Hinduism and Buddhism Essay Example for Free

Hinduism and Buddhism Essay Hinduism and Buddhism are two of the renowned religions world widely. Hinduism is the religion of the great majority of the people of India. The word comes from the Sanskrit sindhu, â€Å"river,† and originally referred to the Indus. Hinduism is actually a collection of many native Indian religions, past and present. It is responsible for the social structure of India, especially for the caste system (a hereditary class system). Hinduism has about 20 sects, with beliefs that range from primitive forms of animism to the highest reaches of mysticism and philosophy. Many of the sects and cults seem to be separate religions. Yet all have a family relationship since they spring from common traditions and thrive. Hindus believe in rebirth, or reincarnation, and in what they call the law of karma. Under this law the conditions of each new lifetime are determined by the actions of the preceding life. To the Hindu, salvation consists of liberating the soul from attachment to worldly desires in order to gain union with Brahman. If a Hindu dies liberated he must be born again into this world and again endure its suffering (Stutley, 2004). The Vedas describe four main castes. 1. The Brahmins exercise spiritual power. (Brahmin is also spelled Brahman). 2. The Kshatriyas are warriors who exercise secular power. 3. The Vaisyas are merchants and cultivators. 4. The Sudras are artisans and laborers. Hindu worship for most part takes place in the home. A Hindu temple or shrine is considered an abode of deity and is not used for communal worship. There are kinds of Hindu clergy. Temple priests collect offerings and care for the temples and shrines. Domestic priests perform rites involving births, marriages, and deaths. Gurus are spiritual teachers. Sadhus are monks; most live in monasteries, but many live as wandering mendicants (beggars) (Chaudhuri, 1999). While Buddhism is a religion founded by Siddhartha Gautama (â€Å"Buddha,† or â€Å"The Enlightened One†) in India about 500 B. C. Buddhism is the chief religion of Burma, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Kampuchea, Laos, and China. It has been estimated that about one-fifth of the world’s people are Buddhists. Because many Buddhists also practice Confucianism or Taoism, however, some authorities estimate world membership to be much smaller. In the United States, there are a number of organized Buddhist congregations (Carrithers, 2003). Buddhism consists of numerous sects with varying practices and beliefs. Some of these sects are so different from the others that they appear to be separate religions. But all sects have in common the belief that they are following the principles laid down by Gautama. Early Buddhism, the religion as taught by Gautama, developed into two branches—Theravada Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism (Mizuno, 2001). Although Buddhism was originally a reform movement that rejected certain beliefs and practices of Hinduism, the two religions have several important beliefs in common. Among them are reincarnation, the ideas that a living thing can be reborn in a new body; the law of karma, which holds that events in life are effects whose cause lies in previous lives and acts; and liberation, or salvation, the state of being free of the law of karma and rebirth (Conze, 2002). According to Buddhism, liberation is attained through understanding and practice of the Four Noble Truths: 1. There is suffering in life. 2. Suffering is caused by desire for pleasure, existence, and prosperity. 3. Suffering and rebirth cease when one ceases such desires, leading to enlightenment, or Nirvana, a blessed state in which peace, harmony, and joy are attained. The Eightfold Path is also called the Middle Way—because of its emphasis on avoiding such extremes as following sensuous pleasures on the one hand, and self-punishment on the other. The Buddhists must at all times observe in the high moral principles described in the Eightfold path, which emphasizes nonviolence and the brotherhood of all. Reference: 1. Carrithers, Michael. The Buddha (Oxford University 2003). 2. Chaudhuri, N. C. Hinduism: A Religion to Live by (Oxford University, 1999). 3. Conze, Edward. A Short History of Buddhism (Allen Unwin, 2002). 4. Mizuno, Kogen. Basic Buddhist Concepts (Tuttle, 2001). 5. Stutley, Margaret James. Harper’s Dictionary of Hinduism: Its Mythology, Folklore, Philosophy, Literature, and History (Harper Row, 2004).

Secularisation in Contemporary Ireland

Secularisation in Contemporary Ireland This study will investigate whether, and in what ways secularisation is occurring in contemporary Ireland. Theories of secularisation, and arguments against the process, abound, and this is a hotly debated topic. How, and in what ways might secularisation be said to be taking place within a given society? This study will attempt to make a contribution to this debateby looking at the situation in Ireland. Attention will also be paidhowever, to what has happened in Britain as much of the researchconcerning secularisation has taken place in that context. It will makesome comparisons between Ireland and the situation in Britain and otherEuropean countries to demonstrate the unique place of religion in Irishsociety. The study will seek to understand: †¢Ã‚  What processes might signify whether secularization is taking place? †¢Ã‚  Whether similarly observed processes might be said to signify that secularization is taking place in Ireland †¢Ã‚  Whether Contemporary Ireland could be said to be a secular society or as Brewer (2005) contends, a post-Christian society. †¢Ã‚  Whether, and in what ways religion may be said to have a unique position in Irish society. The study will draw on statistical and documentary data, along withmedia reports to ascertain whether, and in what ways, secularization istaking place. The study will look at the relationship between religionand the state in the republic of Ireland and also in Northern Ireland.It will also look at the education system and the phenomenon ofinter-religious marriage. In this way the study treats existingdocumentation as primary data by using it together in a distinctivefashion. Structure The study will begin with theories of secularization and a literaturereview which will look at the process in Britain and in Europe andcontrast this with the situation in Ireland to demonstrate in what waysIreland may differ from other industrialized societies and how this mayaffect whether and in what ways secularization could be said to betaking place. Following the literature review the methodologicalapproach to the study will be outlined and attention will be paid toreflexivity in the research process. There will be an analysis of thefindings of the research and finally a conclusion that will establishwhether the research question has fulfilled its aims. Religion is common to almost all cultures. Religious traditions andtheir teachings are, it might be argued, the result of three things,faith, theology, and culture. Anthropologist Clifford Geertz (1966) describes religion thus: 1. A system of symbols which acts to 2. Establish powerful, pervasive,and long-lasting moods and motivations in men by 3. Formulatingconceptions of a general order of existence and 4. Clothing theseconceptions with such an aura of factuality that 5. The moods andmotivations seem uniquely realistic (Geertz, 1966:4). Religion has many different aspects from personal beliefs aboutspirituality, to institutional structures like schools and hospitals,to the influence of religious bodies over legislation Until theEnlightenment the teachings of religion were rarely questioned becausethey were regarded as direct truth from God. Modernity, with its implicit understanding of the absolute powers of reason, called intoquestion the traditional understandings of theological truth claims anddrastically reduced the cultural influence of theology and religion. The contemporary term ‘secularisation’ has come to represent thedeclining influence of religion in society. The word is contextual inthat it arises from the western tradition and is part of the history ofthe church.It was first used in 1648   to refer to the transfer of landsunder church control to lay political control. The term secular is alsoused to specify that which is inferior to the realm of the sacred. Itwas later used in the context of the priest being allowed to dispensewith his vows, in the Middle Ages the distinction between religious andsecular priests referred to those who worked within a religious orderand those who worked among the laity. From the 1830s onwards the death of religion due to the rise of thescientific age was proclaimed by confident atheists. Comte inparticular decreed that the fiction that was theology would die and be replaced by the truth of science. This viewwas largely endorsed by Marx, Durkheim, Weber and Freud, all of whomwere convinced that the forces of the modern age heralded the birth ofa secular one. Auguste Comte is regarded as the founder of sociology.He believed that with the rise of science religion would, eventually, die out. Weber also thought that religion would loseits significance through the growth of capitalism and the influence ofurbanisation and rising technology. The world would become desacralisedand there would be less reliance on magic and religion. Meaning would be found rationally. Throughout the twentieth century it had been widely assumed that the decline of religion and religious belief was an irreversible process. Sociologists are keen to stress that secularisation is a natural process rather than a polemic againstreligion (which secularism is), some would also argue thatsecularisation is not an ideology (an imposed system of ideas). It is simply a process which has been observed over the last two   or three hundred years. Seen from this vantage point secularisation is largely the result of two things, the increasing complexity of modern society andits compartmentalisation into different areas, for example, politics,education and the law, and religion ceasing to provide cohesion for allareas of human life. Wilson (1966) says that the complexity of thisprocess is characterised by a wide variety of innovations which haveled to a structural change in society. He cites the following;scientific advance and the development of technology, changing patternsof wor k and increasing industrialisation, the rise of individuality,and education characterised by science rather than religion andtradition. Bruce and Wallis (1992) class secularization as the ‘diminishingsocial significance of religion’, directly brought about by threestrands of modernization: ‘social differentiation’, ‘societalization’and ‘rationalization’.   By social differentiation, they mean theprocess by which ‘specialised institutions’ take the place of religiousones; for example, in Britain the provision of education and welfare isnow the responsibility of a secular government, not the church.   Socialdifferentiation also includes the fragmentation of society into distinct social groups basedon differing life experiences, for example a distinction between socialclasses. Bruce allows however that the significance of religion is lesslikely to decline if it can find some social role, other than thecommunication of beliefs, within the wider society. In Ireland for example, the fact that religion has long been a source of contentionhas given it anot her social role. Societalization refers to the disappearance of small-scale communities and their replacement by the idea of ‘society’, largely due toincreasing industrialization and urbanization.   Rationalization refersto changes in the way people think; the rise of science and technologyhas removed uncertainty and the need for faith and has provided rational explanations for questions which in the past were considered the domain of religion.   The combined effect of theseprocesses is the decline in the social position of religion. McLeod(1992) maintains that the concepts of differentiation andrationalization are not particularly helpful when trying to understandthe place of religion in a particular society as cultural practicesdiffer widely. Berger (1970) believes that urbanisation and modernisation result insocial fragmentation and this leads to a plurality of cultural andrelgious groups. The monopoly previously held by one group comes to anend. We can see that this has happened, whether or not we subscribe tothe secularisation thesis. Secularisation is a problematic concept however, while Wilson (1982) and Bruce (1996)maintain that the forces of modernity heralded a new secularized age,other theorists differ. The view that modernization inevitably leads tosecularization is often challenged. Martin (1978) contends that inorder to make sense of the process of religion in industrialized societies attention must be paid to the specific cultural andhistorical patterns that pertain in a specific society. In NorthernIreland for example, religion has remained in the public arena as asource of dispute that is connected to issues of national identity.What happens in Ireland is quite different to what has happened inBritain since the Second World War. The Changing Face of Religion in Britain The religious landscape of Britain was significantly different at the close of World War2 than it is now, at the dawn of the twenty first century. In the yearsimmediately preceding the war and on into the late 1940s and 50s themajority of British people still had some form of contact with theChurch (often through their children attending Sunday School, orthrough membership of Scouts, Guides and the like) and many still claimed to hold a belief in God and in the basic teachings of Christianity. They would also have been exposed to explicitly Christian teaching in schools. The General Picture and its Effects in Ireland The growing importance of the ecumenical movement meant a change indenominational attitudes. Mainstream Christianity was endorsed in partby the 1944 Education Act. The Act required that the school day begin with anassembly and act of worship and that religious instruction should beaccording to an agreed syllabus and should be given to all pupils(Parsons, 1993). The Act did not make provisions for other faith traditions, but neither did it specify the form of worship or instruction. The ongoing effect of the Act was to weaken the hold of mainstream Christianity on British society, although this was not considered atthe time the Act was passed. It was felt that non-denominational worship and teaching would make sensewhen co-related with more specific Church teaching that it assumed children would have (Parsons, 1993).   However this assumption proved to be unfounded. Theway in which education has been affected in Ireland is ratherdifferent. In some areas amendment to the education system haveresulted in a reiteration of   Catholic religious beliefs to thedetriment of the Protestant minority. The Picture in Ireland Secularisation has affected the whole ofEurope and surveys undertaken in the 1980s and 90a   via the EuropenaValues systems survey indicated that many young people show little ifany recognition of religious symbols. In Ireland the situation israther different. Although seculaisation may be seen to be having aneffect religion has always had a prominent place in Irish life andpolitics. In Ireland the survey showed that there was a growing lack of confidence in the church and that for the first time a generation who were not connected to the church was emerging. Irelandis quite different from both Britain and the rest of Europe. While in Britain and the rest of Europe the process of secularization has been taking place for the last 300 years, Bishop Bill Murphy maintains that in Ireland it has onlybeen observable for the last 30 years.   In the republic of Irelandthere has, historically been a much closer connection between Churchand state. The refusal of the state to confront the Church iscontributing to the international problem of the unresolved question of those who have been sexually abused by clergy. Doyle (2005) writes poignantly on this matter. Their voice is stifled, their complaint against the church is relegatedto the wings. This is precisely what the Church has sought to doelsewhere, including America, though with much less success and at far greater financial cost. (Doyle, 2005 no p. no.).   The place of education, and particularly compulsory religious educationis a highly controversial subject in sectarian Ireland. From thenineteenth century the education system in Ireland has been split alongsectarian lines and in the last thirty years this has been an area ofmajor concern for some analysts (Darby, 1976). Bowen (1983) maintains that since independence the minority ofProtestants (in the 1991 census only 3% fell into this category) hasfallen further and that this is largely a result of inter-religiousmarriage. In 1996 a study was undertaken to establish the number ofinter-religious marriages in Ireland (Sexton and O’Leary, 1996).Ireland has witnessed a growth in inter-religious marriages (Bowen,1983). Jack White, a Protestant wrote of inter-religious marriage that:   no single cause contributes so much to the continuing division in Irish life and the embitterment of inter-church relations; in any circle of Protestants this will be advanced to justify segregation in education and social activities’(White, 1975: 129). The Research Question This study looks at the process of secularization in contemporary Ireland. It draws comparisons between what has happened in Britain andwhat is happening in Ireland. The argument of this study is that theIrish context is quite unique and secularization may not be occurringin the way that sociologists understand it, i.e. the removal ofreligion from the public to the private sphere. In Ireland theconnection between Church and state and between religion and politicsmeans that religion is constantly in the public sphere and thus thesituation is quite different. This difference has led Brewer (2005) toview Ireland in terms of a post-Christian society rather than in termsof secularization. The use of the term post-Christian originated in the1960s in Britain where the pace of social and religious change and thecontention of many theorists that Britain was a secular society ledsome theologians to speak of the death of God and a post-Christian era.The term was again taken up in the 1960s by feminist theologian MaryDaly who called on women to leave the Churches and to participate in apost-Christian spirituality. Methodology This study will investigate the above question through a literature based survey. It will look especially at : †¢Ã‚  Inter-religious marriage †¢Ã‚  The education system †¢Ã‚  Whether the situation in Ireland could be said to be unique in that religion in Ireland still occupies a very public place. Due to costs and time constraints the research will consist of theexamination and analysis of existing documentation, statistics, andmedia reports. Theoretical concerns are: †¢Ã‚  Whether, and in what ways, increasing industrialization and modernization influences the process of secularization in Ireland. †¢Ã‚  How this process manifests and may be connected to any perceptions of the decline of religious authority in Ireland. †¢Ã‚  Whether what is emerging could be called secularization, or as Brewer(2005) maintains might be better thought of as post-Christian The major areas of analysis are through the relationship betweenChurch and state in the republic of Ireland and how this impacts on, oris impacted by, inter-religious marriage and the education system.Questions arising from this are: †¢Ã‚  How far might the relationship between Church and state be said toimply that the Irish situation is unique due to religion’s place in thepublic sphere. †¢Ã‚  Does a growth in inter-religious marriage loosen religious ties anddoes it indicate a decline in adherence to religious authority? †¢Ã‚  Has integrated education been successful and how does this affect the teaching of   religious values and doctrines? †¢Ã‚  How far could there be said to be a move towards a multi-faithorientation in the teaching of religious studies, and what effectsmight this have on the Irish situation? †¢Ã‚  Might Ireland be said to be a post-Christian rather than a secular society. †¢Ã‚   The research will be largely literature based, using existing studies and analyzing them in terms of the above questions. This same process of analysiswill also be applied to media reports and to statistical findings. Onesource of data will be the 1991 census which indicated that 84% of theIrish population still claimed regular church attendance. In addition the study will look at any decline inreligious practices as defined by Wilson 1982. How does societydistance itself from religious traditions? Theorists argue that it canbe seen in the   decline in the number of church baptisms and weddings,and the fact that church officials have less financial recognition. InBritain religious festivals have become increasingly secularised and sohave beliefs with numbers of ministers saying that they no longerbelieve in the virgin birth, the incarnation or the resurrection. Wilson   is of the opinion that there are at least three levels ofanalysis that need addressing if we are to assess the impact ofsecularisation they are: religious practice, religious organisation andreligious belief. While these three levels are dealt with separatelyfor the purpose of this research, they are connected empirically.People are, more often than not born into a religious tradition in thesame way that they are born into a particular culture and these thingswill affect a person’s worldview, their moral values, and their senseof themselves. This study will also ask how far Wilson’s levels ofanalysis could be said to be evident in Ireland and thus relevant tothe Irish situation. The distinctiveness of this study is the bringingtogether of a number of different aspects of the Irish situation andcomparing them (for example attitudes to marriage and to abortion) towhat has happened in Britain. Does going to Church really mean that a person believes in God, or canyou do this without attending religious ceremonies. It certainly seemsthat the power and influence of the Church and perhaps other organisedreligions is declining in Britain if the statistics are anything to goby.   Sunday Schools were another recruiting ground for the Church they were extremely popular in the late nineteenthcentury and remained so until the middle of the twentieth century. Thenumber of attendees at Sunday School is now only ten percent of thenumber in 1900 (Bruce, 1995). The next question is how has thisinfluenced the institutions themselves. At the same time This involves an examination of the extent to which religiousorganisations are involved in the day to day secular order in anysociety and to what extent they are able to exert control over thatsociety. Signs of the growth of secularisation include the following,declining membership of the established Churches, declining numbers ofpeople who are willing to make religion their vocation, and the closingof churches, which in Britain are either sold off or left and allowed to fall into terminal dereliction. Historically, senior clergy were recruited from the same universities,schools and families as the government.   In Britain Church of EnglandBishops were recruited largely from the peerage or landed gentry in1860. This practice has decreased and nowadays clergy often come fromthe poorer strata of society. The Protestant Church was once considereda good living but its wealth has declined and so ordinands usually haveconcerns other than material welfare, it has become   a low statusoccupation. In Britain there was a marked decline in the number ofChurch of England ordinands between 1900 and 1988 (Bruce, 1995). Thisstarted happening much later in Ireland, and at a much slower pace. With the apparent decline in church membership and the marked declinein the number of both Church of England and Roman Catholic ordinandsthe requirement for church buildings has diminished. This has largelyaffected the Anglican Church and in some cases other Protestant denominations. The trend for closingchurches is less marked in the Roman Catholic Church. It could be thatthe Catholics were not so prolific in their church building as theAnglicans were or that they have greater funding capacity formaintaining large buildings. Nevertheless it is not uncommon nowadays,in Britain particularly, to see Church buildings sold off and used aspubs or as retail outlets or warehouses. This has not yet been the case inIreland, particularly the Irish republic, where much of the land andbuildings are still the property of the Catholic church and remainsunder the church’s control. In Britain, between 1970 and 1998 1250 church buildings were closedor sold off. Religion itself appears to be changing, becomingsecularised, it is less likely to provide a lead for people and moreinclined to follow trends than to set them (Browne, 1998).Browne (1998)shows that while the influence of the Anglican Church has declined, andmay continue to do so, the Church still remains important in a numberof ways. †¢Ã‚  Church of England Bishops have seats in the House of Lords. (The Lords Spiritual). †¢Ã‚  Themonarch must be a member of the Church of England, is crowned by theArchbishop of Canterbury, and since the time of Henry V111 has beenhead of the Church of England and Defender of the Faith. †¢Ã‚  The Church of England remains the official or established Church in England. †¢Ã‚  The Church of England is extremely wealthy, with investment funds ofan estimated  £3 billion in 1991, and it is one of the largestlandowners in the country. †¢Ã‚  Since the 1944 Education Act, all schools have been legally obligedto hold a religious ceremony each day, and the 1988 Education ReformAct reaffirmed and strengthened the requirements to hold assemblies ofa broadly Christian nature and teach Christian beliefs for at least 51percent of the time allocated to religion in schools. This still leaves us with the question of whether religious belief is affected by the growth in secularisation. How much influence does religion have in the areas of personalbelief and practice, and how does one measure people’s beliefs?Sociologists identify this type of measuring as a problem and many admit that there is no clear picture ofwhether, and to what extent, secularisation has occurred in this area.One of the problems stems from the different understandings people haveof such a belief. For numbers of people it may be agreement to all ofthe teachings of Christianity, for others a general belief in God andfor some it might be a spiritual awareness and a sense of meaning andpurpose to life. In Ireland, religious belief is closely allied topolitical matters and people are far more inclined to state that theybelong to a particular tradition, in this way they define not onlytheir religion, but also their political and national loyalties. In Britain one way of estimating trends in religious believing is tolook at the rise in the number of New Religious movements, the rise ofthe Bla ck led Churches and the rise in the number of House Churches.There has also been a considerable growth in other forms of evangelicalChristianity and most people in Britain still claim a belief in God.. Bruce (1995) argues that the face of organised religion over the lasttwo hundred years has changed from a dominant Church model to thegrowth of the sect and the denomination (Bruce, 1995). This has been brought about by the riseof cultural pluralism and the reluctance of governments to use force toget people into a state Church. Although the churches were slow torelinquish their privileges the role of the Anglican, Scottish, and Welsh Churches have changed considerable sincethe 19th century, in Britain for example in 1828 a person who heldpublic office was, at least officially, a member of the Anglican faith. Non-members could not holdpublic office. Catholics were not allowed the vote before 1829 (Bruce,1995) and it was 1850 before the Church was allowed to restore its hierarchy. Until 1836 marriagescould only be celebrated by an Anglican minister, irrespective of thefaith of the marriage partners and until 1854 non-Anglicans were not allowed to study at Oxford andCambridge, and unti 1871 all teaching posts at these institutions wereheld by Anglicans. Women were not allowed to be members of thesecolleges before the late 1890s. With each of these changes the Churchof England lost some of its power in society. Bruce (1995) holds that Protestantism by its very nature increases fragmentation inreligion and by extension in society. The rise of the ecumenicalmovement also played a part in the Church’s loss of power. Fragmentation undermines the Church, it has state support for areligious monopoly and this has gradually been removed, this also hasfunding implications, until the nineteenth century the Churches werefunded by the land they owned and by public taxation, this was largelyfinished by the start of the twentieth century. Secondly its personnelbecome increasingly influenced by the psychology of an increasinglypluralist culture. It is not so easy to believe that a religion isright in every detail when other worldviews are becoming more prominent. At the same time the Church retains an illusion of strength from the continuation of communal occasions such as baptisms, weddings and funerals. However, the growth in competition means that this illusion becomes increasingly difficult to maintain (Bruce, 1995). The rise inthe number of denominations eventually increases tolerance anddecreases certainty. The problems that different denominations beenmight be said to constitute a significant feature of the situation in Ireland, particularly as it pertains to education. In Northern Ireland, beginning in the 1980s integrated systems ofeducation were introduced and this caused a deal of controversy centredaround conflicting interests (Dunn, 1989). The Belfast Agreement of1998 set out guidelines for the promotion of religious and culturaltolerance and it is thought by some commentators that this was directly linked to the Good Friday Agreement (Morgan and Fraser, 1999).Since the Good Friday Agreement some thinkers have argued that there isan increasing secularization in Ireland and that liberals in the Northmay be considering replicating the multi-faith educational model thatoperates in the rest of Britain. This has led to vigorous debate anddiscussion of the differences between Britain and Ireland (Barnes,2004). Although numbers of commentators contend that there is a growingsecularization, in Ireland in the 1991 census 84% claimed to attendchurch at least once a week. In a survey undertaken in the south ofIreland Greil (1998) found the following listed in the table on thenext page. Table One weekly mass attendance in the Republic of Ireland 1981-1998 Year  %  Comments  Source 1998  94%  older people  Survey of Diocese of Cashel and Emly published in Irish Times 1998  92%  People over 65  MRBI poll for Irish Times 1981  87%  all people  European Values Survey 1998  87%  Connacht/Ulster people  MRBI poll for Irish Times 1990  85%  all people  European Values Survey 1988/89  82%  all people  Mac Grà ©il (1996) 1998  66%  all people  MRBI poll for Irish Times 1998  60%  People 18-34  Survey of Diocese of Cashel and Emly published in Irish Times 1998  60%  all people  RTE Prime Time poll 1998  50%  Dubliners  MRBI poll for Irish Times 1998  41%  18-24 yr olds  MRBI poll for Irish Times 1990  40%  Urban unemployed  European Values Survey While this does show a rapid decline, particularly among the young,for Father Greil the fact that only one percent of his sample professedno religion at all, still leaves him optimistic about the place of religion in Irish life. Greil is of the opinion that there is a lack of community feeling in the cities and that the rapid growth in urbanization is a significant factor in the decline in church attendance.    While there does seem to be a decline in participation in organisedreligion in both contemporary Britain and in Ireland, many people stillclaim to hold orthodox beliefs and a moral judgement based on thetenets of Christianity. At the same time they do not have so muchattraction to institutional forms of religions (Bruce, 1995 and Browne,1998). The nineteen sixties saw rapid social and religious change. In theyears after the war, the rise of the welfare state, the growth in thenumber of Catholic Grammar Schools and the resulting rise in the numberof Catholics to enter Higher Education spurred a transformation inBritish Catholicism. This eventually led, in the 1960s to the holdingof the Second Vatican Council and the resultant Catholic alignment withthe ecumenical movement. By the end of the decade most people owned a television and programmessuch as That was the Week That Was took an irreverent view of religion.This, along with the sixties sexual revolution, brought changingattitudes towards the Church and to people’s attitudes to religiousauthority. The media was highly influential on the Church’s publicimage and became far more critical of outdated morality.   What went onin America had a greater influence on what happened in Britain. Thesuccess of the civil rights movement in the mid-nineteen sixties openedthe way for second-wave feminism and the call for women’s rights. Theabortion reform act of 1967 meant that women had more rights over their own body and the employmentdiscrimination act of the mid-nineteen seventies meant that other thanin the Church employers could not discriminate on the basis of sex. Thelate 1960s also saw the burgeoning of feminist theologies. These havedeveloped and changed over the last thirty years a nd have become achallenge to patriarchal systems across the world. Divorce law reformsaw a huge increase in the number of divorces and traditionalists sawthis as a threat to the institute of marriage and the structure of thefamily. The rise of the Gay Christian movement and the aids threatsfrom the 1980s onward meant an overall rethinking and debate onpersonal morality within the chuches (Parsons, 1993). As stated earlier Brewer (2005) contends that what is happening inIreland is very different to what has happened in Britain and ratherthan the secularisation of Ireland what we are seeing is the move to apost-Christian society. What Brewer means by this is: the declining ability of Christian religion to affect and shapeordinary believers’ lives, a growing liberalisation in what ordinaryChristians believe and in the certainty with which they believe it, andthe appearance of other world faiths, still admittedly very much asminority religions, but a presence that nonetheless challenges theChristian hegemony. Religious diversity and pluralism now has to caterfor differences in practice and belief between the world religions notjust Catholic and Protestant (Brewer, 2005:7).   Sociologists use divorce statistics, abortion and homosexuality figuresto sustain the argument that secularisation is on the increase. Theyuse this evidence to suggest that these factors are a result of thedeclining importance of religious thinking and teaching in people’slives. In Britain many people have a pick and mix attitude towards religious believing and more than half of all marriages are nowcivil or non-religious ceremonies.From the 1950s onward Ireland haswitnessed an increasing industrialization through urbanization and agrowth in the number of people employed in both the industrial, ratherthan the agricultural sector, and in higher education. Religion hasbeen a key factor in Ireland and, since the 1970s, an increasing causeof conflict between Catholic and Protestant groups (O’Leary, 2001).Brewer (2005) has argued that the conflict has not been about religionas such but about identity and political loyalty. Religion is not the substance of this conflict; no one seriouslyargues that the conflict has been about religion. But religion is itsform, the way in which it is experienced. The contestation has beenabout the legitimacy of the state and access to its scarce resources,but this took on a religious form because ‘Catholic’ and ‘Protestant’were the

I.t. Doctors Database Analysis :: essays research papers

There are some parts of a Doctor’s Surgery that could benefit from computerisation. As time goes on technology will aid most types of work, for instance office work (Department of Trade and Industry, for example). Technology could be used in a Doctor’s surgery to computerise the patients’ files, to print out prescriptions and certificates for things like immunisations. The patients’ file would consist of their name & address, telephone number, D.O.B, sex, allergies, and diseases. In addition, it will be faster for the doctor to access his or her files because they are all just a few clicks of a mouse button away instead of loads of paper-based files in a big fat cabinet away. If you were to misplace a file in your office, it would probably be hard to find it, whereas if you lost a file on a computer you could use the find utility in Microsoft Windows 95, 98 or 2000 (by pressing the button and F at the same time) and the file would be found in a few seconds. On a computer you could automatically put the files in alphabetical order by whatever- name, GP, date of birth e.t.c. However, in an office cabinet it really would not be easy at all to put and keep the files in some sort of alphabetical sequence. Currently the database is pen-and-paper based, which may be cost effective but is very time-consuming when compared to a computer-based database. Say you have a paper-based database. If one of your clients move house or get married, you would have to create a whole new record because of the altered information. And say it was a family who moved residence, and then after you made the new records the parents got married. It would cause a lot of hassle and waste a lot of time, wouldn’t it? The doctor would get annoyed searching for people’s files and they would take longer to get through things, which means less appointments every day. The dilemma is that I need to make a database to answer all these problems. I will make a database for a doctor’s surgery so the doctors can look up and alter the files of their patients with just the click of a button. The database will be able to find their medical record (allergies, etc.), their home address, their home phone number, their allergies (if any), and their diseases (if any). I.t. Doctors Database Analysis :: essays research papers There are some parts of a Doctor’s Surgery that could benefit from computerisation. As time goes on technology will aid most types of work, for instance office work (Department of Trade and Industry, for example). Technology could be used in a Doctor’s surgery to computerise the patients’ files, to print out prescriptions and certificates for things like immunisations. The patients’ file would consist of their name & address, telephone number, D.O.B, sex, allergies, and diseases. In addition, it will be faster for the doctor to access his or her files because they are all just a few clicks of a mouse button away instead of loads of paper-based files in a big fat cabinet away. If you were to misplace a file in your office, it would probably be hard to find it, whereas if you lost a file on a computer you could use the find utility in Microsoft Windows 95, 98 or 2000 (by pressing the button and F at the same time) and the file would be found in a few seconds. On a computer you could automatically put the files in alphabetical order by whatever- name, GP, date of birth e.t.c. However, in an office cabinet it really would not be easy at all to put and keep the files in some sort of alphabetical sequence. Currently the database is pen-and-paper based, which may be cost effective but is very time-consuming when compared to a computer-based database. Say you have a paper-based database. If one of your clients move house or get married, you would have to create a whole new record because of the altered information. And say it was a family who moved residence, and then after you made the new records the parents got married. It would cause a lot of hassle and waste a lot of time, wouldn’t it? The doctor would get annoyed searching for people’s files and they would take longer to get through things, which means less appointments every day. The dilemma is that I need to make a database to answer all these problems. I will make a database for a doctor’s surgery so the doctors can look up and alter the files of their patients with just the click of a button. The database will be able to find their medical record (allergies, etc.), their home address, their home phone number, their allergies (if any), and their diseases (if any).

Horny Goat Weed Essay -- Sexuality Disorders Treatments Essays

Horny Goat Weed One major issue in the world today is sexuality. Do I look good enough? I wonder if he or she likes me? While most of the world today is becoming increasingly sexually active, there are others are out there who are lacking in this field. Their bodies are no longer inclined to have or sex, or their sexual drive loses the battle between time and fatigue. Horny Goat Weed is said to be the cure of this "problem." Horny Goat Weed, also known as Epimedium, Yin Yang Huo, Inyokaku, and Herba Epimedii, was discovered around 200 B.C. Legend has it that an ancient Chinese goat herder noticed that his flock suddenly became sexually active after eating in a certain patch of weeds. Further investigation of this weed patch and a little leaf chewing resulted in the discovery of Horny Goat Weed (http://www.sobebev.com/healthyrefreshment/ productline/drive.htm). Purpose of Treatment There are many different claims as to what Horny Goat Weed actually does. Online stores and distributors, which are more focused on marketing the herb for increased sexual behavior, main claims are stimulating sex activity in both men and women, increase in sperm production, stimulation of the sensory nerves, and increasing sexual desire(http://nutrition-center.net/store/Pinnacle_Horny_Goat_Weed.html). Online sites, which appear to be more focused on health, make claims that Horny Goat Weed invigorates the kidneys and strengthens yang(for deficiency of kidney-yang manifested as impotence, emission, enuresis, frequent micturition, soreness of the waist and the knees, and sterility), strengthen tendons and bones, expel wind-dampness(which is otherwise known as flatulence, caused by the improper indigestion of food), and eliminate coughing and ... ...t/store/Pinnace_Horny_Goat_Weed.html http://homepages.infoseek.com/~huxuezhi/5-17.htm http://herbwalk.com/remedy/Epimedium_132.html http://advancedherbals.co.uk/herbs/div/epimedium_grandiflorum.html http://user.aol.com/greenmagik/stamina.htm WS, Lin, & XZ, Song. (1989). Clinical and Experimental research on a kidney-tonifying prescription in preventing and treating children's hearing lossinduced by aminoglycoside antibiotic ototoxicity. Chung His I Chieh Ho Tsa Chih, 9, 402-404. SY, Li, G, Ping, L, Geng, WK, Seow, and YH, Thong. (1994). Immunopharmocol-Ogy and toxicology of the plant flavanoid B-1. International Journal of Immunopharmacology, 16, 227-231. S, Yu, K, Chen, S, Li, & K, Zhang. (1999). In vitro and in vivo studies of the effect of a Chinese herb medicine on osteoclastic bone resorption. Chinese Journal of Dental Restoration, 2, 7-11.

Catabolic Relationships Essay example -- Literary Analysis, Bill Boast

As seen in many stories throughout history, love and relationships have perpetually been complicated. The themes of tragic sacrifices in the relationships of Marc Antony and Cleopatra, King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson, and Layla and Majnun are continued in modern literature. Sacrifice is a theme that has, and forever will be prevalent in literature because it is an admirable deed, yet requires a perfect balance. Careful analysis of the relationships in the post-modern short stories Coda by Will Boast, How We Handle Pain by Evan James Roskos, and Okeechobee by Claudia Zuluaga, produces a rich understanding of the universal truth that relationships require not just sacrifice, but harmonious immolation. When introduced in Will Boast’s short story, Coda, Tim and Kate’s relationship has already failed. The couple dated for years and got engaged, but eventually called off the engagement. As the story progresses, Tim reflects on both the merit of the relationship and the cause of its failure. After breaking into Kate’s apartment, Tim searches for and finds his old engagement ring. He gazes at the gold symbol of unending love, and then sees a picture of him and Kate beside it. â€Å"I was looking straight into the camera, but Kate was turned to me with a shy smile on her face. My favorite picture of her. You could see she was in love† (Boast 4). Even after six months of separation, Tim thirsts for his lost love. Though he recognizes the chaotic, uncooperative environment, in which the relationship was nourished. Kate is a lawyer and Tim is a musician, leading them to live, â€Å"disjointed lives, but for a long time that didn’t matter. Kate would leave the apartment at seven every morning, eager to make an impression at her new practice. At noo... ...ely needed to accept her actions and participate in sacrifice by giving back. Indeed, love is often described as sacrifice, but a more fitting definition is unmistakably, a balance of sacrifice. In these short stories, the common failure of a relationship, due to the lack of sacrifice, the common unhappiness, as a result of too much (or undesired) sacrifice, and the common unworthy attitude and refusal to sacrifice, are all exemplified. In a relationship, the idea is that two become one -thus, requiring some surrender- but the two must not forget their former identities. Truly, for a successful relationship, sacrificial equilibrium must be found; for at equilibrium, the reactants and the product are able to coexist. Each person must give up parts of their former self for the relationship to properly function, but one’s own identity must not be completely forgone.

CanGo Company Analysis Essay

Issue 1: Absence of planning for the startup business. Analysis and Recommendation: The founder of the CanGo Company had given little thought to the long range plans and direction of the company beyond the basic steps required to get the business in place. The organization’s successes could be attributed to the unique niche the CEO was able to fill for consumers mixed with old fashioned luck. Yes However, relying on these attributes to carry the business indefinitely would be ill advised. The largest risk in not utilizing strategic planning is failing to anticipate for fundamental changes in customer expectations, employee morale, regulatory requirements, competitive pressures, and economic changes. The company may lose valuable lead time and momentum when trying to catch up to these changes that could be severely detrimental to the company (Olsen). The first order of business for CanGo to move the company to the next stages and build a sustainable business would be to generate a vision statement, mission statement, and a specific strategic plan that can be used as roadmaps for the company’s next two to five years of operation. These elements should be considered the most important and immediate objectives for the top management of the company. They will form the basis of all other business decisions to be made in the organization’s foreseeable future. Issue 2: Missing strategic planning for  the future of the company. Analysis and Recommendation: The failure of management to have a realistic plan is clear when analyzing the speech given to the Hudson Valley Business association. Liz fails in her ability to outline the steps she took in order to create a successful business. Instead she covered her tracks with analogies of the ideas that were used to start the business. While having a good entrepreneurial concept is a commendable start if will not maintain a profitable business in the long term. The speech highlighted the disorganization of the company’s management. There was no mention of setting goals, strategic planning, market analysis, or financial considerations, or any other type of due diligence. The lack of a comprehensive plan will also impact the health of the internal portion of the organization. The reaction of other employees to the speech was that of disbelief of just how much of their livelihood has been left to chance. Employees clearly have a lack of confidence in the leadership of the company. This becomes even more apparent at the staff meeting that shortly followed this speech that announced the changes in the company’s direction to move toward online gaming. What is the recommendation? A comprehensive plan? Issue 3: Deficiency exists in research for decision making. A formal structure to company decisions is nonexistent and there is a failure to utilize team strategic planning. Analysis and Recommendation: The company was looking to start a new venture in the new and fast growing market of online gaming. The key employees of the company did not seem to be very interested or enthusiastic about the idea of online gaming. They proposed other ideas that were quickly shut down or were completely ignored. When starting any new product or service in a company there is a need for designated teams who can do the research to find out if the product or service will work well in the designated market. Along with the research team the company needed to involve their financial department to see where the company stood financially and risk analysts to analyze the risks associated with the new product or services. It is clear that CanGo did not have any type of formal strategic plan for moving forward. All the members  of the planning team needed to be on the same page. Andrew, the company’s Director of Marketing, just seemed to be thinking about having fun. â€Å"I know this is a hard concept, but we’re talking about fun. You know fun? Remember when you were young?† (Prentice Hall, 2002) while Ethel, the Director of Accounting, was concerned more about the financial aspects of online gaming, how it’s going to impact the organization, and where it is going to take the company. Elizabeth, the CEO and company founder, needs to have another meeting with the key members of all the departments and pay attention to her staff’s concerns pertaining to the online gaming venture before moving any further with the online gaming plans. Issue 4: Lack of direction and good communication practices Analysis and Recommendation: The Director of Operations assigned Nick, a senior staff member, the task of developing an implementation plan. There was a brief description of the different tasks involved with this project. The conversation was purely one sided. Without the necessary feedback the result was a loss of clarification. In order to create the type of motivation and momentum for such an implementation plan a simple project diagram or network could have been used. â€Å"The project network is the tool used for planning, scheduling, and monitoring project progress. The network is developed from the information collected for the Work Breakdown Structure and is a graphic flow chart of the project job plan† (Larson & Gray, 2010). In order to get the online gaming implementation plan going there needed to be an organizational hierarchy. A Gantt chart, project network diagram, or just a simple prioritized to-do list would have helped Nick to give his task a good start. Good. Instead he had to depend on his co-workers for guidance. This took them away from their own work and created inefficiencies. In project work there is no time to lose on assumptions. The only way that a project will succeed is with good practices of communication and organization. The CanGo implementation team had to play catch-up when they should have been breaking down the tasks into a Work Breakdown Structure format which could have been shared by all team members involved. Issue 5: Deficiencies exist in communication and  organizational/prioritization skills. Analysis and Recommendation: When assigned to launch a new gaming project on behalf of the company, Nick didn’t exercise any structured plan of action. Neither had he requested for any supervisor help when it was required for project implementation. Nick should have visualized a proper project plan for introducing a new online gaming system on behalf of the company. Nick and his team members were able to initiate the project implementation based on management approval. By using a Gantt chart, Nick should have prioritized his team work assignment according to project goals. By using proper project planning Nick would have performed better and allowed him to address all identified issues such as hardware, software, recommendations, price comparisons, and testing. Nick did not ask the right questions during project implementing nor during the assignment of the project to him. When projects were allocated to him, his statements were obscure and incomplete. He should have informed management if he knew about his personal shortfalls in the first place. During the project implementation, he should have gathered more knowledge and direction from supervision to successfully implement the assigned project. Issue 6: Absence of clear direction and prioritization from management. Analysis and Recommendation: Employees were presented with the news that sales were about to be increased by five hundred percent. The â€Å"coach† discussed different tasks that needed to be completed due to the increase in sales. He gave priority to order fulfillment. The significance of other tasks was debatable because the coach did not necessarily put the rest into any kind of order. The Coach gave a timeframe of October and I am assuming that he expected the team to decide in what order the tasks were to be completed. I like most that he opened up the floor to discussion to decide if there were any other tasks that were needed to be completed that he may have left out. This was a good way to include his subordinates in the planning process but again there was not any indication on priority for any suggestions that were given. I feel that too much leeway was given to the team. The coach should have used a Gantt chart to explain the tasks at hand, what needed to be completed, and given specific deadlines. References: Larson, E., & Gray, C. (2010). Project management, the managerial process. (5th ed., p. 158). Olsen, E. (n.d.). Risks of having no strategic plan. Retrieved from http://www.dummies.com/ how-to/content/risks-of-having-no-strategic-plan.html Prentice Hall (Publisher) (2002). Mastering management: Planning. Retrieved from http://www.devryu.net/re/DotNextLaunch.asp? courseid=8122292&userid=8123623&sessionid=02bf3430d3&tabid=3hOXWa4X+vEY bMogOOfyF/Y92qckiqw5bkr3INJJiCQ=&sessionFirstAuthStore=true&macid=MKq5/ WI0XIZJfxogF9ZSb8WSMMXJQO4uX3qPSN9LnLH61T9jATzfp X4V+WdAFCff8okk3HfeqPJT1u4URUXCDuBTt6q2Rv8h3nkOlI/ bowSZIVwVacF6cGBZ6dIyKpp8ojt9strwWUQ2rz0UTljeefD9/ maBRs+49nMB+RDjmwSFQ1vJvleOgIJwFo/e8j+aJWL8/SUmKonAXixcZgSL6w== Prentice Hall (Publisher) (2002). Mastering strategy: Concepts of strategic management. Retrieved from http://www.devryu.net/re/DotNextLaunch.asp?courseid=8122292& userid=8123623&sessionid=02bf3430d3&tabid=3hOXWa4X+vEYbMogOOfyF/ Y92qckiqw5bkr3INJJiCQ=&sessionFirstAuthStore=true&macid=MKq5/ WI0XIZJfxogF9ZSb8WSMMXJQO4uX3qPSN9LnLH61T9jATzfp X4V+WdAFCff8okk3HfeqPJT1u4URUXCDuBTt6q2Rv8h3nkOlI/ bowSZIVwVacF6cGBZ6dIyKpp8ojt9strwWUQ2rz0UTljeefD9/ maBRs+49nMB+RDjmwSFQ1vJvleOgIJwFo/e8j+aJWL8/SUmKonAXixcZgSL6w==

Followed †creative writing Essay

The streets of London enclosed this humble infant. Unaware of where he is; where his mummy is, he continued to patrol the distant streets. The exhaustion of the young boy is unbearable to think of. Although unfamiliar with his surroundings he continued to walk, crying with anticipation: where is he? Freddy had been visiting London for the first time with his adorable mum. They got on so well. His mum was a rather rounded figure with big blue eyes and elongated eyelashes to balance her silhouette. She was a comical woman always entertaining her companions. Never a dull moment when she was around. Freddy loved her with all his heart and hoped he was just dreaming. Freddy and his mum were visiting sights in London, but he wasn’t happy with this. He despised it, the thought of walking around all day long; looking at tedious buildings that all appeared identical made him aggravated; what was the point? â€Å"Live life while you can! † is what his mum used to say to him. † What’s the point spending a beautiful Sunday morning indoors while you can be outdoors, celebrating the beauty of our capital city! † Nothing could ever bring her down†¦ even Freddy’s bad behaviour. He thought it would just be about influential buildings, powerful statues and overcrowded town centres! But more was to come†¦ When they first arrived, Freddy was being rather disrespectful; mocking fellow tourists, giving his mum the cold shoulder and even locking himself in the cafi bathroom! But his mum understood, she always did. Freddy walked and walked, not enjoying the scenery; with hope he would soon find somewhere appealing. As he continued to trek, he noticed the reflection of a daunting old man on the trunk of a passing car. The reflection seemed lifeless yet full of hatred and anger. His long black slimy hair wrapped across his large forehead with blue eyes just visible beneath it. He was wearing a long black leather jacket almost touching the floor with a large shiny object poking out from the inside pocket. He could see his full length jacket flapping from side to side as it harmonized with the rhythm his walk. He appeared to be a tall man with big broad shoulders yet with a petite frame. His image seemed worthy of that of a monster. Freddy stopped. Looked for his mum, she was nowhere to be seen. He peered over his right shoulder, to what seemed like his worst nightmare. Hastily attempting to rush through a crowd of passing pedestrians trying to get away as quickly as possible. But suddenly he tripped to found himself landing on the rotting pavement. His pulse now increasing as if his heart was being snatched out of his chest then receiving a brutal punch to the whole in which was left. Blood was rushing from his head to his toes and back and forth, back and forth. Quickly rising to his feet he continues to run, running faster and faster, trying to find somewhere to hide. Scared that if he stops, the old man would catch him, torture him, hurt him, the thought was unbearable. The poor little boy was petrified, trembling with fear, looking for somewhere to escape to. He glimpsed behind his shoulder and to his surprise the man had gone. â€Å"What just happened? † Freddy distraughtly thought to himself. Was it a hallucination caused by his mum’s disappearance, or was it real, was that man really there? Freddy now tried to stay in places where people were around, but his racing mind couldn’t shoot nasty thoughts out his head. He wanted his mum to be there so desperately, she; his best friend, he needed her now. â€Å"I need to find her! † he thought to himself. But where was he to start? He was in a city he did not know his way round of and eventually remembered his mum saying that if something happened and she wasn’t around then to meet her just off Oxford street at a cafi called ‘Don’marche’. â€Å"Quick! I have to get there now! † Rapidly gazing behind the peculiar cardboard box he was hidden behind, he checked both ways to make sure that the man wasn’t around, once left, once right, and again just to be sure. Once he had the reassurance he wasn’t around, his legs where already in motion trying to get back to his original destination. After a few moments of none stop running, he heard a familiar sound from behind. Turning round slowly to see if he could see it, he noticed a shadow upon the wall. A shadow with large broad shoulders but yet with a petite frame, a shadow of extreme familiarity but not that of good familiarity but that of a horrific familiarity already experienced by Freddy. Freddy’s immediate reaction was to run, but that of the gaze coming from the man is too strong to pull away from. The contact between the two if disrupt able and yet strangely comforting, but only for the fact that his eyes are big and blue with beautiful elongated eyelashes, just like those, that stare at him daily with love and care. After a moment of bewilder ness he hears a screaming voice coming from the bottom of the road, he peers over the mans right shoulder to see a rather rounded figure running up the road. Elation fills Freddy’s heart. His shoulders start to relax and the view of his adorable mum makes him feel at once comforted. He and his mum spend hours, it seems, in an embrace, but eventually realising that the man is standing behind him he turns and quickly tells his mum about what has happened. She just stands there and laughs! â€Å"Freddy darling, I brought you to London to meet your uncle! Say hello to uncle Fred! † Freddy doesn’t reply. He looks up at his mum in complete awe but eventually pulls them both into an embrace with a sigh of relief.