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.
Award-winning writer, Helen Whitney, and author and noted Jewish agnostic, Ron Rosenblum sought to chronicle the “spiritual aftershocks” of 9-11. On September 3, 2002, PBS Broadcasting aired a FRONTLINE documentary entitled “Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero.” To do so, Whitney compiled video interviews of family and friends of 9-11 victims and experts in the fields of philosophy, religion, Islamic issues, and others. The result is a masterful work of art that leaves viewers emotionally moved and deeply in tune with the pain of those intimately affected by the terrorist attacks of that day. True to the title of the film, viewers witness personal interviews documenting the personal struggles of individuals dealing with the aftermath of 9-11, clearly a process in which worldview and faith come together.
Transcendentalism is a belief system wherein “the physical world is viewed as deceptive and illusory,” and there is a “need to see the unity of all things.” (Phillips, Brown, and Stonestreet. 200...
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... evil survivable. It does not diminish evil. It does not diminish pain. It does not explain evil. Faith in life-eternal with the God of their faith, is what comforts and gives hope when evil makes an entrance in the lives of people.
The makers of this film have done a breathtaking job of capturing the universal struggle of mankind to make sense of evil in the world – “supreme acts of cruelty” if you prefer. Out of all the views expressed, only one gives a sufficient response to the problem of evil; that is the Christian faith. Pantheism, transcendentalism, atheism, and agnosticism only reinforce a futility in living and thus cannot provide a means of dealing with the pain and suffering which evil brings. A Christian faith offers a God who is altogether good, who has a plan for man that includes destroying all evil and its accompanying pain for all eternity.
“Transcendentalism, An American Philosophy.” U.S. History Online Textbook. Independence Hall Association, n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2014.
Transcendentalism to some is may just be a long, lengthy word coined two hundred years ago that is not used today, but to other people, people like Chris McCandless, it is a way of life. They use these qualities to shape their life and strive hard to follow them. Chris McCandless was so focused on embodying the qualities of transcendentalism that he failed to see how much danger he was putting himself in. He had little to no common sense as shown by Westerberg. “But there were gaps in his thinking. I remember once I went over to the house, walked into the kitchen, and noticed a god-awful stink. I mean it smelled nasty in there. I opened the microwave, and the bottom of it was filled with rancid grease. Alex had been using it to cook chicken, and it never occurred to him that the grease had to drain somewhere. It wasn’t that he was too lazy to clean it up- Alex always kept things real neat and orderly- it was just that he hadn’t noticed the grease” (Krakauer 45). McCandless embodied the values of transcendentalism by believing in living closer to nature, believing in the dignity of manual labor, and being self reliant.
Transcendentalism as a whole can be condensed to the core belief that nature, pure and untainted by man, is inherently good and transcends human boundaries. In history, the true idea of transcendentalism is often clouded by numerous conflicting beliefs and definitions. Some believe that merely existing is transcendental in itself, whereas others believe that a person must work towards the spiritual aspect of transcendentalism (Buell 3). Henry David Thoreau and Ralph
a series of deliberate and deadly terrorist acts. The victims were in airplanes or in their offices – secretaries, businessman and women, military and federal workers. Moms and dads, friends and neighbors. Thousands of lives were suddenly ended by, despicable acts of terror. The pictures of airplanes flying into buildings fires burning, huge structures collapsing have filled us with disbelief, terrible sadness and a quiet unyielding anger.
The attacks that occurred on 9/11 took place on September 11th, 2001. In this devastating event, four different attacks had taken place. Each of the attacks were carried out by terrorists. The group responsible for the attack was Al-Qaeda, a militant Islamist organization that is known to be global in present day. The group itself has a network consisting of a Sunni Muslim movement that aims to make global Jihad happen. Furthermore, a stateless, multinational army that is ready to move at any given time. This terrorist group focuses on attacking non-Sunni Muslims, those who are not Muslim, and individuals who the group deems to be kafir. Ever since the late 1980s, Al-Qaeda has been wreaking havoc all around the world. The leader of the group once being Osama bin Laden. Three planes were bound for New York City while another plane headed towards Washington, D.C. which was supposed to take out the U.S. Capitol. Two of the airplanes crashed into the World Trade Center. One plane hitting the North Tower and the other hitting the South Tower. The third plane had crashed into the Pentagon taking out the western side of the building. The last and final plane was focused solely on taking out the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C. but failed due to passengers of the plane coming hijacking it from the hijackers. The passengers attempted to take out the hijackers but sadly failed, crashing it into a field in Pennsylvania. Throughout the content of this paper, we will be focusing on the role of media when it comes to 9/11; more specifically: how the media's coverage of 9/11 manipulated our feelings towards 9/11, how it affected Islamophobia in America, and the lasting effects of 9/11.
On September 11, 2001, many people’s lives were changed. Not only Americans, but Muslims and Islamist alike, were affected. (A Nation Challenged 80). Family members and friends were lost, lives were taken away, and New York City was torn to pieces. Two planes hit the Twin Towers, otherwise known as the World Trade Center. One plane was flown into the Pentagon located in Virginia. One last plane was flown into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania after being taken over by the passengers. The nineteen men who hijacked these planes were from the Islamist militant group known as al-Qaeda. (The 9/11 Commission Report). An editorial in the New York Times said, “It was one of those moments in which history splits, and we define the world as ‘before’ and ‘after’.”
What is Transcendentalism? Though this may sound like a new topic to you, its major tenets have been around for almost a century and many are still influencing modern life today. Transcendentalism is an American literary, political, and philosophical movement of the early nineteenth century, centered around the premises of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Along with Emerson, other important Transcendentalists including Henry David Thoreau, Emily Dickenson, and Walt Whitman also took on the unconventional morals of this movement. Today, we are going to delve into a few of these major premises practiced by Transcendentalists. The first principal is that God can be found in both nature and human nature. The second principal is embracing individualism. Both of these aspects play key roles in creating the foundation for Transcendentalism that was both seen in the 19th century and modern society.
Transcendentalism was conceivably one of the most important movements in American history. It was an influential philosophy, brought to life by thinkers like Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. Though this movement’s prime was during the 1800s, its way of thinking can still be influential today. With powerful morals and spiritualistic views, people in today’s society could easily grasp onto transcendentalism and move toward a more free-minded lifestyle, just like Emerson and Thoreau wanted their society to
It is perhaps the most difficult intellectual challenge to a Christian how God and evil can both exist. Many of the greatest minds of the Christian church and intellects such as Augustine and Thomas Aquinas spent their entire lives trying to solve this problem, and were unsuccessful (Erickson, 2009, p.439). However, this dilemma is not only an intellectual challenge, but it is emotional. Man feels it, lives it. Failing to identify the religious form of the problem of evil will appear insensitive; failure to address the theological form will seem intellectually insulting. This conundrum will never be completely met during our earthly life, but there are many biblical and philosophical resources that help mitigate it.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, exactly at 9:22 a.m., I woke up to start my day and turned my television on. Instantly, Fox News had reported that a commercial plane had smashed into the Twin Towers of New York City, just minutes earlier. While the story was certainly shocking, I wanted to know more and watched the horrific aftermath unfold, as it continued to happen. I remember an incredible feeling of sadness that I could do nothing to help the people in these buildings, as well as a great concern that more attempts could be made to create further tragedy elsewhere.
Transcendentalism is a unit all about expressing yourself and self improvement. In Into the Wild, we are taken on a transcendental adventure through the known life of Christopher Johnson McCandless. McCandless was a young man in his early 20s seeking a life away from society. McCandless was a nonconformist who refused to follow the rules, led by transcendental figures such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. The following accounts are pieces of McCandless’s great adventure through transcendentalism.
The word Transcendentalism, as used at the present day, has two applications. One of which is popular and indefinite, the other, philosophical and precise. In the former sense it describes man, rather than opinions, since it is freely extended to those who hold opinions, not only diverse from each other, but directly opposed. (1)
Transcendentalism was a powerful movement which inspired many to make drastic changes in their lives, one of the most important of which was individual simplicity. Individual simplicity, while important, was also the simplest of the cornerstones to achieve in order to live as a Transcendentalist. This cornerstone is defined literally as to enjoy life’s bare necessities, fend for oneself, and separate from society. This cornerstone was demonstrated by Ralph Waldo Emerson when he described how he felt in nature, “I become a transparent eyeball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the universal being circulate through; I am part or parcel of God (389). Emerson is often referred to as the founder of Transcendentalism, and as a founding father his references to the cornerstones of the movement he helped start are some of the most clear and illustrative. Emerson described himself in nature as “A transparent eyeball” and “I am nothing” these descriptions of his personal feelings in nature show individual simplicity. Using the odd analogy of a transparent eyeball helps show that he felt powerful and i...
The problem of evil is a difficult objection to contend with for theists. Indeed, major crises of faith can occur after observing or experiencing the wide variety and depths of suffering in the world. It also stands that these “evils” of suffering call into question the existence of an omnibenevolent and omnipotent God of the Judeo-Christian tradition. The “greater good defense” tries to account for some of the issues presented, but still has flaws of its own.
Many conspiracy theories exist about the attacks. Although it is commonly held that the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda is responsible, some think it was an inside job—coming from the United States. Others acknowledge Al-Qaeda as the perpetrator, but blame the cause on past involvement of the United States in the Middle East. One such person is Amiri Baraka. In his poem, Somebody Blew Up America, Baraka points to the larger system as the root cause of violence. He never blames a single entity, but through the use of rhetorical questioning it is obvious as to whom Baraka is accusing as being the real terrorist. Using the word “who” 191 times, Baraka establishes a connection within any reader who feels empathy with victims of anonymous crimes. (IV 1) Who is to blame? Amiri Baraka’s Somebody Blew Up