Before mystical experiences happen, there are breeding grounds that would prepare the mystic to receive them. The first major step before a mystical experience is meditation: “Christian tradition had always regarded meditation as a valid preparation for mystical experience” (Riehle XIII). Wolters also claims there are “preliminaries” such as “hard work, penance …ascetic discipline” in the view of arriving at the stage of mystical experience (22). Taking these two claims into consideration, meditation, fasting and penance are then included in these breeding grounds prior to a mystical experience. In catholic religion, penance is in general believed to redeem one’s soul and bring reparation for one’s sins. Nevertheless, with regard to these preliminaries, Wolters stipulates that from Richard Rolle’s experience “…contemplation itself is not the fruit of this grind [the required preliminaries], but unequivocally the gift of God” (Wolters 23). This suggests that, whoever fulfils the condition of repetitive toils (fasting, meditation, penance...) does not automatically receive the vocation of contemplative and mystical experiences. One can experience contemplation only if God allows it, even though the breeding grounds are fulfilled. In other words, any mystical experience that comes after these …show more content…
First, it pushes them to devote their time, energy and attention for this love of God. Margery Kempe for instance was fighting until she won her vow of celibacy, agreed by the Bishop of Lincoln in the presence of her husband (see Windeatt 106-107). Afterwards, Kempe had more freedom and time to devote herself entirely to God: instead of occupying herself with marital duties she could give her full attention to Christ. The love of God is a recurrent motive in Margery Kempe’ s Book; it makes her have thoughts for Christ, His childhood and His
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James has been the cause of many debates about whether or not the ghosts are real, or if this is a case of a woman with psychological disturbances causing her to fabricate the ghosts. The story is told in the first person narrative by the governess and is told only through her thoughts and perceptions, which makes it difficult to be certain that anything she says or sees is reliable. It starts out to be a simple ghost story, but as the story unfolds it becomes obvious that the governess has jumps to conclusions and makes wild assumptions without proof and that the supposed ghosts are products of her mental instability which was brought on by her love of her employer
Although much research in the area of transcendental meditation and its purported benefits remain to be performed, numerous data exist which support the contention that transcendental meditation is effective as a preventive and therapeutic method of treatment for the abuse of alcohol and other substances. Considering its numerous psychological effects as well as its rewarding health benefits, TM may be an appealing alternative to those whose previous treatment outcomes were unsuccessful or unsatisfying. In light of the poor success rates obtained by the majority of alcohol abuse prevention and treatment programs, a technique which fosters self-efficacy, stability, and a sense of empowerment may be just what is needed by alcohol abusers.
“Justice cannot be for one side alone, but must be for both” (Roosevelt). The goal of America’s legal system as we know it is that everyone is given an equal opportunity to stick up for what they may or may not have done, as described by former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Also this is what officials strive for, it is not always the case. Facts can be skewed, distorted, or misrepresented to make one side seem to be guilty without a doubt and to make the other side seem as if they have done nothing wrong. The Crucible by Arthur Miller begins and ends with one-sided accusations of witchcraft. It all results from a group of girls who had been dancing in the woods. After two fall sick, the accusations begin. The girls who were dancing, especially Abigail Williams begin blaming others to look less guilty themselves. Accusations are flying left and right so that soon, hundreds are in jail and over a dozen are executed. Abby’s main goal is to get rid of Elizabeth Proctor, so she can be with John Proctor, a man she previously had an affair with. However, John is not interested in Abby and his
Witch hunts” constantly reoccur throughout history - in 1600s, 1953 and in 2014. Good morning, fellow directors. Today, I want to demonstrate that “the crucible” by Arthur Miller in 1953 is not just a play for 1953, but a play that relates to any period of time, notably to our modern society. The crucible is an allegory of 1953 McCarthyism and social chaos of the time. Today’s government manipulated the truth creates the fear of “outlawed bikies gangs” similar to 1692 theocratic government creates fear of witches and McCarthy’s communist terror. Unfortunately, the truth is never clear cut, but skewed, twisted and sculpted lies that shockingly benefit a small governing body and its ideologies. Therefore, ‘The Crucible’ is a worthwhile play to be shown in Queensland Theatre as it reminds us of an invaluable lesson and could prevent the same foolish action reoccurring on future generations. The play intertwines with significant themes such as lies, truth, power, stereotypes and mass hysteria which are pivotal dynamics in today’s society.
The want for money drastically affected the Younger’s and changed their lives for the worst. In Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, A family in 1950s Chicago want for money was putting a negative strain on the family.
In the introduction, the author has done a good job engaging the audience with emotions, and painting a vivid scene of the seals being slaughtered. This essay does a good job of acknowledging the other point of views. This essay also has a good, clear sense of structure. The author has a strong thesis statement, that gave a clear indication of what the following paragraphs are about.
Have you ever felt stuck? Wherever you are, it’s the absolute last place you want to be. In the book Into the Wild, Chris McCandless feels stuck just like the average everyday person may feel. Chris finds his escape plan to the situation and feels he will free himself by going off to the wild. I agree with the author that Chris McCandless wasn’t a crazy person, a sociopath, or an outcast because he got along with many people very well, but he did seem somewhat incompetent, even though he survived for quite some time.
INDTRODUCTION “Sex and Religion”? Those two don’t really go hand in hand,” commented a freshman student from UF. Like this student, numerous people around the world believe this misconception to be true. Whether people argue for or against the importance of gender in religion, more than just what goes on in the bedroom has been heating up lately. Many debates have sparked due to the negative connotation associated with sex when confronted about its position in religious cultures.
OK. So you’ve heard, that meditation is beneficial for you, maybe you’ve read lists about the advantages of meditation. A ton of different kind of meditations are on-line, and you found several resources, articles, blog posts about the theme to select from. These articles state, that the meditation has countless benefits, which are also proven by scientific research. You can believe them, since eminent scientists carried out extensive research on this subject. And they suggest, you should try them, and of course you should practice it each day. Every day - or you won’t have those benefits.
Meditation is an age-old practice that has renewed itself in many different cultures and times. Despite its age, however, there remains a mystery and some ambiguity as to what it is, or even how one performs it. The practice and tradition of meditation dates back thousands of years having appeared in many eastern traditions. Meditation’s ancient roots cloud its origins from being attributed to a sole inventor or religion, though Bon, Hindu, Shinto, Dao, and later, Buddhism are responsible for its development. Its practice has permeated almost all major world religions, but under different names. It has become a practice without borders, influencing millions with its tranquil and healing effects.
Spirituality can be defined as ‘‘ways of relating to the sacred’’ (Shults and Sandage 2006, p. 161) that involve the experience of significance (Zinnbauer and Pargament 2005)”. (Jankowski and Vaughn, 2009, p.82).
Religion is a major controversy in modern society. Some reach a final conclusion early on that there is no God or Supreme Being; instead they believe that there is life and then nothing more. Others have so much faith that they are actually willing to die for their religion. It could be viewed as drastic but it is also reality. As a soon to be missionary I see the benefits of religious views and the impact it has on people for their well being. For my religion, I am willing to serve two years of my life to teach other the joy of the gospel while sacrificing my time away from my friends and family. An apostle of my church once said "The most effective missionaries, member and full time, act out of love… If we lack this love for others we should pray for it." -Elder Dallin H. Oaks. This quote just reminds me of why I am so willing to want to go out and serve The Lord. I will do it because of his love for me. But not to be biased of my own personal religion, I want to show that believing in something and having faith is better than nothing. Atheists are people that have a belief that there is nothing more after this life to me would seem to have really nothing to live for believing that they are just here to die which is a sad message. So in this essay I would like to describe why religion is so important and such an amazing thing.
For the wise people like the saints who meditate in isolation in the woods or the people who create aims, targets they want to ful...
“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” According to Buddha, everyone needs some form of spirituality to define his or her life and existence. Webster Dictionary defines spiritualism as “a system of beliefs or religious practices based on supposed communication with the spirits of the dead, often times through mediums.” Though this is one general definition of spiritualism, this concept is one that does not hold a conclusive meaning. Each and every single person has the ability and right to create and practice their own idea of spiritualism. From ancient times to present day, the term and practice of spirituality has transformed, particularly from region to region. Despite the discrepancies in practices and overall understanding of this idea, spirituality has had an effect and impact upon all of humanity since the creation of time. This religion that is believed to have been established in the early eighteen hundreds, after two little girls claimed to have the ability to talk to spirits, sparked interest in this spiritual movement, allowing it to spread rather rapidly over many geographical locations. Aside from being recognized as a religion, spiritualism is also believed to be a form of philosophy and a science in which spiritualists believe that there is life after death and try to demonstrate this through the ability of attempting to communicate with those that have passed on. Spiritualism was socially different from other religions in existence at the time because it presented followers with a more tolerant belief system that assimilated the principles and facts from a selection the world's religions. Spiritualism also made it acceptable for women to play a disti...
“Looked at another way, it is just as correct to say that spiritual realization is the basis of all those experiences. Attaining a high spiritual consciousness, which we call realization, man is automatically assured of all these other things. It is a rule that works both