“If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31) Though the enemy of God, the devil, hates us and desires our ruin, we ought to not be afraid, for “the Lord is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear?” (Psalm 27) Today, Christians need to remind each other of this truth. Our struggle is not with flesh and blood, but with this spiritual enemy par excellence that studies us to discover our weaknesses and to cause us to abandon the Faith.
In his first letter to Timothy, Saint Paul impelled him to “fight the good fight of the Faith.” (1 Tim 6:12) Living the Faith is a strife that Saint Paul was extremely familiar with given the persecutions he endured throughout his apostolic ministry. Therefore, he earnestly cautioned Timothy on this reality because of the struggle to live faithfully the Christian life. We, too, are well-acquainted with this spiritual combat, particularly when we undergo temptations, our patience and charity are put to the test, and others insult, persecute, and falsely utter every kind of evil against us. (Mt. 5:11) Indeed, living the Faith can truly be a noble battle.
For sure, if we do not
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We must defy and repel the doubts that enter our minds that suggest that God is not present or alive, that He is not powerful or wise enough to assist us, and that He does not truly love us. Occasions of sin should be avoided and sin must be spurned at all costs. Moreover, avoiding anger, hatred, and irritableness is crucial as these vices can divert us from the path of holiness. Interestingly, the first letter of Saint Paul to Timothy also provides us with the spiritual ingredients that nourish us for the combat. As Christians, we ought to strive to lead a life of “righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness.” (1 Tim 6:11) These virtues are the prerequisite qualities for persevering in the Faith amid the hardships of
In the book, Apostles of Disunion, author Charles B. Dew opens the first chapter with a question the Immigration and Naturalization service has on an exam they administer to prospective new American citizens: “The Civil War was fought over what important issue”(4). Dew respond by noting that “according to the INS, you are correct if you offer either of the following answers: ‘slavery or states’ rights’” (4). Although this book provides more evidence and documentation that slavery was the cause of the Civil War, there are a few places where states’ rights are specifically noted. In presenting the findings of his extensive research, Dew provides compelling documentation that would allow the reader to conclude that slavery was indeed the cause for both secession and the Civil War.
Magical, poetic, and awe-aspiring. This is what mere words at its best can accomplish when trying to capture the essence of the painting, The Glory of the Light Within, by the renowned artist, Dale Terbush. This specific masterpiece is representative of Terbush’s art and reveals much about his outlook towards nature. Viewers are presented with a breathtaking scenery and a natural beauty depicted in all its glory in this panoramic view (the painting is 4x5 feet). Indeed, because the well-defined foreground, distinct middle ground, and dim background compose characteristics of a magical scenery, this vista is transformed into an ideal utopia.
Born Sinner Aren’t we all sinners? We all have committed acts of violence at some points in our lives, and our answer we are human, we are wired that way or it is our instinct. People have a habit of hurting one another and it comes naturally to them. After reading Flight by Sherman Alexie, violence is a prominent theme throughout the novel. This idea of aggression is represented in many different ways, shapes, and forms.
“For The Bible Tells Me So” by Daniel Karslake is a documentary style film that focuses on issues about sexuality. The film focuses on the conflict between homosexuality and Christianity and the analysing of several Bible verses about homosexuality. The film attempts to alter the minds of homophobes by using facts, science and several interviews with Christians who also have gay children. The interviews are done with five American, very Christian families and “how they handle the realization of having a gay child” (Karslake, 2007.)
The first step was receiving Christ and the next step is to become strengthen in the faith so that the adversary cannot steal, kill, or destroy the good work that has been started in one’s spiritual life. There are afflictions that will occur, but with God’s help, we can maintain the righteous lifestyle. Even though hardship may arise, God will keep us in perfect peace, if we can stay focus on Jesus.
The movie Glory is the story of the first African American military unit which fought during the Civil War. This powerful story is told through the eyes of the unit’s leader, Colonel Robert Shaw. The director, Edward Zwick, uses a number of important scenes expressing growth, patriotism and leadership. Whenever there was an obstacle that the 54th regiment needed to overcome faith seemed to be the answer. Faith in their fellow man, faith in their country and faith in God.
The painting Light of Hope is a realistic painting of a light house on the coast of an American shore done by contemporary artist Thomas Kinkade. Thomas Kinkade started his career with his first lithograph, and after some time he realized he was inspired to paint not for the money but from his heart. His main goal became glorifying God and spreading His light. Kinkade grew up in Placerville, California and growing up to be a big family man. Often in his paintings he leaves little symbols representing his wife and children. Over the years he has donated his earned money to different charities and is al crediting God for his ability to paint. His purpose as a painter has been and will continue to share of the light of God (Thomaskinkade).
In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash, is a novel by American humorist, Jean Shepherd. This was a best selling novel whose title applies more to today than it did back then at the time it was written. Prior to this the United States was uneducated about the potential terrorist attacks on the country. We were naïve and thought nothing could ever hurt the greatest country in the world. Then September 11th,2011 occurred. The power to investigate leads on terrorism without legal holdups and restrictions has indeed led to much tighter security in the past decade. This had led to a much safer environment for Americans.
In the 12 years since the terrorist attacks on the world trade towers in New York city, thousands of hours of research and interviews has been conducted, scores of books have been written, and countless documentaries and films have been produced in an effort to help us understand how and why terrorists were able to carry out the massacre of nearly 3500 people. Despite the plethora of religious and nonreligious beliefs represented by the friends and family of those who died, one universal belief binds them all: the belief that an unspeakable act of cruelty has changed our nation and our people for all time. The name ascribed to this act of terrorism is debated widely. Some call it evil. Others call it nothing more than supreme cruelty.
Deus Ex Machina is a god introduced into a play to resolve the entanglements of the plot. It is introduced to make the play flow more smoothly and logical. Real life is not very different from the play. Religion has helped the leaders to persuade the public to overcome the crisis and unite them. Christianity has been often used as a political tool in the western hemisphere. United States is a country that started from Christian roots. Public figures in United States have been using the word “God” in speech a lot since the Declaration of Independence. Abraham Lincoln, John F.Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr. have used the term “God" in their speech to unite people to overcome the challenge. Religion cannot be separated from politics and is
Theme in “Defender of the Faith” can be interpreted in many varying ways, some of which are life-long lessons and others to the relation between faith and the individual.
Masaccio’s famous religious painting, “The Holy Trinity”, is known for the engagement of linear perspective to create an image that goes beyond just paint on canvas, (or should I say wall?) by creating the illusion of depth. This painting addresses many religious concepts by setting up different levels and layers in the constructed space. The characters depicted are made up of four groups of human figures, which include the Trinity (God the father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit), the Virgin Mary and Saint John, a pair of donors, and a skeleton on a tomb at the bottom of the picture. There is an apparent point of separation, which is made clear due to each group being on separate levels. Their difference in power is fundamental feature in explaining the relationship that is being portrayed between mankind and divinity in this painting. Because of Masaccio’s use and manipulation of perspective and a vanishing point – a new line of finite and infinity is crossed because visual manifestations of a hierarchical division between eternal life above, death below and the living in between are expressed.
Defense of the Humanity of Christ. Jesus Christ was without a doubt a real, living, breathing human being. His human nature is separate and distinct from His divine nature, yet unified in the person that He is. He was not God merely making himself appear as a person: He was truly human. Jesus's humanity is very clear from the testimony of scripture and records of his life.
Today's Gospel reading shows us that the Lord is with us through times of trial… or when the storms of life get to be too much to handle. Whether He calms the storm as he did for the disciples, or asks us to let him walk through the storm with us, as Paul talks of in 2 Corinthians, or gives us the strength to fight against it, as He did for David while up against Goliath; he is always with us. He does not ignore the cry of the afflicted.
Paul tells us to “fight the good fight of faith” (Tim. 6:12). We must not hold on to unbelief. When we give ourselve...