...Economic and Moral Disparity “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul” (NIV Matthew 16:26). The Bible does not directly condemn monetary prosperity. However, Jesus warns that the love of riches leads men further from the Kingdom of God and into a false idolization of wealth. This monetary worship pulls man away from God, and tears the seams of brotherhood that bond men together. Today, this bond between men has never been so frail and apathy has never been so vigorous. Millions of people die every year from preventable causes, including hunger, disease and countless other conditions, all derived from poverty. At the same time the richest 80 billionaires have the finances to solve world hunger, substantially increase the prevention of AIDS and effectively eradicate malaria. Wealth in itself is not evil; however, when humanity places riches above its fellow humans’ lives, it has reached a sinful state. The world has accepted material wealth at the price of what has become a sacrificial morality and love for mankind. The goal of this paper is to prove that global trends of economic inequality are unjustifiable from an economic/social standpoint, Scripture, and the recent position of the Catholic Church. Financial inequality is no new concept to the world. Since the beginnings of civilization there were the rich and there were the poor; many would argue that this is the natural...
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...not too convinced that this is, indeed, the “sole” mission of non-profit agencies. “Let’s help!” But why, do we want to help? Why do we want to create these organizations? A school assignment? A tax benefit? Are we helping because there is some self-gratification that allows us to sleep at night? Or are we helping to settle our stomachs growling with guilt? Is it because we want to learn how we fit in this puzzle of life and grade ourselves compared to others? To get out of the house because our children are adults now and moved out? Perhaps our spouses are no longer around? Maybe, just maybe, these non-profit groups were born from a maternal instinct of culture full of their beliefs and values partnered with the paternal works of satisfying our own selfish ways. Those partners give birth to non-profit agencies using the umbrella of humanitarian to cover up the roots of its existence. Going back to the time of the American industrialization, many of the Government’s public organizations, such as churches and libraries, ran on public donations. In “Historical Perspectives On Nonprofit Organizations In The United States”, Peter Dobkin Hall quoted Rockefeller’s assistant, John W. Gates, “your future is rolling up, rolling up like an avalanche”. What Gates was saying to his employer, was that the Rockefellers’ fortune was increasing and pilin`g up as high as a mountain. As with an avalanche, the weight of the fortune gets heavy and it will soon fall down and crush you...
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...Theory Nicole Revere Liberty University (Online) Abstract With all of the money that our country has as a whole, why do we have so many homeless people? In fact, this is a very good question for our society. You would think that more people may be more reluctant to help those in need a little more, but it doesn’t always work out that way. Homelessness is one of the biggest social issues that we face as a society this day in age. We can’t simply state that the reasoning for homelessness is due to laziness or lack of work. This has to be looked into deeply, because as we all should know this can happen to anyone in a matter of a small amount of time. Although our society as a whole may not care too much about this issue, the Church does and is sometimes more willing to help the poor than a multimillionaire walking around buying expensive cars that they don’t even drive. When applying the class conflict theory to homelessness, it can be understood that capitalism is part of the blame for homelessness. Keywords: homelessness, class conflict theory, social issues, society Homelessness, and the Church Many people often think that homeless people choose the life that they are living, but this is not at all true. Some people may be dealing with mental issues that caused them to lose their jobs, they may have faced foreclosure on their home from being sick or losing a spouse. It is not always someone’s fault for ending up homeless. Everyone is always one step away from homelessness...
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...Principles The Bible doesn’t have a theology of beauty or an aesthetic (a theory about the beautiful) of beauty. However, many things in the Bible are described as beautiful. And there is much about beauty that can be inferred from the Bible. Some of the teaching points below will deal with Scripture texts in which the Bible directly talks about beauty, but most will deal with texts that provide a theological foundation for how we, as Christians, should think of beauty. Teaching point one: God’s creation is beautiful and meant for our enjoyment. Read Ecclesiastes 3:11–14. The book of Ecclesiastes is best known for its ode to time: “For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die…” (NRSV). Alongside this theme, there is the well-known theme about life being vain, “a vanity of vanities,” a mere chasing after the wind. Missed, sometimes, in the midst of this gloomy, almost despairing perspective is another motif: that life is a gift from God and that the good things of life—food, drink, work, play, and love—are to be enjoyed. Beauty is part of them. [Q] What does this text teach us about beauty? ➢ How should we live in relation to the beauty of God’s creation? In the article, Stackhouse says that evangelicals generally don’t see the need for aesthetically pleasing church buildings because, they argue, the money could be better spent on evangelism or helping the poor. He thinks...
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...In the 15th century, the Roman Catholic Church was very powerful in Europe. Popes had both spiritual power and political power. Meanwhile, Catholicism was the only religion recognized in the middle Ages. The questions then arise as to why was there a reformation or what was the state of the Church right before the reformation. In this essay, I will briefly talk about the corruption in the European Catholic Church with references to the film The Borgias and the lecture notes on Martin Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses. Simony The act of selling and buying church offices had widespread in Europe. In the first episode of The Borgias, the story starts with the death of Pope Innocent VIII in 1492, cardinals are fighting for the position of being the new pope. Rodrigo Borgias, aided by his eldest son, bribes the most of the cardinals in order to win this fight. It is absurd that Rodrigo becomes the new pope because he paid sufficient amount of gold and jewels to his colleague cardinals. Therefore, simony was a fundamental cause of the corruption of Catholic Church since positions were given to people who were able to afford it, not to the ones who are qualified as spiritual leaders. Too Rich In the film of The Borgias, I was surprised by the first glance of the luxury house of the Borgias’s. Additionally, when the eldest son, Cesare, helps his father to bribe the rest of the cardinals, he takes lots of gold ornaments and precious jewelries from the Church of Romagna. Those scenes reveal...
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...ideas come from life experiences. The author is trying to send a message that may mirror what the reader can understand. Many writings address conflicts, themes and symbolism. Harper Lee (2006) introduced many of these elements into her novel “To Kill a Mockingbird”. Harper Lee gives accounts of the story as if she was a young child and learns many life lessons that change her life forever. “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (2006), takes place a small populated town in Maycomb, Alabama. The author has taken us back when hatred and prejudice is very common in the 1930s. Atticus, Scout, and Jem Finch are frowned upon because Atticus is defending a black man of allegedly raping a white woman. Atticus uses this opportunity to teach Scout and Jem morals that we teach our children today. Atticus teaches Scout and Jem to not to be judgmental towards anyone, not be afraid to stand up for what is right, and violence does not solve anything. Jem and Scout will also learn the true symbolizing of why it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. Harper Lee described the town of Maycomb as being a very poor and run down. The community is very small and everyone knew each other. The blacks and whites are divided and some that were of the white race were made outcast, just because of the way they lived. The Cunningham’s for example, are portrayed is being poor white trailer trash, whose children only went to school once a year because they had to...
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...there is a low opinion about Christianity; but the church can change that view by reaching out more to the community by developing more outreach programs. One of the reasons Christianity is misunderstood is because a lot of society feels that Christians confine themselves inside the church. They do not go beyond the building enough to show the true meaning of God’s love. Dr. Elmer Towns states “Others see the church as ‘ingrown’ and this unwittingly communicates the message, “You will never really belong here. In Christianity, the goal of the church (which is the people) is to live life like Christ. Believers of this faith should be an example of God’s Word and help others in the community find their way to Christ. Jesus was an advocate for helping people from all walks of life. It did not matter to Him whether you were rich or poor; He constantly reached out to those who were in need. This is what the church needs to do. One good way to reach out would be to develop a Homeless Ministry. On a certain day during the week, the church could provide a free meal and preach the Gospel to the people at the same time. This ministry should encompass more than handing out literature, but actually members of the Ministry speaking to the people as a whole, showing them that God has not forsaken them and that he uses the church as a way to help his people. Included with the meal and worship would be workshops on how to find work, completing resumes, literacy, helping to find permanent housing...
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...carpenter who made furniture with his hands. Jesus would also become a carpenter later on in his life. Some of these points are argued between religions, yet I am not going to touch on it in this paper. His childhood is shrouded in mystery, as there are little to no records of his life during his childhood and early teenage years. Many argued that he did not initially except his role or fate as God’s only son and lived a life like any other would at the time. You can even look in the Bible for such a hypothesis, as the stories of his life suddenly jump from age 16 to age 30. Where are the missing texts that chronicle his life during these missing fourteen years? This is what many claim that he rejected his “destiny” or found it all too big to cope with. Later, the bible has records of his many amazing feats right up until the day he died at the age of 30. He founded Christianity, helped record the New Testament in the bible, and journeyed across the land performing deeds of good will toward the poor and hungry. One of his most famous deeds was being able to feed a whole crowd of people off of just one loaf of bread and a couple pieces of fish....
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...a great trouble and said that “he who is crushed by poverty is as though he were liable to every one of the sufferings of the world" (Midrash Rabbah, Exodus, 31:12). Poverty is a challenge and an opportunity for poor and most importantly for those with the means to help the needy. The bible lays down the brief precept as follow: In the event that, there is a poor individual among you, don't solidify your heart and close your hand. Maybe, you should open your hand and loan him, adequate for whatever he needs. Be careful keeping in mind that you harbor the base thought, with the goal that you are stingy towards your penniless brother and give him nothing and he shouts out to the Lord against you and you have sinned. Provide for him promptly and have no second thoughts when you do as such … the Lord your God will favor you in every one of your endeavors and in every one of your endeavors. For there will never stop to be destitute individuals in your property, which is the reason I charge you; open your hand to poor people and penniless family in your territory...
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...Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian counseling: McMinn 4-MAT Erin Liberty University Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian counseling: McMinn 4-MAT Summary Psychology, theology, and spirituality in Christian counseling (McMinn, 2011) is about ways Christian counselors can integrate practical concept of psychology, theology, and spirituality when faced with real-world problems, challenges, and questions in the counseling office. An emerging approach for Christian counseling is intradisciplinary integration, which incorporates the Christian faith into counseling practices (McMinn, 2011, p.26). McMinn describes six challenges of intradisciplinary integration such as competency of psychology, theology, and spiritual formation. A major theme of this book emphasizes the importance of establishing a therapeutic relationship in counseling, with the key components in the therapeutic relationship being the counselor’s own spiritual life and walk with God. Introspection of Christian counselors’ own spiritual lives will direct counselors to recognize their own weaknesses, while encouraging dependency on God (McMinn, 2011, p12). The desire to obtain a better understanding of Spiritual wisdom and the Spiritual life for the counselor and client can be guided by a map for Spiritual growth. The map should be scripturally and theologically sound, yet not so simple that it is inadequate for understanding challenges of mental and Spiritual health by...
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...film shows hope when Rocket makes a decision to become a Photographer to get out of the slums. Lil Ze becomes mesmerized by power to be the boss of the slums, he’s obsessed using violence to gain respect. The actors played their roles well for first time actors. From opening scene the story is stunning and intense. The documentary style and compelling photography is amazing. Acting style are impressive. City of God leaves you feeling sympathy for kids that are in this cycle of violence and wrong decisions and turns. It opens to reality of the true lives of the kids who live in these areas. The opening scene of the film shows what is to come using the camera to tell the story, without dialog, a chicken looks on...
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...Morgan Valone Theology May 6, 2012 B1 The Kingdom of God The Kingdom of God was the focus of Jesus’ mission and ministry, and what he lived and died for on Earth. The Kingdom of God can be defined as the vision of a world radically transformed in the image of God. The ideal Kingdom on Earth would be people all living free of government and politics and living in a communal style. In the Apostolic Ages, this type of communal living was attempted with the householders and itinerant preachers. The householders were people who would open their homes to the itinerants, who were travelling preachers. These travelling preachers taught “The Way” of Jesus and a new way of living to many communities. While this went well for a while, it was not perfect to the way that Jesus would have wanted it to be. During the Common Meal in the communal societies, the wealthy people would eat more than they needed to. This alone demonstrates the fact that not only were the wealthy taking more than they needed and not living by only what they needed and sharing the rest, but it also shows that there were in fact wealthy people in the communes. Jesus was in direct opposition to the idea of wealth, and the intentions of having a commune were that when a person joined, all of their money and possessions were to be shared equally throughout the entire community. Even in the times directly following Jesus’s life, the Kingdom of God was not being lived ideally. Throughout the Middle Ages, Christianity...
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...Chantae’ Wilson Professor Bland 27 November 2012 What are the Core Beliefs of being a follower of Christ? What Christian beliefs constitute true/genuine faith? Being a follower of Christ ensures that one will go to heaven upon Christ return. A follower may go through trials and tribulations; but they also know that God will see them through the hard times, as long as they continue to serve him. Hebrews 11:16 states that “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Believing in God pays off it will be an everlasting gift in the end; you will get to spend eternity with God in heaven. God expects your parents to help guide you to him. God considers parents the primary disciples of their children. He created the family to be the incubator of a teenager’s spiritual growth. God has given parents the responsibility of creating an environment suitable for their children to become a follower of Christ (Smith). God needs help like the rest of us; some believe that seeing is believing, this means that if you see your parents living in Christ you won’t stray and you will continue to follow in their foot steps. Most people get their beliefs of Christ during adolescence it’s the time when a person develops perceptions about religious thoughts and with proper guidance, can be a stronger follower of Christ (Monahan). When do you think most people gain their religious? Does being...
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...influenced by another’s philosophy. Some may have their own unique philosophy. But wouldn’t it be great if we would get our philosophy from the Holy Bible, where our loving Creator speaks to us? For He alone can truly guide us in the right path. Hence, if I were to choose a philosophy which I can relate to my present course which is nursing, I would choose what Jesus had said about loving one another. On the night when Jesus had washed the feet of his disciples, He told His disciples a new commandment, “Love one another as I have loved you. This is all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (cf. John 13:34-35). Jesus had also narrated the parable of the Good Samaritan when a scholar of the law asked Him who should be considered as a neighbor. The parable is about a man who fell victim to robbers. They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead. The priest and the Levite saw the man but they just passed him by. But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with compassion at the sight. He approached the victim, poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them. Then he lifted him up on his own animal, took him to an inn and cared for him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction, ‘Take care of him. If you spend more than what I have given you, I shall repay you on my way back.’ Then Jesus asked who was neighbor to the robbers’ victim. The scholar then replied that it was...
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...It is a lifestyle of being intentional in all that we do. David Wheeler said this: “servant evangelism is not a program. It is service motivated by love.” Servant Evangelism is focused on loving and serving the people of this world like Jesus would have, humbly and with love. In Mark 10:45 says: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be: served, but to serve, and to give His life —a ransom for many (HCSB).” Servant evangelism is believers following the life of Jesus by acting as he did, a...
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