Essays --

Beyond the Bible, written by Howard Marshall, is a compilation of essays that seek to propose a biblically sound way to move from biblical text to doctrine and application. Marshall believes that if one is going to move â€Å"beyond the bible,† they must do so â€Å"biblically.† A concern for Marshall is also how to properly apply scripture to controversial matters in the church today. The book includes more than just Marshall’s work, but essays written by Kevin Vanhoozer and Stanley Porter as well, which backs the idea that hermeneutics should be a discussion, not a solo speech. In Marshall’s first essay, ‘Evangelicals and Hermeneutics,’ he summarizes the state of evangelical theology in relation to hermeneutics. Marshall describes how over the past thirty years, evangelical scholars have come to appreciate hermeneutics more than ever before. Evangelical scholars now grasp and explore hermeneutical concerns at all levels of study: general hermeneutics, exegesis, as well as exposition and application. Marshall states that while examining an author’s intent is important, it overlooks the question of sensus plenior, the work’s deeper meaning intended by God, not necessarily by the human author. In Marshall’s second essay, ‘The Development of Doctrine,’ he identifies two approaches to biblical interpretation, conservative and progressive. Marshall witnessed a need for greater clarity in regards to worship practices, principles, and theology due to the varying opinions among evangelical interpreters. Marshall mentions, â€Å"It is especially the duty of evangelical Christians to provide some kind of reasoned, principled approach to the question of the development of doctrine from Scripture† (Marshall 45). Marshall’s third essay, ‘The Search for Bi... ...ques approaches based on the historical-critical method, the speech-act theory, and the approach of Wittgenstein. Porter’s view is that Paul, himself, had his own opinions on Jesus, God, and Christianity overall. Porter suggests using the translation theory when looking to go beyond the bible. He believes one should carefully examine the core of what is being said in scripture, and then translate it into today’s language. Beyond the Bible is full of useful insights regarding how to apply scripture to doctrine and everyday life. Marshall, Vanhoozer, and Porter are all well-educated theologians. How to faithfully apply Scripture to everyday life is not conclusively agreed upon and laid out in this book, but it pushes readers to think about biblical interpretation in new ways. As mentioned earlier, hermeneutics is meant to be an on-going discussion, not a solo speech.

Hannibal :: essays research papers

Hannibal-RPR In Thomas Harris' Hannibal, Harris, like many other authors, seems to be obsessed with the darker side of humanity and it is through his characterisation of "Hannibal the Cannibal" in his novel that he revels the other side of humanity, the side that most people would rather stayed locked up. Hannibal however would not stay locked up. In the previous novel "Silence of the Lambs" Hannibal escaped during a transfer from his cell in Baltimore to an institution Memphis. He lived a quiet and secluded live after escaping, he'd been careful, and had never been tracked. He had been careless when he sent a letter to Clarice. During a drugs raid Clarice shot drug baron Evelda Drumgo after she shot an officer. Evelda was holding a baby and the media did not publicize well the shooting of a woman clutching a baby. It was this that alerted Hannibal to Clarice's misfortunes and lead him to sending the letter that would revel his location and eventually lead to his capture. His capture was not by authorities but by Mason Verger, Hannibal's only surviving victim who now needs a respirator to live and can very rarity leave his chamber. Mason did not have him captured to hand over the authorities but to have his face eaten by pigs like mason had his face eaten off by dogs. Before Mason had a chance to have Hannibal's face eaten off Clarice Starling breaks into the barn, proceeds to rescue Hannibal but unfortunately before she can rescue him she is shot in the back with a tranquilizer several times and Hannibal has to rescue her. Hannibal takes her back to his home to recover and by the time she is recovered her and Hannibal get along well and she ends up living with him in a mansion in Italy but not after Hannibal and Clarice make a dinner of Mr. Krendler, a man who tried to halt Clarice's career at every opportunity. . It is on how the writer revels the darker side of Hannibal that I would like to concentrate this essay. The writer, Thomas Harris, uses many techniques to help revel and explain the dark side of Hannibal although he does enlighten us to the lighter side and his life before he was uncovered as a homicidal psychopath. In a letter sent to Clarice from Hannibal after the shooting insolent Hannibal explains that he has followed her public humiliation closely and describes how similar they are, but not in as few words.

America Favorite Car Brand

An automobile is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally for the transport of people rather than goods. Basically, automobiles stand a very important position in this society.A survey conducted from February 10th to February 13th, 2013 by researchers at Lab42 found that of 500 American car buyers, the Toyota car brand occupies the first position in terms of brand loyalty with consumers. Consumers are loyal first to the Toyota brand than to any other car brand. According to this survey the second and third positions are occupied by Chevrolet and Honda respectively. The survey focused on the fuel economy, driver ease, dependability, and second hade value.Toyota Motor Company will be the most loyalty-inducing brand in the United States. Besides Toyota and Honda, there are few more company were participate in this survey such as Ford, Nissan, Mazda, and others. When Americans think of repeat car buying they seek out Toyota. Toyota America’s favorite car brand is also top of mind when making new car purchases. The Toyota brand has commonly been known to be excellent in the following seven areas: safety, performance, value, design, environmental friendliness and technology.Descriptive research is very common in business and other aspects of life and most of the marketing research we have heard about or participated in can be categorized as descriptive research (Brown, 2012, p. 33). Basically, this purpose of this survey is to know what customers prefer and why. References Brown, T. J. , & Suter, T. (2012). MR. Ohio: Mason. Epstein, Z. (2013). Trouble Brewing for Apple: Survey says half of IPhone users in China ‘want to own’ Galaxy S4. Retrieved from http://bgr. com/2013/04/15/iphone-galaxy- s4-survey-china-439099/

Critique on Happiness and Analysis Essay

In Karl Giberson’s article â€Å"The Ends of Happiness† (2006), from the Science & Spirit magazine, he raises the topic of happiness, where he claims that people are now pursuing the means to happiness as an end to itself and have missed the point of life. Although Giberson(2006) has made some valid arguments in claiming that people pursue wealth as a means to happiness, his arguments are largely undermined due to a lack of reliable evidences. Giberson’s (2006) claims are not unfounded, as human beings tend to set their goals on material success. For them, monetary success is their definition of happiness. This idea is illustrated by the statement â€Å"The means have become an end for many of us†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (para. 11). He goes on to say that many others â€Å"can’t seek happiness directly† (para. 7). His thoughts align well with society’s widely accepted view that â€Å"without family and friends it is hard to find happiness, for these are essential partners in living and doing well†(para. 9). As such, Giberson (2006) implies that happiness comes from the various experiences and journeys which we go through in life, such as quality time spent with people around us. However, Giberson (2006) makes an unsuccessful attempt in persuading his readers to adopt his beliefs by merely referencing to Aristotle’s philosophy of â€Å"living well and doing well† (para. 8). Throughout the article, Giberson (2006) constantly refers to his own opinions and experiences. For example, he reminisces that â€Å"in reflecting on the accumulated memories of happy times †¦ [he finds himself] agreeing with Aristotle† (para. 12). Thereafter, he mentions that he â€Å"coached [his] children’s sports teams †¦ and lov(ed) it† (para. 13). This demonstrates that his views are greatly influenced by emotions rather than facts. Although the use of anecdotes sparks interest and engages his readers effectively, his excessive usage of this communication technique makes his arguments seem unsupported and weak. As a result of his heavy reliance on his own opinions, it has led to a hasty generalisation in his argument as seen through his claim that â€Å"America †¦ is not a nation pursuing happiness† (para. 11). Due to a lack of expert opinion and statistical data, his claim remains unpersuasive and has little credibility. Hence, Giberson’s(2006) article lacks concrete support and fails to make a compelling argument. Although Giberson (2006) provides a good point of view on how people are becoming too focused on wealth in the pursuit of happiness, he makes sweeping statements that lacks credibility. He can provide a more concrete argument by using a wider range of reliable sources. This will greatly strengthen Giberson’s (2006) argument and lend credibility to his claim. It would help greatly if he had supporting opinions of other academic writers who follow his train of thought. In essence, his article did indeed establish his thesis that people are pursuing the means to happiness as an end to itself, but had unfortunately failed to compellingly persuade his audience. Reference: Giberson, K. (2006, March/April). The Ends of Happiness. Retrieved on 21 Jan 2013 from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=4e0e6d4c-0091-45b9-be30-fd892a301bf9%40sessionmgr10&vid=3&hid=2

Gender Conflict in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ Essay

It is evident that in A Midsummer Nights Dream gender conflict is not the only source of comic disorder in the exposition of the play. This can be seen due to the number of other events and scenes which are sources of comic disorder such as character relationships, stereotypes & status and authoritative conflicts. An element of comic disorder in the exposition of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is the idea of men having a higher status than women. The theme of men having control over women is also reinforced in the relationship between Hippolyta and Theseus. Theseus states that he has â€Å"wooed thee with my sword, and won thy love doing thee injuries† whether this is taken in a sexual context or a violent one, it highlights the idea of men having the power and force to overpower and subdue women. The fact that Hippolyta is the queen of the Amazons shows just how strong this idea is, as she would have been a powerful and strong warrior herself. The theme of the old having po wer over the young is explored with the idea that Hermias father has complete power over her as she is just a young woman. The fact that only old men hold the high, authoritative positions in Athens again reinforces this idea that the old and the male rule the people. However this is humorous to an Elizabethan audience as the English Monarch at the time was in fact Queen Elizabeth. Famed for her ferociousness and female power, this is greatly juxtaposed with the treatment of the women in A Midsummer Nights Dream. Particularly because Queen Elizabeth was actually a fairly young monarch. The quote â€Å"as she is mine I may dispose of her† directly reinforces the idea that woman are simply the possessions of men whether they be their daughters or their wives. Another representation of these themes is the conflict between Oberon and Titania. Titania is being again the disobedient woman who will not do as her powerful husband wishes. Oberon states in act 2 scene 1 â€Å"Tarry, rash wanton. Am not I thy lord?† which enforces the idea that Titania should be obeying Oberon, not being sarcastic and brazen. She replies to oberon â€Å"Then I must be thy lady. But I know, when thou hast stolen away from Fairyland, and in the shape of Corin sat all day, laying on pipes of corn and versing love to amorous Phillida.† in an accusational tone accusing him of being unfaithful to her. As a woman, Titania is exerting power and makes herself almost Oberon’s equal in their back and forth bickering, however this displeases Oberon as she should be submissive and passive towards his behaviours. So, Oberon decides to  humiliate Titania in order to achieve what he wants, which in this case, is the indian boy. However, Oberon does not have a claim to the boy has he was rightfully given to Titania to look after, due to his mother’s death. The fact that Oberon must humiliate Titania into getting what he wants demonstrates how much of a strong character Titania is and creates a great parallel of whom has the power in the ‘magical’ relationship. This humiliation technique is comic to an Elizabethan man as this meek representation of women would have appealed to the sexist humour and values of the era. We see this conflict with Hermia and her father Egeus when Egeus is taking her to see Theseus the ruler of Athens because of her refusal to marry Demetrius. Egeus has arranged for her to marry Demetrius, a common practice in Ancient Greece and the ancient world. An Elizabethan audience, especially women, would be able to relate to this as arranged marriages would still take place for money and status. A source of comic disorder in the exposition of A Midsummer Nights Dream is the character relationships. Lysanders attempts in the woods to sleep with Hermia are very humorous to the audience as they see the problems with lust and pride of virginity in young love. The quote â€Å"One turf shall serve as pillow for us both; one heart, one bed, two bosoms and one troth† shows that although Lysander may be riddling prettily he is implying he wants to be able to hold or be close to Hermias breasts. The repition of the word ‘one’ shows Lysanders desires to become ‘one’ with Hermia, which is a reference to sex. However it also could be that Lysander desires to spiritually be ‘one’ with helana, not just physically but mentally. This could be linked with the way the forest brings out the characters spirituality. In Northrop Fryes â€Å"the green world† he discusses how the main characters escape the order of a city for a forested and wild setting adjacent to the city. This natural environment is often described as a green world. It is in this more loosely structured, fantastic environment that issues surround social order, romantic relationships, and inter-generational strife, which are a prominent part of the â€Å"city world†, become resolved, facilitating a return to the normal order. In correspondence with this, recent literary critics drawn to ecocriticism have occasionally found the concept valuable to their work as well. Lysander’s advances cause comic disorder as they explore the idea of  letting the characters sexuality free in the forest. This is funny to a male and female Elizabethan audience as Lysanders attempts to sleep with Hermia are quickly shunned by a prim Hermia who quickly guesses his hidden meanings. Another couple to cause comic disorder in the exposition are Helena and Demetrius, due to Helenas utter lust and doting for Demetrius. This shows gender role reversal as Helena should be a lady who is wooed and pursued. An example of this being â€Å"We cannot fight for love as men may do. We should be wooed and were not made to woo.† Helena admits that she is consciously gender role reversing, however she will continue to do so until Deemetrius loves her. This is comic as it shows how her attempts to seduce Demetrius fail time and time again and she uses very comic language to express her desperation for Demetrius to return her feelings. For expmale â€Å"I am your spaniel; and, Demetrius, The more you beat me the more I will fawn on you†. This unbelievably derogatory analysis of Helena by herself is sad yet comic as she is supposed to be a lady who is reserved and does not make her feelings known, never mind in such a dramatic and desperate fashion. This humour in the exposition sets up the themes of gender role reversal and sexuality in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Puck is obviously a main source of comic disorder in ‘A Midsummer Nights Dream’ for example his disastrous mix up of Lysander and Demetrius. Though A Midsummer Night’s Dream divides its action between several groups of characters, Puck is the closest thing the play has to a protagonist. His mischievous spirit pervades the atmosphere, and his actions are responsible for many of the complications that develop the main plots in a chaotic way. Puck sees himself as a naughty â€Å"master† that plays with mortal people as if they were puppets. He takes advantage of one of humankind’s weakness, love. For Puck, love is either a nuisance (played more evil than good) or just a comical disaster that humans and other beings stupid enough to fall into it, to entertain him. The audience can see this when he says â€Å"Up and down, up and down; I will lead them up and down: I am fear’d in field and town; Goblin, lead them up and down.† This quotation highlights how mischievous he is and how he tortures humans in their love affairs by causing chaos and malfunction. Puck’s transformations also cause mass comic disorder in ‘’a midsummer night’s dream’’, he famously transforms Bottom’s head into that of  a donkey, and he’s also fond of shape-shifting himself. At one point, he brags that he often pretends to be a stool and then disappears so that old ladies will land on their â€Å"bums†. He also terrorizes the Mechanicals in the woods after turning their friend into a human-donkey (bottom). One could say that Puck parallels Philostrate’s position as Theseus’s â€Å"master of revels.† (In Elizabethan England, the Master of the Revels was a male who was in charge of all the entertainment at court organizing entertainment and parties for the king and court. Philostrate’s job is to make sure Theseus and his court is entertained. Puck’s main job, much alike Philsostrate, is to entertain his king and his fairy comrades with farce and comedy. Puck often in the play takes on the role of the court jester. As Puck says, his duty is to â€Å"jest to Oberon and make him smile† and he does this with the humiliation of Titania, causing her to fall in love with bottom, and by accidently causing hilarious chaos within Lysander, Hermia, Helena and Demetrius’ love lives. Puck either intends to, or ends up causing chaos which is always motivated by love. Therefore Shakespeare uses to him to personify the trials and tribulations that true love brings, whether it be jealousy, controlling natures or disobedience. However it is true that Gender Conflict is a main part of comic disorder in the exposition of A Midsummer Nights Dream. The conflicts between Egeus and Hermia, Oberon and Titania, Helena and Demetrius, Theseus and Hermia & Lysander and Hermia are all to do with issues between men and woman. These issues mainly being sexuality, power and rights. However it is not the only source of comic disorder in the exposition, due to the fact the exposition contains the other themes of comic disorder. Gender conflict is based on the cultural beliefs various societies have established concerning the roles men and women play in those societies. Much of the conflict centres on stereotypes and whether the different genders conform to those stereotypes, so theref ore in A Midsummer Nights Dreams, gender conflict is definitely something that appears a lot in the exposition. Particularly with the disobedience of Hermia and the gender role reversal of Helena with her behaviour towards Demetrius. However, it is evident that Gender Conflict is not the only source of comic disorder in the exposition of A Midsummer Nights Dream.

Reflection on the book “Night” by Ellie Wiesel Essay

â€Å"I know it’s terrible, trying to have any faith†¦ when people are doing such horrible things. But you know what I sometimes think? I think the world may be going through a phase†¦ it’ll all pass, maybe not for hundreds of years but someday. I still believe in spite of everything that people are really good at heart.†(Diary of Anne Frank) While reading the book â€Å"night†, my view was that people had the right to lose faith after everything they had to go through. However, when I finished the book, I gave it a deep thought and realized that people are good at heart. Maybe it doesn’t take only one lifetime for them to realize what it means to be good and make good actions, but what is important is that maybe one day they will do realize it. It’s hard to accept that a person who was able to sleep after killing thousands of people, can change some day, but who knows? Life changes people and especially after such horrible scenes I think humans won’t let anything like this to happen again. In my opinion, the impact of the Holocaust is huge and people have learned their lesson. Killing and watching people of all ages suffer in such terrible ways didn’t do any good and it won’t do in the future. In times such as these, it’s hard to keep any faith. The only thing in your mind, other than how to survive, is to question life, or God, or even yourself â€Å"Why is this happening to me? What have I done wrong that I have to be punished for? Isn’t there a God?†. How can you explain to someone who has survived a concentration camp, that the one who had killed his/her family and friends, can change, can be good? Few are those who can understand the injustice of life, and moreover, can understand and believe that humans are not all that cruel. I truly believe that the phase when people were able to do anything without a blink of an eye has passed with the Holocaust. Also, I think that there are many people who pray for forgiveness for those who torture and murder, because â€Å"what goes around comes around†. Even if people don’t get killed themselves, life simply always gives it back to them, because the world has  to be in balance – one can’t kill, and have free soul at the same time.

Local Government Strategy Training Materials Essay - 3

Local Government Strategy Training Materials - Essay Example New managers are required to observe and implement these laws strictly. Examples of such business laws are inclusive of Occupational Act and Safety rules, financial laws et cetera. In relation to New Zealand context, there are rules and regulations that govern the operation of various businesses, hotels inclusive as discussed here in: Part 1 of the New Zealand Local Government Act 2002, explicates the preliminary provisions of the act; it indicates the purpose of this act which involves the provision of a local government authority with the capacity to undertake leaderships taking into consideration the needs of the diverse communities in New Zealand. It further states the specific purposes of the local governments (www.legislation.govt.nz n.d). Additionally, the act provides guidelines and powers for the local authorities that will assist them in making decisions regarding the specific activities they undertake as well as the ways in which they will undertake them. Section 3 (c) of the act promotes a dimension of accountability among the local authorities in their efforts to serve the New Zealand Communities. Consequently, section 3 (d), of the New Zealand Local Government act provides a platform for local authorizes to undertake wider roles that are geared towards meeting the current and future needs of the local communities. The major purposes of the local government within the boundaries of New Zealand are stipulated within this act. Sub-part 1, section ten of this act stipulates that the local government has the authority to undertake democratically oriented decision making processes, taking actions that impact on the local communities. Section ten, subpart 2 of the act elaborates on issues ascribed to good infrastructural quality, proper service provision and the appropriate regulatory measures. It stipulates that such facets should be efficient, appropriate as well as effective. The