpse being taken for cremation. Then he saw a sannyasin (a wandering holy man, a renunciate), who had no possession but seemed to be at peace” (Molloy...
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...Catholicism and Hinduism: Stands on Gender, Sexuality and Violence 1. Introduction This essay aims to compare and contrast specific aspects of Catholicism and Hinduism, more specifically their stands on gender, sexuality and violence. Catholicism and Hinduism are two of the world’s greatest religions; the former originated in the west and spread across the world whereas the latter is followed primarily in the Indian subcontinent and to some extent in the Southeast Asian states. Catholicism and Hinduism are essentially different in their approach towards god and religion; Catholicism believing that there is one deity, and Hinduism on the contrary recognizes the existence of many. Two essential points of Christianity, particularly sin and salvation, aren’t present in Hinduism. The two religions nevertheless have several points of similarity. Hindus worship a number of gods and Catholics worship several saints; both of them make use of the burning of candles and incense before the statues for purposes of worship. Both religions make use of images, icons, music and rituals. Catholics chant prayers, whilst Hindus chant mantras; both of them have tremendously wealthy temples, full of statues and golden artefacts and make use of priesthoods that intermediate between humans and gods. Such similarities and dissimilarities notwithstanding, these two religions have distinct and deeply entrenched religious ethos and epistemologies that govern their practice and the attitudes, approaches...
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...1 WOMEN IN MANU Manu and Manusmrti are the two words that invoke mixed feelings. There are some who would like to perform the funeral rite for the man and his work as many times as possible, while other would like to make it the centre of Hindutva, relying point on matters of religious, social and legal importance. The rise of Dalit movements in India has one important point to make: remove everything that is related to Manu. Its consequences we have been watching with concern for the last few years as they have disturbed the very foundation of social, religious and political life of the Hindu orthodoxy. Women's voice of protest has not been so loud, nor their organizations that political clout, though, as we shall see, they have much to complain about for their present state of affairs which has been sustained mainly by the laws of Manu. Manu and Manusmrti If mere mention of the name is the criteria to place a man in his historical context then Manu may be a mythical/historical person. He is mentioned in the Vedas itself and is described as the law-giver (1). The later commentators and law-givers such as Yaska (2), Baudhayana (3), Apastamha (4), Samkara (5), often quote him and his works. There is no doubt about the antiquity of the name, but we do not know the time of the man who was really the author of the work. Manusmrti has been placed between 200BC - 200 AD by the scholars, rather a very long time for a person to exist in his earthly life. However this time in the history...
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