the attitude of Jesus towards outcasts as presented in Lukes Gospel Essay Example

the attitude of Jesus towards outcasts as presented in Lukes Gospel Paper Jewish religion and culture created many distinctions in society and there were many categories of people who were considered as outcasts, such as, lepers, Romans, foreigners, the sick and the poor. People who belonged to any of these categories were considered unclean and therefore were avoided. Jesus consistently breaks these conventions and interacts with outcasts. Jesus demonstrates equality and compassion whilst dealing with outcasts. In Luke 16:19-31, the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The Rich Man gave the beggar nothing, not even the scraps from the table passed over by those who had plenty. This lack of generosity certainly had its consequences in the afterlife. His misuse of his riches has excluded him from eternal reward. He has enjoyed his reward on earth in full, spending it all on himself, with no care for the beggar at his gate. Riches may have been a gift from God, a reward even, but even the Torah would reveal that the responsibility to be generous came with power and money. However,1 Jeremias has pointed out that Jesus audience may well have associated the rich man in His parable with tax collector, so the Rich Man in Jesus story ending up in torment, separated from the good, would not, perhaps have been surprising. We will write a custom essay sample on the attitude of Jesus towards outcasts as presented in Lukes Gospel specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on the attitude of Jesus towards outcasts as presented in Lukes Gospel specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on the attitude of Jesus towards outcasts as presented in Lukes Gospel specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer On the other hand, its important to appreciate that from a Jewish perspective, many of Jesus listeners would perceive Lazarus as a sinner because of his miserable position, which was a judgement from God. Hence the sequel must have been wholly unexpected by the audience. Jesus listeners would have been shocked to learn that Lazarus was spending the afterlife in the intimate company of the great patriarch Abraham. He has enjoyed a complete reversal of fortune as suggested by 2Hendrikesen, after all the Rich man had several opportunities to help the beggar ut did not do so. It is also suggested by 3Drury that the Rich Man may, perhaps, have been of the Sadducee party. The Sadducees, a small but powerful group within Judaism, from whose ranks the top officials in the Temple. This elite often were the richest and the most powerful people who believed in preserving their traditions and would have kept In Luke 10:25-35 we have the Parable of the Good Samaritan, one of the most famous stories of Jesus and outcasts. The parable itself talks of how a man is beaten and robbed and left for dead by the roadside. A priest and a Levite walk by, ignoring him. The only one who stops and helps is a Samaritan. The Jews hated Samaritans at this time, and they wouldnt have liked that teaching. Jesus was saying that our neighbours might be the people we least expect. In that last parable, Jesus would have caused great offence by hinting that a Samaritan, a foreigner, and so an outcast, could reach the kingdom of heaven. Jews had the belief that they were Gods chosen people, and so were the only people who would enter heaven. Jewish law told that some groups should be ostracised and so they became outcasts. Jesus open welcoming of outcasts would have provoked hostile reactions among Jews as He was clearly breaking laws. Jesus himself was made an outcast for associating with other outcasts, which even helped his teachings. Jesus, however, welcomed and helped these people. He openly broke down the barriers that society had placed between themselves and these outcasts. Jesus touched lepers, talked with tax collectors and ate with sinners. One of the many examples of this is told in Luke 19:1-10. It is the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus, in which Zacchaeus is a chief tax collector who wanted to see Jesus. As he was small he climbed a sycamore tree to see Jesus. Jesus called him down and said he would stay in his house. The people were shocked that Jesus was going to and outcasts home. Zacchaeus promised to give half his belongings to the poor, and pay all he had cheated back four times as much. Jesus said that salvation had come to him and used a Messianic title talking of himself. This story is one of conversion, where the people were shocked that Jesus was actually calling a sinner and associating with him. How far does a social and historical background of first century Palestine contribute to an understanding of these events? In the time of Jesus, many people were marginalized; meaning that they were ostracised, or separated from the rest of the community. These outcasts included lepers, Romans, tax collectors, women (especially widows), sinners and foreigners. It was thought that these people deserved to be in treated like this as it was there own fault and that their sickness was a punishment from God. Jesus obviously did not agree with this opinion and showed that everyone was equal and deserved respect and care just like everyone else. The Jewish teachers of law would have been enraged by Jesus actions. He was going against major teachings of the law. On the Sermon on the Mount, he had taken it upon himself to, in the Jews eyes, to rewrite what had been passed down form generation to generation from Mosses and others. Although not completely changing them, some would have found that the new laws were much harder as they required real commitment to God. They considered that if you gave money to the church, you were a good person. Now they were shown that they must have the spirit and the faith, which was much more important. In many of Jesus miracles he did them because of the strong faith of those who received. Jews saw the Romans as an occupying army and the fact that they were foreigners and so in the Jews eyes wouldnt enter heaven. Jews would have believed that these were second-class citizens and anyone who worked for them were disloyal to the Jews. Also many Jews felt that tax collectors charged much more than was required. This was immensely irritating to the Jews and therefore tax collectors were considered unclean spiritually and morally.

Free Essays on John Donne And Metaphors

The use of metaphors can greatly influence the effectiveness of an author’s message, when used correctly. John Donne turns this tool into an art form in his poetry as he weaves absurd relationships between two or more seemingly unrelated ideas. Not only does this make his poems much more entertaining but it also helps to express his ideas in a very vivid manner. This helps the reader to relate to and more fully understand the complexity of the feelings being expressed. One good example of Donne’s use of absurd metaphors is in the poem entitled â€Å"The Flea†. In this poem the flea is used in a humorous matter in order to down play the female’s reluctance to give up her virginity. In lines 1 and 2 Donne begins by telling the female how unimportant her virginity is. In order to back this up he continues by presenting the first, and main, metaphor that the flea is sex between these two lovers. At first this seems absurd but it is made to work by Donne laying out plainly how he came to the conclusion that the flea is the same as sex. In line 4 the point is made that when the flea bit the male and the female the bodily fluids of the two were immediately mixed within the flea. Donne goes on to tie in how this proves that sex between the two will not be a big deal by saying, â€Å"Thou know’st that this cannot be said a sin, or shame, or loss of maidenhead† (lines 5-6). He also points out that the flea did this without the permission of either of them and did nothing to court them. Donne’s use of metaphors continues in the second stanza as the female is about to kill the flea. The death of the flea is portrayed as a tragic event, compared to killing three people at once. It can be argued that this is a reference to the holy trinity, which makes the metaphor even more absurd and also makes it that much worse to kill this flea. In lines 12-13 three more metaphors are stated as the flea is compared to â€Å"you and I†, ï ¿ ½... Free Essays on John Donne And Metaphors Free Essays on John Donne And Metaphors The use of metaphors can greatly influence the effectiveness of an author’s message, when used correctly. John Donne turns this tool into an art form in his poetry as he weaves absurd relationships between two or more seemingly unrelated ideas. Not only does this make his poems much more entertaining but it also helps to express his ideas in a very vivid manner. This helps the reader to relate to and more fully understand the complexity of the feelings being expressed. One good example of Donne’s use of absurd metaphors is in the poem entitled â€Å"The Flea†. In this poem the flea is used in a humorous matter in order to down play the female’s reluctance to give up her virginity. In lines 1 and 2 Donne begins by telling the female how unimportant her virginity is. In order to back this up he continues by presenting the first, and main, metaphor that the flea is sex between these two lovers. At first this seems absurd but it is made to work by Donne laying out plainly how he came to the conclusion that the flea is the same as sex. In line 4 the point is made that when the flea bit the male and the female the bodily fluids of the two were immediately mixed within the flea. Donne goes on to tie in how this proves that sex between the two will not be a big deal by saying, â€Å"Thou know’st that this cannot be said a sin, or shame, or loss of maidenhead† (lines 5-6). He also points out that the flea did this without the permission of either of them and did nothing to court them. Donne’s use of metaphors continues in the second stanza as the female is about to kill the flea. The death of the flea is portrayed as a tragic event, compared to killing three people at once. It can be argued that this is a reference to the holy trinity, which makes the metaphor even more absurd and also makes it that much worse to kill this flea. In lines 12-13 three more metaphors are stated as the flea is compared to â€Å"you and I†, ï ¿ ½...

Marvin v. Marvin Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marvin v. Marvin - Case Study Example The case between Martin v Martin highlights the challenges that marriage couples face. The case was determined in 1976 with the outcome serving as reference point in the US because of the relevance. The case involved two individuals in a non-marital relationship enforced through oral agreement. The couples made several agreements concerning their economic and social status. According to the case, the couples lived and made significant wealth and resources jointly. They had an agreement to share the acquired property and other belongings equally upon dissolution of the union. In 1971, the defendant withdrew the support he accorded the wife and called for the dissolution of marriage. The complainant launched a suit to enforce the agreement that they entered into prior to their dissolution. The complainant told the court that they entered into an oral agreement to work and share the property equally upon dissolution of their relationship (Laskin & Niff, 2010). The court heard the case and determined that individuals in any form of marriage whether implied or express have the right to claim their share. The court found that the complainant’s issues were valid and subjected the defendant to fulfill the agreement. The court stated that couples in non-marital relationships have the right to launch legitimate claims for property based on express or implied marriage contracts. The case gave a clear direction that sought to ensure fairness and equality between couples upon marriage dissolution. Living together contracts involve gay and non-gay couples who form relationship are either formal or non-formal. These non-marital contracts pose several complications when it comes to sharing property upon dissolution of the marriage. The contracts threaten to erode the moral and cultural practices of various societies. As noted by Strong, DeVault & Cohen (2011) these marriages disobey the moral standards that

Women Expatriates Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Women Expatriates - Research Paper Example This asserts that their main task in an organization is to maintain the structure and philosophy of the organization. However, the women expatriates should have a different cross-cultural training program because of the numerous challenges they face (Ismail & Tahir, 2007). In this program, they are supposed to learn how to interrelate with their male co-workers. This affirms that women expatriates are of high benefit to companies. Recent research confirms that women expatriates have several advantages over the male expatriates. This is mostly attributed to the socialization of a woman with her co-workers. This enables them to understand all the surrounding happenings. Therefore, most women use their socialization ability as an asset over their male counterpart. On the other hand, the men expatriates are regarded as more competent compared to the women (Ismail & Tahir, 2007). In most companies, there are more men expatriates than the women expatriates. Women also face different challenges as expatriates. The most common challenge that women face in their line of duty is the bad treatment which is usually by the male co-workers in the company. The male expatriates mostly face cross-cultural challenges in their new environment. This is because they are faced with ‘cultural shock’ in the new environment. Nowadays, women are faced with various challenges and adjustment problems in the expatriate profession. One of the most common challenges is related to the custom and religion aspect. In most multiethnic countries, women expatriates experience a difficulty in understanding the dress code of local individuals (Haile, Jones, & Emmanuel, 2007). According to various sources, when women expatriates do not understand the proper dress code, they might end up dressing against the social norms thus; the locals can portray negative remarks. Therefore, companies are supposed to provide a cross-cultural training program to the expatriates for

Chinese Schools Essay Example for Free

Chinese Schools Essay Chinese schools have come a long way since the colonial days. Over the years and with the evolution of the national education system, Chinese schools have had to face countless threats to their survival. Despite this, Chinese schools have gained popularity and have enjoyed high enrolments, even among non-Chinese students. It has been reported that at least 10 percent of students studying in Chinese schools come from non-Chinese backgrounds. A number of factors contribute to this growing phenomenon. First, Chinese schoolteachers are well known for their high level of commitment. For this and other reasons, students from Chinese schools often excel in public examinations especially in Science and Mathematics. The other attraction of Chinese schools is that students are required to learn an additional language, Mandarin, which is a highly marketable skill in the job market. Chinese Education: A Historical Perspective The beginnings of Chinese education in Malaysia can be traced to the early nineteenth century. It was recorded that by 1815, there were already three Chinese schools in Malacca. One was founded by the London Missionary Society. With regard to the other two, sociologist Yang Qinghuang suggests that at least one would be a school founded by the Hokkien people. Scholar Zheng Liangshu suggests that some old-type Chinese schools might have existed in the Straits Settlements since the end of the eighteenth century. For a long time, Chinese schools in the Straits Settlements received neither help from the British government nor assistance from the government in China. Despite this, they thrived —funded mainly by clan and dialect associations. When faced with political and financial difficulties at the turn of the twentieth century, the Ching government of China changed its attitude towards overseas Chinese and began to promote Chinese education outside of China. It implemented educational reforms based on a proposal by Zhang Zidong. Following the reforms, the curriculum was revised to include Chinese Classical Literature, History, Geography, Mathematics, Moral Education, Physical Education and other optional subjects like Commerce and Drawing. In Malaya, Chung Hwa Confucian School in Penang not only adopted this new curriculum (it was the first to do so), it went further to include English as a subject. Support from the Ching government, however, was short lived. It ended with the fall of the dynasty. Chinese schools that attempted to run modern educational programmes (with a modern curriculum and incorporating English as a subject) faced enormous challenges. On the one hand, they were constantly in need of more funds. On the other hand, they lacked competent teachers. Furthermore, they had to compete with the more established English schools. Even so, there were five hundred Chinese schools with modern educational programmes established in Malaya and Singapore in 1920. By this time, textbooks for these schools had departed from the classical into the vernacular Chinese language (baihuawen). Because of their impressive growth, the British government decided that it could no longer afford to ignore Chinese schools. On 29 October 1920, it introduced the Regist ration of School Ordinance to restrict the activities of Chinese schools in the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States by way of registration and inspection. In 1935, control was further tightened: textbooks and teachers from China were prohibited. Only local materials and Malaysian-born teachers were allowed, and activities in Chinese schools came under strict scrutiny. Despite these challenges, Chinese education continued to thrive until it was suspended at the time of the Japanese Occupation of Malaya. After the war, Chinese schools resumed operation. By 1946, their number had ballooned to more than one thousand in Malaya. However, following the Barnes and Fenn-Wu Reports (June 1951) and the Education Ordinance 1952, Chinese education was exclude d from the national education system. The Chinese community rallied to form Jiao Zong (United Chinese School Teachers Association of Malaya, UCSTAM) and Dong Zong (United Chinese School Committees Association of Malaya, UCSCAN) to safeguard Chinese education. The Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) joined in. Its president then, Tun Tan Cheng Lock spoke these memorable lines, †¦Chinese in Malaya †¦ should be given Chinese education †¦ The dialect or mother tongue can be likened to a person’s shadow, and is inseparable from the person himself/herself † (translated from Chinese). Efforts to safeguard Chinese education became even more difficult following the Razak Report in 1956 and the Education Ordinance in 1957. Thereafter, Chinese primary education was officially included in the national education system, classified as standard-type primary schools with Chinese language as the medium of instruction. However, Chinese secondary schools were excluded from the system when the Lower Certificate of Education examination (L. C. E) was introduced in English. This was not in accordance with the promise of fairness to other ethnic languages in the country as specified in the Razak Report. Furthermore, the Chinese community were horrified by the terms of reference in Paragraph 12 of the Razak Report: †¦the ultimate objective of educational policy in this country must be to bring together the children of all races under a national education system in which the national language is the main medium of instruction. Paragraph 12 was subsequently omitted following strong opposition from the Chinese community headed by Jiao Zong. Both the Rahman Talib Report (1961) and the Education Act (1961) reaffirmed the education policy as stated in the Education Ordinance 1957. Since government financial aid was vital to the survival of Chinese secondary schools, more than half of the 41 Chinese secondary schools then had little choice but to ‘convert’ itself into English medium national type secondary schools. On hindsight, many Chinese view this decision as a big mistake. The remaining 14 schools refused to give in, and have remained ‘independent’ to this day. The MCA facilitated this ‘conversion’ as it was satisfied with the verbal promises made by the Education Minister that the government has no intention to exercise its authority granted under the Act to change Chinese primary schools to national schools and that Chinese schools are allowed to allocate one third of their curriculum for learning Mandarin and Chinese literature. † As a consequence of this concession made at the secondary school level, development of Chinese education in Malaysia was restricted thereafter to the primary school level. The New Education Act 1996 posed an even bigger threat. It threw into question the status of national-type schools that were not established under Section 28 of the new Act. In fact, prior to this during the initial stage of implementing the ‘3R system’ (Reading, Writing Arithmetic) in 1980, Chinese schools had already been challenged to forgo their medium of instruction. Materials for learning all subjects except Mandarin were available only in Bahasa Melayu. In response, Dong Jiao Zong and various Chinese guilds and associations submitted a memorandum to voice their opposition to the Ministry of Education in 1981. The schools were given the assurance that the government had no intention of changing the character of Chinese schools. However in the ensuing years, Chinese schools were asked to consider the concept of ‘integrated schools’ (1985) and Vision Schools (proposed in 1995, implemented in 2000), in addition to the latest 2-4-3 resolution that sought to introduce the teaching of Mathematics and Science in English (proposed in 2002, implemented in 2003). Despite these challenges, Chinese schools seek to maintain emphasis on the Five Aspects of Formal Education in Confucianism (Wuyu Jiaoyu) namely, moral (de), intellectual (zhi), physical (ti), social (qun ) and aesthetic ( ei) education. Until today, Chinese schools m continue to value discipline, respect for the elderly, courtesy, personal character and morality, rather than marketable skills such as computer literacy, Mathematics and Science. Some Reflections How does the development of Chinese education affect the church community i Malaysia?n Should we stake our claims to citizenry and defend our right to be educated in our own (mother tongue) language? What about racial integration? Is it possible to promote Chinese education without further polarising the different communities? First, we have a moral basis for defending Chinese education. Being given the choice and having the opportunity to be educated in one’s own language is a universal human right according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948. Chinese education ha s existed in this country since the nineteenth century. As such, I believe we ought to defend the right of its existence in the same way as we would for the education of other ethnic communities in their own languages. Second, there is value in the Chinese school culture that is worth speaking up for. Even though outsiders might consider the Chinese community uncompromising in its stand with regard to educational issues, it must be pointed out that it is not just about safeguarding the Chinese language but it is also about retaining the ideals of holistic education. Furthermore, Chinese schools have a tradition of nurturing dedicated schoolteachers, and the Christian community should be at the forefront to encourage this culture of service and excellence. In the past, many of them have had to pay a high price for their conviction and dedication by becoming ‘martyrs’: Zhuang Xiquan, Chen Taomin and others were deported for opposing the Registration of School Ordinance 1920; Lim Lian Geok and Yen Yuan Chang were deprived of citizenship in 1961; Lim Huang Sheng and Sim Mow Yu were jailed under the Internal Security Act in 1987. Chinese education aids evangelistic work among the Chinese community. It provides students with a better understanding of the Chinese culture. Whereas in the past, the content of Chinese education was often influenced by traditional beliefs and practices, the Chinese education system today is more open to intellectual discourse on rethinking and repositioning the Chinese identity. The main grouse against Chinese schools is the lack of racial integration since students come from predominantly one ethnic background. The question we must ask is, is this acceptable or healthy in a multi-ethnic society like Malaysia? Most advocates for Chinese education would argue that it is less than ideal but what choice do they have? If national schools were to adopt a more holistic philosophy, and their teachers showed a more credible record in terms of commitment and disciplining of students, and if they provided students with the opportunity to study their own languages, racial integration would be less of an issue and Chinese students would be more evenly distributed between national and Chinese schools. Despite this obvious shortcoming related to racial integration, I still advocate Chinese education for what it offers. Clearly, through its holistic philosophy and track record, it has produced many responsible citizens through the years. Chinese education continues to play a significant role in nation-building and church life in Malaysia. Florence Kuek lectures Mandarin at Universiti Teknologi Mara.

cloning :: essays research papers

Cloning. It looks as if the variant of manipulating nature based on the idea of multiplying human beings is coming within the reach of modern science quickly. Today's scientists have already been able to clone a sheep. The living result is Dolly: a normal ewe, alive and kicking, she's just an exact copy of her celldonor. When more of less the same technique would be used on humans, that would mean the solution of many problems. Infertile and gay couples could have a baby by having themselves cloned. Serious diseases like Alzheimer and Parkinson could be cured by transplanting unaffected cells (donated by an embryo that is a clone of the patient himself) into the brain. Donor organs would no longer have to come from outsiders, but could be produced with stemcells (cells that carry the potency to develop into any part of the human body) from the copy of the patient. This process prevents the organ from being rejected by the patient's body, because it is built out of the same tissue. So what's all the fuss about? In order to create a kidney for instance, first a complete embryo (a clone of the patient) has to be 'produced' in order to donate the kidney cells. After the embryo has fulfilled its task, it will be aborted. But even 'producing' the embryo by cloning already raises a lot of problems. If cloning is practiced on humans in order to provide children it will cause huge infant mortality. When cloned children grow up they'll probably have to face an identity crisis, because they'll exactly resemble one of their parents. Another disadvantage of cloning is that it can easily be used for a lot of questionable aims, like in the book 'The Boys from Brazil'. My opinion. I admit cloning human beings to grow spare organs is a very tempting idea. On the other hand aborting your own clone sounds awful. I'm absolutely not against 'normal' abortion, but in relation to cloning I feel it's somehow wrong. cloning :: essays research papers Cloning. It looks as if the variant of manipulating nature based on the idea of multiplying human beings is coming within the reach of modern science quickly. Today's scientists have already been able to clone a sheep. The living result is Dolly: a normal ewe, alive and kicking, she's just an exact copy of her celldonor. When more of less the same technique would be used on humans, that would mean the solution of many problems. Infertile and gay couples could have a baby by having themselves cloned. Serious diseases like Alzheimer and Parkinson could be cured by transplanting unaffected cells (donated by an embryo that is a clone of the patient himself) into the brain. Donor organs would no longer have to come from outsiders, but could be produced with stemcells (cells that carry the potency to develop into any part of the human body) from the copy of the patient. This process prevents the organ from being rejected by the patient's body, because it is built out of the same tissue. So what's all the fuss about? In order to create a kidney for instance, first a complete embryo (a clone of the patient) has to be 'produced' in order to donate the kidney cells. After the embryo has fulfilled its task, it will be aborted. But even 'producing' the embryo by cloning already raises a lot of problems. If cloning is practiced on humans in order to provide children it will cause huge infant mortality. When cloned children grow up they'll probably have to face an identity crisis, because they'll exactly resemble one of their parents. Another disadvantage of cloning is that it can easily be used for a lot of questionable aims, like in the book 'The Boys from Brazil'. My opinion. I admit cloning human beings to grow spare organs is a very tempting idea. On the other hand aborting your own clone sounds awful. I'm absolutely not against 'normal' abortion, but in relation to cloning I feel it's somehow wrong.

Member of Parliament Essay

This puts the rest of the team in a situation that could cause stress and extra work that they wouldn’t have had to deal with if the team member had done what they said they would do. In order to avoid this it is important for all team members to understand the importance of doing what they are assigned to do. †¢A team member who does not meet deadlines There are many things to consider when something goes wrong when you are a part of a team or group. The first thing I would do is make sure that the deadline was known and that the team member understood the deadline and what was supposed to be completed. If there was a misunderstanding then I would make sure that the rest of the team didn’t have the same misunderstanding about the deadlines and their importance. This situation is especially true for me and this assignment. I was late in submitting my portion and it has put team members in this exact scenario. The way I would handle this with myself, is to make sure I know how important deadlines are and how the impact the work of the rest of the team. I would let myself know that people are relying on me to have my portion of a project or assignment done in order for their portions to be implemented and the final project to be completed. In order to avoid this in the future, I will make sure that I keep track of all deadlines and schedule my time accordingly.