In the book, “Something Other Than God” by Jennifer Fulwiler, the author and main character, Jennifer, talks about her atheist background and how her opinion as she ages changes. Jennifer grew up atheist in a heavy Catholicism influenced town, and she completely rejected God. She talks about different experiences of religion being forced upon her and how uncomfortable she felt. She also mentions that was she was almost unable to be friends with Catholics. As she grows up she continues to feel this way, until she is a young adult. One day she feels the need to read about Catholicism. Fascinated, she continues researching, blogging, reading, and talking about the faith. Then she talks about what she discovers and some issues she has with the …show more content…
She saw God’s presence in her life. She began to welcome God into her life by reading the Bible, she said, “I flipped my book open and looked up verses myself” (88). This allowed Jennifer to understand the Catholic faith, and she became more aware of God’s way in her life. Eventually, Jennifer began a blog to discuss her questions and confusions about Catholicism, “And this time, I hit publish” (104). Discussing the faith with others allowed Jennifer to have more knowledge about the faith and become more open minded. Later, Jennifer changed her daily practices in order to strengthen her relationship with God. She was extremely hesitant at first but eventually decided to attend mass, “We managed to make it through the doors without any Atheist detector sirens going off” (117). Attending mass regularly allowed her to become closer to God, which led Jennifer to join RCIA. This made her a member of the Catholic Church. Jennifer changed her practices to open up more to God’s presence in her …show more content…
She did not agree with the Church’s stance, “then the anti-abortion stance is not only offensive, but it’s illogical. An all-good God wouldn’t oppose freedom” (123). Jennifer was unclear why the Church would take away human rights. She felt that the women should have say whether or not abortion is the best answer since it is her body. She was aggravated during this section of the book because her husband, Joe understood where the Catholic Church was coming from and she was in disbelief.
I agree with Jennifer’s stance on abortion. I do not believe it is right for the Catholic Church to be telling women that they must keep their baby. It is a personal choice, and women are given the freedom to make their own decision. I am not saying that everyone should get an abortion, but if a woman was raped for example, she should not have to keep that child. That child may be difficult for the women to cope with and may even be neglected. I do not believe the Church has the ability to take away rights for
“She may be unmarried or in a bad marriage. She may consider herself too poor to raise a child. She may think her life is too unstable or unhappy, or she may think that her drinking or drug use will damage the baby’s health” (126). The emotional appeal in this paragraph could make the reader think they are pro-choice. Apart from their use of pathos, the authors do a great job using a mixture of both ethos and logos. Page 130 is an example of both, which were used expertly to help the reader understand their point of view and the
In his book, An Imperfect God, Henry Wiencek argues in favor of Washington being the first true president to set the precedent for the emancipation of African-American slaves. Wiencek delves into the evil paradox of how a nation conceived on the principles of liberty and dedicated to the statement that all men are created equal was in a state that still preserved slavery for over seven decades following the construction of the nation. Washington’s grandeur estate at Mount Vernon at its peak had the upkeep of over 300 slaves 126 of which were owned by Washington. First, it must be understood that Washington was raised on slavery receiving ownership of 10 slaves at the age of 11 years old and that Washington was a man of his time. However, it must also be understood that Washington’s business with slavery was in the context of a constrained social and political environment. Weincek maintains that this does not exonerate the fact that Washington maintained slavery however; it does help to quantify the moral shortcoming by which Washington carried until his last year of life.
In “God in the Doorway,” Annie Dillard conveys a shift in her perception of God by associating fearful childhood experiences with her current interpersonal relationship with God. Santa Claus appears in Dillard’s doorway on Christmas Eve and as a young girl Dillard reacts in fear of a powerful, omniscient god-like figure and runs away. (M.S. 1) Dillard later realizes Miss White, her elderly neighbor, dressed-up as Santa Claus intending to shape a loving relationship with Dillard. Miss White attempts to form a bond with Dillard again and focuses a ray of sunlight on her hand with a magnifying glass and burns her causing Dillard to run from her again. Dillard associates the actions of Miss White to her perception of God as wrathful
After her graduation, she tried to join the Daughters of the Sacred Heart again. Mother Giovanna Francesca Grassi knew that Frances was full of virtue, but declined her request because she felt that Frances’ poor health would prevent her from fully participating in religious life. However, Mother Grassi kept her motivated by saying, “You are called to establish another Institute that will bring new glory to the Heart of Jesus.” Upset by the news, Frances returned to her hometown of Sant’Angelo and ta...
Throughout her early life, Dorothy has been confused about her call of being a Christian. As a little girl, Dorothy was always taught things about Christianity, whether that meant how to behave, how to pray, or even how to think. The reason she began to lose trust in her faith is because no one ever told her why she was doing things a certain way. For her, one of the greatest source of inspiration was the Psalms. “...through these Psalms and canticles I called on all creation to join with me in blessing the Lord. I thanked him for creating me, saving me from all evils, filling me with all good things” (29). Dorothy felt connected to God by reading the Psalms. She felt joyous and enthusiastic to communicate with God in such a way. Another religious influence she had was a volume of John Wesley’s sermons in her early teens. As she grew older and more attached to the materialistic world, her faith slowly became a part of her life that held little or no importance to her.
In early life, no one taught Dorothy about religion and she spent her time reading the Bible. She writes “I remember nothing that I read, just the sense of holiness in holding the book in my hands.” (Day, 20) At an early age, Dorothy already discovered the feeling of believing in something, but she did not know what she believed.
I chose Hope as my "core" belief topic because I'm going through a really hard season right now. Unfortunately, my vapor of hope is the only thing I have left to cling to. I heard it come in handy in times of struggles. As a result, I'm hoping that by spewing kindness and geniualy care for someone else that possibly I would reap what I so.
...at God’s love and desire for his children to join him in the kingdom of heaven are so great, that their immensity is incomprehensible, and that He is eager to go to boundless magnitudes to gain His children’s souls. Her infallibility to spread the views of her religion throughout A Good Man is Hard to Find indeed shows that these beliefs are ones O’Connor willed itching to be scratched by the fingers and begging to be explored by the minds of all her booklovers.
...ly condemned to be aborted, has the face of the Lord" (Pope Francis, pars. 2-4). This being said, the Holy See suggests the implementation of Natural Family Planning services across the world to give a safer alternative to contraceptives and abortion. The Holy See also would like to see governments supporting and helping improve the adoption process to lessen the strain places on expecting mothers, especially in cases of rape or incest. Counseling should also be made available for all abuse victims, regardless of gender, so that such drastic measures can be avoided. Reproductive health is a very prevalent topic in our ever changing world, but the Catholic Church stands firm in its belief to spread peace and love throughout the world. The aforementioned contraceptive practices, other than NFP, go against the Magisterium’s beliefs and therefore will not be supported.
...e essay she says “but I don’t feel all one way about abortion anymore, and I don’t think it serves a just cause to pretend that many of us do”(629). This quote lets the reader identify with it being okay to feel conflicted about abortion. It seems that often people feel they have to choose sides in the abortion debate. However, Quindlen allows her audience to find comfort and acceptance and not really knowing what they would do if ever faced with this decision. She uses a balance of real life examples that she has experienced and witnessed. Most of her examples touch the reader deep down inside so that they are left feeling as if they were a fly on the wall when these things were going on.
The Roman Catholic Catechism teaches that at the moment a sperm enters an egg, a life is formed, so, “a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person” (“Catechism of the Catholic Church”). The Church also condemns abortion for any reason, because it is considered murder, a crime, a grave evil, and a mortal sin. Also, elective abortion for personal or social convenience is forbidden by some religious groups, but many religious denominations believe that there are certain circumstances where abortion is justified: “... a pregnancy that threatens the life of the mother or that has come about as the result of rape or incest” ("Religious Groups’ Official Positions on Abortion"). Such a view is sanctioned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Episcopal Church; Evangelical Lutheran Church; Hinduism; Islam; and Judaism. Although there is conflict between religious denominations over the issue on what is morally right on abortion, many agree on the importance of the well being of the mother in considering whether or not it is ethically right to
This issue of abortion also belongs to larger issues such as religious and ethical. People with the religious background have a set of values based on the Bible and believe that pro-life should be the only stand people take into consideration in order to protect human life and keep the baby alive. The other class is ethical. From this stand people can choose whether or not they believe abortion is the right thing to do and can make their own choice based on their values, regardless of what religion they are. Because abortion is such a widespread issue, it is crucial that we come up with an agreement on what is best and what steps are necessary in getting to that agreement.
Initially, since when she was young, she hated the Christian religion with a passion because she convinces readers that the viewed it as in an awkward religion which could never outshine atheism. The audience here are the wedding and church congregation, and they do not need to have much of background information to understand the narrative because it is very clear. Her story is somehow unique because she was diagnosed with a medical condition that was threatening to her life, and therefore she reveals that being a Christian is where true happiness
I believe that in certain circumstances, such as Rose’s, abortions are a completely viable option and a woman should have control over whether she should have a child or not. I do not think that any person should have an abortion for just any reason, but at the same time, I feel that it is no one’s place, but the mother herself, what she does with her body and that it is entirely her decision if she gets an abortion or not. I also believe that if women are denied abortions, then most likely the babies are coming into this world unwanted, and that is never a good start to living a happy life, so in some cases, it might be in the babies best interest to have an
Throughout the story it is evident that the woman is not sure if she wants to have the abortion—shown in her hesitation to agree. The woman feels that people gain freedom through experiences. "And we could have all of this, and every day we make it more impossible" (466).