The aim of this class was to have the students ponder their spirituality and gain more insight on the glue that holds our society together, compassion. Since the axial age compassion has been a key component of all major religions. Therefore, compassion is a critical to fully understand religions. I thought that the most valuable lessons were centered around compassion, something that can be used to make the world a better place for ourselves and our children. It was clear that the students were able to further understand themselves and others after the course. Like previously stated, compassion was used in this class to further understand Catholicism, which is why Rolheiser’s text was supplemented side by side with Armstrong’s text. …show more content…
It seems that a large thread in the study of ecclesiology is the community aspect of religion. “Church is not about a few like-minded persons getting to gether for mutual support; it is about millions and millions of different kinds of persons transcending their differences” (Rolheiser, 115). After reading this chapter I understand how religion is important for the human race because it ties millions and millions of people together. If there was no church, there would be more a large increase in conflicts among ourselves, something the human race cannot …show more content…
I personally am not a religious person, but that does not mean that I am not a spiritual person. A large belief that I have carried is that religious or not, you must constantly question, challenge, and forge your own ideas. This is something that I think this class was able to help me with even more. It is highly important for me to constantly challenge, question, and forge my own beliefs. Something that I think every person religious, or not, should be doing. If someone asks you what you believe, it should be a carefully thought out answer that has been contemplated over the course of months and years, simply regurgitating scripture or blindly following your parent’s beliefs is a disservice to yourself and your community. I think that this class did a good job allowing people the opportunity to expand their minds and be able to discuss their spirituality in a controlled religiously diverse setting.
The hope I have for my own spirituality is simple. I want to hunt for deeper truth in the world regardless if it makes me happy or miserable. I want to constantly contemplate my place in the world, interconnectedness, spirituality, God, and a wide variety of other subjects. Most of all, I want to be able to have a sturdy enough argument for my thoughts and beliefs that they will stand up to every level of scrutiny. In addition, I would like to find more balance in my life
“Compassion is always, at its most authentic, about a shift from the cramped world of self-preoccupation into a more expansive place of fellowship, of true kinship.” These words come from the book Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion, written by Gregory Boyle, an American Jesuit priest and founder of Homeboy Industries, an organization that provides employment training and support to former gang members. I was first introduced to Father Boyle’s work during my final semester at College of the Holy Cross in “Contemporary Christian Morality”, a favorite course of mine that examined the fundamental ethics of moral agency, human freedom, conscience, sin, suffering and virtue. It was a book that has continued to stay with me for
It is incredibly uncommon in this day and age for an individual to hold their own personal religion and line of beliefs. In most cases it wouldn 't even be categorized as a religion. Religion requires multiple persons. It is the breeding of individuals who see community as a defining factor in advancing their religious beliefs and immersing such beliefs into their lives. The aspect of community works differently amongst various religions, but one thing that seems to hold true across the board is that religion functions as a “social glue”. It can serve to hold individuals together, as well as an entire group of people. The counter-argument to this would certainly be that religion instead serves to rip communities apart. The latter to this is prominent in religious communities whose sole function is to impound intense religiosity into individuals in an atmosphere where the extensive nature and uniform of their beliefs are the highest priority. Jesus Camp, is a documentary that makes light of how religious communities function
A Model of Christian Charity points us in the direction of enlightenment through the love of God based on mutual respect and adoration, never lustful or sinful, and following in the spirit of connected separate bodies. John Winthrop ask his people to love one another as neighbors, as brotherly bonds whom strengthen pure love and separate this love from carnal love on a model of affection. Winthro...
Melhem et al (2016) define spirituality as an “abstract, subjective, and complex term, whose definition varies between individuals, philosophies, and cultures” and has “many subjective meanings” (p.43). I have learned from many friends who view themselves as spiritual, but don’t follow any particular religion, that spiritualty has allowed them to find meaning and balance in their life. Many feel that all individuals have the capacity to be spiritual, but I haven’t felt the need to tune into this concept thus far in my life. I would tell you where I find meaning and balance in my life, but I don’t even fully know that answer myself. Spirituality is such a new concept for me, and I find it hard to wrap my head around the ways in which I may be able to view or understand it. Therefore, it is something I hope to explore as I mature and continue to understand who I am as a person in this
The essay, “A Christian World View,” by Mickenzie Neely seeks to address some major themes that pertain to a Christian worldview. The essay, in summary, states that “serving others, accepting and giving grace, sacrifice, and justice are all essential to living for Christ.” This essay was presented in a way in which she used facts and scriptures from the Bible to support her point. This paper will analysis Neely’s main arguments and will evaluate my opinion of her writing. The main topics that apply to my Christian worldview are love, service, grace and forgiving.
Humanity is made in the image of God. Therefore, all people have unique and valuable gifts to contribute to society. Every individual is also a sinner in need of redemption through Christ’s death and resurrection. Developing a relationship with Christ is the foundational purpose of my Christian educational practice. Instruction must be differentiated because each student is a unique creation. Effective differentiation is impossible without the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the use of research-based instructional methods and formative evaluation. Powerful teaching constantly modifies instruction to best address the needs of the each student and provides a foundation of love that recognizes each child as a gift from God.
Young-Mason, Jeanine. “Understanding Suffering and Compassion.” Cross Currents: Journal of the Association of Religion and Intellectual Life 51.3 (2001): 347-358. EBSCO. Web. 28 Feb 2014.
Spiritual modeling has also influenced adolescents’ religious and spiritual development. Teachers, both in education and the Church, have the opportunity to enhance attributes such as wisdom, good character, and generosity by modeling spirituality (Lerner, 109). Spiritual models are designed to be examples of the positive purpose of goal setting and pursuing. They should seek to demonstrate making positive con...
People who support the teaching of religions in public schools argue that it is essential for the students to learn the background of many religions in order to understand the cultural issues that materialize in the world today. Samuel Ayers and Shelly Reid are two educators at schools in Texas and they agree with this statement. They argue constant...
* Anderson, Ronald D. “Religion and Spirituality in the Public School Curriculum.” New York. Peter Lang Publishing. 2004.
Christian faith and Ethos is the class I am taking this term. The professor 's name is Reverend Leroy Leach Jr. The class is about God, the creation, and how to read the Holy Bible.
In this paper two topic from the Psychology and Spirituality course will be discussed in regards to spirituality and their influence on my personal life. I will examine how I have grown and what I have learned from the week on Spring Lake ranch and how I wish to continue moving forward in my attempt to be spiritual and build a closer relationship to God.
The two topics I have chosen to reflect on are “Comfort of God” and “Worship”. These two topics are very near to my heart and this course has given me a deeper appreciation and understanding of both the comfort of God and the act of worship.
The central purpose of Beyond Religion is to place emphasis on the inner qualities and values of an individual rather than devoting too much effort on external or material aspects of life. Mankind has endured many challenges since the beginning of time and yet we continue to face many problems. Despite our advances in medical science, technology, education, healthcare, human rights, laws, etc., we still suffer, struggle, and encounter many crisis around the world. Many parts of the world still experience poverty, crime, injustice, inequality, corruption, social, and environmental problems. The book asserts that these problems are a result of neglect of our inner qualities and moral values not just based on religious beliefs but the qualities that we appreciate in others. If each individual would take a moment and focus on developing his or her inner qualities and moral values such as integrity, compassion, generosity, forgiveness, tolerance, honesty, patience, kindness and so on then the world that we live in would become a better place.
I honestly thought it would be an easy credit and something fun to take. I thought the study of religion was just learning about other religions to see what they were like and why they are different from our own. I guess I thought that studying other religions would help me understand my own better. Now, I understand more and the study of religion is much, much more important than I could have ever thought. Learning about other people’s religions and their cultures helps us become better people in this world. If we can better understand someone’s point of view, then we can respect their decisions and them as a person more. Not understanding a culture or religion can lead to stereotyping and just hatred for others. If everyone in the whole word learned about other people’s culture, religion, and ideas; then the world would be a much better place. I think this class should be mandatory just for that reason alone. I think the reason that my view on the study of religion has changed is because of what we have learned throughout the textbook. Learning about these different religions that have been taken out of context really puts a spin on things in your mid. I mean, take Muslims, a few Muslims did some very bad things, but now people think that all Muslims are terrorists or bad people. Learning about the religion helped me understand that they are vey peaceful people and just a few did