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Relation between religion and politics
Christianity in the media
Christianity in the media
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Recommended: Relation between religion and politics
On a universal level, it is safe to presume that every individual could be deemed as a fraud based on the general characterization of the expression. Moral values, ethics, even spiritual beliefs are often compromised or purposely overlooked in subtle situations, extraneous circumstances, unplanned mishaps, stressful positions. Yet, when does this insincerity develop into a serious problem; especially when one looks at the religious issues and conflicts which derive from these predicaments? Considering how America is frequently attached to the Christian religion, it is no revelation that there are Christian hypocrites that may dwell in the country. Because Christian hypocrisy on an individual basis has become such a widespread norm, it is not a complete surprise that hypocrisy has infected churches across the nation.
In order to fairly examine this trend, one has to understand or be aware of the fundamentals associated with Christianity. These are based solely upon the Bible which is the acknowledged God-breathed text containing all their ideals. First and foremost, the greatest commandments given to followers is to, “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength… love your neighbor as yourself…there is no other commandment greater than these,” (Holman Christian Standard Bible, Mark 12.30-31). Other decrees range from seemingly straightforward concerns that are commonly agreed upon to the profound subjects that many cringe at the slightest mention due to the mixture of opinions or translations. Essentially, the original standards are primarily seen in the Ten Commandments located in the Old Testament. These strict rules were established to communicate how every indi...
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... specifically on how the one who has many possessions must give to the poor and not put so much emphasis on themselves (Luke 12:33 and Philippians 2:1-4). It also supports the allegation that some churches are, in fact, after prosperity and not concerned with the spreading of gospel. This also raises the following question: If acquiring wealth and building a church with the intent on making oneself more comfortable is not ethical in Christian beliefs, why does God allow it? This question cannot be answered because of the circumstances and religious bias, but nonetheless makes one draw his or her own conclusion. Sanneh, throughout the whole piece, does not give any strong indication of which side she is on. So, this is an unbiased source because she allows her audience to consider the issues instead of making them sit through a lecture with the intent of persuasion.
While driving behind a vehicle plastered in bumper stickers, the first one to catch someone’s attention may say “Real Christians don’t judge.” Most will not give it a second thought, while others may analyze its message and the individual giving the message. In general this sticker may be found on a variety of vehicles. The vehicle itself is not as important as the individual driving it. While discussing this bumper sticker it will be important to understand where it is found, the fallacies it involves and the problems with the argument.
In the first chapter of Nathan Hatch’s book, The Democratization of American Christianity, he immediately states his central theme: democratization is central to understanding the development of American Christianity. In proving the significance of his thesis, he examines five distinct traditions of Christianity that developed in the nineteenth century: the Christian movement, Methodists, Baptists, Mormons and black churches. Despite these groups having diverse structural organization and theological demeanor, they all shared the commonality of the primacy of the individual conscience.
John Stapleford’s book, Bulls, Bears, and Golden Calves, provides a thorough overview with a Christian perspective of economic and ethical analysis. He reviews the moral challenges of macro, micro, and international economic issues. Stapleford covers a variety of important public policy issues such as self-interest, economic efficiency, and private property rights. He begins the book by laying a foundation of ethical thought and an analytical framework. Stapleford provides a Biblical perspective on the practical issues facing our current society. For example, there are three billion people in the world who live on less than $2 a day (Stapleford, 2009). The wealthy Americans continue to get richer. The greed and lawlessness of America’s corporate boardrooms is increasing. Legalized gambling continues to increase every year. The expansion of pornography and its accessibility to America’s younger generations has become a rapidly growing epidemic (Stapleford, 2009). This text is grounded solidly in biblical principles. A number of the problems he discusses are not specifically addressed in the Bible, but one of the author's strengths is to develop a Christian rationale for contemporary issues, based on biblical principles. An example of this skill is found in his forceful chapter on "False Hope . . . The Boom in Legalized Gambling" (Stapleford, 2009).
Smitha, Frank E. "Trends in Christianity." Trends in Christianity. MacroHistory and World Timeline, 2013. Web. 09 Dec. 2013.
"…admitting what is called philanthropy, when adopted as a profession, to be often useful by its energetic impulse to society at large, it is perilous to the individual whose ruling passion, in one exclusive channel, it thus becomes. It ruins, or is fearfully apt to ruin, the heart, the rich juices of which God never meant should be pressed violently out and distilled into alcoholic liquor by an unnatural process, but should render life sweet, bland, and gently beneficent, and insensibly influence over other hearts and other lives to the same blessed end." (348)
Southland Christian Church, one of several worship centers in the United States that has earned the moniker “Six Flags over Jesus,” is Lexington’s largest megachurch. With a weekly attendance of 8,000 people and an operating budget that supports a staff of over eighty members, Southland far exceeds most U.S. congregations in terms of financial resources and social clout. In recent years, popular and scholarly studies have attempted to situate the megachurch movement within a broad cultural context. Although the majority of these analyses dispute the precise definition of a megachurch, most distinguish these multiplex sanctuaries from smaller worship communities by using the same criteria—i.e. weekly attendance, campus acreage, annual budget, etc.—that megachurches themselves draw on to represent their own success. [2] However, the essence of a megachurch is not its large buildings, but rather the theology of consumption that informs its programming.[3] In this way, a megachurch ethos has infiltrated even the smallest congregations in the United States and has helped to solidify Christianity’s inextricable connection to consumer capitalism. To those who see megachurches as symptomatic of a flawed Christianity, market-minded church growth confounds one of the faith’s oldest dualities, the contradiction of living in the world without conforming to its ways, as Paul puts it in Romans 12. Megachurches at once reject “the world” and participate in it by seeking to win the lost and wow the consumer at the same time.
Although many themes arise in Behn’s Oroonoko, religion is the most dominant, that is, of course, the author’s emphasis on the hypocrisy of Christianity. For example, in the narrative, Imoinda, Prince Oroonoko’s wife, faces colonial settlers who use their religious effort in hope to justify the ‘righteousness’ of their doings, as Mr. Trefry says, “we have christened her. But she denies us all with such a noble disdain, that ‘tis a miracle to see that she, who can give such eternal desires, should herself be all ice and all unconcern” (Oroonoko 2337). In other words, neither end of the spectrum can come to a medium conclusion. However, if the reader looks in between the lines of the quote, he or she can see that Behn’s use of words, “christened,
For example, a protestant minister who was angry with the character Candide’s religious indifference refused to give him food after preaching charity right before. The protestant minister is hypocritical because he tells Candide everyone is welcome to his food, but when Candide does not reject the pope and confirm the protestant teachings he is no longer offered bread. “‘My friend,’ said the orator to him, ‘do you believe the Pope to be Anti-Christ?’ ‘I have not heard it,’ responded Candide; ‘but whether he be, or whether he be not, I want bread.’ ‘Thou dost not deserve to eat,’ said the other.” Candide repeatedly highlights the hypocrisy of the church in this manner. The way the protestant minister would refuse charity to someone who disagrees with him flies in the face of the Church's supposedly charitable mission. The book claims churches that preach love and charity, instead kill over slight differences in
The Christian religion, like all other religions has its strengths and weaknesses in our modern society. Perhaps the strengths out weight the weaknesses as this is one of the largest religions in the world. Hundreds of people follow the Catholic/Christian religion yet still a greater number follow yet other religions. Perhaps this is because they see the weaknesses or perhaps it is simply because their parents have taught them that it is a sin to follow this religion.
In an allegedly postmodern world, when looking at tolerance for ideologies other than our own is said to be the only absolute and controlling ideology. Inasmuch, as its doctrine of “sin” suggests that all humans are inherently flawed; Christianity is often viewed as judgmental and intolerant of others. Granted the approach of a certain Baptist church in Topeka, Kansas pushes the extreme that makes all Christians cringe in this area. Christians should not be embarrassed of the doctrine of sin today. Moreover, Christianity should not try to soften what it says about the human condition to be more readily acceptable to a broader world. This world needs help, guidance, and rules if we are to succeed as a human race.
For clarity, we must define what the term "Christian country" really means and it is therefore worthwhile to examine the religious make-up of America. At this point, and for the foreseeable future, Christianity is the self-admitted majority religion of this Country. In 1990, sociologists at the Graduate School of the City University of New York completed and released the National Survey of Religious Identification. All results are from self-identified religious beliefs; the...
America is a melting pot of culture and race. Thus, bringing many different types of religious faiths to today’s society. Whether the beliefs are ancient, new, reconstructed or if people have no faith at all, it is all in America. It is difficult to scrutinize one religion without it concerning another. All religions have diverse beliefs ranging from; the belief of...
In religion particularly deception often exists when someone feels like they have to defend themselves against judgment. This judgment may be from the congregation or from them themselves. When people feel they are on the defense they usually deny the problem or rationalize why it isn’t a problem, which causes them to convince themselves that there isn’t a problem or that the problem is not that bad. As we look at our own lives and the lives and circumstances around us, we clearly see why self-deception exists and how easy it is to participate in self-deception ourselves.
The writer of this passage was Luke and he had many reasons for writing about this, but it was not as an endorsement of a type of communal living to be considered normative for the Christian church was not one of those reasons. A reason Luke wrote this passage was to express how the apostles and the rest of the church had differed greatly in their giving compared to the way Ananias and Sapphira did in their giving. Ananias and Sapphira were giving selfishly by only giving part of the money they had received from selling their land, while the apostles and the rest of the church were giving generously by giving all the money they had. “That is, they f...
When considering morality, worthy to note first is that similar to Christian ethics, morality also embodies a specifically Christian distinction. Studying a master theologian such as St. Thomas Aquinas and gathering modern perspectives from James Keenan, S. J. and David Cloutier serve to build a foundation of the high goal of Christian morality. Morality is a primary goal of the faith community, because it is the vehicle for reaching human fulfillment and happiness. Therefore, great value can be placed on foundations of Christian morality such as the breakdown of law from Aquinas, the cultivation of virtues, the role of conscience in achieving morality, and the subject of sin described by Keenan.