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The objective of this paper is to identify the effects and degree of hedonism in Malaysia. The study is conducted using secondary sources. The finding of this paper is indicated that hedonism occurs in Malaysian entertainment industry via the excessive of exposure persuasive advertisements and tremendous amount of reality show in local television.

1. INTRODUCTION

Entertainment is any activity that is designed to delight and, to a smaller degree, enlighten through the exhibition of the fortunes or misfortunes of others, but also through the display of special skills by other and or self (Bates & Ferri, 2010). It has been part of cultures. People from different cultures have different ways to entertain themselves. For instance, the traditional Malaysians tend to amuse themselves by playing congkak, gasing and many more. Thus, entertainment has become the identity of one’s culture. As the life goes on, entertainment and media industry have been developing since the introduction of electronic television in the late 1920s (Maggie, 2008).

However, this transformation has resulted to several impacts toward the local entertainment industry. For instance, the recent analysis on Malaysian entertainment in electronic media specifically has showed that this industry has adopted excessive element of Western cultures or in other word it has been westernized (Shriver, 2002). As a result of this process, most local television programs tend to exhibit the element of hedonism implicitly. Recent researchers have proved that one of the hedonic needs is entertainment (O’Brien, 2010). Hedonism basically derived from the ancient Greek term which is “hedone”. It means pleasure, joy or lust (Mees & Schmitt, 2008). Hedonism as defined by Crisp (2006) is the view that human action is motivated by a concern for the greatest expected balance of pleasure over pain. Further, according to hedonist, what is good for any individual is the enjoyable experience in one’s life and what is painful considered as bad. Therefore, the life best for an individual is that with the greatest balance of enjoyment over suffering.

Entertainment in Islam

Entertainment in Islam is an issue which has been debated across time. It has no certainty whether it is prohibit or permissible or in Islam is called dhan (O?U†US.(. However, this issue should not be the reason Muslim being divided and separated. According to Yusuf Al-Qaradawi in his book al-halal wa al-haram fi al-Islam, entertainment can be permissible and prohibited according the situation. It is nature of human being to be entertained and entertaining others. Entertainment is prohibited when it is associated with things which forbidden then it is prohibit. It is in line with an Islamic legal maxim which says “what lead to haram than it is haram”. With the advent of technology, the entertainment industry has flourished and become immensely popular. Combine this with the exponential advances in technology, and the result is an increasing number of ways to amuse ourselves. According to Pahrol (2011) in Solusi, Entertainment in Islam generally can be divided into two; primary and secondary. Primary entertainment is the entertainment that is aims to pleasure Allah such as prayer, zikr, reciting Al-Qur’an and more. Secondary entertainment on the other hand is entertainment that intends to please oneself in permissible way. Nonetheless, how Muslims scholars define entertainment? In Malaysia, the entertainment has its own guidelines or regulation to be followed. According to Perlis Islamic Legislation Council (1970) entertainment is include the singing and music with instruments or without that is permissible as long it is not against the few conditions; i) The programs were organized has good benefits, ii) Dress modestly and cover themselves, iii) Not to mix boys and girls up to mischief and disobedience stimulate, iv) Lyrics quality and does not conflict with Islamic law and v) Place of performance that does not invite evil. If these guidelines is broken then it has reach the status of prohibition or haram. Thus, from these conditions we should be cleared whether the entertainment today is according to Islam or not. This fatwa was done on Malaysian culture but is it still applicable nowadays?

2. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Hedonism requires leisure time and personal wealth. No nation in all of world history has ever been as hedonistic as the United States now is. Americans now spend more money on pleasurable pursuits of all types than on religion and education combined (as cited in William S. Banowsky, 1969). Hedonism also occurs in Malaysia. Hedonism makes Muslims easy prey for Christians, growing hedonism, materialism and liberalism among Muslim have weakened their faith and made them easy for Christianization. (Malaysian insider 4 April 2012). Many research have been conducted to study hedonism, little is known about the drive behind their behaviour. Thus it is necessity for a study to be conducted to identify the manifestation of hedonism especially in Malaysia.

3. RESEARCH QUESTION

What are the effects of hedonism toward Malaysian entertainment?

To what extent Malaysian society involve in hedonism?

4. RESEARCH OBJECTIVE

1. To identify the effect of hedonism toward Malaysian entertainment.

2. To examine the degree of hedonism in Malaysian society.

5.1 THE EFFECT OF HEDONISM IN THE CONTEXT OF MALAYSIAN ENTERTAINMENT.

Malaysia is considered one of Islamic world most modern and open societies. Although Malaysians fully embrace their own cultural and Asian values, influences from foreign cultures and values such as those of the West transmitted by the media are generally accepted. In Malaysia, these influences from the media are considered part of the media globalization process. More influences from the West, which conflict with Asian values, began to be transmitted in forms of Western television genres with the launch of Malaysia’s first government controlled satellite television station in 1997. Although the content is censored by the television station, there are still very strong Western influences in these programs which invite the Malaysian audiences to adopt Western practices. Unconditionally, it may affect the nature of Malaysia entertainment and may lead to hedonism.

All products have a certain degree of hedonism. This is because all products have some degree of symbolic meaning that arouses at least some degree of hedonic motivations among individuals (Hirschman and Holbrook, 1982a, 1982b; Kleine, Kleine and Kernan, 1993; Schlosser, 1998). If products are varying in the extent of inherent symbolism, then one can expect that the hedonic value would vary across product categories. This is supported by research examining the extent of hedonism in different products (Batra and Ahtola, 1991; Bloch, Sherrell and Ridgway, 1986; Babin and Darden 1994; Lofman, 1991). Hedonic value across products seems to vary depending on the intrinsic and extrinsic attributes of the product (Dodds and Monroe, 1985).

All products used advertisements to attract buyer. Advertisements or commercials are an important aspect of television broadcast. Merrill,et al. (1994) indicated that television lives and dies by advertising because sponsors directly or indirectly provides all of the station’s revenue. Generally, television makes profits from advertising revenues. Thus, television station devote considerable effort to structure their programming in order to hold the larger desirable audience possible (Saenz, 2001). Higher and ranked program, for instance program with larger audience size, attract more advertisement compared to lower ranked program.

Therefore, advertisements play an important role to instil information to the viewer directly or indirectly. It may influence viewer thinking and behaviour. In relationship with the concepts of hedonism, this excessive exposure of persuasive advertisement may lead to the act of unnecessary spending of money. It is because; frequent exposure may increase the likelihood of alteration in people’s perception toward the act of excessive spending. Those tempting advertisements may implicitly illustrate such wasteful act of using money as a means for to attain pleasure or to release their tension and stress.

Based from this phenomenon, the tremendous increasing of entertainment industry profit may clearly indicate the raising of hedonic lifestyle among Malaysians without they realize it. Those people are actually blinded by the motivation to satisfy their hunger for pleasure. Thus, they are willing to spend huge amount of money just to watch their favourite contestant win the show. However, without they realize, those irresponsible television station companies are actually manipulating these reality TV shows as a means to seize viewer’s money for the sake of their earnings.

Psychological View on Effect of Hedonism

This relates to behaviourism concept, as behaviourist James Watson (as cited in Elliot & Covington, 2001) suggested that, pleasure and pain can be regarded as “springs of action”. He further that, pleasure can be considered as a “tremendous reinforce” and pain as the “tremendous inhibitor” of behaviour. In other word, the experience of pleasure may represent reinforcement for an individual to repeat a specific action. Meanwhile, the experience of pain may represent the punisher for an individual to avoid the act. While according to Freud (as cited in Elliot & Covington, 2001), he presumed that humans are like lower animals and constantly seek pleasure and avoid pain. He also viewed this hedonistic tendency as the motivational basis of psychodynamic and it is regulated automatically by the principle of pleasure (1939).

Islamic Perspective

5.2 THE DEGREE OF HEDONISM IN MALAYSIA

In Malaysia, television is the most popular among components of media. It has become an indispensable household item and watching television is a past time activity (Rahmah, 1996). I supporting this nation, Media Guide (2004) indicates that among the media available in Malaysia, television is the most popular as it is able to reach 96% of adult population. Adult populations are those above 15 years old.

Reality TV gains its popularity in the Malaysian television industry with the introduction of the highly acclaimed American reality TV, Survivor in year 2000. After the success of the programme, Malaysia television industry has introduced its own local reality TV show, known as Explorace broadcast on TV3. The first season of the programme managed to attract an average of 2.3 million viewers and was billed as one of the most successful reality adventure/game show programme in Malaysia (Utusan Malaysia, 23 February 2005). A turning point in the Malaysian television industry came with the creation of Akademi Fantasia (2003) broadcast on ASTRO. Akademi Fantasia is an adaptation of La Academia, one of the most successful musical/ singing talent reality TV show originated from Mexico (Utusan Malaysia, 7 August 2005). For the first time, ASTRO through Akademi Fantasia has created the first interactive TV phenomenon that became a huge craze to almost every level of Malaysian society. Home and studio audience are invited to vote for their favourite contestants. Audience through short message service (SMS) vote were given a hundred percent of deciding power to determine the winner (Utusan Malaysia, 6 July 2005).

The first season of Akademi Fantasia in 2003 drew in profits through the votes made by audiences throughout the nine weeks of the show. All-Asian Satellite Television and Radio Operator (ASTRO) managed to collect 2.5 million ringgit as a profit in return for their services to entertain the audience. In 2004, 15 million SMS were sent to ASTRO, and the profit made for the second season amounted up to 7.5 million ringgit, all made possible by the voting system created for the audiences (Utusan Malaysia, 6 July 2005).

Psychological View on the Degree of Hedonism

Islamic Perspective

6. ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVES

The enemies have flocked towards us by using various approaches such as schools and creeds, theories and philosophies, organizations and institutions, states and countries. They have all gathered to fight Islam and the Muslims. Some of them are driven by a hidden hatred and some by an old animosity. The Twentieth Century has witnessed one of the fiercest blows inflicted upon our Ummah by our enemy such the collapse of the Khilafah. They did not stop there but to the extent they went on to indoctrinate Muslims with strange, foreign ideas and concepts, in order to confuse our understanding of our religion (Deen). Once we wake up and try to return to our original religion (Deen), we will be confronted with an intellectual perplexity, in which evil and good is mixed. Hence, the truth will be ambiguous and we will go astray, and lose the true understanding of Islam. It is clearly show in the philosophy of hedonism whereby it connotes the being pleasure is the ultimate goal of human being aside that it is used for avoiding pain. According to psychoanalysis we are born with sexual desire and the behaviourist tend to believe that we are promoted to hedonism due to reinforcement with the purpose of avoiding pain which is categorise as negative reinforcement. However, Islam does not put that ultimate desire or pleasure as the highest aim. We are born we sexual desire but we can educate or nurture it toward purity. Allah mentioned in the Qur’an that we are sent to this land to worship Him not to devote ourselves to only pleasure.

“I have only created Jinns and men, that they may serve Me.”

(Az-zariyat 51:56)

Then, for this purpose Allah has sent prophets to educate people with the knowledge how to worship Him. The Pleasure of Allah, Mighty is He, is an objective before which all other objectives diminish in importance:

“And Allah is better [as regards reward in comparison to your reward], and

more lasting [as regards punishment in comparison your punishment.”

(Surah Ta-Ha 20: 73)

Nevertheless, human being can seek pleasure as they want but within the boundary of Islam. According to Alias (2008) a lot of verses in the Qur’an defining or explaining about how we can use our sensation and perception to seek pleasure. It is our as His servant to fulfil our responsibility by using this senses to seek permissible pleasure. As we know, we are granted by Allah with lust (nafs) which defines by Al-Ghazali (as cited in Najati, 1993) the powers of anger and sexual appetite in a human being. Although being has sexual appetite we not should only fuel ourselves with sexual activities but by educating it to pleasure only Allah. In addition, this only can be change but purifying one’s heart. Imam Al-Ghazali and Ibn Qayyim (as cited in Najati, 1993) even mention that heart (Al-Qalb) is the governor of the senses which if pure will make our perception cleaned and if it dark or dirty than it can make our perception polluted. Allah mentioned,

“Have you seen the one who chooseth for his god his own lust?”

(Al-Furqaan25:43)

“He followed his own lust. Therefor his likeness is as the likeness of a dog; if thou attackest him he panteth with his tongue out, and if thou leavest him he panteth with his tongue out”

(Al’Araf7:176)

and about the person who controlled the passion of his ego God says:

“But as for him who feared to stand before his Lord and restrained his soul from lust, Lo! The garden will be his home”

(An Nazi’at79:40-41)

Hence, the total devotion to desire or pleasure is not being accepted in Islam but we need to put our ultimate goal to only pleasure Allah. By pleasuring Allah, the negative reinforcement which leads to seeking worldly pleasure will diminish because it is change by Allah with a lot of sustenance. As mentioned above, psychoanalysis only focus on sexual desire and hedonism explained about the avoidance of pain. In Islam, as Allah stated in the Al-Qur’an:

“And We send down of the Qur’an that which is healing and mercy for the believers, but it does not increase the wrongdoers except in loss”

(Al Isra’17:82)

In this verse Allah reminds us that the cure of the pain is in the Al-Qur’an. In order to reduce or cure the illness it is better for human being to follow what has been prearranged by Allah SWT. In addition to that, the most important things in Muslim life are prayer. The importance of prayer actually mentioned by Allah:

” Verily, prayer prevents from Al-fahsha(i.e. great sins of every kind, unlawful sexual

intercourse etc.) and Al-Munkar (i.e disbelief, polytheism, and every kind of evil wicked deed etc.)”

(Al-Ankabut 29:45)

Hence, from this verse we can see that as psychoanalysis believed that human are born with sexual desire and they need to fulfil it by doing sexual related behaviour which if not done conflict will arise. However in Islam it is prohibited to do sexual related behaviour in illegal way such as adultery that is the effect of hedonism. Thus, prayer eventually is one of the medications that have been provided from Allah to human being. Allah adds:

“O mankind! There has come to you a good advice from your Lord (i.e. the Quran, ordering all

that is good and forbidding all that is evil), and a healing for that ( disease of ignorance, doubt.hypocrisy and differences, etc.) in your breasts, – a guidance and a mercy (explaining lawful and unlawful things, etc.) for the believers.”

(Yunus 10: 57)

This verse mentioned the healing process that give into the breast. Breast here can be defined as heart. According to Murad (1985) heart is not only mere part of flesh in your body, but the centre of all your thoughts, emotions, motives, drives, aspirations, memory and attention. It can be softened and can be hardened. Allah states:

“aˆ¦their hearts do soften to the celebration of Allah.s praises. Such is the guidance of Allah. He guides there with whom He pleases, but such as Allah leaves to stray, can have none to guide.”

(Az-Zumar 39:23)

“Thenceforth were your hearts hardened: They became like a rock and even worse in hardness. For among rocks there are some from which rivers gush forth; others there are which when split asunder send forth water; and others which sink for fear of Allah. And Allah is not unmindful of what ye do.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:74)

The Prophet also said narrated from Abu Nu’man: “Lo! Verily, there is in the body a small piece of flesh; if it is good the whole body is good and if it is corrupted the whole body is corrupted; lo! it is the heart.”

Thus, it is our responsibility to take a good care of our heart as it governs our body and mind. Therefore as Imam Al-Nawawi explained in al-Majmu`a”as for the knowledge of the heart, it is knowing the diseases of the heart, such as envy, conceit and the like.” Imam al-Ghazali said in ihya’ ulumuddin: “Knowing the definition of these diseases, their causes and their cures, and remedies how to fix them, is personally obligatory (fard `ayn) on every Muslim. “Hedonism only can be taken care by turn back to the only source of Al-Qur’an and Al-Sunnah however, the questions is the Muslim and non-Muslim which do not know it. How can it be possible to overcome this matter? We need to bear in mind and heart that the Qur’an and prophet Muhammad’s Sunnah and teachings is not only for Muslims but to entire universe. As the prophet mentioned:Abu Sa”id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) had said: “Whoever amongst you sees anything objectionable, let him change it with his hand, if he is not able, then with his tongue, and if he is not even able to do so, then with his heart, and the latter is the weakest form of faith. “Narrated by Muslim.

This hadith actually explain the way of dealing with evil deeds and hedonism is one kind of evil deeds. First, it is the responsibility of the authority which has been commentary by Muslims scholars that the hand it the one who with power. For instance, the government of Malaysia should realize their task is not only making development but also to instill the faith or creed of Islam in Muslim specifically and society generally by doing some changes in entertainment industry, educational system and media. Second, the role of society is basically taken from the word tongue in the hadith. The society should not only talk about the issue but eventually take opportunity to invite or promote good health lifestyle to their family and friends since hedonism only will lead to bad health lifestyle. Healthy lifestyle is not only limited to Muslims but also should be practiced by all races.

7. CONCLUSION

As discussed above the concern about manifestation of hedonism in Malaysia revolved around the effect and the degree of hedonic values in the Malaysian entertainment industry.

Since its inception in the first century, Christianity has been evolving as a social institution, changing its organizational shape, redefining its mission, and creating new expressions of worship. Since then there has been a vast change in denominations, where some decline and revival has been witnessed through the years.

The year 1906 brought new recoveries into a different type of worship in United States of America (USA). In USA, Los Angeles newspapers reported as gathering of people of different races and cultures describing them to involve the poor and rich, blacks and whites, men and women, young and old in a temple in Azusa Street displaying a new form of worship, praying, singing in unknown languages, dancing and clapping. Audiences gathered to witness what was happening. This was the biggest revival of the time in USA. [2] Testimonies, diaries, articles were written by those involved and those who witnessed this great event. This was the beginning of what is called Pentecostalism today, the major driving engine of Christianity to its origins, the first century. [3] Although, most scholars have debated whether Pentecostalism had multiple almost simultaneous origins in different countries the same time it originated in North America, there is no doubt that that it is the strongest Christianity today in the third world. [4] This essay aims to examine its origins and its main three chosen characteristics which are spiritual gifts, personal encounter with God and the power over demons and Satan.

Definitions

Allan Anderson’s explanation on Pentecostalism is that it is perceived as a movement of believers who affirm to the work of the Holy Spirit and the exercising of the spiritual gifts as evidenced through speaking in tongues with foundation grounded on the emphasis of the acknowledgement of salvation attained through Jesus Christ. [5] David Martin and Peter Mullen state that “speaking in tongues consists in the utterance of unintelligible sounds, often in rapid sequences, by persons who seem to be in conditions of varying degrees of dissociation.” [6] Pentecostal is linked with the doctrine of ‘subsequence’ and ‘initial evidence’ which originated from USA in the beginning of the twentieth century, referring to the experience of the baptism by the Holy Spirit. [7] Therefore, those devoted to this theology are called Pentecostals.

However, a change happened during the 1960s, when some Christians within main-line denominations started to accept the Pentecostalism phenomena as part of the worship experience. [8] This new form of Pentecostalism became known as the Charismatic Movement. Charismatic describes any form or experience of Christianity that emphasises the “charismata” which means spiritual gifts (such as tongues, prophecy and discernment) listed in for example 1Corinthians 12, as well as a dynamic experience of being baptised or filled with the Holy Spirit. [9] A highly significant proportion of Christians and churches that have emphasis on this dynamic renewing experience and the operation of gifts of the Holy Spirit are called charismatics. The charismatic movements widely penetrated the traditional historical churches from the 1960s, Protestant and Catholic, Church of England (C of E), Methodist, Baptist or URC churches, or the Roman Catholic Church in what has been termed the charismatic renewal. [10] Therefore Renewal describes the expression of this new form of spiritual life within these previously existing historic mainline churches or denominations.

The difference between charismatics and Pentecostals is the aspect of the initial evidence like signs and wonders as well as the encountering of power which charismatics deny hence agreeing in the tongues. Whereas, Pentecostal denotes the identity maker of tongues as the evidence of the Holy Spirit baptism whilst the Charismatics denote the Holy Spirit gifts, the teachings of prosperity and spiritual warfare. [11]

Consequently, the word “Pentecostal” shifted from just refereeing to a particular group of denominations to any denomination whose worship experience includes some sort of “Pentecostal” phenomenon such as speaking in tongues. Since the rise of the Charismatic movement, traditional Pentecostals are usually referred to as “Classical Pentecostals”. The term Classical Pentecostal refers to a person or organization which believes that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is a second work of grace subsequent to conversion, and that the initial physical evidence of this experience is speaking in other tongue that is the languages unknown to the speaker. [12]

Origins

During the centuries from the Early Church’s time about 1500 plus years to the 20th century there were Christians traditions which influenced the formation of Pentecostalism such as the Reformation tradition, specifically the Anabaptist and Arminians, the Holiness and Evangelical Movements. [13] The historical survey of the development of Classical Pentecostalism will cover the years from 1738; John Wesley’s Aldersgate experience’ time when he emphasised the Holy Spirit in His teachings. [14]

The advancement of Pentecostalism can be dated back to a January the 1st 1901, a charismatic revival at Bethel Bible School in Topeka, Kansas USA. As Charles Parham, a former Methodist minister’s students had questions about the evidence of baptisms with the Holy Spirit after his Spirit baptism teaching, following the Book of Acts. There was an experience of this baptism following a fervent prayer with students resulting in the experience of speaking in tongues. [15] The enthusiasm of the students following Charles Parham teachings brought an amazing Pentecostal experience as of the Apostles in the Book of Acts. Cox stated that Pentecostalism rose among a group of people who were waiting for it. [16] Charles Parham’s’ teachings opened the doors to what was later called Pentecostalism. Robert Gromacki called Charles Parham “”Father of the Pentecostal movement.” [17]

From Parham’s bible school, the movement became the worldwide movement following the Azusa Street revival mentioned above. This was through a black African American preacher called William Joseph Seymour who was also a student at Parham School who longed for the Spirit baptism and witnessed the first experience of speaking in tongues. His meeting with Parham had a big impact in William Seymour’s belief about the Holy Spirit baptism. [18] He contributed to the spread of Pentecostalism; he did not just believe but took the message further.

Cecil M. Robeck gives the brief background of the journey William Seymour took to promote what is today called “Pentecostalism.” In his account he mentioned that William Seymour was invited to Los Angeles to be in charge of one ministry. After preaching about the baptism of the Holy Spirit, he was denied the position to pastor that congregation. He ended up living with black friends Edward and Mattie Lee who sympathised with him where he conducted prayer meetings in their house. This was the beginning of the great movement as they started to pray together and later invited other people to join them. The number increased and they moved to a bigger house. It was in the house of Richard at Ruth Asberry on the 9th of April 1906 as they were studying the bible that they experienced the power of the Holy Spirit. In this meeting, an eight-year-old black boy began to speak in tongues and soon crowds were attracted to the house. After this experience the house could not accommodate the growing large numbers of people who were coming to join in prayers and worship. They had to move to Azusa Street, were the greatest revival took place. Then Azusa Street became the house for the world Pentecostal movement. [19] Therefore the Azusa story is exceptional when the roots of Pentecostalism are discussed. Cecil M. Robeck labelled the “Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles aˆ¦ the birth place of Pentecostal movement.” [20] Harvey Cox acknowledging the root of Pentecostalism’s origin to be understood with reference William Joseph Seymour. [21]

From Azusa Street, Pentecostalism spread to the other parts of the world by members who experienced the Pentecostal revival and formed Pentecostal Churches. [22] Congregations spread around USA extending to Africa through missionaries that went preach this Pentecostal experience to other parts of the world “By early 1907 aˆ¦ entered Mexico, Canada, Western Europe, the Middle East, West Africa and several countries in Asia”, spreading to Northern Russia, Southern Africa and Eastern and Central Europe. The Apostolic Faith Mission was the first Movement that Mr Seymour established consisting of different denominations with one agenda of Faith. [23] In 1914 was the first “official statement” of the Classical Pentecostal doctrine of the baptism in the Holy Spirit by the Assemblies of God in the United States.

They are hundreds of Pentecostal denominations and fast growing over the last forty years, David Martin, sociologist who has done a lot of work on the estimates of Pentecostalism has reported it to be the largest global shift in the religious marketplace. He quoted a total number of Pentecostals and charismatics worldwide to at least a least a quarter of a billion by 2002. [24] This has expanded to the West reaching other countries such as India, China and Chile. [25]

They are here main groups of Pentecostalism identified with their unique beliefs though some aspects might be similar. One of the group is identify by their belief in the work of the Holy Spirit, speaking, in tongues, baptism with the Holy Spirit, the works of grace, salvation and sanctification as continuous in their lives; the other group beliefs ‘entire sanctification’ over and above some aspects of the above group, called then Wesleyan Holiness; last but not least excludes themselves in the belief of the Trinity aspect of God, called oneness Pentecostals. [26]

Main characteristics
Spiritual gifts

The birth of the Pentecostal movement in the early twentieth century was evidenced by followers of Christ exhibiting the gifts of the Holy Spirit often referred to as the supernatural gifts. It got its roots from the Early Church with ecstatic phenomena gifts of the Holy Spirit. [27]

The experiencing of the Holy Spirit baptism resulting in speaking in tongues in Topeka, Kansas sprang up the twentieth century Pentecostal Movement in 1901. Dayton asserts that the eighteen century American revivalism, Holiness Movement played a part in its origins. [28] Charles Parham believed there was more on the entire sanctifications, the teachings of the Wesleyans, in his views. Therefore he bestowed sanctification and charismatic power as both part of the second blessing. His views were more extreme than many in the Holiness Movement. The teachings on investigations for signs of sanctification led to questions if this was related to the baptism of the Holy Spirit. As the students were determined for the outward evidence signs of the baptism, speaking in tongues was the first sign of the spiritual gifts

To have a good understanding of what is meant by “spiritual gifts”, I would consider two definitions which defines spiritual gifts as “aˆ¦divinely given capacities to perform useful functions for God” [29] Similarly Deffinbaugh defines spiritual gifts as the God-given capacity of every Christian to carry out his function in the body of Christ. [30] The se definitions adequately purvey the Pentecostalism understanding of Spiritual gifts.

These spiritual gifts are believed to have originated at Pentecost as explained in the Book of Acts. Over the period of three years after the Azusa Street revival which sparkled the Pentecostal Movement, Seymour saw the restoration not just of speaking in tongues but all gifts of the Holy Spirit. [31] These are spiritual gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11. These gifts can be; speaking in tongues, interpreting tongues, prophesying and healing power. [32] According to Luke;

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability (Acts 2: 1-4 NRSV).

This was a physical evidence of being baptised by the Holy Spirit as they converted and believed in Jesus Christ.

Kenneth Boa describes the gift of tongues as the supernatural ability of a believer to speak in an unlearned language by the speaker enabled by the Lord. [33] This can be interpreted by someone who receives the gift of interpretation of tongues. This is interpretation into the language of the body in which the message is delivered not a strict translation, but an interpretation of the essential content of the tongues message. [34] Critiques of tongues – Thomas Aquinas believed to have been of the Apostles only in the early church to enable them to reach all nations as commissioned but presently it as to be done through language study. [35] There are also those with the gift of healing gifted to heal the sick. The variety of the gifts can be divided into different sickness, for example some specific gifts are to heal cancer or emotions, mental illness and many more sicknesses. [36]

Personal encounter with God

Access to God matters most to Pentecostals, life controlled by the Holy Spirit. They stress effectiveness the experience of God. What matters most is the felt power of the Spirit in the world, in the church, and in one’s own life. Their faith is experiential, living faith in the living God who can miraculously, substantially intervene in the world. [37] For Pentecostals, from history they understood the as direct and immediate and self-authenticating. [38] This is explained in simple terms that Pentecostals understanding of the baptism of the spirit grants the authority by virtue of the individual experience of this powerful encounter with God. Therefore, their belief is that though the Holy Spirit they have a personal encounter the authentic and legitimate experience of God.

Power over demons and Satan

Pentecostals stress the empowerment and the felt power of the Holy Spirit in the world. Their focus and faith is in God who miraculously substantially intervenes in the world. For example, Martin discusses how Pentecostalism unites its belief with the social inspiration and the experience of the Spirit. [39] That is the understanding of the power of the Holy Spirit over any social powers that could be powers of darkness. In short, it is a consideration of two different factors, external (demonic forces) and internal factors (Holy Spirit). These make Pentecostals feel part of the community, as they distinguishes the God and Satan, devil and divine, sickness and health. They believe they have power over demons, through the Holy Spirit, that they can obtain through prayer. That is power over sin, spiritual blindness, social oppression, and Sickness. They refer this as their spiritual weapons. One of the most factors which contributed to the Growth of Pentecostalism is their belief in deliverance from evil spirits. Anderson, for example, points out that “the main attraction of Pentecostalism aˆ¦ is still the emphasis on healing and deliverance from evil.” [40]

Their Theology extends to the apocalyptic belief of the coming of the Kingdom which includes the element of the final victory over Satan and death, which is a spiritual warfare. [41] The term “spiritual warfare” is referred to evil spiritual forces such as demons including Satan as mythological realities. Thus, the baptism of the Spirit enables the believers to conquer the spiritual battle and overcome the enemy. As Apostle Paul states, “we live as human beings, but we do not wage war according to human standards; for the weapons of our warfare are not merely human, but they have divine power to destroy strongholdsaˆ¦” (2 Corinthians 10: 3-4 NRSV). This is the belief that the Pentecostals have dependence on the Holy Spirit for power to enable them to fight the devil and any principalities of darkness. That is demonic attacks and possessions, physical and emotional sickness, evil spirits and so on.

These claims are biblically based as Pentecostal believes in the true Word of God. Martin and Mullen clarified that “for Pentecostal the supreme authority is the Bible, the inspired, infallible and inerrant Word of God to which all else must be subject.” [42] Just to mention few examples of bible passages to support these claim of their belief; 1 John 3:8 which states that “the Son of God was revealed for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil” (NRSV), “He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13 NRSV) and “Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness” (Matthew 10:1 NRSV) and many more. Therefore Pentecostals take the word of God seriously and base their belief on what it says.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the essay has examined the origins of Pentecostalism. It has looked at its roots from early church, through the Holiness movements with the teachings of doctrine of sanctification. The teaching about the Holy Spirit and the actual experiencing of its baptism contributed to how Pentecostalism spread to other places. It has also touched on the explanation of charismatic its difference with Pentecostalism. Last but not least, three characteristics of Pentecostalism have been discussed though this is not the exhaustive least, however due to the limitation of the essay, only three were discussed. We have discovered with reaches that Pentecostalism is a growing movement. It has contributed to the inclining of Christianity as it was declining in many parts of the world. Their emphasis being the baptism by the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts that can be received to believers by God’s will.

Without a doubt, with the love and spirit of Jesus Christ directing my life, I have experienced and a deeper relationship with Him and I have grown in my ability to trust Him. The love Jesus Christ gave to me is like the currency of God’s kingdom. And it is because of his selfless love that I think of my faith in Him as the act of holding out my hand in the darkness and allowing Him to hold me as I walk through life. I gave my life to Jesus at an early age of seven years old and rededicated my life in my late teens. And, it has not been an easy road, but every time I felt unworthy of His love, I remembered the way Christ suffered for our sins. There are still days that no matter how hard I work, I feel unappreciated and unproductive. At times, I will hide my tears and use my laughter to hide my pain. But, whenever I close my eyes in a moment of prayer, all I can see are my disappointments, my past sins, my actions and the carelessness of my words. But, above all, I remember His love, a love that has unselfishly nourished my soul, given me the light to dust off, spread my wings and fly, and a love that has made me to cry out for Him without fear, knowing that He will respond, and give me my heart’s desires. Indeed, the love of Jesus Christ has changed my life and I believe that in order for anyone to personally experience it like I have one will never truly understand. It is a love, that is so unselfish, pure, and every day as I reflect back on my personal relationship with Jesus, it is like am falling in love with Him more and more each day.

Discussion

I gave my life to Jesus Christ at an early age of seven and rededicated my life in my late teens. All my life, until I rededicated my life to Jesus, I always thought that I was supposed to live my life doing my own thing just following some rules and acknowledging that there is a God. I never really felt full, to be exact, spiritually content. I always thought something was not right, but I was not sure but today, I view acts of love as two pronged; one is an invitation from Jesus to seek out His love and two, it is an invitation from Jesus to seek Him out. The love Jesus Christ gave to me has made my faith in Him stronger. Numerous times, I reflect on faith. I strongly think that His love is the currency of His Kingdom. Whenever I think of His love as the act of allowing God to hold me as I walk through life’s challenges, I think of darkness. He is the father of lights, for darkness is as light to Him. Allowing Jesus to hold your hand is allowing love and light into your world.

My thoughts on how His love feels like morph every time depending on the situation. I constantly think of it as an adventure. It is because of the love that He gave to me that my faith has many manifestations. Whenever I have a moment of reflection or I am with my friends, I have come to the realization that people, step out and walk on thin ice. For some people, it is like stepping out of their comfort zones, and for others, it is inviting the love of Jesus Christ into your life, and for some, it is simply holding out your hand in the darkness fully knowing that He will hold it because His love is immeasurable. And for some, it is touching the hem of His shirt for His goodness to flow into their lives.

I think that at times, faith and His love do not make sense. And as I write this paper, I am tempted to think that if I question His love, then I am setting myself for frustration, and even failure. I have experienced conflicts with my faith. I believe this when I act contrary to His word and expect supernatural results. This is certainly when I at times try to author my own faith expecting Him to finish it. How often do we all author things in our lives then invite Jesus to complete them? My personal example is when I rededicated my life to God in my late teens; I got new friends and made myself believe that Jesus had authored it. Jesus was somewhat clear with me that it was not His will for me, but as sometimes we all do, I continued to insist on doing things my way, suffice to say, that my relationship with my new friends miserably flopped, probably because we were not reading from the same page. In my opinion, it is much worse dealing with a broken heart within the context of His love and faith. Here I was, sort of like a baby Christian, dealing with a broken heart, but I certainly learnt my lesson. Jesus loves me so much that He only finishes that which He starts or authors. It is because of His love that He will finish what He has started however we look at it.

After rededicating my life to Him, I also noticed because of His love for me, I had been given a deep love for everybody. In simple words, I found it easier to love everyone; this is not an emotional love, or that ‘lovey dovey’ kind of love, but it is a love that gives me a deep concern for the physical, mental and spiritual well being of other people. And it is because of this love that I am willing to sacrifice my prayers, money, effort, time, and so forth, for the benefit of other people. It is because of the love that Jesus gave me that I have enough love to risk being ostracized and misunderstood when I share the truth of His word. What’s more, since Jesus entered my life, I can no longer pass a beggar on the road. I normally feel compelled to stop and help out in any way I can. I have volunteered at shelters because the people sometimes need someone to talk to. Undoubtedly, my love is not perfect, but because of the love He gave to me, I would give everything that I have to help someone in need of help. Well, I am not there yet, but I have observed a dramatic and sudden difference in my behavior and attitude towards other people. In simple words, because of His love, my love for other people continues to grow.

Furthermore, the first thing that I noticed following my rededication to Him is that I started to have an inexplicable desire to read His word. Earlier, when I tried to read the Holy Bible, it was a challenging task probably because it did not make much sense to me as it does now. However, from reading the Bible and listening to sermons in my local church, I realized that for the joy and love set before Him, Jesus endured the cross for all of us. We, as children of the most High, are so precious to Him. We are all a blessed product that simply cannot fail, because of His love. He trusted the earth to bring forth plantation and vegetation. He also trusted the waters ability to produce all types of water animals and fish. This is simply too amazing. It is because of His love that I am able to bank on the inherent and potential ability of His plans to manifest that which He speaks over. Words have immense power, they are spirit. He creates by speaking. Say what I want to see and see what I say. I am on this spiritual journey and I continue to remain open to learning more.

Conclusion

In sum, it is very clear that God houses ultimate faith and love. For whatever reason, He needs us to only have a little faith just little enough to be able to seek His love and forgiveness. And once we do, His love will give us all the proof that we will ever need to fully understand the love He gave us. That is what happened to me, and I got the greatest gift and surprise in my life, His love.

Justification is Gods divine intervention in the life of his children. To be justified simply means to be forgiven and out of the line of fire of Gods wrath against us due to sin. We all have some areas in our lives that we need God’s grace to come in and not cover, but to forgive. God has a planned purpose for all of His people no matter what one’s past transgressions are. God’s aim is to have one to be in right relationship with Him and justification is the way that He accomplishes that. This is not to excuse one’s self to self-righteous nature, but it ushers in the utter importance of dependence upon Christ and forever keeping in mind his atoning sacrifice on our behalf. Jesus death burial and resurrection is the basis in which this is accomplished.

As we embark upon the endeavor of wrapping our minds around the notion of not having to walk around burdened down by our sins burdensome guilt stain, we begin to live a life of one who is free. We have to learn how to lay aside the weight and sin that has kept us in bondage for years. Justification bridges the gap between our old nature to the new nature and identity that one has in Christ’s blood covering. No longer can we trade biblical standards for the ways of the world, for in doing so, we place ourselves back into our former mind state. A life in Christ is about forward progression and not a backwards digression. We have to learn how to persevere in the things of Christ without wavering. We have to show forth evidence that our mind has been renewed and our past no longer is a hindrance in our right now of life.

Without faith, justification would not be possible. Faith is the key that unlocks my identity in Christ’s planned will for our lives. It can be experienced by having faith and in submission to [1] salvation. One who has faith is one who’s actively tries to align their lives with the example of Christ. It allows one to come to see the destructive power of sin and turn from it through repentance. Faith causes one to seek out Christ on a much deeper level. Before one can understand faith, you have to understand the nature of God. As we are justified by faith, we experience a peace with God that is unexplainable. One who does not share in the justifiable faith brings about condemnation upon themselves.

We have neither the power nor the intellectual skill level in order to pronounce ourselves justified. Even at our very best, we still fall short when measured up against the standards of God. Without the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit, the gospel of Jesus Christ has no merit upon our lives. One whose mind is deeply rooted in sin cannot possibly seek after nor comprehend the things of the spirit. The spirit seeks after things of the spirit while things that are of the flesh seek after fleshly things. Sin will cause one to deny their inner awareness of the existence of God. We have evidences all throughout the Bible, yet sin still blinds the eyes of those who choose to develop a cognitively distorted views of who God is.

Understanding justification is one of the most critical parts of the Christian faith. Once one comes to the realization of the true essence of justification, one can experience the joy of the gospels message. There has been a great divide amongst those who favor a false view of works as being the source of justification while its true essence is derived by faith alone. Justification is explicit in the process by which God makes salvation applicable in the life of an individual. After God calls the individual unto himself through the gospels effectual pull, regeneration begins to usher one towards repentance as well as faith. Justification follows faith and righteousness in the viewpoint of God belongs to us.

In the sight of God, we are declared just and have no penalty charged for our past, neither present, nor future sins. As we find our identity in God, the guilt charge of condemnation is not applicable in the believer’s life as we are covered once and for all by the sacrificial atonement of Jesus Christ. As we are enlightened on the subject of justification and how it correlates with the sacrifice of Jesus, we discover that this is the third observation of impartation. This righteousness that is freely given in Christ is what God sees when He looks upon his people. Our goal in this life ought not to be to have a righteousness of our own, but rather we must allow Christ to be our wisdom, our knowledge, and our guide. Our righteousness depends on our faith.

The most essential heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ is his perfection in the area of righteousness. He commands of us to be you holy as I am holy. This command is not an option, but one that is of great importance if one would like to experience the fullness of Christ. Without justification, we would have no assurance of our forgiveness with God, and no confidence in our heart where the fullness of faith’s instrumental cause. If we were to rely on our own strengths and were not forever mindful of our weaknesses, there would be no room for God’s grace and will leave no room for error as our faith would lays upon our imperfect self’s. Faith solely in self clouds and confuses one’s view of God’s grace and ultimately destroys the heart of the gospel. [2]

Justification by Grace Alone

All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Since we are not morally competent enough to forgive ourselves or save ourselves from utter depravity, God institutes His grace and favor upon a dying world that has not the ability to redeem itself. Salvation is a free gift through the grace of God that stands apart from any works that we human beings may be able to perform. “For it is by the grace of God that we are saved through faith and not by works lest any man shall boast “(eph. 2; 8-9). Grace falls in direct contrast with our works and merit in such a way that grace is the only thing that saves us while justification is in direct sequence with our salvific experience.

Justification through Faith in Christ

In order to be justified, we have to have faith in Jesus Christ, and not works of any law of sorts. We are not justified by any inherent reason goodness of our faith as our faith earns no favor with God. Faith is the determining factor in which the obtaining of justification is possible. There is a reason why God chooses faith as the vehicle on the road to justification. Faith in the true and living God and the sacrifice of Christ is the one thing that will keep one from depending on oneself. When we come to Christ in a total dependency upon him, it is a total act of submission to the ways and the will of God. It is to say that one is totally and whole heartedly dependent upon God solely. Jesus gives one a righteous standing before God. Faith is the [3] opposite of self-reliance and is a declaration in the hearts and minds of those who are covered under grace. One has to have an attitude that is in alignment with thankful adoration for God’s unmerited favorable choice.

The doctrinal implication of justification by faith is of upmost importance to salvation. This not only gives one hope within them, but it is a testimony to others who may be at the cross roads of unbelief. Life in Christ has an eternal cognitive. One who ministers Christ to another must attest an accurate depiction of the total submission and reliance upon what a life of faith looks like from an eternal view. When you are justified, you don’t have to worry about God taking out vengeance out on one’s past sins. As we come before the Lord, we shall hear not guilty as a result of the devils accusations.

In conclusion, one has to be confident in God’s declaring a not guilty plea upon their lives. We are justified by faith in Christ’s unselfish sacrifice in which gives us a pardon from our past sins. “There is therefore no condemnation in those who are in Christ Jesus “(Romans 8:31). We can now live a life free of the guilt and stain of our sins. God’s unmerited favor is what allows us to be covered by the blood of Jesus. Christ made a sacrifice to justify.

Disclaimer: The following content is a critical analysis and presented for academic purpose, it is not meant to hurt the cultural and religious sentiments of any person.

For centuries now, cultures have understood the importance of the sun as the guardian of mankind, for without it, there would be no light, the crops won’t grow and there will be no vision. As far as the 10,000 BC, history is abundant with carvings representing the respect for the sun. Because of such powers of the sun, cultures have called it as the ‘God Sun’, the giver of life and the saviour of the humankind. Ironically, most of the cultures around the world have also created their own anthropomorphized versions of the sun, which we know today as the ‘Gods’. During the course of this essay, we will substantiate the claims.

The earliest representation of the sun as a mystic deity can be found in Egypt, by the name of ‘Horus’. Let us see a few high points in the life of Horus.

Horus (Egypt, 3000 BC)

Born of a virgin (Isis)

Born on December 25th

Star in the east

Adored by 3 kings

Prodigal teacher at 12

Baptized at 30

Had 12 Disciples and travelled throughout the world

Performed miracles (healing the sick, walking on water etc.)

A.k.a. “The Truth”, “The Light”, “The lamb of god”, “The good shepherd” etc

Crucified

Buried for 3 days

Resurrected

These attributes of Horus, seem to have permeated many cultures and many other gods around the world are found to have the same general mythological structure. For example:

Attis (Greece, 1200 BC)

Born of a virgin

Born on 25th December

Crucified

Dead for 3 days

Resurrected

Krishna (India, 900 BC)

Born of a virgin (Devaki, even though I strongly doubt how can she be a virgin on the time of the 9th childbirth!!)

Star in the east

Performed Miracles

Resurrected

Dionysus (Greece, 500 BC)

Born of a virgin

Born on 25th December

Performed miracle (turned water into wine, no wonder people loved him!!)

A.k.a. “Alpha and Omega”, “King of kings”

Resurrected

Mithra (Persia, 1200 BC)

Born of a virgin

Born on December 25th

Performed miracles

Had 12 disciples

Buried for 3 days

Resurrected

A non-exhaustive list of gods with similar mythological structures will also include:

Buddha

Salivahan (Bermuda)

Odin (Norse)

Crite (Chaldea)

Baal and Taut (Phoenecia)

Indra (Tibet/India)

Bali (Afghanistan)

Jao (Nepal)

Wittoba (Bilingonese)

Thammuz (Syria)

Atys (Phrygia)

Xamolxis (Thrace)

Adad (Assyria)

Beddru (Japan)

Thor (Gaul)

Adonis (Greece)

aˆ¦ and many more.

These striking similarities make us question the mythological symbols, why the virgin birth, why December 25th and what is the deal with the 12 disciples. For answers, we will turn to the latest in the long line of what I call, “The Solar Messiahs”, Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ (Bethlehem, 30 BC)

List same as Horus, in page 1

We will now try to decipher the symbols, for doing so; we will start with the ones which is common to almost every one of them, the Birth Sequence.

Even though it might not seem so, but the birth sequence of “Born of a Virgin on December 25th with a Star in the East”, is completely astrological. The “Star in the east” happens to be Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. Sirius, on December 25th happens to align with 3 brightest stars in the Orion’s Belt. These 3 stars are called today, as they were called in the ancient times, “the 3 kings”. These stars, (3 in the Orion’s belt and Sirius, taken together) point to the point of sunrise on December 25th. Thus, the 3 kings ‘follow’ the star in the east, in order to locate, the sunrise, or the birth of the sun.

The virgin mother is the constellation Virgo, which is also known as “Virgo the Virgin”. Which in Latin, also refers to the “House of Bread”, ironically, Bethlehem, also refers to the House of Breads, thus, Bethlehem literally translates to a position in the constellation, rather than a place on earth.

From the perspective of the northern hemisphere (which is also a striking similarity, all of these gods belong to the northern hemisphere) December 22nd marks the day of the winter solstice, till this date, the sun moved constantly towards the south, making the days smaller and the nights longer. However, on December 22nd, the sun reaches its lowest position on the horizon and then stays there for 3 days (December 22-24) and starting December 25th, it starts its journey northwards, making the days longer and marking the beginning of spring. Also, for these 3 days, the sun is positioned near to a constellation known as the Southern Cross, or the crux. Thus, “the sun” died “at the cross”, was “buried” for “3 days” and thus, “resurrected”. It is actually the sun’s transition to the northern hemisphere bringing spring and thus, salvation. However, the resurrection of the sun is only celebrated on Easter, which marks the point of the spring equinox, hereafter, the days become longer, thus the darkness is overpowered and the revitalizing conditions of spring officially emerge.

The 12 disciples will now seem to be the most obvious astrological symbolism around the gods we have talked about till now. They simply represent the 12 constellations of the zodiac, which the gods, being the sun, travel about with. Also, the significance of the number 12 is striking throughout the mythological texts, specially the bible, for example, 12 sons of Jacob, 12 Judges of Israel, 12 princes of Israel, 12 great patriarchs etc.

“And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead” – Matt 28:6

The cross of the zodiac, the figurative life of the sun, is not just an artistic expression or tool to track the sun’s movement. It is also a pagan spiritual symbol, the short hand of which represents the pagan cross. This is the reason that Jesus, in early arts, was always shown with his head on the cross, as Jesus was the “Sun”, the “Son of God” and the “Light of the world”. This also explains the crown of thorns worn by Jesus, which is nothing but the sun rays, as depicted in any art form depicting the sun.

“As long as I’m in the world, I’m the light of the world” – John 9:5

http://xrystiann.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/cross-of-the-zodiac.jpg http://www.philvaz.com/apologetics/CrossCeltic.gif

The mythological scriptures, specially the bible, have been riddled with the reference to the ‘ages’. Astronomically speaking, this is nothing but the phenomenon of the “Procession of the Equinox”. The Egyptians and the cultures before and after them were familiar with the fact that every 2150 years (approx) the sunrise of the spring equinox (Easter) will happen on a different sign of the zodiac (zodiacs are nothing but a specific constellation which have been anthropomorphised to a phenomena which is found in nature around that point of time, Aquarius, or the water bearer, only symbolises the melting of ice and the availability of fresh water and thus, signalling the inception of spring). The earth completes the entire cycle of moving through all the signs in 25,765 years, which is approx 2150 years per sign, which the ancient cultures referred to as the “Era”. Just for information, we are currently in the era of the Pisces and around 2150 A.D. we will move onto the new era of the Aquarius. The bible refers to a symbolic movement of 3 sign while foreshadowing the 4th. In the Old Testament, when Moses received the 10 commandments and came down from Mount Sinai, he found his people worshipping a golden bull. He was visibly upset and instructs his men to kill each other to purify themselves (Go in and go out from gate to gate, and slay every man and his brother, every man and his companion, every man and his neighbour .. – Exodus 32). Most biblical scholars tribute this anger to the fact that the Israelites were worshipping a false idol, but astronomically, it was a representation to the age of “Taurus”, the bull, and Moses represented the new age of Aries, the Ram. This can be substantiated by the example that Jews’, still today, blow the Ram’s horn. Similar symbolisms are prevalent in other cultures as well, for example, Mithra (Persia) killing the bull.

Jesus, follows us into the new age of Pisces, or the fishes, thus we can see the fish symbolism in abundance in the New Testament. For example, Jesus feeds 5000 people with bread and two fish (We only have five loaves of bread and two fish – Matt 14:17). When Jesus begins his ministry and he was walking with Galilee, he befriended 2 fishermen. This can also be substantiated by the Jesus symbol we see today on the back of people’s cars. Little they know that it actually symbolises a pagan astrological symbol of the sun’s kingdom during the age of Pisces.

http://jansimson.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/jesus-fish-cross.jpg?w=590

When the disciples of Jesus ask him here the last Passover would be, he answers “Behold, when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you bearing a pitcher of water. Follow him into the house where he entereth in” (Luke 22:10). This scripture is one of the most revealing among all the astrological references. The “man bearing the pitcher of water is Aquarius, the water bearer, he represents the age after Pisces, and when the God Sun, leaves the age of Pisces, it will go into the house of Aquarius, as Aquarius follows Pisces in the Procession of the Equinox. All Jesus is saying here is that after the age of Pisces, will come the Age of Aquarius. This actually leads us to “End of the World” theory, apart from the cartoonish description provided in the Book of Revelation, the source of this idea comes from Matthew 28:20, where Jesus consoles his disciples saying “I will be with you even to the end of the world”. But, in the King James version, the word “world” is a mistranslation, among many. The actual word used was “Aeon”, which literally means “Age” or “Era”, which makes the statement as “I will be with you even to the end of the age”. Which is nothing but the fact that Jesus’s solar Piscean anthropomorphisation will end as the procession enters the age of Aquarius. Thus, rendering the entire concept of end of the times or end of the world as a misinterpreted astrological allegory. Someone please tell this to the billions of fanatics all over the world who believes that the end of the world is coming. Also, the character of Jesus being a literary and astrological hybrid, is the most explicit and plagiarised version of the Egyptian God Horus (I so wish there was turnitin when the bible was written, it would have never got published!!).

Sun, being the supreme among all the celestial bodies and by virtue of being visible to the ancient astronomers, was instantly assigned the position of the greatest among gods. It also became a symbol of the supreme authority and synonymous to the creator itself. From a philosophic standpoint, the principles of the sun have lead to the concept of the trinity, as we understand it today. The concept of the triune divine is not only a tenet of Christian or mosaic theologies only, but it forms an integral part of all religions. The hindus, Persians, Babylonians all have their individual dogmas about the trinity. The origin of the trinity will become obvious to anyone observing the daily transgression of the sun. The solar orb, being the symbol of all possible light sources, has 3 very distinct phases, namely, rising, mid-day and setting. Taking a cue from this, the philosophers also divided the life-journey of all living things in 3 distinct phases, namely, birth, growth and decay. The time between the dawn and dusk represents the high-time, of glory, of prime. This phase is usually represented by the colour yellow, radiant and magnificent. The creation is symbolized by the dawn. Interestingly, the father god is usually shown in the colour blue, which is primarily because, the rising sun is covered in a veil of blue mist. The setting sun is represented in flaming red, before it settles into darkness. The Egyptians believed the sun to be a symbol of immortality, as it sets every day just to rise the next day to conquer the darkness.

Probably the only culture (or religion) which doesn’t acknowledge the power of the sun and doesn’t position it as their supreme deity, happens to be Islam, Qur’an doesn’t have any references to the sun and celestial objects having any sort of mystic symbolism or religious significance. Possibly due to the widespread practice of sun-worshipping among the pre-Islamic cults in Arabia, sun-worshipping is forbidden by the Muslim doctrine, Shariah. So, the rising and setting of the sun becomes just a daily astronomical routine incident.

The sun, has its own share of significance in the Hindu mythology as well, this is not only substantiated by the fact that sun is considered as one of the most kind and powerful gods among all and has his own temple, but because of the fact that the sun is the only deity who to whom the prayers need to be offered in a very specific style, the ‘suryanamaskar’. Also, according to both Hindu and Greek mythology, sun rides a chariot which is driven by seven horses. This number seven actually represents the constituent colours of light. What we know today as the primary colours, or the VIBGYOR.

The similarities are endless, but we can clearly see that no matter what religion we talk about, the sun plays a vital role in preserving life but also responsible for hale and hearty propagation of mankind. No wonder that Plato referred to the sun as a metaphor for ‘ultimate illumination’. In a more spiritual sense, sun is symbolised with the concept of the Soul. Similar to the sun, where we have only light, and nothing else, the soul, the nature of the true self, is also described to be pure and infinite. Like the sun, the soul is also full of love, joy, truth, peace and allness of good. For the sun, the only truth is the light, as the sun is the source of light; these qualities of the soul are the realities of our soul, of our being. Philosophers also believed in the existence of three suns in every universe, which is analogous to the dogma of three centres of life. These are, namely, the spiritual sun, the intellectual/soular sun and the material sun. in freemasonic cults, these are represented by lighting of three candles. The spiritual sun manifests power, the soular sun radiates life and the material sun is considered to the vehicle for manifesting the Holy Spirit.

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.