Author: Andre Coleman

Education in ancient India was considered important by the society and was given to the three upper classes namely : Brahmins , Kshatriyas and Vaishya. Education in ancient India had a deep impact in the achievement and advancement of the early society and over all development. The poor were not given an opportunity to improve their lot in life. Females were also denied an education by virtue of the “fact” they would get married and so an education would be “wasted” on females. In contemporary society people have realized that an education translates into opportunity and hope for the future. The ability to get an education, to foster creativity and curiosity, to seek answers will allow mankind to continue to grow. They try to encourage all children to reach for their fullest potential. Teachers are better qualified. No longer can a child, barely in their teens, become a teacher. The brick and mortar classroom is fortunately a thing of the past. An exploration study will be done through contextual inquiry using secondary data and primary data will be collected through Focus group techniques and observation study. Managerial conclusions and suggestion will be made based on the descriptive study. This paper will discuss issues how such a development can lead to challenges to global economy.

Key words: ancient learning, education , technology , culture , globalization, automation

Introduction:

The Indian news media has been aflutter for the last few days, since the release of the results of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Secretariat’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which ranked India 72nd out of 73 countries. The PISA results are based on data collected from some 500,000 odd students undergoing 2-hour tests. The tests are meant to conduct comparative analyses, across vast international contexts, of 15-year-old students for “reading, mathematical and scientific literacy.” India “failed miserably,” ending up just above Kyrgyzstan, the media has scornfully noted, causing India’s performance to be variously labeled “embarrassing,” “shocking,” and “disappointing.” In the second most populous nation on the planet, with the second biggest educational system in the world, it seems that the preferred way to bring clarity to a massive, murky educational landscape would be to let statistics paint the picture cleanly and efficiently.

Presumably every generation, since the beginning of human existence, somehow passed on its stock of values, traditions, methods and skills to the next generation. The passing on of culture is also known as enculturation and the learning of social values and behaviors is socialization. The history of the curricula of such education reflects history itself, the history of knowledge, beliefs, skills and cultures of humanity.

As the customs and knowledge of ancient civilizations became more complex, many skills were passed down from a person skilled at the job – for example in animal husbandry, farming, fishing, food preparation, construction, military skills.

History of Indian Vedic Era of education system

The first millennium and the few centuries preceding it saw the flourishing of higher education at Nalanda, Takshashila University, Ujjain, & Vikramshila Universities. Amongst the subjects taught were Art, Architecture, Painting, Logic, mathematics, Grammar, Philosophy, Astronomy, Literature, Buddhism, Hinduism, Arthashastra (Economics & Politics), Law, and Medicine. Each university specialized in a particular field of study. Takshila specialized in the study of medicine, while Ujjain laid emphasis on astronomy. Nalanda, being the biggest centre, handled all branches of knowledge, and housed up to 10,000 students at its peak.

Indigenous education was widespread in India in the 18th century, with a school for every temple, mosque or village in most regions of the country. The subjects taught included Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, Theology, Law, Astronomy, Metaphysics, Ethics, Medical Science and Religion. The schools were attended by students’ representative of all classes of society.

Education was widespread for elite young men in the 18th century, with a schools in most regions of the country. The subjects taught included Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, Theology, Law, Astronomy, Metaphysics, Ethics, Medical Science and Religion.

The current system of education, with its western style and content, was introduced and founded by the British during the British Raj, following recommendations by Lord Macaulay. Traditional structures were not recognized by the British government and have been on the decline since.

Public education expenditures in the late 19th and early 20th centuries varied dramatically across regions with the western and southern provinces spending three to four times as much as the eastern provinces. Much of the inter-regional differential was due to historical differences in land taxes, the major source of revenue.

Lord Curzon, the Viceroy 1899-1905, made mass education a high priority after finding that no more than 20% of India’s children attended school. His reforms centered on literacy training and on restructuring of the university systems. They stressed ungraded curricula, modern textbooks, and new examination systems. Curzon’s plans for technical education laid the foundations which were acted upon by later governments.

Meaning of Culture

According to dictionary, meaning of the term ‘culture’, it is -an integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior of a group that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations,the customary beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group;

Features that reflect Culture – Culture includes within itself all the following features collectively like

Sophisticated language as medium of expression; arts and sciences as forms of human expression;

Thinking process as the way, people perceive, interpret, and understand the world around them;

social activities;

Smooth interaction with others fellow-beings; and

Spirituality as a path to salvation of soul,

All these qualities together and way of life transmitted through generations for the welfare of people, expressed through language and actions are included in culture

Culture of India

Cultural richness – India presents a fascinating picture of cultural richness, which is mainly based on Vedic literature and philosophy. Civilization of India is one of the oldest alive civilizations of the world. Because of its tolerance and capacity of internalizing alien influences, its culture has been able to be one of the oldest, continuous and uninterrupted living culture of the world.( The other three being Egypt, Mesopotamia and Greece)

Many principles and cultures developed in the past, within India as well as elsewhere in the world, had created such a wave that swept over the entire world for some time. An anti-wave, replacing such waves, emerged soon. It wiped off the previous influence. The Vedic culture and its basic tenets, however, have been proved to be an exception in this regard. It happened due to basic tenets of Vedic culture, which have always been very close to every Indian.

Vedic culture

The word ‘Vedic’ is derived from the word ‘Vid’ meaning ‘Knowledge’ and signifies’ ‘knowledge par excellence’. The Vedic culture came into being due to intermixing of the culture of Aryan invaders, who came to India in waves, with the culture of indigenous tribal people of India during 2nd century BC to 650 AD. The Indian culture is identified with the whole of India. To foreigners, it represents the ancient culture in its eternity. It mainly originated and flourished in northern parts of India and later on spread throughout India.

Origin of Vedic culture

The origin of the Vedic knowledge and its culture can not be traced in any single founder; neither can it be confined in one single authoritative text. Its sacred knowledge has been handed down from time immemorial, earlier by verbal transmission and later on, in written form by the ancestor to succeeding generations.

Never ending process – Vedas teach that creation and quest for knowledge is a constant process, without any beginning or an end. The Sages (Rishis and Munies) were believed that even Vedas were not the end for quest for knowledge or prescribes any final absolutes.

Strength of Vedic culture

The strength of Vedic culture is proved by the facts: –

Despite centuries of foreign rule over 75% of Indian population remains Hindu.

Had it become obsolete, it would have given place to other religions and cultures.

It influenced almost all other religions found in India.

Basic tenets of Indian culture

The basic tenets of Indian culture, which kept its continuity intact, despite numerous foreign invasions, migrations and assimilation of various groups, are as following:

‘Principle of Varna’ – Doctrine of Varna has given the Indian Society a stable, sustainable social structure. In the past, it had assigned duties to different groups according to their natural endowments, instincts and qualities.

Principle of ‘Karma’ – Knowledge is supposed to be necessary for giving “Karma”, its due meaning, direction and value. Ignorance is considered to be leading to futile efforts destroying direction.

Principle of Dharma – Principle of Dharma defines the duties and inspires people to do their jobs well, as all worldly honor and spiritual happiness were vested there. It assures the people that proper performance of one’s work, whether high or humble, whether of a priest, warrior, Shudra or yogi are equally important for the society and were, therefore, right, respectable and worth pursuing.

Sanatan Dharma (Concept of Eternal Values)- Sanatan Dharma (Concept of Eternal Values) nurtured the basic instincts of human beings over nature, after a deep study of natural instincts, inherent attributes and natural behavioral pattern and taking care of the basic physical, mental and spiritual needs of the human beings at different stages of life.

Traditional Education system :

The education, educators and Scholars of Vedic period are known for their commitment , consciousness and culture. Guru Vishwamtra and Guru Dronacharya are setting examples for today educators. Arjuna , Rama , Eklavaya have been remembered for their education principles. They studied in forest away from own state home or “rajmahal”. Today such examples are rare.

Benchmarks set by women as scholar or educator

Hindu civilization is unique in this respect, for here we find a surprising exception to the general rule. The further back we go, the more satisfactory is found to be the position of women in more spheres than one; and the field of education is most noteworthy among them. There is ample and convincing evidence to show that women were regarded as perfectly eligible for the privilege of studying the Vedic literature and performing the sacrifices enjoined in it down to about 200 B.C. This need not surprise us, for some of the hymns of the Rig Veda are the composition of twenty sage-poetesses. So let us briefly review the lives of some of these great women. Few of them anecdotes are as follows:

Maitreyi was the wife of the great sage Yajnavalkya. She had a higher regard for spiritual knowledge and devotion to God than did Katyayani. The Brihadaranayaka Upanishad relates that finally, the sage Yajnavalkya wanted to renounce householder life and accept the sannyasa order of life, and divide his possessions between his two wives. Maitreyi then questioned to herself what greater thing her husband must have found if he is willing to give up his present status in householder life. Surely no one will give up his position unless he finds something better. So she asked her husband if she had all the riches in the world, could she still attain immortality. Her husband said certainly not, it is not possible. All the happiness and conveniences from wealth will not lead you to God. So Maitreyi then asked why she should acquire wealth if it is not going to deliver her from future rounds of birth and death. She requested that he tell her about the Supreme Being, for which he was happily giving up household life.

Therefore, Yajnavalkya explained to Maitreyi all about the divine knowledge of the Self. He informed her that no being in this world has any capability of being dear to another without the presence of the soul within. Even to enjoy the beauty of this world has no meaning without the soul within our own body, for the soul is all that we are. Understanding the depths of spiritual knowledge is the way to attain moksha, liberation from the continued rounds of birth and death. Thus, Yajnavalkya took sannyasa and Maitreyi attained supreme bliss by hearing her husband’s discourse and by diving deep into this spiritual understanding. In this way, Maitreyi showed how all women can achieve the heights of spiritual understanding simply by careful listening and practicing the Vedic path.

Gargi was the daughter of Vashaknu, and was also called Vachakni. She was born in the line of the Garga Gotra or family line, she was called Gargi, a name by which she became well known. The Brihadaranayaka Upanishad explains that she asked the sage many questions on spiritual science and became highly educated in this way. Once in the court of King Janaka there was arranged to be a debate on the spiritual sciences. He wanted to find out who was the person who knew best the science of the Absolute, and that person would receive 1000 decorated cows with horns plated with gold. None of the local brahmanas complied because they were afraid they would have to prove their knowledge, and may not be up to the task. However, the sage Yajnavalkya told his disciple to take all the cows to his place, which started the debate.

Recent anecdotes of women in India advocates formal education to a girl child as follows:

Devi Ahalya Bai Holkar, the queen of Indore (Madhya Pradesh) has set an excellent example of efficient administration. Her contribution to encourage free trade and the concept of the welfare state is very admirable.

Jijabai was not exactly a warrior herself but was the mother of Shivaji, one of the great protectors of the country and its religion. She was the guide who shaped his mind from his early years. She was the embodiment of self-respect. She nurtured her child to fight and bring back Hindu Rastra and became a constant source of inspiration to her heroic son.

Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi was one of the most brave and legendary of warrior women of India. The city of Jhansi was an important center in the 18th century, but in 1803 the British East India Company took over control of the state. The last raja at the time died without a son in 1853. The British had passed a law that allowed them to assume control of any state under their patronage if the ruler died without a male heir. The Rani of Jhansi, however, did not like this enforced retirement and preferred to rule on her own. So she was ready for the rebellion at Jhansi when the Indian Mutiny began. Since then she has been a heroine of the independence movement of India.

Meaning of Education and It’s Kinds

Education is the most efficient and effective way of teaching and learning the basic and advanced skills and knowledge. Being the foundation of our society, education encompasses our lives by stimulating our minds and molding them into intellectual ones. In simple words, education enables us to learn different ways of learning things and doing them. As compared to the yesteryears, education received by today’s students is more structured and conceptualized. While there was no formal education system in the primeval period, the modern days have come up with different types of education classified according to a person’s potential and age. Given here are some kinds of education followed by most of the countries.

Formal Education

Formal education comprises of the basic education that a person receives at school. The basics, academic and trade skills are exposed to the person through formal education. Thus, this form of education is also referred to as mainstream or traditional education. Beginning with nursery education, a person learns the various aspects as he advances towards primary, secondary and higher education. While nursery, primary and secondary education are received by a student at a school, higher education, or post-secondary education, is generally disclosed at a college or university.

Informal Education

Informal education includes educating one through informal communication and reading books. In general, informal education is edifying someone outside the basic form of education, that is, in schools, and without the use of any learning methods.

Lifestyle and Education

Lifestyle is expressed in both work and leisure behavior patterns and (on an individual basis) in activities, attitudes, interests, opinions, values, and allocation of income. It also reflects people’s self image or self concept; the way they see themselves and believe they are seen by the others. Lifestyle is a composite of motivations, needs, and wants and is influenced by factors such as culture, family, reference groups, and social class. It is outcome of education from various formal or informal sources in a person’s life.

Digitization of education via ICT

One of the world’s most serious problems is the widening gap between rich and poor, wherein a small percentage of the global population enjoys unprecedented affluence amidst widespread global poverty that may actually be getting worse. One aspect of this disparity in wealth is the digital divide, the enormous differences in access to modern information and communications technology (ICT). Millions across Africa, Asia, and Latin America struggle daily to survive in dire poverty, while others in the industrialized world enjoy the conveniences provided by modern communications technologies, work in offices made more efficient and effective through the use of new technologies, and take advantage of new educational opportunities afforded by ICT.

One of the most unfortunate by-products of the digital divide is its negative impact on educational efforts throughout the developing world. Digital technologies provide exciting new opportunities for students in the industrialized world to obtain large amounts of current information on almost any topic, to communicate their thoughts in dynamic new ways, and to work more efficiently than ever before possible.

The Higher Education scenario in the Southern States of India has scaled new heights. In all spheres of education, the knowledge par excellence being imparted, has encompassed not only generic degrees but also vocational and technical education. Several government initiatives, public-private partnerships, and industry-institution collaborations have proved to be an icing on the cake. With the escalation in educational achievements, Digital Learning magazine brings initiatives and achievements, impact and challenges.

The Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education (APSCHE) came into existence on 20th May, 1988 through an Act of the State Legislature to advise the Government in matters relating to Higher Education in the State and to oversee its development with perspective planning and for matters connected therewith. APSCHE, the first of its kind in the country, set up as per the recommendations of the National Education Policy 1986, is primarily a coordinating and liaisoning body between the University Grants Commission, the State Government and the Universities. It is the general duty of the Council to coordinate and determine standards in institutions of Higher Education or Research and Scientific and Technical Institutions in accordance with the guidelines issued by the University Grants Commission from time to time.

India is going to experience a paradox of nearly 90 million people joining the workforce but most of them will lack requisite skills and the mindset for productive employment according to a report in DNA. India has about 550 million people under the age of 25 years out of which only 11% are enrolled in tertiary institutions compared to the world average of 23%.

The really critical aspect of Indian public education system is its low quality. The actual quantity of schooling that children experience and the quality of teaching they receive are extremely insufficient in government schools. A common feature in all government schools is the poor quality of education, with weak infrastructure and inadequate pedagogic attention.

What the government is not realizing right now is that education which is a source of human capital can create wide income inequalities. It will be surprising to see how income inequalities are created within the same group of educated people. Let me illustrate this with the help of an example:

Let us take P be an individual who has had no primary or higher education. His human capital is zero and hence it bears no returns. Let Q be an individual who completed his MBA from S.P Jain college and let R be an individual who completed his MBA from IIM Ahmadabad. The average rate of return for an MBA student is 7.5% (hypothetical). Q gets a rate of return of 5% and R gets a rate of return of 10% due to the difference in the reputation and quality of the management school. Let the income of P, Q and R be 1.In a period of 10 years, P will be having the same income as he does not possess human capital. For the same time period Q will earn an income of (1+0.05)10=1.63 and R will earn an income of (1+0.10) 10=2.59. Now let’s see what happens when the rate of return on human capital doubles. Earnings of P will not change since he does not have any human capital. Now Q is going to earn (1+0.10)10=1.63 and R is going to earn (1+0.20)10=6.19. Flabbergasting! As soon as return on human capital increases proportionately income inequality increases. With return on human capital doubling, Q’S income increases by 59% and R’s income increases by 139%.

Issues and Challenges :

In an analysis of the situation, I have categorized these problems into eight broad areas, from “lack of money” to “too many instant Indian experts

Lack of money / high cost: By far one of the most pressing problems is the unavailability of money or inadequate funding of Indian education programs or systems. The demand far exceeds the supply, and available monies are only for the most basic educational needs of the students . . . “the traditional curriculum.” Without adequate funding, the ideology and philosophy of Indian education become so many words. Very small amounts, if any, are available for innovative programs and ideas. Not only is technology in short supply within developing countries, but the costs for Internet service are often signi¬?cantly higher than they would be in an industrialized country. In terms of percentage of annual per capita income, we may know how the monthly fees for Internet connectivity in poor countries are prohibitively expensive for most of the population.

The irrelevant curricula: just what do we mean by the often-repeated phrase, irrelevant curricula? My definition is that it is schools not doing their job in meeting the needs of their students-especially Indian students.

Lack of qualified Indians in Indian education: By far the most glaring problem is the acute shortage of qualified Indians in Indian education. Materialistic gains, incentives and opportunities entice the qualified Indian educator away from this challenging field. There is much hard work and many challenges in Indian education: isolation, poor or inadequate facilities, eager but academically deprived students, but one’s ingenuity, creativity, patience and forbearance are put to a real test in facing these and other challenges.

Insensitive school personnel: It is tragic that this exists in the 20th Century. If school personnel are truly educators, it behooves them to learn about the people they are teaching: To fail in this task is to fail to educate. The burden of this responsibility rests squarely on the shoulders of the educator, and the exercise of that responsibility is long overdue.

Differing expectations of education programs: The thinking, attitudes and experiences of the non-Indian are the base of the value structure rather than the aspects of Indian culture. Thus the educational perspectives of the Indian are not considered. The Indian views education as providing him with immediate practical skills and tools, not a delayed achievement of goals or as means for a future gain.

Lack of involvement in and control of educational matters: The Indian has not been able to express his ideas on school programming or educational decision-making. When they have been expressed, his participation has been limited and restricted. If problems in Indian education are to be resolved, the Indian citizen must become involved. The dynamic systems point up the fact that Indians can handle school matters. It is time that more Indians became involved in such control.

Difficulties of students in higher education: Colleges and universities need to establish programs which can deal effectively with the problems and needs of the Indian student-if he is to remain in school. In general, the Indian student has an inadequate educational background as he may have been looked upon as less than college material in high school. He has unusual adjustment problems and usually inadequate financial help. It is time that more colleges and universities attempt to solve these development factors and provide a more successful educational experience for the Indian student.

Too many instant-Indian education experts: To the detriment of Indian education and its growth, each day sprouts more “instant Indian education experts,” who do more damage than good. Usually, these experts have all the answers: they have completely identified the problems and have formulated solutions, but they leave it to the Indian to implement. Again, the Indian is given something to implement which he has had no part in formulating. These experts usually depend on superficial, shallow studies done in one visit to a reservation or school, or they depend on one or two conferences with Indians who have little or no knowledge of the critical problems confronting the Indian generally. Indian education can well do without these experts who cannot be reasoned with or who feel they know what is best for the Indian. The following critical factors may be responsible for current prevailing situation:

Critical Factors
Total Responses(%)

Culture

11%

Language

12%

Poverty

17%

Infrastructure

19%

Bureaucracy

14%

Corruption

11%

Protectionism

13%

Source : Global Information Infrastructure Commission Survey (2001) www.giic.org/#survey

Managerial recommendation / Strategies:

The basic thrust of government education spending today must surely be to ensure that all children have access to government schools and to raise the quality of education in those schools. One of the ways in which the problem of poor quality of education can be tackled is through common schooling. This essentially means sharing of resources between private and public schools. Shift system is one of the ways through which common schooling can be achieved. The private school can use the resources during the first half of the day and the government school can use it during the second half. It is important to remember that the quality of education is directly linked to the resources available and it is important for the government to improve resource allocation to bring about qualitative changes in the field of education. Common schooling is one of the ways in which government can use limited resources in an efficient way and thus improve resource allocation.

Another reason for poor quality of education is the poor quality of teachers in government schools .Government schools are unable to attract good quality teachers due to inadequate teaching facilities and low salaries. The government currently spends only 3% of its GDP on education which is inadequate and insufficient. To improve the quality of education, the government needs to spend more money from its coffers on education.

Most economists feel that the only panacea to the ills of the public schooling system is the voucher scheme. Under the voucher system, parents are allowed to choose a school for their children and they get full or partial reimbursement for the expenses from the government. But however, the voucher system will further aggravate the problem of poor quality of education in government schools. Such a system will shift resources from government schools to private schools. This will worsen the situation of government schools which are already under-funded. Moreover, if the same amount given as vouchers can be used to build infrastructure in schools then the government can realize economies of scale. For example- The centre for civil society is providing vouchers worth Rs 4000 per annum to 308 girls. This means that the total amount of money given as vouchers is Rs 12,32,000/-. If the same amount can be used to construct a school and employ high quality teachers who are paid well then a larger section of the society will enjoy the benefit of education. A school can definitely accommodate a minimum of 1000 students.

An Indian student presently is subjected to an educational system geared to the needs of the non-Indian student without any concern to unique problems and background of the Indian. Yes, the Indian must live in the white man’s world, but if he is to become a productive member of the human race, the schools must develop programs to meet his needs.

Another aspect is the stress of the English language in the system. If educators would recognize that the English language is not the mother tongue of most Indian students, educational programming could become more relevant, meaningful and rewarding to the Indian student,

If curriculum experts would include courses reflecting the positiveness of the Indians’ contributions to the greater society, another correction would be made. It is not difficult to understand why the average Indian student has a negative self-concept: he is taught in a foreign classroom, by a teacher who is literally a foreigner, and in a foreign language that he comes from a people who were bloodthirsty, marauding killers, and that the only good Indian is a dead Indian. Correct this image by eliminating these teachings, and replacing them with more positive characteristics.

Summing up :

1. First we have to consider what a student needs in future to get a good college and a good job.

2. The education must consist of the practical knowledge of the entire subject.

3. Since today’s situation, English becomes necessary language and Hindi is our national language so we should keep both in mind and teach it equally like in every school either it is government or private school both languages should be given equal importance. A school may make criterion that before lunch students and teacher must speak in English or after lunch they must speak in Hindi. Through this way we can easily learn and speak English without forgetting our mother language. Foreign language should be taught after teaching proper English.

4. Su

In Malaysia, after Pakatan Rakyat party successfully conquering Selangor state from Barisan Nasional party since 2008, they have launched a lot of initiative welfares for Selangor residents. On 13 March 2008, Selangor State Government has announced the implementation of ‘Merakyatkan Ekonomi Selangor’ (MES) agenda to improve living standard of Selangor residents. There are 14 agendas included in MES and one of them is free water provision for the first 20 cubic meters water domestic consumers who using individual meters in Selangor starting from June 2008. Selangor State Government offers first 20 cubic meters water which equivalent to 20,000 liters or 5.680 gallons per month for free. This benefit is for all Selangor people regardless of their economy status, race or political affiliation.

Other than that, the main objective of this welfare is to reduce the burden life especially for low-income groups as a result cost of living and the inflation rates are continue to increase. At the same time, it is of the holistic and integrated components to restructuring water management in order to provide more efficient and effective service. Through this program, Selangor State Government bear the average cost of rebate RM 11.00 per month for each user. Then, the record payment by the Selangor State Government is stated in bill received by each user from SYABAS (Selangor Water Supply Company).

Besides that, 20 cubic meters of free water supply is only eligible for domestic consumers who use individual meters. For domestic users who use bulk meters in condominiums and apartments, they need to change to individual meters to enjoy this free water. Change of bulk meters to individual meters is subject to the conditions set by SYABAS. As the result, currently more than one million people who use individual meters enjoy it especially low cost apartment dwellers. Until July 2012, over RM 6 million was spent on free water to residents of low-cost apartments through Safwa Scheme (Free Water Rebate Scheme). According to Housing and Property Selangor Board (LPHS) report, 92% or 58, 049 units already received. While the remaining 8% or 6, 666 units failed to implement the rebate claim due to labor shortages in Joint Management Body (JMB).

This positive action shows the government’s responsibility toward public welfare. In Islam, this is a good example because the leader should take care of their people. However, some consider this program involves high costs and will affect the allocation of funds provided by the Government of Malaysia to Selangor state. In Islam, the leader should manage the public properties to avoid waste for not so important activities. Therefore, a comprehensive study and analysis are needed to ensure that the program is consistent with Islamic law.

2. WATER ACCESIBILITY ANALYSIS

2.1 THE IMPORTANCE OF WATER IN ISLAM

Historically, all ancient civilizations in the world began in area that has water resources such as river or seashore. For instance, Mesopotamia civilization began at Euphrates and Tigris River, China civilization began at Huang He River and India civilization began at Indus River. This fact shows that they are really rely on water in their daily life. Water from the river is used to irrigate agricultural areas, cooking, bathing and others. Based on Al-Mu’jam Al-Mufahras book, water or ‘al-ma” in Arabic was mentioned 63 times in the Al-Quran.

According to Naser I. Faruqui, water is very importance in Islam. It is a blessing from Allah that gives and sustains life, and purifies humankind and the earth. It is based on Allah words in verse 65 of Surah Al-Nahl: “And Allah sends down water from above, and therewith gives life to the earth after its death. Surely there is a sign in this for a people who listen”. Besides that, Allah said all beings is made from water. According to the research, the earth is covered with 3/4 water and the human body contained of 3/4 water. In verse 30 of Surah Al-Anbiya: “Do not those who disbelieve see that the heavens and the earth were closed up, so We rent them. And We made from water everything living. Will they not then believe?”.

Due to water is very important resource for every people regardless rich or poor, Islam declared that everyone has the right to a fair share of water consumption. This claim is emphasized by the hadith reported by Abu Dawud that Rasulullah said “Muslims have common share in three things: grass (pasture), water and fire (fuel)”. In addition, the Prophet forbids Muslims hoarding the excess water and he is obliged to allow others to use it. The Prophet stated: “Among the three people Allah will ignore on the Day of Resurrection are a man who possessed superfluous water on a way and he withheld it from the travellers.” This hadith was narrated by Al-Bukhari.

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Tigris-Euphrates River in Egypt and Huang He River in China use for irrigation

2.2 TYPES OF WATER IN ISLAM

In Islam, water is essential for the Muslims to purify themselves such as perform ablution (wudhu’) before the prayer and perform obligatory bath (ghusl) after having sexual intercourse. One of the conditions, these actions is necessary to use pure water to make it valid. Thus, the absence of clean water will make it difficult for Muslims to manage their daily life and to worship to Allah SWT. In reality, there are different types of water in this world and not all water is suitable for human. Basically, the water covers around 70% of the earth and it is very exposed to other elements that can change its original condition. Thus, this requires human wisdom to determine whether the water can be used or not. In Fiqh Taharah or Islamic Hygienically Jurisprudence, Islam has divided water into three main parts which pure water and can purify other things (tahur), pure water but can’t purify other things (tahir), and water containing dirt which not pure and can’t purify other things (mutanajjis).

First major category is pure water and can purify other things (tahur). This water can be divided deeper into ‘mutlaq’ water and ‘musyammas’ water. For ‘mutlaq’ water, it remains with the original nature of its occurrence have been made by Allah. It is water that has not been mixed with dirt, water reservoir that is more than two tanks no longer used and not mixed with other substances. In addition, the water is still ‘mutlaq’ water even thought it has changed due to abandoned for long period in soil, moss and stagnant areas. In addition, if the water continuously flowing but contain sulfur it still categorized as ‘mutlaq’ water. This is due to water is in liquid condition and difficult to differentiate it. For two tanks measurement, the length and the width is 60 centimeter or 22.5 inches respectively with depth 62.5centimeter or 25 inches. If the two tanks measurement is converted into the weight measurement, it equals to 174 liters or 190 kilogram or 11 kerosene cans.

Besides that, there are eight types of water including in the ‘mutlaq’ water which are river water, well water, rain water, dew water, sea water, snow water, spring water and tap water. The Prophet Muhammad also ordered to use ‘mutlaq’ water to clean the dirt. This evidence is based on Abu Hurairah narration: “a Bedouin stood up and peed in the mosque, so his friends prevent it. Upon this Rasulullah said, leave him and pour a container of water over the urine. Indeed, you are asked to facilitate not troublesome”. Then, according to Sheikh Abu Abdullah Husayn Nasir bin Muhammad Taib in his As-Subyan Hidayatul book :”Not valid the purification unless water come from common ‘qaid’ such as sugar cane, sugar, soap and such, and water from the sky such as rain and dew or water coming out of the earth such as sea water, river water and well water”.

On the other hand, ‘musyammas’ water is quite different compare to ‘mutlaq’ water. In Al-Badrain Matla book written by Sheikh Abdul Al-Fatani Faqir Muhammad Bin Ismail Daud Al-Fatani stated: “‘Musyammas’ water is also pure water and can purify other things but abominable (makruh) to use it on the body. It afraid contributes to hairpiece disease when people used it. The position is permanent in a container and heated by sunlight in hot climate states”. This matter very seriously considered by Rasulullah as in a story narrated by Baihaqi: “From Saiditina Aishah indeed she is heating the water under sunlight, and Rasuluhlah SAW had said to her: do not do that O Aishah because the water can cause hairpiece disease.” Literally, ‘makruh’ means dislike, blamed and displeasing. It refers to leave anything not demanded by Allah but not prohibited to do it. Acts which are ‘makruh’ are definitely discouraged but the evidence to prove they are forbidden is less strong. Thus, the commission of ‘makruh’ acts is not blamed but its omission is preferable.

Second major category is pure water but can’t purify other things (tahir). This water can be divided more into ‘musta’mal’ water and ‘muqayyad’ water. For ‘musta’mal’ water, the water is able to drink but not applicable for cleansing. According to Ibn Akhil in his book entitled Al-Mutaalim Zadul: “‘Musta’mal’ water is less than two tank that has been used for impurities such as has been used in ablution and bath or water that has been used in remove the dirt. After that, it is not valid to purify other things”. Besides that, water from trees, fruits and roots also considered as ‘musta’mal’ water. Then, all water can change by two ways which are changing by ‘taqdiri’ and changing by ‘hissi’. Changing by ‘taqdiri’ means the water only change on ‘taqdir’ (stipulation) and the changes can’t be seen. So, ‘musta’mal’ water is under changing by ‘taqdiri’ However, changing by ‘hissi’ means the changes that can be seen. ‘Mutlaq’ water is under changing by ‘hissi’. In addition, Syeikh Faqih Dr. Wahbah Al-Zuhaili argued that the amount of water also affect water quality. For example is ‘musta’mal’ water become ‘mutlaq’ water if the quantity more than 2 tank or 270 liter.

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Dew water, river water and snow water are some sources that can be used for ‘mutlaq’ water

Next, water is mixed by two ways. First way is through ‘mujawir’. This means the water changes because there is something that can be separated from the water. For example, a person put a stick in a pail to stir the water in the pail. Then, the stick can be pulled out from the pail. Then the water is still regarded as pure water. Second way is through ‘mukhalit’. This means the water changes because there is something that unable separated from the water. For instance, a person put the fruit flavor in a pail of water. It is impossible to separate fruit flavor and water to their original condition. Then the water no longer exists as pure water as has changes to ‘musta’mal’ water.

In contrast, ‘muqayyad’ water is water that is mixed with something pure that changing one of the characteristics. For instance are coffee water, sugarcane juice and soap. In Islamic view, parameters for water quality are based on the chemical and physical characteristics of smell, taste, color and temperature. Then, ‘qayyad’ on water is divided into ‘qayyad lazim’ and ‘qayyad musfaq’. For ‘qayyad lazim’, it means substances attached together until it absolutely different from pure water such as coffee and honey. Although pure, it still can’t be used for purification because already mixed with variations of water. However, for ‘qayyad musfaq’, it means substances detached among each other and not affect pure water such as rain water and well water. Thus, the water is still cited as pure water.

Third major category is water containing dirt which not pure and can’t purify other things (mutanajjis). There are three main conditions regarding to ‘mutanajjis’ water which unable for purification. First condition is water containing less than two tanks even though the water does not change color, smell and taste. Second condition is water containing more than two tanks but has changes color, odor and taste due to the dirt. Third condition is water is mixing with clean substances but has the color, smell and taste. In terms of language, dirt is defined as dirty things such as blood, urine and feces. In terms of syara’, dirt is defined as all the impurities that prevent validity for pray.

There are three types of dirt according to their hierarchy and all the dirt must be purified using ‘mutlaq’ or pure water. The lightest dirt is ‘mukhaffafah’. It is the urine of baby boy who only eat breast milk and less than two years old. The cleansing methods are by wash and wipe the urine before sprinkle the pure water on the place. The moderate dirt is ‘mutawasittah’. It is including blood, pus, vomit, saliva, alcohol and others. The cleansing methods are washing until lost any nature color, smell and taste before cleanse by pure water. The heaviest dirt is ‘mughallazah’. It is the dirt relate to dog and pig. The cleansing methods are by wash once by soil water. Then, continue washing by using pure water for six times until loss any nature color, smell and taste. If still not gone, repeat the washing method.

2.3 THE WATER MANAGEMENT IN MUSLIM COUNTRIES

In December 1998, the Workshop on Water Resources Management in the Islamic World was held in Amman, Jordan. One of the discussions is implementation approaches for water demand management (WDM) within the context of Islam. The approaches are water conservation and wastewater reuse.

In water conservation approach, they argued supply of water is fixed. Thus, water management is needed to ensure the amount water supply is enough with the amount of water used. This opinion can be approved in verse 18 of Surah Al-Mukminun: “And We send down water from the sky according to certain measure, and We cause it to soak in the soil; and We certainly are able to drain it off (with ease)”. Human can use water in moderate way and not consume beyond the limit. If extravagant exist, Allah has right to take back His blessings. The Prophet also taught human to consume efficiently. According to Al-Bukhari: “The Prophet Mohammad used to perform ablution with one mudd of water [equal to 2/3 litres] and used to take a bath with one sa’ up to five mudds [equal to 2-3 1/2 litres].”

Currently, this water conservation approach shows positive impact when the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a health education program through mosques. The program included training imams on proper health practices, water conservation, water saving, proper sanitation and hygiene in the prevention of diseases. In addition, the imams then gave sermons about water conservation during the congregational Friday prayer.

For wastewater reuse approach, they argued water should not be wasted. Thus, water should be used for beneficial purposes and use it in effective and efficient way. In verse 31 of Surah Al-A’raf: “O Children of Adam! wear your beautiful apparel at every time and place of prayer: eat and drink: But waste not by excess, for Allah loveth not the wasters”. From this verse, Allah hate people who are wasteful in eat and drink. Normally, individual drinking water every day in their life because thirsty. However, if some people deliberately waste the water, others people might not able to drink sufficient of water.

Reusing wastewater is an essential component of a demand management strategy because it conserves freshwater for the highest-value uses. In 1978, the Council of Leading Islamic Scholars (CLIS) in Saudi Arabia concluded in a special fatwa in 1978 that treated wastewater can be used even for ablution and drinking as soon as absence of health risk. This fatwa was concluded based on detailed study by scientists and engineers toward waste water condition and its short-term and long-term effects toward human health.

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Saudi Arabia Wastewater Treatment Plant at Riyadh and Al Hail

Both water conservation approach and wastewater reuse approach was introduced before are classified as non-economic approach. However, in a book entitled ‘Water Management in Islam’, one economic approach which called family planning was added. Basically, family planning not directly reducing the average water consumption. However, it helps for further reductions in overall availability of water per capita. By family planning, the government can predict future reduction of water consumption as size of members per family smaller. When future result is known, it facilitates the government to provide systematic long-term planning in order to overcome future problems.

However, the problem is family planning or contraception is new in Islam. During Prophet Muhammad era, most Muslims have big family members because it didn’t have birth control regulations. Therefore, based on this situation, a few Islamic scholars believe that birth control is not allowable in Islam. Still, some others scholar said it is no strong evidence in Islam to support a ban on family planning. Moreover, they contend although the religion encourages having children, it is not obligatory. Finally, the contemporary jurists agreed that family planning is allowable in Islam with a few conditions must be followed. First, it is only permissible for married couple man and woman. Second, it should have the mutual consent of the couple and thirdly, the chosen method must truly controllable.

As conclusion, three approaches stated before will provide some alternatives for Islamic countries to choose the possible method for their water management. The holistic assessment should be implemented according to advantages and disadvantages of each approach. For water conservation, the advantage it is not very large cost but the disadvantage may no full commitment from society. For wastewater reuse, the advantage it is able for countries which doesn’t have abundant water sources but the disadvantage it covers very high cost for building plants and continuous treatment process. For family planning, the advantage it is the government able to predict future water usage but the disadvantage it will reduces number of Muslims population in that country.

3.WATER RIGHTS

http://mes.selangor.gov.my/modules/content/content.php?page=air-percuma-setiap-bulan

http://airkumalaysia.blogspot.com/2011/06/cara-menjimatkan-air.html

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http://www.meed.com/sectors/economy/government/saudi-arabia-presses-ahead-with-a-wastewater-revolution/3007439.article

http://istajib.blogspot.com/2011/04/air-dan-islam-sorotan-ringkas.html

http://www.ustaznoramin.com/2011/03/pembahagian-air-dalam-islam.html

http://www.ustaznoramin.com/2011/03/pembahagian-najis-dalam-islam.html

http://www.al-azim.com/masjid/infoislam/ibadat/air.htm

From the very beginning martial union and physical union were intertwined together. Genesis 2:24 (King James Version) states “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” “Marriage is a one flesh relationship. Sex is not peripheral to marriage but is delicately woven into its very fabric” (Weiner-Davis, 2008). Sexual intimacy in marriage is God’s gift to mankind. God’s gift of sexual intimacy in marriage serves four purposes: consummation of marriage, procreation, love, and pleasure (Hollinger, 2009). Human imperfection is the result of sin entering the world. Different sex drives and unresolved marital conflicts are human imperfections that cause dissatisfaction and diminished sexual intimacy in a marriage that can trigger emotional disconnect, infidelity, or divorce. In order for a couple to revive sexual intimacy in their marriage they have to be willing to understand their differences and forgive past mistakes. God, the creator of sexual intimacy chose to relate to mankind through sexual intimacy in a marriage.

The four purposes of God’s gift of sexual intimacy in marriage are: consummation of marriage, procreation, love, and pleasure. The first purpose of sexual intimacy is for the consummation of marriage. Consummation of marriage happens when a married couple has sexual intercourse for the first time. The biblical term “to know” means that a couple becomes literally one flesh at the moment of intercourse (Janssen, 2001). At that moment, something dynamic transpires between the two when they become one flesh their relationship is now different, set apart and made distinct (Hollinger).

The second purpose of sexual intimacy is procreation. In Genesis 1:28 God reveals his plan for procreation when he blessed Adam and Eve and said unto them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth and subdue it” (KJV). “Sexual intercourse is the means by which human life on earth continues and the means by which every human life begins” (Hollinger). Procreation was God’s plan for mankind to populate the earth.

The third purpose of sexual intimacy is love. Covenantal love is found in a marriage. Covenantal love is forever and accepts the responsibility to bear children from sexual intercourse (Hollinger). Love is so exquisitely defined in I Corinthians chapter 13. “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails” (New International Version). Sexual intimacy in a marriage is sacred and creates a love bond between husband and wife that is not easily broken.

The fourth purpose of sexual intimacy is pleasure. C.S. Lewis rightfully connects legitimate pleasure with God when he penned the following words: “God gives good gifts to human beings for their enjoyment. In our fallen state we often turn these good gifts in to gods, demanding more of them than they can yield and replacing God, the ultimate good with created goodsaˆ¦ The very fact that the psalmist can speak of eternal pleasures at God’s right hand shows that he is a God of pleasure” (Lewis, 2001). God created sexual intimacy that was pure and undefiled for marital pleasure but sin when it was conceived defiled sexual intimacy and took it outside the confines of marriage. As long as sexual intimacy is kept in the confines of marriage it can be pleasurable and still remain pure and undefiled. According to sex therapists, Rosenau and Sytsma “it has been our clinical experience that couples who desire deep connections and fantastic sexual intimacy, must learn to laugh and play in a way the Creator designed as part of the experience of intimacy” (Rosenau, 2004). God created sexual intimacy for marital pleasure and he intended for husbands and wives to enjoy each other sexually.

Sexual intimacy is vital in a marriage and that is how God created marriage. Unfortunately, with the fall of man came human imperfection. Human imperfection causes flaws in all of God’s creation and marriage is not exempt from this demise. Human imperfection in a marriage manifests itself through various venues that results in dissatisfaction and a decline of sexual intimacy in a marriage. One venue is differences in sex drives and another venue is unresolved marital conflicts.

Differences in sex drives can have a negative effect on sexual intimacy in a marriage. In a lot of marriages one spouse will have a high sex drive and the other spouse will have a low sex drive. The spouse with the lower sex drive controls the sexual relationship. They dictate the frequency of sex, the time for sex, and the type of sexual activities and techniques that will be used during sex. The spouse with the higher sex drive begins to feel powerless, rejected, hurt, lonely and unloved. As a result sexual intimacy diminishes and dissatisfaction manifests itself in the marriage (Weiner-Davis, 2008).

Unresolved marital conflicts can also cause dissatisfaction and diminished sexual intimacy in a marriage. Conflicts over finances, parenting issues, a controlling spouse, infidelity, individual preferences, unintended emotional injury, flaws and weaknesses are typical marital conflicts. Conflicts when they arise need to be confronted and a compromise reached. Ephesians 4:26 admonishes man “let not the sun go down upon your wrath” (KJV). Couples should make it a priority in their marriage to resolve conflicts. Unresolved conflicts in a marriage begin to build barriers between the husband and the wife. If unresolved martial conflicts persist in a marriage, the marriage is headed for failure.

Differences in sex drive and unresolved marital conflicts have the ability to spawn emotional disconnect, infidelity, or divorce in a marriage. Emotional disconnect occurs when a couple is no longer emotionally intimate with each other. Emotional disconnect is caused by feelings of resentment and rejection. Infidelity is when one spouse is physically or mentally unfaithful to the other spouse. Lust and pornography are types of mental infidelity that usually precede physical infidelity. Divorce is inevitable if emotional disconnect and infidelity are not resolved in the marriage. Sin’s curse to marriage is divorce. God hates divorce and he did not intend for marriage to end in divorce but he understands that sometimes divorce is the only viable option (Christian Marriage Today, 2012).

Rekindling the spark of sexual intimacy in a marriage requires learning to understand each other’s differences and the ability to forgive past mistakes. There has to be an understanding that God made every individual different and the willingness to accept those differences. Past mistakes that still linger in the marriage need to be relinquished and forgiven (Christian Marriage Today). Marriages are not perfect and sometimes outside intervention such as prayer, counseling and marriage seminars are necessary. Counseling and marriage seminars can strengthen or reconnect marital relationships. Most importantly, seeking God for guidance and understanding through prayer will help build, maintain, or renew intimacy in a marriage (Weiner-Davis).

God created man in his own image and he desired to be close to man. God chose sexual intimacy in marriage as a way relate to man. “Sex is his self-disclosing picture window into the AlmightyA­A­A­A­A­A­-His grand metaphor to teach the value he places on intimate relationships. God is love and sexuality gives us ways to understand this” (Rosenau). Sin mars, distorts or even erases evidence of our creator in sex acts. Often sex bears no resemblance to God’s image as was his original design and intent. Sexual intimacy gives man insights into God’s character and the way he interacts with man (Rosenau).

Research on the topic of the importance of sexual intimacy in marriage revealed the importance that God places on sexual intimacy. If God believes that sexual intimacy in a marriage is important then man should make sexual intimacy in marriage a priority. If man would make it a priority there would be less divorce in the world. God desires his children to live happy and fulfilled lives. It is his good pleasure for couples to experience sexual intimacy. Sexual intimacy does not create marriage, but sexual intimacy cannot be divorced from marriage. God, the creator of marriage would have it no other way (Weiner-Davis).

The term image is everything is truer today than its ever been before. Whether its the designer clothes a person is wearing, place of residence, the car they drive or the calculated lines they recite, presentation is now replacing content when it comes to discerning the authenticity and character of a person. This is the measure by which people are valued nowadays; superficially and without substance. Unfortunately and sadly this is also true within the church. We lack concern when it comes to the true character of an individual, but we care more about their gifts and talents. It’s seems like society and the church are captivated and awestricken with an individual’s false persona, and television personalities rather than a person’s character.

This standard is used chiefly because of the materialistic and/or secular nature of today’s society. Much of this is done either consciously, or subconsciously, in an effort to enhance one’s “image” as seen through the eyes of man, one’s friends, family, peers, and even society in general. All that being said, the term, “image is everything” is alive and well. However, it shouldn’t have validity for the reasons described above, but rather because man is created in the “image” and “likeness” of God. This is the true image that should shape the manner in which Orthodox Christians live their lives.

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’ So, God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (Gen 1: 26-27) The significance of man being created in God’s image is sometimes overlooked due to the complete silence of the rest of the Old Testament on this subject (In the Image and Likeness of God by Vladimir Lossky). However, the Orthodox Church lays the utmost emphasis on the image of God in man (The Orthodox Church by Timothy Ware). To acquire the likeness of God is to become deified or to become a “god by grace”, this is the ultimate goal of Orthodox Christians.

According to the church fathers, the terms image and likeness do not mean the exact same thing. In general, the term image can be thought of as the powers with which each one of us is endowed by God from the moment of our existence. By making proper us of being created in His image, each one of has the ability to acquire God’s likeness or to be deified. (1)

Oddly, its meaning “image of God” has been debated, a hot topic, if you will, for centuries in and outside of the church. Most theologians argued that it is the human mind – the capacity to exercise reason or rationality, the intellect – which marks us as being made ‘in the image of God. It also distinguishes us from animals.

The argument for this is that God himself can be described as acting in accordance with reason. God’s actions, Christians affirm, are always consistent with God’s inherent qualities, such as love, justice and mercy. God is consistent and trustworthy, and so can be said to be characterized by perfect reason. In creating human beings, God gives them, uniquely, a capacity for reason that reflects God’s own reason. It is in this respect that Christians believe we are in God’s image. (2)

I. Image:

The “image of God” is a key concept in Christian theology. It is foundational to Christian thinking about human identity, human significance, bioethics, and other topics. Many Christians see evolution as incompatible with the image of God. How could God’s image bearers have evolved from simpler life forms? Doesn’t image-bearing require miraculous creation of humans rather than shared ancestry with chimpanzees? When in the evolutionary process did humans attain this image? These questions are tied to many other issues concerning human origins, including the soul, the fall, and the historicity of Adam and Eve.

The phrase “image of God” does not appear many times in the Bible, but the importance of the concept is emphasized by its repetition in the scripture: “Then God said, let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:26-27) Herein, it’s clear that part of bearing God’s image is ruling over the animals. Genesis 9:5-6 reveals another aspect of image bearing: all human lifeblood is sacred because all humans are made in the image of God. The emphasis on Judeo-Christian thought on the sanctity of human life is derived in part from this passage. In the New Testament, the idea is expanded further as Christ is revealed as the true image of the invisible God. (2 Corinthians 4:4, Colossians 1:15).

Being made in the image of God, says Lyons and Thompson, does not refer to the physical body, the posture, or the authoritative aspect of man. It is true that the word “image” (Hebrew tselem) is a term used in certain contexts within the Old Testament to refer to a model or to idols (and thus can refer to a similarity in physical appearance). It can’t and doesn’t denote such meaning in Genesis 1:26-27, nor in any of the other passages referring to the imago Dei (“image of God”). God is not “like unto gold, or silver, or stone” (i.e., He is not physical; Acts 17:29). As Ashby Camp observed: God, of course, is a spirit (Jn. 4:24), and the O.T. stresses his in corporeality and invisibility (see Ex. 20:1-4; Deut. 4:15-16). So, the resemblance no doubt relates to some nonphysical aspect(s) of humanity (1999, p. 44). Since it is the case that a spirit “hath not flesh and bones” (Luke 24:39; cf. Matthew 16:17), then man does not bear the image of God in his physical nature. (6)

“Creation in the image of God distinguishes humankind from all other life forms” said Milne in Know the Truth. Additionally, he said, “traditional interpretations of the image refer to features such as human knowledge, moral awareness, original moral perfection and immortality.” He goes on to say some scholars argue for a physical meaning for the image. And he also declares that others have argued for humanity’s alleged Trinitarian constitution, or the image as human dominion. (Gen.1:26-28.) They are looking forward to the renewal of the dominion in the kingdom of God through Christ, the embodiment of the image. (Heb. 2:5-9) Furthermore, more recent interpretation Milne says, has spoken of the social nature of the image, human experience as being-in-community reflecting the divine being-in-community of the Godhead. Barth extended this interpretation specifically to the man-woman relationship. (Gen. 1:27) “God created (humanity) in his own imageaˆ¦ Male and female he created them.”

Irenaeus distinguished between the image, which he identified with human reason and moral freedom, and the likeness, he identified with original righteousness. He taught that only the likeness was lost in fall. This interpretation was followed through the medieval period and contributed to its essentially optimistic view of human nature. Luther, however, says that there is a case of Hebrew parallelism in Genesis 1:26. He believed image and likeness were synonyms; what was true for one was true for the other. The image of God, he said, “has therefore been totally lost and can be restored only through regeneration by the Holy Spirit.”

There is a variety of views on how the image has been affected by the fall. A common view is that the image of God refers to the human abilities which separate us from the animals. Still, scientists have found that abilities like communication and rationality are also present in animals on a basic level. Another view is theologians do not see the image of God as human abilities, but instead it as our capacity for a relationship with God. Other theologians see it as our commission to represent God’s kingdom on earth. Either way, the author says God has given us our spiritual capacities and calls us to bear his image. (3)

Nevertheless, Milne says the bible doesn’t actually refer to a total loss of the image of God. (Gen 9:6, 1Cor. 11:7 and James 3:9.) Calvin, spoke of relics of the image of God in fallen humanity, which, while affording no basis for humanity’s justification, still distinguish them from the animal creation account for the undoubted gifts and achievements of non-Christians. Dutch scholars, in the reformed tradition, such as A. Kuyper and H. Bavinck, spoke in this connection of common grace, whereby God in his pity restrains the worst effects of the fall and renders social life tolerable for humankind. (4)

Lyons and Thompson communicate that, through the years, numerous scholars have suggested that the image of God spoken of in Genesis 1:26-27 refers to some sort of “spiritual perfection” that was lost at the time of man’s fall, and thus is incomprehensible to us today. Genesis tells us that man was created in a special way, bearing the stamp of God upon him which the animals did not bear. Unfortunately Genesis also tells us that he lost this stamp. While Adam himself was created with this image, his disobedience so robbed him of it that all his children thereafter bore not the image of God but his-and even his likeness (1975, pp. 103, 109, first emp. added, last emp. in orig.) When we see in Genesis 1:26-27 that man was created in the “image and likeness of God,” does the language refer only to Adam and Eve as these writers would have us to believe? Or does it refer to all mankind in general?

It is the author’s position that the “image of God” spoken of in Genesis 1:26-27 does not refer to some kind of “spiritual perfection,” especially considering the fact that the members of the Godhead (Who created man) are omniscient and therefore knew that man would sin. Reformer Martin Luther claimed that the image was an original righteousness that was lost completely. He averred: “I am afraid that since the loss of this image through sin, we cannot understand it to any extent” (as quoted in Dyrness, 1972, 15:163, emp. added).

John Calvin similarly spoke of the image of God as having been destroyed by sin, obliterated by the fall, and utterly defaced by man’s unrighteousness (see Hoekema, 1986, p. 43). Yet, at other times, he took a less “hard-core” approach and vacillated between a complete loss and a partial loss of the image. In his commentary on Genesis, he wrote: “But now, although some obscure lineaments of that image are found remaining in us, yet are they so vitiated and maimed, that they may truly be said to be destroyed” (as quoted in Hoekema, p. 45, emp. added). Keil and Delitzsch commented that the “concrete essence of the divine likeness was shattered by sin; and it is only through Christ, the brightness of the glory of God and the expression of His essence (Heb. 1:3), that our nature is transformed into the image of God again (Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:24)” [1996, 1:39]. Canadian anthropologist Arthur C. Custance, in his book, Man in Adam and in Christ, observed.

Feinberg, in speaking of the image of God as what he called an “inalienable part of man’s constitution,” spoke of that image as currently being in a “marred, corrupted, and impaired state” (1972, 129:245). Hoekema elaborated on the same point when he wrote: in other words, there is also a sense in which human beings no longer properly bear the image of God, and therefore need to be renewed in that image. We could say that in this latter sense the image of God in man has been marred and corrupted by sin. Nevertheless, we must still see fallen man as an image-bearer of God, but as one who by nature images God in a distorted way (1986, p. 31). (6)

II Likeness:

Jim Schicatano believes that “likeness and image are different.” Likeness, he says, “doesn’t convey such preciseness as “image.” To be like someone means you possess many, but not all of the characteristics of that person. Obviously, man does not possess God’s omnipotence, wisdom, righteousness, perfection, ability to create, and divineness, he said. (5)

In these others (along with Lyons and Thompson) differs with Schicatano in relations to the image/likeness of God. They say, the “image” (tselem) of God does not refer to something different than the “likeness” (demuth) of God. The Greek and Latin “church fathers” frequently suggested a distinction between the two words. They taught that tselem referred to the physical, and demuth to the ethical, part of the divine image (Feinberg, 1972, 129:237). Other theologians (like Irenaeus, A.D. 130-c. 200) taught that “image” denoted man’s unchangeable essence (viz., his freedom and rationality), whereas “likeness” referred to the changing part of man (i.e., his relationship with God). Thus the former related to the very nature of man, while the latter was that which could be lost (Crawford, 1966, 77:233). As of 1972, this still was the official view of the Roman Catholic Church (Feinberg, 129:237).

They go on to say despite the influence of those who claim that these words carry very different ideas about the image of God, a careful study of such passages as Genesis 1:26-27, 5:1-3, and 9:6 reveals that, in fact, these two Hebrew words do not speak of two different entities. “Likeness” simply emphasizes the “image.” As William Dyrness noted in regard to tselem and demuth: “The two words should be seen as having complementary rather than competing meanings. The first stresses the image of God as its being shaped and the second express its being like the original in significant ways” (1972, 15:162). Charles Feinberg, writing on “The Image of God” in the respected religious journal Bibliotheca Sacra, agreed when he remarked: A careful study of Genesis 1:26-27; 5:1,3; and 9:6 will show beyond question that it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that the two Hebrew terms are not referring to two different entities. In short, use reveals the words are used interchangeably (1972, 129:237).

There actually is no good evidence for making any distinction between the two. In fact, the words are essentially synonymous in this context. Keil and Delitzsch remarked in their commentary on Genesis that the two words are “merely combined to add intensity to the thought” (1996, 1:39). As Clark puts it: “Man is not two images and to distinguish between image and likeness is fanciful exegesis” (1969, 12:216). (6)

III Dominion:

In relations to dominion, there seems to be a difference of opinion as to what exactly God meant when he said, “Let hem have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” (Genesis 1:26-28 )

Schicatano believes we are like God in the sense that we have been given sovereignty over the entire Earth. God is responsible for the creation of the universe, and likewise, we are responsible for our world. This sovereignty, however, is not a birthright of ours. It is a sacred gift, given to us from God; it is a delegated responsibility. Just as God has created and formed our world to His liking, we are capable of changing it and managing it to our liking. So, it is this responsibility that has been entrusted to us. It must not be taken for granted because ultimately we are answerable to God for the conditions of planet Earth and the state of our fellow human beings. (5)

However, Lyons and Thompson don’t share Schicatano belief. They convey that the “image” is not man’s domination of the lower creation around him. In a “letter to the editor” that Norman Snaith penned to the Expository Times in 1974, he boldly claimed: The meaning is that God created man to be his agent, his representative in ruling all living creatures, and he was given sufficient (to quote the psalm) “honor and glory” to do this…. Biblically speaking, the phrase “image of God” has nothing to do with morals or any sort of ideals; it refers only to man’s domination of the world and everything that is in it. It says nothing about the nature of God, but everything concerning the function of man (1974, 86:24, emp. added, parenthetical comment in orig.). In regard to this kind of thinking, we would be wise to remember that man must exist before dominion can be invested in him, and that man has authority because of the truth that he is made in the image or likeness of God.

Also, the authority is not the cause of the image or likeness, but the image and likeness is the ground of the authority (Chafer, 1943, 100:481, emp. added). In commenting on this subject James Hastings wrote: “The view that the Divine image consists in dominion over the creatures cannot be held without an almost inconceivable weakening of the figure, and is inconsistent with the sequel, where the rule over the creatures is, by a separate benediction, conferred on man, already made in the image of God.” The truth is that the image marks the distinction between man and the animals, and so qualifies him for dominion: the latter is the consequence, not the essence, of the Divine image (1976, 1:48, emp. added).

“Dominion,” Keil and Delitzsch noted, “is unquestionably ascribed to man simply as the consequence or effluence of his likeness to God” (1996, 1:39). As William H. Baker commented: “[I]t is the presence of the image of God in people that makes them able to exercise dominion over the earth. Dominion itself is not what constitutes the image” (1991, p. 39, emp. in orig.). Although somewhat closely related to the image of God, exercising dominion over the world is not itself that image. (6)

Conclusion:

Perhaps while on earth we may never totally understand what is meant by these verses. But, upon research, some theologians, Christian Orthodoxy believe we are still in the image of God, others concur that when man fell his image was marred. And some agreed it was lost. However, without a doubt, what is clear is that in mankind, God has completed His final creation of the Creation Story. Let’s consider what King David said of our creation and our special place among all of God’s creations. “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.” (Psalms 8:3-8 NIV)

With the diversity of views, most (Christian orthodox) agree that each of us have been made in the image and likeness of God, and because of this, we are capable of determining our own destiny. Unlike the plants and animals, God has endowed us with the ability to form a relationship with Him, the ability to increase our knowledge and wisdom, and the responsibility of caring for the world that He has given us.

As His primary creations, we are obligated to imitate and show evidence of His divineness in every area of life. Some may find it complimentary that we have been made in His image. But, because of evolution many no longer treasure this mystery. Matter-of-fact, some have become irresponsible stewards and have neglected the responsibilities that it entails. Above all of His earthly creations, God has endowed man/womankind with a unique soul – holding us responsible for all of our actions. (5) One day we will give an account to the Creator how we’ve managed; our temples, our lives, family, resources, businesses, ministries, blessings, and this planet called earth.

Each author seems to have scriptural evidence to support their theory on this controversial and highly debatable topic. But, there was another point of agreeableness among them: some of the characteristics were which represent man/woman being formed in the image of God. To name a few, we are creators, God created the heavens and the earth, we’re relational, God is relational, we are communicators, God is a communicator, we are spiritual beings as God is a Spirit, and we are intellectual beings who reasons, God is intelligent and reasons too.

When we fully grasp what it means to bear God’s image, we are amazingly struck with the boundless, grandeur of our possibilities and the tragedy of our unrealized potential! To be fully human is to completely reflect God’s image. Furthermore, though all humans possess these godlike capacities, each of us has the potential to express them uniquely because God’s image has been imprinted peculiarly on each of us. (7) In God’s infinite creativity there are no duplications. Everybody is an original and is created in the image of God, which according to Orthodox Christians can never be lost.

Endnotes/ Works sited:

1) http://www.stgeorgeserbian.us/darren/darren03.html

2) V. Plater- In the Image of God: http://www.virtualplater.org.uk/?page_id=2054

3) BioLogos: “How could humans have evolved and still be created in the “Image of God?” BioLogos is a community of evangelical Christians committed to exploring and celebrating the compatibility of evolutionary creation and biblical faith, guided by the truth that “all things hold together in Christ.” [Col 1:17] Daniel Harrell, Senior Minister,

Colonial Church, Edina, Minn.- http://biologos.org/questions/image-of-god

4) Text Book; “Know the truth,” by Bruce Milne

5) Jim Schicatano,”Created in the Image and Likeness of God.” http://thebibleandscience.webs.com/articles/image.htm

6) Lyons and Thompson- “In the Image and Likeness of God.” Eric Lyons, M.Min. & Bert Thompson, Ph.D. http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=11&article=149

7) Dick Staub- “What ‘Made in the Image of God’ Really Means” By Dick Staub, March 4, 2013

(Taking a second look at a very misunderstood part of our faith.) http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/deeper-walk/features/23549-qmade-in-the-image-of-godq

The atonement is a very debatable theme in theology primarily because of the importance of the doctrine itself. According to Caleb Burge, this very doctrine is “the foundation of all the doctrines of divine revelation which respect the salvation of mankind: the grand pillar on which they are supported” (1822). In other words, the doctrine of atonement is foundational one, on which a number of other doctrines stand. Moreover, it is directly related to the meaning of death of Christ on the Cross. That is why people, especially theologians, are so much concerned about the rationale behind it.

Interestingly, the term “atonement” is of Anglo-Saxon origin, not a Biblical word as such (Bingham, 2001). According to Bingham, this term “acts as an umbrella to cover a number of other words such as reconciliation, expiation, propitiation, and the like” (2001). Besides, reconciliation is “a result of Jesus’ mission in which the enmity or hostility between God and humanity is overcome and set aside so that they can have a good relationship”, expiation – “an effect of Jesus’ death on the cross in which humanity’s sinfulness is covered and set aside so that reconciliation between God and humanity can take place” (Grenz, 1998), and propitiation is Christ’s death on a cross “to appease God’s wrath against sin” (Bawulski, 2012).

Honestly speaking, I never ever engaged in thinking about atonement before having Theology class. In addition, I am still not committed to Christianity for a number of reasons though do believe in something beyond our world so to say. However, there were a lot of Christians in my surrounding including my grandmother and to some extent my mother. I also actually read Bible, even more than once: first time when I was a kid and had Bible in pictures adapted for children, then we were studying some parts of it in school at literature classes, and lastly we were studying Bible very closely at our university. So, I was introduced to idea of atonement but was unaware of the theological debate around it.

What influenced me to choose this very topic to research was not our lesson actually, but an extra-credit assignment on penal substitution theory. Reading an article by Schreiner I first of all got more information about the doctrine of atonement and the theories around it, and also got personal insights concerning this theme. So, when choosing a topic I decided to take one I am already more familiar with and have more thoughts about.

What I think is surely true is that complexity of atonement is a mystery beyond our understanding that nobody is able to explain sufficiently (except only God). Interestingly, Schreiner builds his theological argument on theological concepts that are also arguable, for example the nature of God’s love, and the assumption that forgiving without sacrifice violates God’s holiness. God for some reason needed this sacrifice, but are we really able to explain it?

Interestingly, searching for the meaning of atonement I saw it also has a meaning of compensation. However, as I mentioned above already atonement is purely Anglo-Saxon term, thus, in Hebrew or Greek versions of the Bible there might be no compensation implied.

Nevertheless, the atonement as compensation to the Father (Christ died to satisfy a principle in the very nature of God) is consistent with the Substitutionary or Satisfaction Theory (Keating, 2002).

My idea of the rationale behind the question of atonement (though I do not actually believe any idea can be proved) is that Jesus took the original sin (that was brought to us with Adam that is also debatable though) from humanity, but we ourselves still will have to die, so maybe we have die for our own sins, not the original one, now. Also, Christ’s life and death have a moral effect on us and demand following Jesus’ example. So, my idea is more or less close to Christus Victor theory of atonement and surely reflects the main ideas of example theory and moral influence theory of atonement.

So, among major views on the atonement are: Christus Victor theory, Example theory, Moral Influence theory, Satisfaction theory, Penal Substitution Theory, Ransom theory, Governmental theory, Mystical theory, and Vicarious Repentance theory.

According to Christus Victor theory “in Christ, God triumphed over the law, sin, death and the devil – the evil powers of the world, the ‘tyrants’ under which mankind is in bondage and suffering, and in him God reconciles the world to himself” (Aulen, 2010).

According to Example or Socinian theory, the atonement is “a perfect example of the type of dedication to God that we are to practice” (Keating, 2002).

According to Moral Influence theory, the atonement is “a demonstration of God’s love and should inspire us to love him in return” (Keating, 2002).

According to Satisfaction theory, Christ in his suffering “restores or rehabilitates God’s offended honor and dignity” (Bingham, 2001).

According to Penal Substitution theory, Christ “died for man, in man’s place, taking his sins and bearing them for him that takes the punishment of them, and sets the believer free from the penal demands of the law, thus, the righteousness of the law and the holiness of God are satisfied by this substitution” (Bingham, 2001).

According to Ransom theory, the atonement is “a victory over the forces of sin and evil because Christ’s death ransomed us back from Satan” (Keating, 2002).

According to Governmental theory, the atonement is “a demonstration of divine justice, of what will happen to us if we continue to sin” (Keating, 2002). Bingham says that “God is a governor that determines and requires; he can abrogate the law, or rather its total punishment; Christ on the Cross bears a nominal punishment, thus showing that God views sin seriously, however forgives it having put his safe-guard around his law” (2001).

According to Mystical theory (Gradual Extirpation of Depravity), Christ “entered the world in the flesh of fallen humanity, but brought a new factor, a new kind of life, which destroys original depravity on the Cross, so that a new humanity emerges through Christ; by identification with us, and we with him, man is gradually sanctified, and his sanctification becomes, in fact, his justification” (Bingham, 2001).

According to Vicarious Repentance theory, “perfect repentance is all that is required for forgiveness that Christ showed on the Cross, where he identifies with man under condemnation; man, thus being forgiven, has an impetus to holiness” (Bingham, 2001).

Support

To start with, I want to say that I do not really stick to one position concerning the atonement, or one particular theory, but choose a couple of them that seem to me to be the closest ones to my personal point of view. As I mentioned before, my idea is that Jesus saved humanity from the original sin with his death on the Cross, but as we still have to die, we supposedly are not saved from our own sins. Probably, we have to die to conquer our own sins ourselves following the example of Jesus who conquered the original sin (let’s suppose its true?S ). Moreover, the fact that we understand we have to struggle with our sins can be a result of moral influence of Jesus’ death.

So, my support would focus on defending mostly elements of Christus Victor theory, and give some support to Example theory and Moral Influence theory.

First of all, according to Scriptures, the penalty for sin is death – “And the Lord said, ‘The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and leave forever’” (Genesis 3:22). This sentence from the Book of Genesis clearly says that people became mortal as a result of disobeying God, sinning in other words. Consequently, to become immortal again people have to overcome sin. So, judging from the fact that we are all still mortal, Jesus’ death on the Cross did not take all the sins from humanity. Either way, I suppose we would be immortal again. On the other hand, eternal life is promised to people after death. Considering that, we have to die. But death is the result of sin, so we in a way follow Jesus’ example as we die and overcome some part of sin that is still in us that is consistent with Example theory of atonement – “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21).

From the first sight it seems that in such situation Jesus’ sacrifice is not necessary, as we all die in the end, thus, overcome sin ourselves. However, the thing is that we are unable to take the responsibility for the original sin, so something else, that is Jesus’ sacrifice, is needed.

What is hard for me to explain in my theory though is the connection between Adam and Eve’s sin and Jesus’ ability to defeat it. Nevertheless, the very fact that Jesus suffered and died on the Cross implies that there was some connection. This is also evidence for the fact that sin could not be just pardoned “for no one can rationally suppose, that the Son of God would have left the bosom of the Father, and the glory which he had with him before the world was, to take on him the form of a servant in this world, and subject himself to the pains and sorrows incident to human life, if such humiliation had not been indispensably necessary, in order that the purposes of grace, in the salvation of sinners, might be answered” (Burge, 1822).

The idea that Jesus took only original sin from us is similar to some extent to Christus Victor theory – “The Son of God,” we read in 1 John 3:8,” was revealed for this purpose: to destroy the works of the devil.” The works of devil are primarily the deception of Adam and Eve from where the original sin comes.

One may think that if we are free from original sin, why then we continue to sin in the eyes of God. To answer this question I came up with an idea that sinful acts or thoughts are the result of socialization – the process by which an individual learns to live in accordance with the expectations and standards of a group or society, acquiring its beliefs, habits, values, and accepted modes of behavior primarily through imitation, family interaction, and educational systems; the procedure by which society integrates the individual (“Socialization”). At the moment of Jesus’ death people already had a sinful culture so to say that included the possibility of sinning. So, even when people became free of the original sin, they still remained in this culture that is the result of the original sin. Maybe this is the main reason for the necessity of Jesus’ second coming – the need to renew the earth and the heavens that would result in destroying this sinful culture.

The main objection to Christus Victor theory is that “Satan or the “powers of Evil” must be satisfied rather than God, whose command was originally ignored in the Garden of Eden, and who is continually ignored by all mankind” (Glynn, 2002). The cosmic significance of Christ’s work is more fundamental than its soteriological significance (Bawulski, 2012). This objection is consistent with Satisfaction theory of atonement.

However, I do not see any problem with that – in my view, people were unable to give to God his due (that is the definition of sin according to Satisfaction theory) primarily because of the works of Satan. Thus, when evil is defeated God should be already satisfied.

Conclusions

Jesus died on the Cross to defeat the works of devil that is Jesus freed humanity from the original sin. His death and resurrection obviously had an effect on people – a positive moral influence as a result of understanding that righteousness brings eternal life. Also, in order to have this eternal life people should follow Jesus’ example – live a righteous life, die and resurrect then immortal and free of any sin. All of this is consistent with Christus Victor, Example and Moral Influence theories.

My rather innovative idea is that we are released only from original sin, and have to die overcome our own sins. We continue to sin regardless of being free from original sin because of having sinful culture that probably would be destroyed with Jesus’ second coming.

This way to see the doctrine of atonement emphasizes the importance of second coming of Jesus and explains in a way why it has to take place. Probably, it makes no differences in other areas.

The 1840s was a time of rapid change and was an age when new and revolutionary ideas were beginning to crystalize and form into modern beliefs. Many tried to experiment with social reform and this included John Humphrey Noyes. Noyes was a prominent, colorful, and devoutly religious leader and his ideas blossomed into the infamous Oneida community of New York. Oneida was a revolutionary community with philosophies taboo in that age as well as the modern age. Outsiders viewed Oneida with awe and attracted many tourists from all over to see how such a community could function under policies of complex marriage, communalism, eugenics, and mutual criticism. People looked at Oneida as a shocking utopian society which worked under taboo policies, yet lasted successfully and peacefully for over 30 years.

John Humphrey Noyes Jr. was born in 1811 in Brattleboro, Vermont under his father, John Humphrey Noyes Sr., a shopkeeper and former minister, and his mother, a deeply religious Christian. His father would represent Vermont in the House of Representatives for two years. Later he left politics, sold his business, and settled down in the Town of Putney with his eight children. http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BmVnMZODeXI/TFTMG_qah5I/AAAAAAAAAFs/UFhqclvZeNE/s1600/Noyes.jpg

Noyes had an extremely deep religious up-bringing. He was ten when his family moved to Putney and they had family prayers and readings from the New Testament daily. His mother took him to conversion meetings and had intended her son to go into ministry when he grew up. Attending private school at the age of 9, Noyes graduated with flying colors and eventually attended Dartmouth College. At first, he chose an occupation in law, but eventually decided to become a minister after he had a dramatic conversion experience after visiting his hometown of Putney in the fall. Noyes came to study scripture at Andover seminary passionately for a year but decided to transfer to Yale due to lack of liberality. While attending Yale, Noyes joined a New Haven church. These churches looked down upon the practices of other common churches for their loose interpretations of the bible, and this was where Noyes’ radical ideas blossomed. He spent most of his time having theological discussion and attending mass. After a year at Yale, he received his license to preach.

During this time period, many began to question and interpret the bible in their own ways. One of such was Noyes’ professor of theology, Nathanial Taylor. Alongside him, many other preachers such as James LaTourette, and John B. Foot, created and preached their own takes on the bible and began to speak of Perfectionism; the lifestyle of being completely free of sin. Noyes was very interested and his religious fervor influenced him to study the bible to new extremes. Going through a period of starvation and poor health, John came to the realization that the best way to live was as a Perfectionist. He soon began to regard himself as perfect in god’s eyes because he chose to abstain from any sin.

His self-proclaimed perfection caused uproar among his peers and professors. People questioned him deeply and he was often isolated among other students. Noyes said, “My friends were fast falling away. I was beginning to indeed be an outcast.” (Klaw). This period of persecution was rough on Noyes, but he was firm in his beliefs for he believed the best path was the path of truth. Staying rigid in his self-image, many believed he was crazy or too extreme and radical. Eventually, his professor attempted to coax him to recant his statements because he was on the precipice of being expelled. Noyes denied recanting his ideals, was expelled from Yale, had his Preacher’s license revoked, and had been voted out of his New Haven church.

At the age of 23, Noyes had no followers and was in a bad state of mind. In spark of hope, he traveled to New York to meet one of his favorite Perfectionist theologians, Charles Grandison Finney, at an annual theology convention. Noyes traveled all the way to New York, but he failed to meet his idol and left in a state of hopelessness. He wandered for 3 weeks in New York City in a drunken stupor in open rebellion to his theories of abstinence due to his spiraling depression. Noyes was in a rough patch in his life and he spent a lot of his time preaching to the city homeless. Later on Noyes’ brother discovered what had happened to him and requested that he come back to Putney to get back on his feet. http://library.syr.edu/digital/collections/j/JohnHumphreyNoyes,ThePutneyCommunity/p054a.jpg

For the next two years of John’s life, he rediscovered his passion and worked to convert people to Perfectionism in New York and New England. Although in an age of rapid discovery and innovative ideas, Noyes had a hard time converting people because others still considered his ideals too much. He preached that the Second coming had already occurred, men could reach perfection, and that salvation was attainable through perfectionism.

While in New York, Noyes teamed up with two other theologians and shared their ideas with the public via a periodical on perfectionist ideals. This went on successfully for a year until Noyes had to leave because his radical interpretations even caused his partners to stray away and disagree with him. Once again, Noyes’ found his way back to him hometown of Putney to get back on his feet in 1836.

Noyes was a determined man. He had many goals for himself, but felt extremely unsatisfied if those goals were not reached. He was vulnerable to neurotic fatigue, weeks of anxiety, and nervous physical disorders. After New York, Noyes slept little and ate almost nothing. He preferred to use the strongest stimulants available when he chose to eat; like cayenne peppers. He described these feelings as, “spiritual crucifixion,” and once the pain had disappeared, he would feel reborn into a new world to sow the seeds of life (Garden).

Other aspects of Noyes’ personality were his inability to focus on one idea at a given time. He would pursue ideas, but not fully if he believed it seemed invaluable; after he would move right on to the next one. He thought that these ideas were, “divinely inspired.” Another trait of his personality was his lack of deep personal relationships with other people. He would get to know someone on a superficial level then move on to the next person. One of his beliefs was that love should be shared with others and not specialized into one single person.

Once back at home, Noyes’ passion for preaching and converting caused him to do just that. Residing in a small town with few inhabitants, Noyes’ reputation was known well for being a very radical thinker. Most people in his hometown even looked at him with a dubious expression; many people were skeptical of Noyes’ preaching. Noyes put his passion of religion to full extent back in his hometown, and he attempted to convert most of his family. He was successful, but he did not receive the blessing of his father, John Humphrey Noyes Sr.

The next spring, empowered by his respite in his home town, Noyes’ sought out to follow his passion for converting and preaching. His preaching skills earned him many loyal disciples. He published a new periodical called “the Witness.” At the very young age of 26, Noyes had a very prominent reputation under his belt. In his publication, he preached that perfection of morality was completely possible, but his ideas were a double edged sword for they alienated him from society. His philosophies included the belief that when one reached perfection in terms of the bible, it let you be free to do what you wanted in the physical realm. This idea led to open kissing sessions between the members of his following. He was looked at in a different light after that, but he knew that he truly believed there was nothing wrong to share love that god had intended to be shared with everybody.

His ideas blossomed when he met Abigail Werwin. They became close and he loved her in a lustful way, but she eventually left and married another man. Even though he was rejected, Noyes was still convinced that they still had a chance together. Lonely and sick of “love,” Noyes’ isolated himself in his studies to reflect upon the teachings of the bible and to further his philosophy of love.

One of his most devout followers was Harriet A Horton. She professed her faith to Noyes’ after reading one of his books on the topic of perfectionism. She came from a wealthy family and would frequently give him gifts and donations. Her grandparents were affluent and both her parents were dead at the time. Although he had not seen much of her, in 1838 Noyes proposed and since her grandparents were not opposed to it, they were married. In his marriage proposal, Noyes made it clear that he wanted her to love all men and women and that either of them should, “monopolize,” or, “enslave,” each other’s hearts.

During this time period, Noyes was trying to establish himself as a leader in the Perfectionist movement and he turned his focuses to printing his philosophies. Within a couple months of getting married, he and his family were working hard to publish his previous articles into a single book called, “The Way of Holiness,” and he continued to publish his periodical, “The Witness.” http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X9AQjPidBWc/TWMJoJ8C4KI/AAAAAAAAAT0/GBv_AgzS9As/s1600/biblecomm1.jpg

Noyes publication work would eventually lead to the creation of the official holy text of his philosophies. In 1847 he compiled all his works into, “The Berean.” He did not consider this the complete book because he believed that forms of practice depended on the age of the time and that ideas were constantly changing with time.

Of other ideas present in his book of Perfectionism, Noyes included his theory that the Second Coming of Christ had already happened, and that freedom from sin could be possible. He argued that simply believing in Christ or taking the traditional route of faith, which included studying the bible and attending church, could give you a quality faith, but it could not free you from sinful deeds. He said that receiving this second rebirth was achievable but hard. He argued against antinomianism, the theory that faith in god was all you needed, and said that faith in god did not save one’s soul; god taught people through the bible how to save their own soul. Through god’s teachings, mankind could evolve inevitably toward a perfect society. He also said that eventually even death itself would cease because mankind would become so perfect that death was not required for one to go to heaven. He did not include how this was possible and his ideology was regarded as an extreme interpretation.

In his holy book, Noyes also discusses how a perfect holy man would be. He said that he would be a very spiritual individual, and with the guidance of god and the church, he was free to become holy through his will. He believed that man didn’t have to follow every rule as the Puritans did, but man should be open and willing to try new experiences and to accept all that life had to offer.

ORIGIN OF ONEIDA

The origin of the Oneida community began in Putney. Through his publications on Perfectionism, Noyes had gained a small amount of followers throughout the Putney region. Small pockets in Northern New Jersey, Northern Vermont, and New York began to look towards him as their leader. Noyes encouraged these people to organize conventions from where they could discuss social reform and talk about their faith. The issue between these pockets of people was that they were segregated. In 1841, Noyes created, “The Society for Inquiry,” consisting of no more than 12 members in his town of Putney to unify them.

Later in 1841, eight months before Noyes’ father died, his father split his savings and each gave his children $20,000. With this money, Noyes finally had a source of capital to fund his activity. Before, he had relied on donations from his dispersed followers and from his wife. He decided that he would change the policy of his church so that to be an official member, one needed to donate a certain amount of time to the church. With this set, the beginning of his organization was created with 29 adults and 9 children.

His followers inhabited 1 of 3 houses owned by Noyes’ family and they relied economically on 2 farms and a store located on their land. They created a school for the children and stressed that 3 hours a day should be a minimum to study and worship god. This was troublesome for them because it entailed that they would spend less time working on the farm and making money, but Noyes was adamant that religion came above work.

Interestingly, the small community was unanimously dedicated to the sole theocracy of Noyes. Anything that Noyes wanted he got and he was the sole decider of what would happen. His sisters who were part of the community even let him chose their husbands. In one case, 2 of the members had fallen in love in secret and wanted to get married, but Noyes expelled them from the community not because they had fallen in love, but because they had done it in secret.

The context of the time period showed that communal associations were rising throughout the nation during the 1840’s. Noyes became more interested in establishing a true community away from the influence of the outside world where he could institute his utopian ideas and practice communal marriage. One could observe Noyes’ ideas through his teachings, but one could not observe his social ideas in his current situation. Many knew that he was all for complex marriage; however, the members were expectantly waiting for him to declare that it would be acceptable to have sexual relations between members of the church.

In 1846, Noyes and his wife finally agreed to have sexual relations with another couple who they were attracted to. Later, the 4 agreed that it was god’s intention for them to have sex and they began incorporate this marriage system in the community. The principles for their social union were that they would all share material possessions as well as relationships between people, and they submitted themselves to the John Noyes’ leadership.

Other members of his church who weren’t part of the central location began to hear of Noyes’ new policy and were curious about it. Noyes’ told them that exchange of love between two people was acceptable, but he stressed that it would only be alright with his blessing. The town of Putney eventually heard of what was going on and Noyes’ was at the spotlight of the authority. Charged with adultery in November 1847, Noyes fled to New York.

Eventually, the community had come to the conclusion that Putney was too conservative and slow of a town to practice their beliefs, and looked to find an oasis to practice. As this occurred, a group of Noyes’ followers had started a community in Madison County, New York. The land, which was a sawmill located at Oneida creek, was owned by Jonathan Burt and he invited Noyes to see the land in hopes of creating a settlement there. After visiting, a grateful Noyes gave Burt $500 and began to invite members from other settlements to come.

Original followers who traveled from Putney to Oneida, New YorkIn the course of 18 months, arrangements were made for 31 adults, 14 children, and other members from Vermont to inhabit the area. The area in New York was a very popular place where many other Utopian Societies were established. The rolling green hills and country side were very attractive to these Utopian communities. They spread like wildfire and the area was named, “The Burned over District”. http://tontine255.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/raking-bee.jpg

Noyes did not have a set of rules for how to run the community so he laid out 2 basic principles, individual perfection and communal good. He said that Perfectionism was a process of perfecting character. One should try to achieve a, “spirit of love,” and a, “spirit of childlike freedom”. Education was very important in the community. People were encouraged to be introspective and study curriculum alongside with the bible. It was stressed that self-realization came through the process of education. The second principle was achieved by giving up selfish desires. A perfect community could be achieved by relinquishing personal want for the better of the community. By the end of 1848, there were 87 members of the community and in the next couple of years, over 200 would join.

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Members of Oneida in 1860

In his community Noyes arranged marriages between his followers. He did this because he thought it was a good idea to join together two people so that if the community were to disband, a person would not be left alone to deal with adjusting to normal society. He was a hard worker and people looked up to him for his unending devotion to bettering the community. Noyes had a personality that made you almost feel completely accepted, and this was useful because it would make people strive for his full acceptance by being obedient towards him. Although neurotic and radical, Noyes was an intelligent, devoted, and outspoken person. If anyone was to lead the community, it was him.

ECONOMIC BASE

Many joined Oneida for their luxurious comforts. Neighboring villages were astounded that such a community could create the Mansion House, which housed over 50 people. People would question how this community could strive and be successful. Noyes’ plan for establishing this was by picking a select group of talented individuals to help start economic factors in the community. Some were chosen based off of their wealthy backgrounds and others for their skill sets. The community eventually had a net investment of around $108,000. Without this investment, Oneida was almost certainly doomed to failure, and it would takes almost 10 years and over $40,000 lost for the community to finally begin reaping in profits.

Noyes began to realize that to become self-sufficient, farming would not be able to support the entire community even though they did have the equipment, labor, and supplies to create a successful farm. John R. Miller proposed that Oneida plunge itself into the commercial world to be able to seek self-support. Their first business venture was to preserve fruits and vegetables and peddle them to surrounding villages, and this market was attractive to anyone who wanted to enjoy foods that were not in season. When Miller died, it did not stop the community from gaining profits.

Sewell Newhouse’s traps on display in Oneida In 1848, Sewell Newhouse, a successful trap maker, joined the community. He manufactured traps with a special spring that made them very effective. Once he moved to Oneida, his traps gained more and more popularity. The 1850’s saw an increase in the popularity of traps and the success it drew caused Newhouse’s traps to become Oneida’s main source of income. On the side, Oneida also canned fruits and vegetables and created small items such as chains, travel bags, brooms, and rustic seats. During the mid-1860s Noyes sent 3 members to New York to learn how to weave silk from silk thread and thus, it established a new business venture that helped the Oneida community thrive. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/34229/34229-h/images/000.jpg

In 1862 the Oneida community began to hire local villagers to do menial tasks. This began to grow as Oneida’s economic status grew. By 1875 Oneida was hiring more than 200 workers and it soon became an industrial center. By 1864 its net worth was $185,000. By 1875 this grew to $500,000, and by 1880 it was over $600,000.

In 1860, with the successes in business, Oneida began to experience a taste of luxury after years many years of hard work. They created the Mansion House which was used to house many of the people. It was remodeled to be made out of brick instead of wood and it would be designed to have 4 stories. Around it, the mansion was covered with beautiful gardens and trees.

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Originally made to house 50, the Mansion House grew to house 250 people. Since the main philosophy of Oneida was of the importance of community, the public rooms showed the most grandeur. They were extravagant and had many sitting rooms. Once Oneida became prosperous, entertainment attractions were created such as a photo studio, chemical lab, theatre, musical instruments, and a two-story summer house near the Oneida Lake.

DAILY LIFE

Even in the early days of Oneida the practices of their Utopian society were prevalent everywhere. They had no real structure for worship. Every day was sacred and even Sunday wasn’t regarded as a special day. They did not recite prayers formally, and Christmas wasn’t considered too important. Baptism was also seen as unnecessary and funerals were deemed unimportant because it was considered a good thing that the soul had moved from Earth to Heaven. People spent most of their days working jobs, doing chores, or enjoying themselves with entertainment or play.

There were few holidays, because they considered every day to be special. However, on February 20th, people got together to celebrate the day when Noyes believed he was reborn and free from sin.

Every day at 8 o’clock, the members would gather in the main hall and listen as Noyes would speak. He would teach of new realizations and teachings, and discuss perfectionist theology and how it applied to everyday life, and how to live life. Noyes also had writers take note of what he said so that they could publish it to read in the future.

COMPLEX MARRIAGE

One of Noyes basic principles was the evils of monogamous marriage. He thought this was a tyrannical institution and that it was selfish because love should be free to love all. His ideas of complex marriage would not easily be synchronized into his community, so it took years after his marriage to come up with a plan. Noyes thought that women’s role in society was flawed; women were seen as simply children factories. He eventually came up with the idea of “male continence.” Sexual intercourse did not require a final stage of ejaculation because it burdened women with the painful process of pregnancy. Male continence would be beneficial to the society for 2 reasons. It hindered women from pregnancy, and it stopped the drain of life on the man’s part. After practicing male continence for two years, Noyes felt that it could be useful to his community as a form of birth control, and he then introduced it to the community. This system was successful; however, 31 children were accidentally conceived between 1848 and 1869.

With this system in place, Noyes saw that it could easily run wild. He created a process of choosing sexual partners via a hierarchical form called “Ascending Fellowship”. A person could have sex with people who were considered above their spiritual level, and the higher up you were the more freedom you could have. He put this system in place to make sure that no one person was left out or more desired than another. Men simply asked women if they were comfortable having sex and the women could either decline or refuse; if accepted, it would be approved by a third party, usually Noyes or a high seated citizen. A physician reported that a woman would have sex every two to four days.

The community differed from the outside world in that they believed that women should enjoy sex as much as men. Sexual expression was, “love in its most natural and beautiful form” (Garden). Social taboo against sex seemed irrational to Oneida because it created shame; It was a hopeless was against human nature. God gave humans these feelings and to deny them was denying the instruments of love that god had given them. These topics were discussed freely among the Oneida people and visitors never reported strange or unusual behavior. Orgies, homosexuality, and incest were never reported. Setbacks to this system were that the males could not ejaculate into the woman; a factor hard to believe was still accepted among the people, but both parties still agreed that it was better than abstinence.

An issue concerning this system was that two people could fall in love. If caught in love, public criticism followed that person and they were sent to another branch of Oneida until those Earthly desires were relinquished. As punishment, Noyes would withdraw sexual privileges from a person and they would be lowered in the ranks of Ascending Fellowship; this entailed that they had less choices in people to have intercourse with. Falling in love was a threat to the whole as a community because it created an unequal balance of love.

EUGENICS

By the 1860’s their system of birth control and communal marriage proved successful. In the community’s evolution, they now experimented with the idea of eugenics. Not known about the term eugenics, Noyes created the term “stirpiculture.” It was accepted in their community without much opposition and fathers were chosen via the ranking of Ascending Fellowship; men who seemed more spiritual were better suited fathers because their genes would create spiritual children. Women chosen were usually around the ages of 20 to 41 and men were from the ages of 25 to 68.

Noyes himself had fathered many. His lineage was deemed better because he was the leader of the community, and he fathered 10 children. Children born via eugenics were put into Children homes. The children were made to see their parents less frequently compared to other children in fear that they would develop some sort of specialized love. Eventually the time spent between parent and child would grow as the child got older. In this Children homes, children would be raised to focus on education and religion. They were cared for by the leaders of the house and if any of them developed special relationships with another they would be separated. No setbacks could be reported among these children. They were given food to eat, a great education, and much attention and love from the adults who oversaw them. They were encouraged to attend college and they became successful in business, scholarship, and arts.

SOCIETY

Work in Oneida was cycled often. This supposed that the people would not be stuck in monotonous jobs and that they could try a little bit of everything. People changed jobs frequently but people who displayed a passion in their work would remain there for years. Since women were not burdened by child bearing, they were seen much as equals. They shared jobs that men would work on and they could even ascend into the lines of business. Everybody had equal opportunity to participate in community events. Despite this; however, Oneida believed that gender entailed different specializations. Men were seen to always do a better job compared to women.

The Oneida Community Working in the Garden Each child went to school regardless of gender and they would learn a wide variety of topics such as zoology, astrology and philosophy. Oneida prepared their students for the outside world and college. Their library housed over 4000 volumes and they sent people outside to achieve higher educations. Over a dozen were sent to Yale to gain scientific knowledge, and those who gained medical knowledge outside of Oneida came back as physicians. https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQpq5va1H1h3-_J8PRF7oJ9kb0vxWT7cDO611U1ecyHYA3ouNe3

Oneida worked hard and played hard. In contrast to other religious organizations, they saw the joy in good spirits in activities such as dancing, theatricals, and card playing. They later formed an orchestra and a theatrical group and the audience was always enthusiastic. In one Christmas performance in 1867, the visitors outnumbered the actual Oneida members in the audience. The carefree charisma present at Oneida was noticeable and many thought that the women not only looked carefree in their short hair and dresses, but that they had compassionate personalities because they were worry-free in their daily lives.

MUTUAL CRITICISM

Noyes found the power of mutual criticism to be powerful. This entailed that a single person would be given public, constructive criticism by a council of 6 to 12 people. These criticisms were not necessarily negative. They were usually published in the newspaper and the criticism gave people a different paradigm as to how they saw themselves and it taught them how to become a better person. Criticism ranged from being called arduous to carefree and enthusiastic. Noyes’ comments on people were usually harsh and insightful as he was a good judge of character. As the leader; however, he was rarely judged but he would often judge himself harshly. Mutual criticism could break someone’s ego, but such catharsis could give birth to a new and better person who did not live in the confines of their former self.

DESPOTISM

Utopian ideals usually come with the sole rule of a single person and Oneida was no exception. People joined Oneida with full dedication to John H. Noyes and he was their complete leader. People could not join without giving themselves up to his influence, and Noyes often discussed this with his followers. He concluded that service was freedom just as following Christ was their freedom. Concerns were always brought up at daily meetings with the public and a higher council, but they all gave themselves to Noyes because they believed that he led them through life with good intention; all his principles stemmed from Perfectionist ideology.

Many times punishment was too austere for peoples’ liking. People shown to develop specialized relationships were given different jobs that they usually did not like. Sick people were treated harshly too because they believed that sickness was a sign of bad spirits. Higher ranked citizens were immune to criticism and they were given more privileges. Members did not complain about the system, or it would be evident once they left. People who did leave were never dissatisfied and usually admitted wanting the Oneida policies to be incorporated into larger society. Despite Noyes’ single rule, he was not close-minded. He discussed topics openly with his council and took many ideas into consideration.

THE BREAKUP AND DECLINE

Subtle changes in the way the community was originally run led the slow but definite crack in the glass tree that had thrived for over twenty years. People believed they had solved most major social issues in the world and this was caused in the change of tone in Oneida. The 1870s showed a change from religious emphasis towards social emphasis. In the 1860s, Noyes began to research social science. A.J. Macdonald was a social scientist whose works Noyes began to study. With this inspiration he drifted his process of thinking from religious justification to scientific justification.

Instead of the usual “Oneida Circular”, the town periodical, Noyes established the “American Socialist”, and he also set up clubs focused on mutual improvement. He used to emphasize the important of 3 hours of religious study, but then began to emphasize spiritualism, a sect of philosophy he formerly shunned.

At the age of sixty-four in 1875, Noyes had difficulty in speech and hearing. Since he was the sole leader of Oneida, his importance began to decline as he got older. He put more responsibility to the central

Cultural artifacts are unique symbols of any organization or culture that suggest their shared expectations or belief. People shape them from their natural recourses. It gives information about its culture and people belong to specific culture. These are found all over the world different from generation to generation. Artifacts of our own cultures surround us from art and music to architecture and literature, from philosophy and religion to laws and economics. We are living among cultural artifacts that have deep roots into specific culture. The Holy Bible is as cultural artifact. It is not merely a religious book but it has historic and social book. It is direct reflection of its culture. It influences rationality, heroism, anarchy, technology, morality, languages, literature, science, true wealth, compassion, liberty, family and educational institute. It has formed various aspects of our culture. It allows the reconstruction of many socio-cultural elements. It is a guideline for moral behavior. For its significant impact on language, literature, art and politics it is considered more than a cultural artifact.

The Bible as cultural artifact

The Bible is the typical history of the collection of ancient texts held sacred by Moslems, Jews and Christians, The Bible is classic. It is not a smooth, apparent list of rules and regulations that we can depict impartially and apply independently to our lives. But it is holy accumulation of letters and equity, proverbs and poetry, philosophy and apocalypse, written over thousands of years in cultures and points differ from our own, and tell the complex story of God’s synergy with humanity.

The Bible is not merely religious book but it is historic and social book. It can direct better conception of people’s motivation. This book is not set of belief in Judaism or Christianity. But it stresses its words themselves. Once Jesus said that his mission was not to extinguish law but to fulfill its requirement. And in this concern, fulfilling the law is to letting it go. It may serve as a little comfort to those who have suffered abuse at the hand of Bible-wielding scholars, but the disturbing laws of Deuteronomy lose their bit of their potency when God himself breaks them.

A symbol is something that stands for something else. The Bible is a symbol of The Holy Ternary, Contrition towards god, Justification, Holiness, Divine Healing, and The Purge of the Holy Ghost and many more. It proclaims renovating of the mind, pardon, love, belief, patience, and in particular wisdom.

It contains a lot of cultural data of these societies and data on their relation with God. Anthropology has a great deal of light on the cultural history of the Bible by using the text as an ethnographic resource. By using the tools of anthropology, a scholar may sought from the pages of the Bible the information which allows the reconstruction of many socio-cultural elements.

The Bible leads the foundation of Jewish culture. It constitutes the discerning bookcase. . It is direct reflection of its culture. The Bible has formed western culture moreover any other book. Its strike is far-reaching and has extremely credit the history of art. Impact of the Bible on British culture has been lifted frequently in recent months. The Bible has impact on English language and literature.

Melvyn Bragg has published a book called Book of Books: The Radical Impact of the King James Bible in which he dashes a liberator bent in the Bible which shows its role in changing society. It continues the movement to abolish slavery. He argues Bible is a clout for democracy. Nick also bucks that the Bible has influenced the British political history. It has impact on democracy, the rights and duties of kings, tolerance and balance. It has a positive impact on British civic life.

Mangalwadi argues that the Bible provides the basics upon which western civilization as well as Indian democracy rests. It is related to the values and beliefs of western culture. Mangalwadi credit the influence of the Bible over rationality, heroism, anarchy, technology, morality, languages, literature, science, true wealth, compassion, liberty, family and educational institute. Bible has formed various aspects of our culture

Bible is commented as a cultural icon because of his significant impact on language, literature, art and politics. For these reasons the Bible is considered more than a cultural artifact. It is a lasting power which discloses and draws us towards compelling truths about our lives as human beings.

The Bible is a guideline for moral behavior. As its lessons are recognized that and effected by two thousand years old and some things that are timeless other things change. It falls on us to make up our own mind and choose that we want to take away from it. The bible is used for a victim for immaturity and irresponsible actions.

About the Bible, people put too much stress on the words by themselves and not on actual words what they say. It is a Holy book that is able quote scripture at desire, and it is able to be internalize what we read and apply actually in our life. It is not static. Religious leaders change them for their own sake and it pass on to its next generation not as same.

Conclusion

The Bible is considered as typical cultural artifact. It leads the foundation of Jewish culture. It is considered as a cultural icon because of his significant impact on language, literature, art and politics.

Mythology can be seen as the heart of everyday life in Ancient Greek and Roman. They regarded mythology as a part of their history and used supernatural characters such as gods, goddesses and heroes to explain phenomenon, cultural variations, religious practices and friendships. Intellect of Greek people including perfect mythology that they had shared among the members are essential factors that made the kingdom last very long. After the fall of Greek empire, Roman gained the power over the region. They appreciated the values of Greek traditions and mythology. So they maintained some Greek values however created their own legend which based upon them. As a result, there are different versions of legends which are out of the same source, same gods and goddesses as, heroes well as same places. What is different between the two versions is mainly about the names which the Roman had for the same gods and goddesses, heroes as those of the Greek. This is why ancient Greek and Roman mythologies often confused people. To make things clearer, it is important that we can see the relationship between lives of these two nations. Three values of mythology which indicate that the Greek and the Roman share in common are that they have same origin of the myth, same characteristics of deities and they share the same religious practices.

The creation of gods and goddesses in Greek and Roman started at the same belief. Greek and Roman believed that everything they do, see or struggled was caused by deities, such as natural phenomena, passion or even warfare.

For example, sailors who had taken a trip to an island and had experienced a sudden storm. To explain this phenomenon, they had to look for someone who account for it and then they started to worship Poseidon, the lord of the sea, who they believed the storm maker to have a safe voyage. Roman, on the other hand, prayed to Neptune, the lord of the sea, to bless them a safe journey to lands that they wanted to conquer. In addition, warriors who went to war needed encouragement and inspiration so they put their minds on the goddess name Athena. She appears to be a helper for the heroes, heroines and soldiers that went to the war. Finally, she became a symbol of strategic warfare. For the Roman, they worshiped the war helper as well. They named their goddess Minerva.

As the Greek deities became versatile that can explain many indescribable situations, the Roman adopted gods and goddesses system from Greek mythology and reinterpret stories about Greek deities under the names of their Roman counterparts. Gods and goddesses that are mentioned more than any other gods are Olympian gods, the 12 deities on the Mount Olympus. In addition, The Ancient Greek and Roman gods have same fantastic abilities and characteristics but different names which are

1. Zeus, the king of all gods and the ruler of Mount Olympus, represent for the sky, weather, thunder, law, order and fate. His Roman name is Jupiter.

2. Poseidon or Neptune in Roman, the Ruler of the sea, includes rivers, floods, droughts, earthquakes and horses. He is known as the Earth Shaker or Storm Bringer

3. Hera or Juno, queen of the gods and she is the goddess of marriage and motherhood

4. Aphrodite, Goddess of love, beauty and seduction. She was depicted as the most beautiful woman. She was called Venus in Roman

5. Apollo, he was called as Apollo in Roman as well. He is a god of music, healing, plagues, prophecies, poetry, and archery.

6. Ares God of warfare, violence and courage.

7. Artemis or Diana, Goddess of the hunt, wild animals, childbirth and plague.

8. Athena or Minerva, goddess of wisdom, warfare, strategy, heroic endeavor, handicrafts and reason

9. Demeter or Ceres, Goddess of fertility, agriculture, horticulture, grain and harvest.

10. Dionysus God of wine, parties and festivals, madness, drunkenness and pleasure

11. Hephaestus or Vulcan Master blacksmith and craftsman of the gods; god of fire and the forge.

12. Hermes or Mercury, god of messenger, commercial and thieve.

Twelve deities identify exactly that Roman had shared gods and goddesses from Greek mythology because the deities in Greek have same powers and responsibilities in Roman except for one thing. The names of 12 gods were all Greek sounding, so they changed all the names to better fit their lifestyle.

Greek and Roman have same kind of religious ceremonies, including sacrifice animals to gods and festival. People thanked and worshiped gods by giving tame animals for sacrificing. Sacrificing process is described as an agreement between god and man. If gods gave what men want they would give the life of animals to god in return. Sacrificial animals include pig, sheep, goat, cow or even human. Example of sacrificing human is when Agamemnon wanted to move his ship to pass the storm. He killed his daughter to sacrifice to Poseidon.

Furthermore, Greek and Roman have same kind of celebration which it is Anthesteria in Greek and The Liberalia in Roman. This festival was held for the honor of Dionysus (Greek) or Liber (Roman). He is the god of wine, intoxication, ecstasy and fertility. Greek and Roman celebrated this festival to worship and thank god for giving a fertile agriculture thorough the year.

Consequently, Roman religious ceremony is associated with Greek ceremony.

Since mythology of Greek and Roman has been confusing to people all the life time weather they belong to each other in some value or not. We apparently see that Greek have same elements in Roman, there are the birth of god system, power and feature of deities and ritual.

The Grand Inquisitor is part of the stories found in the book by Fyodor Dostoevsky entitled Brothers Karamozov. Dostoevsky concerns himself in analyzing the psychological consequences of engaging in crime, and the moral consequences of engaging in such kind of vices. In the grand Inquisitor, the characters question the validity of religion, free will and morality. The main dilemma that these characters ask, is it prudent for man, to observe the laws of religion? The other questions that linger on the minds of these people is whether they should take the role of God, and ignore the various religious believes or traditions. The poet identifies the various degrees of freedom, and this includes positive and negative freedom, rational egoism, Christian idealism, and nihism. He does this through the various characters in his poem the Grand Inquisitor (Dostoyevsky,, Richard and Larrisa, 27).

The Grand Inquisitor is based on the idea of freedom and human nature. In the poem, Alysha is a monk, and Ivan questions the benevolence of God. According to the Grand Inquisitor, the notion of freedom does not exist. The Grand Inquisitor observes that people need to be selfish, and by doing that the whole society will benefit. This is because the needs of individuals are the same and complement each other. On this basis, the freedom the Jesus Christ brings to the world is not freedom but slavery. This aspect is denoted in the poem when the Grand Inquisitor tells Jesus that by coming again, he is destroying the church. He further tells Jesus that the devil tempted him with three items, food, power, and divine authority (Dostoyevsky and Constance, 33).

For instance, the devil told Jesus to turn stone into bread. According to the Grand Inquisitor, Jesus should have done that. According to him, men will only follow people who feed their bellies. By turning stone into bread, Jesus will demonstrate his ability to feed the multitudes. The Grand Inquisitor further tells Jesus that he should have cast himself down from the temple and caught by angels. This would have demonstrated his godhead abilities, therefore acquiring worship and trust from the people. Finally, the Grand Inquisitor believes that had Jesus accepted to rule over the world, then the world would have seen salvation (Leatherbarrow, 24). On this basis, the Grand Inquisitor accuses Jesus of giving humanity freedom to choose.

According to him, the masses do not have the capability of choosing what is right or wrong. This freedom has led to the destruction of mankind. The Grand Inquisitor therefore believes that the freedom that Jesus gave to mankind, by refusing to oblige to the temptations of the devil, was too much for the people. On this basis therefore, the Grand Inquisitor advocates for selfishness of an individual. However, this freedom that comes with selfishness is an illusion, and does not exist in Christianity. The Christian teachings advocate for love, and humanity. For instance, the Inquisitor believes in giving people bread, in exchange of their souls. According to this teaching, the freedom of people will only come through coercion. On this basis, the Grand Inquisitor takes the role of God, instead of man. In my own opinion, the kind of freedom that the Grand Inquisitor advocates for is the negative freedom.

The Inquisitor tries to justify his believes by identifying the roles of Satan in providing real freedom. He does this by denoting that the catholic church long left the teachings of Jesus, and followed the teachings of Satan. In his own opinion, freedom that comes from the devil is sufficient in taking care of the needs of humanity. This is because the devil gives authority to the few, who have the capability of handling their freedom. By doing, the devil manages to end the suffering of humanity, and uniting the world, through the church, i.e. the Catholic Church (Crane and Faynia, 19).

No matter what justification the Grand Inquisitor gives, this is negative freedom. This is because it is against humanity to act in a selfish manner. For people to stay together, they must satisfy the various needs of others. There is no way leadership by a few people and through coercion can result to the promotion of humanity, and hence positive freedom. This is because people will always be dissatisfied by the selfishness of individuals, resulting to rebellions. Dostoevsky presents the freedom denoted as Christian idealism through the actions of Jesus Christ. For instance, the Grand Inquisitor accuses Jesus of allowing people to choose on what they want and what they donaˆ™t want (Davis, Gary, David, John, 28).

For instance, the Grand Inquisitor argues that by refusing to accept the temptations that the devil offered to Jesus Christ, he gave mankind the freedom to choose. This is what Christian idealism is all about. To Christians, they have a role to play in their lives, in regard to worshiping God. They can choose either choose to worship God, and achieve eternal life, or to go against God, and be lead to eternal death (Dostoyevsky, 33). The Grand Inquisitor acknowledges these teachings, and he tell Jesus that even though the devil is leading them to death and destruction, the freedom that he gives is for the benefit of humanity. This kind of freedom is the elimination of the free will of individuals, in exchange of providing for their needs, and happiness.

In conclusion, Dostoevsky manages to highlight religious bondage in the manner in which the Grand Inquisitor argues about the freedom. The Grand Inquisitor is under religious bondage because of his assumptions that freedom to choose is limited to a few individual. In reality, this is not freedom but bondage. This is because an individual will not have the capability of acting by himself. The person will always live in fear of need, because the authority will fail to provide for her due to disobedience. On this basis, the notion of harmony does not exist; instead individuals are under spiritual bondage, in the name of self-gratification, and self-love.

Prophets have always been surrounded by an aura of mystery. Because they were intermediaries between the human and divine worlds, prophets appeared to their hearers as terrifying yet magnetic and fascinating figures. Throughout the history of Western civilization, whenever these divinely inspired individuals have appeared, attempts have been made to penetrate the mystery that surrounds them. The focus of many of these attempts has been the Old Testament prophets who have traditionally functioned as models for the elucidation of other prophetic phenomenon.

How prophets were viewed:

Prophets were viewed as channels through which divine messages reached the ordinary world and through which humans could gain direct access to the divine. Therefore, the prophetic intermediaries appeared in any society which believed in the existence of divine powers capable of communicating with human beings. [1]

However, within societies and groups, the behaviour of prophets tended to follow traditional, well-defined patterns. This behavior varied from society to society. Within a given society or group, prophetic behavior usually conformed to the expected norms. In the Old Testament we can find that the prophets receive divine messages and translate them into human terms and communicating them, using traditional speech forms and actions. This task indicates that they are functioning as prophets and the message they bring, comes from the divine realm. [2]

Isaiah as a prophet:

Similarly, Isaiah who is one of the great prophets, exercised his prophetic ministry during the reigns of Uzziah (783-742 BC), Jotham ( 742-735), Ahaz ( 735-715) and Hezekiah (715-687). The vision which is recorded in Chapter 6 was the one which constituted the call of Isaiah to be a prophet.

It has sometimes been said that Isaiah must have belonged to the aristocracy of the capital because he knew the ways of the court and had ready access to the presence of the king when he had need. A prophet of the stature of Isaiah must have made himself a well-known member of the Jerusalem community and one whose words were treated with great respect. [3]

The book of Isaiah, one of the longer units in the Hebrew Bible, comprises prophetic material in verse and prose collected over a period of at least half a millennium. In the opening chapter of Isaiah we catch echoes of Amos here and there, not least in the contrast between the sacrificial cult and the demands of social justice ( Isa. 1:12-17) which would fit better the early stage of Isaiah’s career.

There is also reminiscent of Amos in his condemnation of the ruling classes who grind the face of the poor (Isa. 3:15) and reflects a lack of concern for traditional moral values of the women of Jerusalem ( Isa. 3:16-17,24-26; cf. The poem on divine judgment (Isa. 2:6-22) restates for the befit of Judah the central message of Amos : that the God of Israel has now abandoned his people and left them at the mercy of history. [4]

And Isaiah was taking up where Amos left. He is more explicit than Amos in his reference to the Assyrians and the role they were destined to play in Israel’s future ( Isa. 5:26-30).

Social, cultural and political situation during the time of Isaiah:

Before the time of Omri and Ahab, kings of Israel about a century before Isaiah received his call to be a prophet, the history of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah after the death of Solomon had been an unimpressive record of petty squabbles, and events of very local significance. But these two kings saw the folly of such behaviour o the part of two politically weak kingdoms, which, in face of an aggressive policy by a great power such as Assyria or Egypt, could hope to survive only by the combined military resources of an alliance of western states, in which they had part.

Israel was the dominant partner. In every age political and commercial bargaining was successful done from a position of strength. With Israel’s considerable increase in national wealth owing to the opening up of profitable avenues of trade, s development which, in turn, widened the social gap between the wealthy, upper class in Israelite society and the poor peasants. [5] Such a situation was liable to recur whenever Israel entered into a close relation of association with, or, even more, of dependence on, a people greater in power than itself, and it was the main reason for the warning which the prophets repeatedly gave against any policy.

In a way not paralleled in the activity of the other great prophets whose utterances have a place in the Old Testament canon, Isaiah took a very prominent part in the national crises of the days through which he lived.

Isaiah as a Judge:

In spite of the fact that judgment spoken of as if it were inevitable, that does not exclude from Isaiah’s preaching the note of pleading and entreaty calling upon the people to return. This is found several times in chapter 1 (5, 16 f., 18 f.). It is Isaiah’s conviction that for all this sinfulness a day of judgment is coming. God is not mocked; men cannot disobey his will with impunity. ‘The land will be desolated. Lebanon will become a heath, fruitful places like Carmel and Sharon will become a wilderness, men and cattele will be few Time after time Assyria is specified as the instrument by which the judgment will accomplished’. [6]

Isaiah often declares his confidence that, however devastating the judgment may be, a remnant of the people will survive. Out of the stump of the tree new life will come. The glory will have departed, the comeliness will have perished, the new shoot will be a miracle of renewed life; but therein is the hope of the people and therein lies the possibility of the continuance of their work and witness. That conviction on the part of Isaiah may be related to the fact that even in human relations a complete obliteration of an individual or a people was guarded against with very great care ( cf. Deut. 25.5; Ruth 4.10 f., Amos 1.6,9). The doctrine of surviving remnant in turn is related to the fact that whereas the prophet can speak in terms of a judgment upon the whole people, he can, at the same time and without any sense of contradiction, speak of a discriminating judgment in which a distinction will be made between the righteous and the wicked ( Isa. 1. 27 f.; 3.10 f.; cf. 28.23-29). At this point Isaiah though of the necessary cleansing of the peoples as consisting substantiality of restoring in them a former righteousness and purity which had become corrupted; he comes near to describing it as a renewal of the wilderness ideal. [7]

The message and the people Isaiah spoke to and spoke about:

The postexilic community was concerned with their identity and self-understanding. Their existence as a people was threatened by the consequences of the catastrophe of exile and loss of national independence. There were other Jewish communities, and perhaps provinces, in close proximity to Judah, for example in Samaria and Transjordan, and far away, for away for example in Egypt and Babylon. Isaiah presents a vision for these people to understand themselves, their God and their world. The vision spans past, present and future.

Israel as a people participates in this story ( Isa. 1.2-9; 4.2-6) and, at the same time, Israel is comprised of wicked and righteous, oppressors and the oppressed ( Isa. 1.19-23, 27-28; 3.13-15). Isaiah gives a clear picture of distinction between good and evil that is at points applied to over against the nations can be applied to Israel itself. Righteous versus wicked behaviour is the important point. There is no doubt in Isaiah about the radical separation of good and evil. What is in doubt, indeed, what is denied, is the equation of these absolute categories with actual human groups, whether defined in religious or political terms.

Isaiah represents his vision as a Quasi-drama dominated by dramatic speeches. Even the narrative sections in chapter 6 provide settings for further speeches. The characters are not presented as distinct and historical individuals. They are constructs in the grand poetic work of Isaiah. Israel, for example, is masculine singular ( 1.4), masculine plural ( 1.5-6) and feminine singular ( 1.21-26), where one can see that Israel is judged and condemned, desolate and devastated, and comforted and redeemed. [8]

Books

Joseph Blenkinsopp, A History of Prophecy in Israel ( Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)

James Luther Mays and Paul J. Achtemeier. Early Israelite prophecy: Interpreting the prophets, ed., Philadelphia : Fortress Press, c1987.

Mauchline, John.

John Mauchline, Isaiah 1-39 , (London : SCM Press, 1962), p.

Peter D. Miscall, Isaiah ( Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1993). P.