The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner’s Semester At America’s Holiest University by Kevin Roose gives a unique perspective on the different cultures in America and how diverse each one can be. Kevin Roose, an undergraduate at Brown University, decides to “study abroad” at the conservative evangelical Liberty University to see what it was like in stark contrast to his liberal Ivy League. Upon arriving there, he was an outsider who was used to seeing those types of people (evangelicals/born-again Christians) as kooks and weirdos, however, as he really dives into Liberty’s culture, he realizes that the students there really don’t hold secret meetings to create anti-abortion rallies or beat up gay kids in their spare time. There was a surprising amount
Wealth “Soft” from “Hard” Prosperity Gospel Bowler observed that, around 1990s, prosperity preachers combined their work with therapeutic services such as weight loss, emotional relief, fitness capacity to work, self-esteem among many more. Health and wealth were still the main ideas sold by the prosperity preachers just that they had introduced new products targeting women seeking to gain a better body shape and individuals with low self esteem. A good example of this prosperity gospel trend is Joyce Mayer, whose personal triumph over marital failure and childhood abuse brings her ministry to shape. Her audience is middle aged women who can associate themselves with the pains of weight loss and relational challenges. Victory Prosperity gospel
Readers appreciate her story because it is honest, and her freedom is attributed to no other factor but the Lord’s mercy and intervention in her life. Rowlandson goes from riches to near rags as she says “I have seen the extreme vanity of this world: One hour I have been in health, and wealthy, wanting nothing. But the next hour in sickness and wounds, and death having nothing but sorrow and affliction” (300). Mary’s life is proof that it should be of importance to have a relationship with God and to be well versed in the Bible. The Lord is a foundation and rock for all who believe, and as is shown in the life of Mary Rowlandson, we will never reach a pit so low that he is not
Q1. According to tradition, who wrote the Gospel of Mark? Why are modern scholars unable to verify that tradition? What themes in the Gospel suggest that it was composed after the Jewish Revolt against Rome had already begun?
More than 200,000 children are soldiers (Gettleman, 2010, 1). The issue of child soldiers came to worldwide attention when Ishmael Beah wrote his book A Long Way Gone: Memoir of a Child Soldier. Ever since then it has been continually debated, and researched. Rebel groups like the LRA and also some government troops abduct children from their homes. These children are forced into war before they’ve lost all their baby teeth, or had their first crush.
Many may believe that reading a book about religion would be challenging to accomplish for someone who is not religious. But those people have never read Anne Lamott’s, Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith. If one were to ask non-religious college students to read a book by a random author about spirituality and “Finding God” through conversion, they would most likely roll their eyes and bear through it. In Lamott’s series of essays, one does not have to “suffer through the readings” because her writing style is one of a kind. She has strategically chosen every word because she is aware of how important her spiritual experiences are to so many people, religious or not.
Christians often view salvation as a heavenly resting place; in reality, however, salvation is a lifelong journey that can bridge the gap between Heaven and Earth. This spiritual bridge can be crossed through faith coupled with good works. “Bridge”, a short story by Daniel O’Malley, features a young boy who struggles to comprehend salvation as well as find his own. This motif of salvation is achieved through the use of biblical allusions which also help support the fact that the bridge is a physical representation for the motif of the path to salvation which the narrator fails to cross. O’Malley starts his story with two biblical allusions, “...but also about the flood and locusts and frogs and other plagues that had happened before and could happen again…(192).
Can you recall your favorite childhood book? Children’s books date back to the 1800s with books like Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Later in the mid-20th century, books like The Cat in The Hat and Green Eggs and Ham brought entertainment and joy to kids all around America. Both books came to life by Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. Geisel sold more than one hundred million copies of his books for children.
In the two short stories, “Young Goodman Brown,” by Nathaniel Hawthorne and “The Prodigal Son,” by St. Luke there is a parallel struggle of faith. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown” is a very dark tale of mystery and deceit that surrounds a young man’s test of true faith in his battle against the evil one. In the parable of “The Prodigal Son,” Christ gives the reader a picture of God’s unfailing love toward His children and His ever constant surrounding presence. Faith is tested in each of these stories and the choice becomes to either succumb to this evil world, turn to God, or perhaps something else altogether. Although each story differs in climactic endings, both protagonists in each story reflect the struggle of one’s very soul by their reluctance to fully submit to God.
Writing about controversial subjects can often be difficult; however Hughes executed his story, Salvation, in an intriguing manner that is suitable to all audiences and religions. In this story, the writer retells an experience from his childhood describing his journey to Jesus Christ. Discussing the complications, the main character, Hughes, faced while trying to come to Jesus is what makes the story interesting to read. On many occasions, you will read a story or watch a movie that shows the main character coming to Jesus and having an immediate and obvious realization of their Savior. For this reason, I found this story to be unique and relatable in the way that it shows a journey that countless Christians face, but you are not often granted the opportunity to read about this type of experience.
The New Testament highlights several Scripture reading concerning false practicing and beliefs in certain religions such as: (Matt.7:15-16, 24:11, Matt. 24:5; 24; Mark 13:22, 2 Cor.11:4, 2 Cor.11:13-15, Ga.1:8, EVS). These Scriptures are much valued, because God did not want His people deceived theologically and academically concerning His promise for His people. Therefore, the author Ron Rhodes writes, The viewpoint of those who hold to historic, evangelical Christianity, a “cult is any religious movement that claims to be derived from the Bible and/or the Christian faith, and that advocates beliefs that differ so significant with major Christian doctrines that two consequences follow: (1) The movement cannot legitimately be considered a
In the two short stories, “Young Goodman Brown,” by Nathaniel Hawthorne and “The Prodigal Son,” by St. Luke there is a parallel struggle of faith. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown” is a very dark tale of mystery and deceit that surrounds a young man’s test of true faith in his battle against the evil one. In the parable of “The Prodigal Son,” Christ gives the reader a picture of God’s unfailing love toward His children and His ever constant surrounding presence. Faith is tested in each of these stories and the choice becomes to either succumb to this evil world, turn to God, or perhaps something else altogether. Although each story differs in climactic endings, both protagonists in each story reflect the struggle of one’s very soul by their reluctance to fully submit to God.
In Hughes’s short essay, which he ironically titles “Salvation,” he tells the reader about one of his most significant childhood memories. Hughes provides background about a huge revival at his aunt’s church. He flashes forward to the day where he was supposed to be called upon by Jesus and greeted by a bright light his aunt repeatedly tells him about. Hughes recalls that he sat on the mourners’ bench right in the front row with the rest of the unsaved children.
(Wiesel, 37) Struggle for identity is seen here as Eliezer loses the faith he once studied and worshipped. “Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, that turned my life into one long night seven times sealed.” (Wiesel, 34) This was the turning point for Eliezer in many ways. The warm blanket of delusion that had once been wrapped securely around Eliezer had long been discarded.
Growing up Christianity had always been part of my life and there was no question about it. My family was christian and the culture that my parents grew up in was heavily religious. However, I personally never had a true connection to Christ at a young age. To me church was the place I went to answer questions in Sunday School and win prizes for it, and that was how I saw it for a long time. It was hard for me to see it has more than that and from the outside I may have looked like the kid had a true connection with Christ by the way I talked in front of the church when my class presented, or the fact that I was able to answer most if not all the questions correctly.
