Essays on Religion

... and individuals that are bound together by common values. These values are based on mysticism and monism which is the world view that "all is one". The New Age movement is not a cult by any accepted sociological definition. Although there are several cults which could be classified within, such as the Transcendental Meditation and the followers of deported Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh. Cult membership is by far the exception and not the rule for New Agers. New Agers tend to be eclectic which means that they draw what they think is the best from various sources. Exclusive devotion to a single teacher, teaching or techniques is not long term. They ...

... largely, the same things, but with some differences. Only Matthew and Luke tell of the Birth and childhood of Jesus (Matthew 1:14-9:1, Luke 1:5-4:13). Matthew and Mark dwell on the Galilean Ministry; Luke, the Perean; John, the Judean. John omits most of the Galilean Ministry, and records visits to Jerusalem that the others omit (Luke 9:51-19:27). The others omit the Judean Ministry, except the Last Week, which all four cover rather extensively. The Last Week occupies one-third of Matthew, approximately one-third of Mark, one-quarter of Luke, and one-half of John. John devotes seven chapters, about one-third of his book, to Crucifixion Day, sunset to sunset ...

... . They are too competitive. In China, this unity made life peaceful because there was not any back stabbing and a desire to be the best. The government promoted civilized and proper behavior. This environment created an ideal situation to invent things that would change the world. Wallpaper, compass, paper, printing press, and toilet paper all came from China. is the main reason China stayed together for so long. Unlike , Buddhism is a religion centered on developing a person to reach a spiritual fulfillment. Under this philosophy, a person strives to reach Nirvana. Until a person has reached it, he or she will keep reliving his or her life. It teaches the pra ...

... come from? Why do believers and non-believers hold on to their beliefs as they do? What significance does the existence of God have upon mankind? These are only the tip of the iceberg amongst the vast array of unanswered questions related to God. Though there are so many uncertainties as we have just mentioned, the existence of all other uncertainties in our world may explain why the existence of God is so real to many people. For the believers, God provides a convenient answer to all these questions except for the answers regarding God itself. The following are some of the general arguments for the existence of God. The first argument comes from th ...

... that talked, trustworthy people confirmed it, scientists published carefully researched papers about them, and newspaper headlines read "INCREDIBLE DISCOVERY: TALKING FISH!" then it would be more than reasonable to believe they existed. No one really disputes such common sense, until it is applied to religion. I've never seen or talked to a god, or seen a god do anything unmistakably godlike. People insist they know one exists, but most of them really say they only feel it, and don't offer any other proof. Indeed, it is odd that those few who honestly offer the more genuine proof of actually hearing god talk are branded insane even by the believers. Believers are p ...

... for in a naturalistic (matter only) universe. Second if God has established these laws of reasoning then there would be no atheism. An Atheist wants to believe in laws of logic which are universal in application, but in order to escape the ultimate implications of this idea ( there is a God who imposes universal standards of reason.), the Atheist will try to maintain that the “laws of logic” are merely “ conventions” of general agreement amongst them. This is philosophically non- acceptable, if logic were simply a matter of convention, it would be impossible to have any kind of rational debate because either side could win by simply stipulating different law ...

... immortal horses...Not an unseemly bridegroom among the immortals is Aidoneus, Lord on Many, your own brother from the same seed; to his share fell honor when in the beginning a triple division was made, and he dwells among those over whom his lot made him lord" (To Demeter 16- 18, 83-87). I think that these two sets of lines show that Hades viewed Persephone as a prize. Honor was one of the things Hades won when he, Zeus, and Poseidon divided up the world. Thus Hades felt justified in journeying up from the underworld to earth to claim Persephone as his bride. I feel that he felt he deserved to have her, according to his logic, because honor was somet ...

... could not force an individual or group to do something they did not want to do. The government is not upholding their part of the constitution. They are trying to tell people that saying prayer in public school is unconstitutional. In fact, prayer in public school is legal, so is prayer in church and prayer in stores etc... . The area which is not legal is when students or teachers pray when engaged in school activities or instruction. This means students or teachers may pray in an informal setting, such as cafeterias and hallways. They may talk about and discuss problems with religion and their beliefs at that time. A person may come to school ea ...

... Many of the New Testament Apostles quoted it when they wrote the Gospels and Epistles in Greek. Not one of the original writings, called "the Autographs" exist today. However, the Jewish scribes made very accurate copies of the originals over the many centuries. Certain European Jewish scribes called the Masoretes carefully transmitted it from copy to copy preserving and handing down their writings. Several of those "Masoretes" manuscripts still exist. Some of the more important ones are listed below: The Cairo Codex of the Prophets (AD 895) Containing the Prophets The British Museum Codex Oriental 4445 (ninth or tenth century), containing a large port ...

... only non-Jewish writer of the New Testament. As difficult as it is to date Luke's writing it is known that he had marks writing's at his disposal. And with this knowledge it is suggested that the date for the writing of Luke's Gospel is sometime after 70 C.E. and more than liking the unsettled date of 85 C.E. Luke's primary audience was a man named Theophilius who he addressed at the beginning of his writing, however, Luke's Gospel addressed the group of people who ere already Christians. This was to help them in better understanding their faith and its roots. Thus Luke's audience is comprised of Gentiles and Christians. Luke's central theme is focused on Jes ...