Through these perspectives, Whitmarsh emphasizes the significance of atheism in classical history, with a clear intention of opposing the frequent neglect atheists and atheist history receive from influential historians and educators. To this end, Whitmarsh aims to disprove the misconception that religion is inherently natural in humans, thus recognizing and acknowledging atheist history as equally significant to religious history. Such a platform is consistent
He received a B.A. degree from Philander Smith College in Arkansas in 1958, a B.D. degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in 1961, and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Northwestern University in 1963 and 1965, respectively. He taught theology and religion at Philander Smith College, Adrian College in Michigan, and beginning in 1970 at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where he was awarded the distinguished Charles A. Briggs Chair in systematic theology in 1977. He taught theology and religion at Philander Smith College, Adrian College in Michigan, and beginning in 1970 at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where he was awarded the distinguished Charles A. Briggs Chair in systematic theology in 1977. The thesis of this book is that one's social and historical context decides not only the questions 2 we address to God but also the mode or form of the
Francis Nosike 09/24/16 AP Literature Mr. Amoroso Death cannot be explained because it’s not a living entity; it’s the transformation from a physical state to dust. In the novel Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya; Antonio, the protagonist, witnessed three deaths that fostered his religious ambivalence. Therefore, the three deaths formulated a cycle of inquiries that lead to the constant statement, ‘anyone could die.’ No living soul on this plain could ever explain how death operates. The abstract conception of death itself is challenging, but with time, we slowly begin to comprehend the ‘true’ nature of death and what it brings to us.
Throughout centuries, persuasion has been used to argue your point of view, whether it was the ability to give reason, or to cite evidence to support that idea. Jonathan Edwards, a Puritan preacher, used the power of appeal to reach his audience during a sermon. During Mr. Edwards sermons, he was able to capture the audience's attention by using many literary techniques such as; imagery to scare the literal hell out of people, the contrast of God's wrath and grace, and the demeanor in which he spoke in. An effective method that Mr. Edwards uses in his sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, is the detailed and vivid imagery he conveys while speaking.
Starting in the 1730s, a movement formally known as the Great Awakening was born. This marked the beginning of a religious and spiritual revival that was a direct response to Enlightenment ideals which highlighted logic instead of spirituality. A leader in this movement was Jonathan Edwards; a theologian that delivered one of the most influential sermons of its time; a sermon titled Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God. In this sermon, Edwards employed the use of cherry picking from a credible source and the use of a threatening tone to convey his message - that one would be saved from the wrathful judgment of God if they obediently followed the Bible and its teachings.
C.S. Lewis Views “God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.” – C.S. Lewis. A once self-proclaimed atheist, C.S. Lewis went on to become a great author and apologist. In his book, “Mere Christianity,” Lewis offers an interesting perception of Christian beliefs that we will explore here.
he Colonial Period was a very significant period that influenced many. American Literature greatly influenced the period—the colonial period consisted of 1607-1765. Puritan beliefs heavily dominated the colonial period. Some characteristics of this period were historical and religious. The significant pieces from what we read in this period include "Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God" By Jonathan Edwards, "Verses upon the Burning of Our House" By Anne Bradstreet, and lastly, "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" By Patrick Henry.
A picture is worth a thousand words. In “Sinners of an Angry God”, Jonathan Edwards captures an image of hell in the Puritan’s mind. Creating a sense of fear during the Great Awakening, Edwards urges the parishioners to accept God as their Savior and avoid sinful behavior. Edwards passionately tries to persuade the Puritans to realize their eternal danger of sin by using fiery diction that creates a fear of hell, and dramatizing human weakness through a primal human fear. Edwards begins his sermon with the use of imagery to create for the audience an image of hell as “someone’s foot sliding” and a “fiery oven”.
Epicurus questions how and why evil exists if God is omnipotent and omnibenevolent. He understands that God cannot be both all-powerful and all-loving if evil exists since s/he would then be limited in power and love. This means that God either does not have the power to stop evil or God is no so loving and will allow evil in the world. I will analyze Epicurus’ question through John Hick’s theodicy of soul making.
The Puritans were a religious group of people who helped in the colonization of America in the early 17th century. The Puritan’s beliefs consisted of things that made them fear their God. They believed in total depravity, the idea that everyone is born a sinner, and should be cast from God. They also believed that God chooses who He want’s to save, that Jesus Christ died only for God’s elect, and in the idea of predestination. By the 1700s, many of the church leaders and preachers believed that their society had fallen away from their original beliefs and had become self-satisfied and materialistic.
This paper will discuss the problem of evil. In the first part, I will discuss Walter Sinnott-Armstrong’s atheist stance and William Lane Craig’s theist stance on the problem of evil. In the final part of this paper, I will argue that Walter Sinnott-Armstrong’s argument is stronger. The Problem of Evil
Two wrongs don’t make a right, and in the play of Hamlet by William Shakespeare, the characters had to learn that the hard way. Almost every tragedy of the play is caused by a character seeking revenge which usually ended up making the situation worse. Wrath was the leading sin responsible for all these misfortunes because it caused multiple strains in relationships, revealed the true nature of the characters, and created the desire for revenge. The play doesn’t really address the relationship of Hamlet and his mother before the death of his father and her remarriage to his uncle, but it would be hard to believe that it was worse than how it was after those two events.
A common questioning of a higher power beyond the physical realm lingers in society: Who and what is God?. However, many of these theological questions cannot be answered until we, of course, die. Due to human’s innate curiosity to understand the forces beyond their own, especially in terms of religion, humans find their own reasons to believe in God in the process of discovery. Religion is a sense of belief and worship to praise a higher power (God), and it provides a guide for human beings to have the opportunity to come together and live as one image of God’s children. “Imagine There’s No Heaven” is an article in which Salman Rushdie, the author, presents an atheistic view where religion is pointless, and a higher being is non-existent.
In Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, there are scenes that trick the audience into thinking that it will give them the movie’s view on the meaning of life. The film, however, never actually gives the audience a real, serious answer to the questions that relate to life’s meaning; by doing this, the people who created the film probably wanted the audience to make up their own views and answers to life’s meanings and purposes (a loosely defined meaning of existentialism). In existentialism, existentialists reject proposed systems that have a definitive answer to the questions involving the meaning and purpose of life; they freely choose standards of values on the human condition, which asks questions, like “Why am I here,” “What does it mean to be human,” or “How should I live my life?” According to Mitchell’s Roots of Wisdom, the idea of existentialism “emphasizes the uniqueness and freedom of the human person as an individual (what makes each life a unique, personal experience) as opposed to the essence of a human being (what makes all of us alive).”
Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.ucc.idm.oclc.org/stable/1465226 Hinnells, J. R., 2010. The Routledge Companion to the Study of Religion. In: J. R. Hinnells, ed. The Routledge Companion to the Study of Religion. s.l.:London ; New York : Routledge, pp. 5-19.
