Brad Way
Mrs. Burnett
AP English
30 April 2015
This unit we have covered the idea of existentialism. I had the pleasure of teaching the class on The Stranger by Albert Camus. Considering the author is an existentialist himself, I figured I should explore the idea more. I may not be an expert, but I do have the general idea of what it is. I will explain existentialism as briefly as I can before carrying on:
• Life has no universal meaning or moral code
• Humans are to make meaning in life for themselves (each person can have their own unique meaning)
- Theistic Existentialism: the belief that there is a god or higher power, but humans have gone too far from the nature that god gave them to return.
- Atheistic Existentialism: there is no god or higher power, each person is the center of their own universe.
There are additional minor points to this idea, however I wanted to focus my writing on these key points.
I have a hard time with the idea of existentialism. First off, due to my faith in Jesus; He makes it clear that every person does have a purpose in life, which is to serve Him and bring Him glory (whether everyone follows that purpose is another thing). Additionally, existentialism falls apart when I examine it.
Going off existentialism's definition, there is no universal meaning or moral code to life. This takes away anyone's ability to say someone is wrong. In existentialism, if I were to say my purpose in life that I made for myself is to kill everyone in sight, 99.9999% of people would say I'm wrong (the other 0.0001% would either be those in the world who unashamedly love evil or are just desiring to fight this argument by saying post-modernism's battle cry, "Well if it's good to you..."). So think about it, would I be wrong or unjust in anyway by saying my purpose in life is to kill everyone in my sight? The true existentialist would be forced to say no because that meaning in life I have found is true to me. However, everyone gets that feeling in their stomach and voice in their head that screams, "NO!"
Why? Why do we care if people decide their purpose in life is to kill everyone? If life is meaningless, who cares? And that's where I can't believe in existentialism because every person in the world, whether they believe it or not, believes in a universal meaning in life. Every person believes that the meaning of life starts with "doing good". I agree whole heartedly with that statement, however my definition of "good" is strongly different than most of this world, especially this society. I believe in the biblical definition of good.
What does the bible say about what is "good"? Well for starters, it mentions that humans, by nature, are far from it. We are NOT good and we can do NO good on our own. If you don't believe me, compare yourself to the Ten Commandments — when you compare yourself with the standards Jesus set in following the law (Matthew 5-7) you fall very short of being anywhere close to good, in fact, the law is meant to show us how bad we are (Romans 3:20).
What else does the bible say about what is "good"? Living your life for God's glory (meaning everything you do, you are thanking, trusting, loving, and giving credit to God) is it (1 Corinthians 10:31). The start of that is a repentant heart, meaning you realize you are bad and realize Jesus was the only good person in all of history, and that He was the perfect sacrifice to die for the imperfect people we are. Jesus' death was a legal transaction, just like in a court of law, Jesus paid your fine and did the time for the crimes you committed. You are no longer guilty because He has taken on your punishment for you.
Philippians 1:6 says, "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." So not only are we being made more like God (aka GOOD) but one day in heaven we will be completely GOOD. No longer held down by humanly imperfections, but now made just like Jesus: good.
In conclusion, at the heart of everyone, there is a universal desire for "good" to be done. However, when we come to the end of our life, God isn't going to judge us by our own standards of "good" but His. So I plead with anyone and everyone who happens to read this: repent and trust in Christ. Colossians 1:15-23 explains that everything was made by Christ for Christ — don't waste your life on anyone or anything else.
Thursday, April 30, 2015
Sunday, March 29, 2015
March Monthly Blog
Brad Way
Mrs. Burnett
AP English 12
27 March 2015
Recently in class we finished the play Dr. Faust. The plot of the play starts with Dr. Faust seeking more knowledge. Not just for himself, but so that he could confidently say he is superior in knowledge compared to his fellow humans. This desire for knowledge quickly evolves into a desire for power. Faust sees the best way to obtain this power is through a source outside the realm of this world, so he decides to dabble in the dark arts. Long story short, Faust makes a deal with the devil saying that Satan can have his soul for eternity if Satan gives him the power he desires while here on earth. As most people know, the story ends with Faust dissatisfied with the deal and even seeking repentance, but cannot fully flee the devil and his grasp, therefore sending Faust down to hell with the devil, completing their deal.
Mrs. Burnett
AP English 12
27 March 2015
Recently in class we finished the play Dr. Faust. The plot of the play starts with Dr. Faust seeking more knowledge. Not just for himself, but so that he could confidently say he is superior in knowledge compared to his fellow humans. This desire for knowledge quickly evolves into a desire for power. Faust sees the best way to obtain this power is through a source outside the realm of this world, so he decides to dabble in the dark arts. Long story short, Faust makes a deal with the devil saying that Satan can have his soul for eternity if Satan gives him the power he desires while here on earth. As most people know, the story ends with Faust dissatisfied with the deal and even seeking repentance, but cannot fully flee the devil and his grasp, therefore sending Faust down to hell with the devil, completing their deal.
Faust sought out power over everything else in the world. During our Socratic seminar, it was mentioned that in today's age, the most likely candidate worthy of selling our soul for was money. This conversation, as well as the play itself, reminded me of a passage in the Bible — Proverbs 3:13-18. These few verses describe the worth of Godly wisdom. Godly wisdom can be defined in multiple parts: (1) Having a fear of God (Proverbs 1:7 - fear of God meaning that you realize you deserve His wrath and have an understanding of what His wrath is), (2) Forgiveness and repentance (Romans 10:9-10, Colossians 3:5-11 - fully believing that Jesus' death on the cross paid for your sin and therefore, naturally, you begin turning away from the sin you once lived in), and (3) Obedience (James 1:22, 3:13 - growing in knowledge of God's Word and living a life that follows that knowledge).
The difference I see between every other thing a person would "sell their soul for" (money, popularity, power, etc.) and the wisdom of God is how long each will last. Money (or whatever you would fill in the blank with) has an end date. Money is only valuable as long as you're alive. Money is only valuable if what you truly seek for most in life can even be bought (and if it can, I strongly encourage you to reconsider what you value in life). More reasons can be given to show how temporary money is (along with any other worldly desire).
However, with Godly wisdom, you are gaining something eternal. Once you set your life focused on God, and strive to live a life of Godly wisdom, your eternity is being established. That is why you will here me stress the gospel to anyone willing to listen because when life comes down to it, your view on God is all that matters in life. How you answer the question "who is Jesus to you?" effects your immortal soul. That is why I find it sad that people would waste their lives seeking such things as money, popularity, power, etc. because every moment they waste on pursuing that over God, they are literally wasting their life.
The difference I see between every other thing a person would "sell their soul for" (money, popularity, power, etc.) and the wisdom of God is how long each will last. Money (or whatever you would fill in the blank with) has an end date. Money is only valuable as long as you're alive. Money is only valuable if what you truly seek for most in life can even be bought (and if it can, I strongly encourage you to reconsider what you value in life). More reasons can be given to show how temporary money is (along with any other worldly desire).
However, with Godly wisdom, you are gaining something eternal. Once you set your life focused on God, and strive to live a life of Godly wisdom, your eternity is being established. That is why you will here me stress the gospel to anyone willing to listen because when life comes down to it, your view on God is all that matters in life. How you answer the question "who is Jesus to you?" effects your immortal soul. That is why I find it sad that people would waste their lives seeking such things as money, popularity, power, etc. because every moment they waste on pursuing that over God, they are literally wasting their life.
Thursday, February 26, 2015
February - The Awakening
Bradley Way
Mrs. Burnett
AP English
26 February 2015
The Awakening is obviously about women's rights and, more than that, women's role in society. Any reader could see throughout the novel the struggle faced by Edna in finding herself and where women stand in society. At that time, it was obvious that men believed themselves superior and it has been that way throughout the ages in most societies. America is making a very big step forward in equal rights, especially over the past century. The U.S. is not alone in this pursuit, however, there are still countries out there who still believe in the superiority of men. This battle is a long one, but as you can see across the world, one willing to be fought.
As you have seen in my past posts, I enjoy bringing my faith into the matter. So, the question for today is this: is God sexist? For any question relating to the Christian God, which the Bible would say is the only god, we must search the Christian scripture, the Bible.
Over the past few decades, give or take, the Bible and those who believe have been accused of being sexist and against the well-being of women in general. The scripture used for these arguments are always verse throughout the epistles that say, "A wife must submit to her husband." However, you will never hear someone making this claim against Christians say the rest of these certain passages. So, let us dive into the Word and see what is really going on here.
Start with 1 Corinthians 7:1-6 — a passage on marriage. Paul writes that since we as human beings have such a desire to reproduce and enjoy the act of reproducing, we should be married so that we are not driven to temptation throughout our lives. As he writes, Paul says in verse 4, "For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. LIKEWISE the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does." I added the emphasis myself because it is very important to see the equality here.
Now still even after hearing that, one may ask, "Well, that is still screwed up, shouldn't I be in control of my own body?" It's important to note what the act of sex really is doing. In Genesis chapter 2, we see God's creation of man, woman, and marriage. To summarize, God creates Adam and sees that he shouldn't be alone, it isn't a good lifestyle, so He creates Eve. In doing so, God creates marriage as well. Genesis 2:24 reads, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." The act of becoming "one flesh" is, in fact, sex. With the way God created marriage, He intended that sex be between a man and wife only. Throghout history, this practice has obviously been ignored. However, God desired this because if sex is shared between a man and his wife only (know past partners), then that would be something they would both share between them and no one else. They would have something of each other's that would connect them for the length of their marriage. Therefore, through this shared love and experience, a wife would be forever connected to her husband and a husband would be connected to his wife. In other words, they would have that bit of "control" over each other not in the sense of using them for whatever they selfishly want, but in the sense that they are in mutual control of each other through their bond.
Other passges used in this argument are such like Ephesians 5:22-33, Colossians 3:18-19, and 1 Peter 3:1-7. For the sake of keeping this blog as short as possible, let's just use the Ephesians passage. The first few verses say this, "Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior." The first question I would assume to hear is, "what's this 'husband is the head of his wife' deal?" When it comes to relationships (husband and wife as well as Jesus' relationship with the church), being the head of someone does in fact mean being the leader. However, the job of a leader, biblically speaking, is to never do selfish acts, abusing that role. Let's look at the example of Christ as the head of the church. Jesus' primary reason for coming to earth was to save those who would believe in Him, the church. He suffered and died for the church, and is considered the head of the church. This means in the same way, a husband must be self-sacrificing towards his wife, putting her before himself always, never in a self-pleasuring manner, but always doing what is in his wife and family's best interest.
Even continuing on in the passage in Ephesians, verses 25-33 goes on to explain the role of a husband in what could be said, an intimidating fashion. Stating that we should always be looking at our wives as God's greatest creation, treating her as we would ourselves ("For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it..."), and loving her like Christ loves the church.
When we dig deeper into the Bible, I believe a Christian could sympathize with Edna in The Awakening. She wanted equality and she wanted a someone who loved the idea of just her, not the idea of what that society described as marriage. Jesus is not sexist, quite far from it. There is so much more evidence for this in the scripture, however I know Mrs. Burnett has others to grade so I will end on this: having a perfect relationship with a spouse is impossible, but if we embrace the inspired words of Paul, we come closer and closer to the perfect image of marriage God has before the fall.
Mrs. Burnett
AP English
26 February 2015
The Awakening is obviously about women's rights and, more than that, women's role in society. Any reader could see throughout the novel the struggle faced by Edna in finding herself and where women stand in society. At that time, it was obvious that men believed themselves superior and it has been that way throughout the ages in most societies. America is making a very big step forward in equal rights, especially over the past century. The U.S. is not alone in this pursuit, however, there are still countries out there who still believe in the superiority of men. This battle is a long one, but as you can see across the world, one willing to be fought.
As you have seen in my past posts, I enjoy bringing my faith into the matter. So, the question for today is this: is God sexist? For any question relating to the Christian God, which the Bible would say is the only god, we must search the Christian scripture, the Bible.
Over the past few decades, give or take, the Bible and those who believe have been accused of being sexist and against the well-being of women in general. The scripture used for these arguments are always verse throughout the epistles that say, "A wife must submit to her husband." However, you will never hear someone making this claim against Christians say the rest of these certain passages. So, let us dive into the Word and see what is really going on here.
Start with 1 Corinthians 7:1-6 — a passage on marriage. Paul writes that since we as human beings have such a desire to reproduce and enjoy the act of reproducing, we should be married so that we are not driven to temptation throughout our lives. As he writes, Paul says in verse 4, "For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. LIKEWISE the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does." I added the emphasis myself because it is very important to see the equality here.
Now still even after hearing that, one may ask, "Well, that is still screwed up, shouldn't I be in control of my own body?" It's important to note what the act of sex really is doing. In Genesis chapter 2, we see God's creation of man, woman, and marriage. To summarize, God creates Adam and sees that he shouldn't be alone, it isn't a good lifestyle, so He creates Eve. In doing so, God creates marriage as well. Genesis 2:24 reads, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." The act of becoming "one flesh" is, in fact, sex. With the way God created marriage, He intended that sex be between a man and wife only. Throghout history, this practice has obviously been ignored. However, God desired this because if sex is shared between a man and his wife only (know past partners), then that would be something they would both share between them and no one else. They would have something of each other's that would connect them for the length of their marriage. Therefore, through this shared love and experience, a wife would be forever connected to her husband and a husband would be connected to his wife. In other words, they would have that bit of "control" over each other not in the sense of using them for whatever they selfishly want, but in the sense that they are in mutual control of each other through their bond.
Other passges used in this argument are such like Ephesians 5:22-33, Colossians 3:18-19, and 1 Peter 3:1-7. For the sake of keeping this blog as short as possible, let's just use the Ephesians passage. The first few verses say this, "Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior." The first question I would assume to hear is, "what's this 'husband is the head of his wife' deal?" When it comes to relationships (husband and wife as well as Jesus' relationship with the church), being the head of someone does in fact mean being the leader. However, the job of a leader, biblically speaking, is to never do selfish acts, abusing that role. Let's look at the example of Christ as the head of the church. Jesus' primary reason for coming to earth was to save those who would believe in Him, the church. He suffered and died for the church, and is considered the head of the church. This means in the same way, a husband must be self-sacrificing towards his wife, putting her before himself always, never in a self-pleasuring manner, but always doing what is in his wife and family's best interest.
Even continuing on in the passage in Ephesians, verses 25-33 goes on to explain the role of a husband in what could be said, an intimidating fashion. Stating that we should always be looking at our wives as God's greatest creation, treating her as we would ourselves ("For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it..."), and loving her like Christ loves the church.
When we dig deeper into the Bible, I believe a Christian could sympathize with Edna in The Awakening. She wanted equality and she wanted a someone who loved the idea of just her, not the idea of what that society described as marriage. Jesus is not sexist, quite far from it. There is so much more evidence for this in the scripture, however I know Mrs. Burnett has others to grade so I will end on this: having a perfect relationship with a spouse is impossible, but if we embrace the inspired words of Paul, we come closer and closer to the perfect image of marriage God has before the fall.
Thursday, January 29, 2015
January - A Thousand Splendid Suns
An issue that arises out of A Thousand Splendid Suns is the thought of who can we trust? Within the novel, the Afghanis say the U.S. attacked them on September 11, 2001, rather than the other way around. Of course, it was not the Afghan government who attacked us, but Islamic Jihadists living out the commands of their faith which is seen in Quran 8:12, 8:39, 9:14, 9:29, Sahih Muslim 1:33, and many more other places within the Quran. However, with Afghanistan being a primarily, if not entirely, Muslim country, it would make sense if Afghanistan supported the attacks. Therefore, if we were Muslims in Afghanistan at that time, would we believe our government?
I trust the U.S. government for the most part (not entirely due to the fact that President Obama said we could keep our health care if we wanted...that was not the story for my family). Besides that, am I right in trusting the government? For example, the view on middle easterners has drastically changed in my eyes from them being all jihadists, to now a days where President Obama and many others push that it is not every one of them, just the extremists. But again, I ask how can we trust either opinion fully without being there, seeing the people and understanding the people as a whole?
This is where I make a huge push that everyone of us educate ourselves on what is really going on in our world. Sadly, for most people in the Middle East, that is not a reality they can have due to the corrupted media, publishing only what the governing powers allow due to the fact that if they show any support for any infidel, capitalistic country, their lived are on the line. However, us who have been blessed with a country founded on the principles of the people ruling the governing powers, we have that great opportunity to educate ourselves. We have the opportunity to see the whole story. SO DO IT.
Are you startled at the fact that I said that violence is actually apart of Islam and their beliefs? Then check out the Quran yourself and find out, do not just trust me. Do you disagree with me on the idea that sex before marriage, biblically speaking, is actually sin? Read the Bible and see on your own (1 Corinthians 7:1-3).
We as a people need to stop just trusting what people tell us, but we need to seek out answers ourselves.
I trust the U.S. government for the most part (not entirely due to the fact that President Obama said we could keep our health care if we wanted...that was not the story for my family). Besides that, am I right in trusting the government? For example, the view on middle easterners has drastically changed in my eyes from them being all jihadists, to now a days where President Obama and many others push that it is not every one of them, just the extremists. But again, I ask how can we trust either opinion fully without being there, seeing the people and understanding the people as a whole?
This is where I make a huge push that everyone of us educate ourselves on what is really going on in our world. Sadly, for most people in the Middle East, that is not a reality they can have due to the corrupted media, publishing only what the governing powers allow due to the fact that if they show any support for any infidel, capitalistic country, their lived are on the line. However, us who have been blessed with a country founded on the principles of the people ruling the governing powers, we have that great opportunity to educate ourselves. We have the opportunity to see the whole story. SO DO IT.
Are you startled at the fact that I said that violence is actually apart of Islam and their beliefs? Then check out the Quran yourself and find out, do not just trust me. Do you disagree with me on the idea that sex before marriage, biblically speaking, is actually sin? Read the Bible and see on your own (1 Corinthians 7:1-3).
We as a people need to stop just trusting what people tell us, but we need to seek out answers ourselves.
Sunday, November 30, 2014
November Monthly Blog
Brad Way
Mrs. Burnett
AP English
11/20/14
After reading "The Challenge of Cultural Relativism" by James Rachels, we see a comparison to the book "Things Fall Apart". In "Things Fall Apart" we see the cultural differences of the Christians who enter the Native's land and the actual Natives to bring conflict. The Natives are used to a way of life that differs from that of the Christians. This brings havoc within the tribe since the two parties are both equally accustomed to one way of life that they find it impossible to live the way of the other side. In the novel, we see the end result is buildings burning down and suicide. The culture clash of what is right and wrong brings destruction to the tribe.
On another note, the fact that morality exists is proof of God. An argument might state that since one person's morals differ from another's, that deteriorates this proof of a higher being. However, the fact of the matter is, everyone has a sense of morals. No matter what culture, person, place, or thing, morals exist. And that is what shows the reality of God, the fact that everybody has a sense of what is "good" and what is "bad". Think about this, do you view murder bad? I would hope so, but now I ask, by what standard? Why is murder bad? The idea of survival of the fittest tells us that murder actually is not a bad thing. If you'd like to argue with me over that, first look at Hitler. Was he a bad guy? He did what he thought was right, the Jews were holding him back, so what did he do? He eliminated the thing that held him back. Social Darwinism would say that Hitler was justified in what he did. Yet, the fact is, no person today would say everything is okay. Getting off the example of Hitler, another way to put it is this: every person has a set of actions and ideas they view as "good" and "bad". There is no evolutionary standard that makes sense of morals. There is no reason or room for that matter for morals to exist in survival of the fittest.
God, being the creator of every human (Psalm 139:13), gave everyone of us a sense of morals. However, with a sense of morals He also gave us a choice to follow Him or not, henceforth many people's morals contradict that of the Bible's. The only thing I would have to say to anyone who believes all morals are okay, we just need to have an understanding of different cultures and beliefs; I would say that they are ignoring objective truth. The Bible is objective truth. Name any sin mentioned in the Bible and there will be a logical and loving reason behind it. I say "logical and loving" because first off, the thing about sin is that God commands us to not do it because He loves us. He knows the effect sin not only has on us physically, but also emotionally and mentally. For example, part of the fruit of the spirit is to be of sober-mind (Galations 5). Basically God is saying, "Do not get drunk or high." Why does God say that? Physically: damages your body and has been proven to be the cause of early deaths. Mentally: drugs can give feelings of loneliness especially when you isolate yourself when you do it.
Overall, morals are everywhere, but the objectively right and true morals are held within God's Word. We all have a sense of morals, it's time to see what our morals are called to be by our Creator.
Brad Way
Mrs. Burnett
AP English
11/20/14
After reading "The Challenge of Cultural Relativism" by James Rachels, we see a comparison to the book "Things Fall Apart". In "Things Fall Apart" we see the cultural differences of the Christians who enter the Native's land and the actual Natives to bring conflict. The Natives are used to a way of life that differs from that of the Christians. This brings havoc within the tribe since the two parties are both equally accustomed to one way of life that they find it impossible to live the way of the other side. In the novel, we see the end result is buildings burning down and suicide. The culture clash of what is right and wrong brings destruction to the tribe.
On another note, the fact that morality exists is proof of God. An argument might state that since one person's morals differ from another's, that deteriorates this proof of a higher being. However, the fact of the matter is, everyone has a sense of morals. No matter what culture, person, place, or thing, morals exist. And that is what shows the reality of God, the fact that everybody has a sense of what is "good" and what is "bad". Think about this, do you view murder bad? I would hope so, but now I ask, by what standard? Why is murder bad? The idea of survival of the fittest tells us that murder actually is not a bad thing. If you'd like to argue with me over that, first look at Hitler. Was he a bad guy? He did what he thought was right, the Jews were holding him back, so what did he do? He eliminated the thing that held him back. Social Darwinism would say that Hitler was justified in what he did. Yet, the fact is, no person today would say everything is okay. Getting off the example of Hitler, another way to put it is this: every person has a set of actions and ideas they view as "good" and "bad". There is no evolutionary standard that makes sense of morals. There is no reason or room for that matter for morals to exist in survival of the fittest.
God, being the creator of every human (Psalm 139:13), gave everyone of us a sense of morals. However, with a sense of morals He also gave us a choice to follow Him or not, henceforth many people's morals contradict that of the Bible's. The only thing I would have to say to anyone who believes all morals are okay, we just need to have an understanding of different cultures and beliefs; I would say that they are ignoring objective truth. The Bible is objective truth. Name any sin mentioned in the Bible and there will be a logical and loving reason behind it. I say "logical and loving" because first off, the thing about sin is that God commands us to not do it because He loves us. He knows the effect sin not only has on us physically, but also emotionally and mentally. For example, part of the fruit of the spirit is to be of sober-mind (Galations 5). Basically God is saying, "Do not get drunk or high." Why does God say that? Physically: damages your body and has been proven to be the cause of early deaths. Mentally: drugs can give feelings of loneliness especially when you isolate yourself when you do it.
Overall, morals are everywhere, but the objectively right and true morals are held within God's Word. We all have a sense of morals, it's time to see what our morals are called to be by our Creator.
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Monthly Blog for October
Brad Way
Mrs. Burnett
Monthly Blog
AP English
Recently we have discussed which is more accurate about the world: a world where destiny rules and we as humans have no choice in life, or complete chaos where there is no set plan and everyday with every decision we make we are changing our life. We see this in Oedipus through the oracle telling him that he was going to kill his father and marry his mother. To escape this destiny, Oedipus runs away from his homeland just to end up where his parents are and finally fulfills the prophecy. The story of Oedipus shows the view of predestination: the idea that no matter what, you have a set destiny for your life that cannot be changed.
In the film "Run, Lola, Run", we have seen the position of free will (aka the butterfly effect) conveyed through the film's plot. The main character, Lola, goes through a situation three different times, each time making a different choice on the way which results in a different outcome. The way she runs down the steps of her apartment changes the time it takes her to get to her dad's bank and her boyfriend, which changes everything else, including the final outcome of their situation, which includes Lola dying, her boyfriend dying, and then finally them both getting away safely.
This brings up the question of which is true? Are we all destined in our lives or does every choice we make change the course of our life? The Bible comments on this in regards to those who are saved and unsaved. There are two sides in the conversation among Christians regarding this topic; there are Calvinists and Arminians. Calvinists started from the Christian pastor and theologian John Calvin who concluded that we were all predestined to either heaven or hell, and God had all ready planned out each person's destiny. On the other side, the Arminians got their beliefs from Jacobus Arminius, who was actually taught by John Calvin's hand-picked successor. After Jacobus Arminius had examined the Bible himself, he came up with conclusions differing his teachers, that every man has the choice to choose to follow God or not.
This debate, though it is a prominent one in the Christian community, should not seperate Christians. In 1 Corinthians 1:10, Paul writes, "I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgement." Paul urges the Corinthians that little theological ideals are good conversation pieces, but if they begin to divide believers, then ditch them. Theological debates are good in broadening our knowledge of the Word, but once they start disbanding the family of Christ, they lose their purpose and are more destructive than helpful.
With that said, biblical scholars have seen evidence for both Calvinism and Arminism in the scriptures. In Exodus 7:14 it says, "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Pharaoh's heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go.'" We see here that God has allowed the Pharaoh's heart to be hardened against God because of Pharaoh's choices. Moving forward a few thousand years and about 50 books in the Bible, we see Paul constantly write in the new testament phrases like "...as God's chosen ones..." [Colossians 3:12] assuming that we are all chosen to follow God by God, and that we have no choice in the matter. Both sides of the argument can make points in both examples to support their views on the idea.
Personally, I am not sure where I stand on the subject. It is evident in the Bible, mainly in Revelations, that God has a set plan for the world. Revelations talks much about the final destruction of the devil and sin, as well as the final judgement of all human beings [Revelations 20:7-21:26]. I know that what God plans will happen, but I am not sure if God plans someone's salvation or not. Either way, I find confidence that God is much smarter than me, and reminds me of this in Isaiah 55:9 where He says, "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." So even though I may not fully understand this, I find confidence and hope that God knows all and that I am in His hands.
Mrs. Burnett
Monthly Blog
AP English
Recently we have discussed which is more accurate about the world: a world where destiny rules and we as humans have no choice in life, or complete chaos where there is no set plan and everyday with every decision we make we are changing our life. We see this in Oedipus through the oracle telling him that he was going to kill his father and marry his mother. To escape this destiny, Oedipus runs away from his homeland just to end up where his parents are and finally fulfills the prophecy. The story of Oedipus shows the view of predestination: the idea that no matter what, you have a set destiny for your life that cannot be changed.
In the film "Run, Lola, Run", we have seen the position of free will (aka the butterfly effect) conveyed through the film's plot. The main character, Lola, goes through a situation three different times, each time making a different choice on the way which results in a different outcome. The way she runs down the steps of her apartment changes the time it takes her to get to her dad's bank and her boyfriend, which changes everything else, including the final outcome of their situation, which includes Lola dying, her boyfriend dying, and then finally them both getting away safely.
This brings up the question of which is true? Are we all destined in our lives or does every choice we make change the course of our life? The Bible comments on this in regards to those who are saved and unsaved. There are two sides in the conversation among Christians regarding this topic; there are Calvinists and Arminians. Calvinists started from the Christian pastor and theologian John Calvin who concluded that we were all predestined to either heaven or hell, and God had all ready planned out each person's destiny. On the other side, the Arminians got their beliefs from Jacobus Arminius, who was actually taught by John Calvin's hand-picked successor. After Jacobus Arminius had examined the Bible himself, he came up with conclusions differing his teachers, that every man has the choice to choose to follow God or not.
This debate, though it is a prominent one in the Christian community, should not seperate Christians. In 1 Corinthians 1:10, Paul writes, "I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgement." Paul urges the Corinthians that little theological ideals are good conversation pieces, but if they begin to divide believers, then ditch them. Theological debates are good in broadening our knowledge of the Word, but once they start disbanding the family of Christ, they lose their purpose and are more destructive than helpful.
With that said, biblical scholars have seen evidence for both Calvinism and Arminism in the scriptures. In Exodus 7:14 it says, "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Pharaoh's heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go.'" We see here that God has allowed the Pharaoh's heart to be hardened against God because of Pharaoh's choices. Moving forward a few thousand years and about 50 books in the Bible, we see Paul constantly write in the new testament phrases like "...as God's chosen ones..." [Colossians 3:12] assuming that we are all chosen to follow God by God, and that we have no choice in the matter. Both sides of the argument can make points in both examples to support their views on the idea.
Personally, I am not sure where I stand on the subject. It is evident in the Bible, mainly in Revelations, that God has a set plan for the world. Revelations talks much about the final destruction of the devil and sin, as well as the final judgement of all human beings [Revelations 20:7-21:26]. I know that what God plans will happen, but I am not sure if God plans someone's salvation or not. Either way, I find confidence that God is much smarter than me, and reminds me of this in Isaiah 55:9 where He says, "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." So even though I may not fully understand this, I find confidence and hope that God knows all and that I am in His hands.
Wednesday, October 1, 2014
Brad Way
Mrs. Burnett
AP English
September 28, 2014
Evil and God
If there is a God, why are there so many bad things in this world? Is He just a big guy in the sky who watches us but has no connection or desire to connect with us? These questions are asked everyday by people all across the world.
So first, let's start where we find this question in literature. In The Fountainhead, we see that Ellsworth Toohey grew up in the Christian faith but then after a while he turns away and ends up being the source of evil in the book. Now who's fault was it? God's fault, or Toohey's fault for the evil Toohey commits throughout the book? Think about this question as I move on to another story to do with evil.
Recently, there has been a movement called "The Bully Project" where a young girl made a stand against the bullying of disabled people, specifically one named Koran from Ogletown, Delaware. I chose this story to talk about because I actually know Koran from my church. Koran is a sweet guy with a mental disability, yet he was bullied and even beaten. Why? Is God mad at Koran? The more I read the Bible, the more you see the answers to such questions. Ever since the beginning of time, God has given His creation the ability to choose. Choices range from what to eat, to deeper things such as whether or not one will live their life for God. Romans chapter 3 talks a lot about how we are naturally bad creations. Ever since Adam and Eve first sinned, sin was inherited by all human beings. So, if something is born bad, naturally it will do bad things. Therefore, because of our sin and because of many humans choice to not serve God everyday, bad things are bound to happen. It is not God's fault for the evil we humans do.
That's where Jesus comes in. God, who loved the world despite all the evil people in it, sent His son, Jesus Christ, to die for all the people of the world. Jesus had to die and be the sacrifice for the world's sins because any fair judge would say a crime had to be paid for. So, God who hates evil yet loves people who do evil, killed His only son not only to quench the thirst of His wrath against evil, but to also show how much He loved people like me, you, Koran, and even the people who bullied Koran. God does no evil, He only allows us to do what we want, which for most of us would be the choice to do evil.
http://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/local/2014/09/27/delaware-teen-tackles-bully-problem-head/16344147/
Mrs. Burnett
AP English
September 28, 2014
Evil and God
If there is a God, why are there so many bad things in this world? Is He just a big guy in the sky who watches us but has no connection or desire to connect with us? These questions are asked everyday by people all across the world.
So first, let's start where we find this question in literature. In The Fountainhead, we see that Ellsworth Toohey grew up in the Christian faith but then after a while he turns away and ends up being the source of evil in the book. Now who's fault was it? God's fault, or Toohey's fault for the evil Toohey commits throughout the book? Think about this question as I move on to another story to do with evil.
Recently, there has been a movement called "The Bully Project" where a young girl made a stand against the bullying of disabled people, specifically one named Koran from Ogletown, Delaware. I chose this story to talk about because I actually know Koran from my church. Koran is a sweet guy with a mental disability, yet he was bullied and even beaten. Why? Is God mad at Koran? The more I read the Bible, the more you see the answers to such questions. Ever since the beginning of time, God has given His creation the ability to choose. Choices range from what to eat, to deeper things such as whether or not one will live their life for God. Romans chapter 3 talks a lot about how we are naturally bad creations. Ever since Adam and Eve first sinned, sin was inherited by all human beings. So, if something is born bad, naturally it will do bad things. Therefore, because of our sin and because of many humans choice to not serve God everyday, bad things are bound to happen. It is not God's fault for the evil we humans do.
That's where Jesus comes in. God, who loved the world despite all the evil people in it, sent His son, Jesus Christ, to die for all the people of the world. Jesus had to die and be the sacrifice for the world's sins because any fair judge would say a crime had to be paid for. So, God who hates evil yet loves people who do evil, killed His only son not only to quench the thirst of His wrath against evil, but to also show how much He loved people like me, you, Koran, and even the people who bullied Koran. God does no evil, He only allows us to do what we want, which for most of us would be the choice to do evil.
http://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/local/2014/09/27/delaware-teen-tackles-bully-problem-head/16344147/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)