Conventionality vs Instinct in Daisy Miller and The Awakening Essay

Henry James's Daisy Miller and Kate Chopin's The Awakening were first published twenty-one years apart, the former in 1878 and the latter in 1899. Despite the gap of more than two decades, however, the two works evince a similarity of thought and intent that is immediately evident in their main themes. Both works display characters whose lives have been governed almost solely by the conventions of their respective societies. Furthermore, both works also attempt to demonstrate to the reader what happens when these conventions are challenged by individual instincts, which more often than not are in direct contradiction to the dictates of convention. The theme of conventionality versus instinct predominates both works. In Daisy Miller the theme is embodied in the character of Frederick Winterbourne, an ex-patriot American living in Europe. The Awakening's Edna Pontellier serves as the means through which Kate Chopin examines her version of this theme. Both Winterbourne and Edna are trapped in conventional worlds, and both are affected by a deep, instinctive need to break free of the bonds that restrain them so absolutely. The portrayal of this theme, however, is accomplished in different ways by Henry James and Kate Chopin. The main reason for this is that although the theme is common to both works, the protagonists' experience of it are not. Conventionality has entrapped them in different ways, and their instinctive reactions arise out of differing circumstances. Frederick Winterbourne, for example, comes to a realization of his internal struggle between conventionality and instinct not in and of himself, but because of Miss Daisy Miller. Winterbourne meets the young Miss Miller in Vevay, Switzerland, while v... ...life, a life where her instincts hold ultimate sway. Yet the theme in both works is similar in one way. For, while the weight of judgement does fall against the ex-patriots in Daisy Miller, we realize that they are not wholly in the wrong, for they do recognize Giovanelli for what he is. And although we praise Daisy for her refusal to submit to their conventions, we realize that she was not necessarily perfectly correct in ignoring all of the conventions. Similarly, we praise Edna for breaking free from the conventions that a patriarchal society forced upon her. In the end, however, she is forced to leave that world, since she cannot accept any of its conventions. The true theme in both Daisy Miller and The Awakening, then, is not that it is better to flout convention and live by instinct, but that life must necessarily be a synthesis of convention and instinct.

Corporate and Business Law Assignment 2012

Table of Contents Introduction2 Proceedings2 The evidence3 Precedents set by tribunals6 Conclusion6 Corporate & Business Law Introduction An Employment Tribunal would hear claims regarding matters to do with employment. These could include unfair dismissal, discrimination and redundancy payments. An employment tribunal is similar to a court but it is not as formal and it must act independently. These are commonly open to the public. Employment tribunals are independent judicial bodies who help determine disputes between employees and employers about their employment rights.The tribunal I chose to view and write this report on is an employment tribunal, that involved the claimant putting forward a case of unfair dismissal and breach of contract that was based on the fact that she felt she was unfairly dismissed while carrying out her duties that were set to her by her employer (Dr Monoghon). * Less formal than other court proceedings. * Lower costs. * Benefit of tribunal is they can c hoose to represent themselves. * Lay members specialise in their area of expertise regarding the case.Below are details of the claimant, defendant, time, date and venue. The Case Unfair Dismissal and breach of contract Venue: Croydon Tribunals Date: 13th November 2012 Time: 10:00am – 16:00pm Defendant: Dr Hester Monoghan Claimant: Ms Davidson Evidence: 8 minutes Audio recording After Ms Davidson was dismissed from her job, she later received a call from the nanny agency that she was working for, stating that they had been informed by the police that of an allegation of child abuse by herself on the children.She was then refused to be represented by the agency as they did not want to put forward her name as it would reflect badly on the agency as she had a case on going against her. This prevented her from finding work and therefore was out of work for a period of five months. Ms Davidson opened this case up against the defendant as she feels she unfairly dismissed and had a b ad reputation in regards to her occupation. She therefore wanted to be reimbursed for the loss of the work she missed out on and also wanted to clear her name regarding this issue.Proceedings Upon entering the tribunal room, the judge was seated front centred facing both parties involved in the case, the parties involved were Miss Davidson the claimant, her representative Peter Mathews, seated next to her and parallel to her on the left hand side were the respondents Dr Monoghan and Mr Monoghan. Once entered the judge introduced her and then allowed the defendant and claimant a chance to introduce themselves, preceded by giving defendant an opportunity to provide a brief history of the events which had taken place.Dr Monoghan believed that the claimant had not been fulfilling her duties properly and was in breach of the employment contract as it had come to the Monoghans attention that she was using foul words in front of her children, which the children had picked up and started to use whilst in the home environment. Dr and Mr Monoghan did not approve of this and believed that the claimant had been lying about taking her kids to activities and used to say she did in the diary that had been prescribed to the claimant.For this reason she felt she had to take the situation in to her own hand and therefore had her husband put in place voice recording measures in an open plan kitchen/living/dining room. On 8th March 2012 they made an eight hour recording of Ms Davidson’s shift at her house. This was broken in to segments totalling a twenty minute recroding. After listening to the audio recording they felt that they had â€Å"reasonable grounds to believe that Miss Davidson was verbally abusive and showed a lack of empathy and lovingness towards her children.The evidence The judge then gave Dr Monoghan a chance to play the evidence that had been produced but Mr Monoghan then intervened and then asked the judge â€Å"Is it not against privacy right to play a recording in a public tribunal†. The judge then referred to a ruling book and then she made a judgment that it would be allowed as she felt it corresponded to the guidelines of the tribunal proceedings. Mr Monoghan then setup the audio to show the recording that was made on the 8th March 2012 whilst his children were in care of Ms Davidson.I felt this expression was used for the fact that it was a public viewing and Mr Monoghan felt it was a sensitive situation as it involved his children of a minor age which could be seen as a private matter to him and his family as he would not want his kids further involved in this situation. The audio recording was of snippets of dinner time while the children were in care of Ms Davidson. The children were not paying attention to what Ms Davidson was telling them to do and therefore this was frustrating her.Her mannerism towards the children then indicated that she was persistent for the children eating their food also indicating threate ning behaviour indicated the comment by â€Å"if you don’t eat your food the trolls are going get you†. There were words used such as; â€Å"Go away† â€Å"Shut up† â€Å"Can you just eat your food!! † â€Å"Stop it† There was a constant rudeness to the children throughout this recording. The male child was especially picked on by Ms Davidson as she would say to him â€Å"You, stop being bossy to your sister! During the recording there was a clear sharpness to Ms Davidson’s voice towards the children and there was a continuity of abusive behaviour towards the children. Questioning of Dr. Monoghan Once this audio recording was finished the judge then asked the defendant, Dr Monoghan, to come up on the witness stand. Dr Monoghan was then asked to read out the Oath of Truth in court. The judge then began to ask her questions to break it down and try and work out really what happened.Talking about the appraisal meeting in January defenda nt explained that she had raised the fact that the children had been using inappropriate language to her and her husband such has â€Å"shut up† and â€Å"that’s tough†. She then went on to say that she had highlighted this to Ms Davidson and asked her to restrain from using these words in front of them as felt it would have a negative impact on their upbringing. She also asked Ms Davidson to focus on the male child as she felt her relationship with the female child was a good one. To this Ms Davidson replied by saying that the male child was the most difficult child she has ever looked after.To this the defendant replied that this meeting had been set up simply to raise their concerns but were given no reassurance by Ms Davidson stating that these problems would be sorted. They informed her of the fact that they had a recording and asked her if she would like to hear it but Ms Davidson said she could not do this as she had a job interview to go to as she was go ing to become redundant within the next month and Mr Monoghan had been made redundant from his job and was therefore going to take control of the child care himself. Dr.Monoghan then stated they both left the room and decided between themselves that they were not happy for the claimant to continue her job and therefore dismissed her there and then. Questioning of Mr Monoghan Mr Monoghan stated that he raised concerns and for this reason he was not happy for Miss Davidson to continue looking after his children as he was concerned about the safety of his children. He then stated that he offered to play the recording to Ms Davidson but she refused as she had an interview to attend as she was coming to the end of a contract.This was due to Mr Monoghan becoming redundant from his job and therefore taking control of his children’s wellbeing. Questioning of Ms Davidson Ms Davidson confirmed that the transcript of the meeting was correct. She then went on to say that she felt that sh e was not prepared for the meeting and felt as if she had the right to have an independent witness with her. She then went on to say that she had only said â€Å"Shut up† to the children once and it was unfortunate that she had been caught out on that one instance.She did admit to wrongfully doing by using this phrase towards the children. She was angered with the fact that she was told it was a reference and holiday pay meeting but turned out to be her last day of work. The final verdict The judge felt that as Ms Davidson had been out of work for three months due to the allegations that were made to the police that she should be compensated three months wages. The judge then ordered the defendants to pay Ms Davidson for the two weeks’ notice that she should have had.She dismissed any allegations of MS Davidson physically abusing the children as there was no evidence found and advised the defendants to go through the police if they still felt this was a serious issue a nd also added that no further action would be taken within the tribunal system. Achievement of tribunal proceedings Speed Although the defendant arrived one hour late it still allowed the case to be completed within five hours.From the case I visited I soon realised there was a very productive speed throughout. The case I visited was scheduled for 1 day but was wrapped up within 5 hours and that included a 1 hour lunch, evidence, questioning and the judgment to take place. . There was not much waiting around and the whole case was to the point as through Expertise The judge who was appointed to the case for unfair dismissal was a specialist in this area she specialised in.Off the record the judge mentioned to us that this particular case was a difficult one as it involved one employee and one employer which meant she was dealing with a delicate situation. This was due to it involving children of a minor age and there had clearly been strong relationship between the family and Ms Dav idson as it was previously stated in the appraisal meeting which clearly documented Ms Davidson as having a â€Å"loving and caring relationship† with her children.The judge began by introducing herself and unfortunately she did not have anyone else along with her judging the case so. There was an instance when Mr Monoghan raised an issue of the audio recording being heard while we were present as it children of a minor age talking on it throughout and after consulting a book for a few minutes she then came to a decision that it would not be a problem for this to be played out load while the public was present. Accessibility There are different mediums in which the claimant can use to put forward a case.The most commonly one used is usually the ET1 form, requiring the claimant to state the details of the case which they wish to put forward outlining the circumstances and any other issues regarding the case. However there are other formalities that can be used such as contacti ng the authorities through email or telephone. The accessibility of the case falls upon the representative to send through the relevant forms in order for the case to be reviewed and considered for a tribunal hearing. Fairness From what I witnessed at the tribunal case I felt that Dr.Monoghan and Mr Monoghan were unfairly judged by the judge as by the evidence that was heard it was clear to see that Miss Davidson was clearly not exercising her job efficiently enough as she was clearly heard using foul language in front of the children and I do believe she should of controlled her temper as this is what she was trained to do. I felt she Miss Davidson won the case based technicality as she was able to say she wasn’t directing her language towards the children and as of this was able to bypass the system and win the case.The judge should have shown more compassion towards Dr. Monoghan and Mr Monoghan as it was a case that applied to their children and therefor was a sensitive on e for them as it could affect the children on the long term. Precedents set by tribunals The lower tribunals are not there to set binding precedents for any other court or even themselves. They are bound by the decisions of superior courts and appellate tribunals.Appellate and Employment appeal tribunals are bound by the decisions that are made by the Supreme Court but they would usually be required to being bound to the decisions that they made themselves (English legal systems, Richard Ward and Amanda Akhtar 11th edition). In regards to employment appeal tribunals, matters of law are binding on decisions of appeals and the House of Lords, although decisions of the high court in England and wales would usually have a great persuasiveness and the ribunals would similarly go with the principles that can be found in those decisions. There are certain precedents rules and guidelines that have been set out by previous legal cases and these have to be followed by tribunals. This allows t here to be more of efficiency throughout the case as the defendants can refer back to the case that is in conjunction with the case however within the judicial system of a tribunal court there is a leniency and flexibility based on the case this was as well as the evidence and information provided by both parties.Taking this information into consideration the laments will then deliberate and make their decisions. Similar cases may have different outcomes which will not be based on the same precedents. Tribunals such as an employment based cases are required to follow certain procedures and take in to consideration such as reasons for dismissal with the notice given for dismissal and other externalities that are relevant to the case for dismissal. Main issueThe main issue with tribunals setting binding precedents for other courts and themselves is that in tribunals there is a sense of flexibility in their operations and the judges and the courts use their interpretation of the situat ion to make a judgement and it would be optimistic to think that the doctrine of the binding precedents achieves the certainty and flexibility. Conclusion The judgement of the case went in favour of the claimant in the tribunal.I feel this is an unfair judgement as the parents had intrusted the claimant in taking care of their children in an appropriate manner but it was clear throughout the audio that was played that was not applied by the claimant and there was a constant rudeness and aggressiveness towards the children. I feel that as the claimant would have been a trained with the necessary skills to look after the children she should have still been able to detach her emotions from her actual duties towards the children as she is trained in this profession. Reference http://terryandco. hubpages. com/hub/Advantages-and-Disadvantages-of-Administration-Tribunals

Free Essays on Essay

Look at our life today; look how it has changed. Just one hundred years ago we could see O’Henry’s little secretaries typing for ten hours a day. Weak and deprived of rights, they could be easily dismissed, experience sexual harassment or encounter health problems. They had nobody to be protected by, nobody to turn to. Dark rooms, bad air, and sitting for whole day. It was cruel, but innocent world. Hours, after work, spent in front of windows of an underwear store, cheap food and little dark rooms with gas lighting in the evenings. When she stepped outside her office, she forgot where she worked, she stayed alone with herself, she was on her own planet, she was in her own world. Today we can see the same girl in front of the same underwear store with a mobile phone in her hand giving orders to bank or suppliers. Life has changed. Rhythm has changed. Conditions have changed. For good or bad? Our little hero can’t be dismissed anymore, just because boss’s wife doesn’t like her. She can’t be forced to make things she doesn’t want to do. There are days when she works for 16 hours, twice more than she should, but she is paid for these hours. Her office is cozy, bright, and comfortable. She can be promoted. She can be sent to learn. She is protected and independent. But no matter where she goes with her mobile phone on her - it’s on. Always. We find ourselves today, at the beginning of the Twenty-first century, in bright well air-conditioned offices, protected by contracts in our pockets and by armies of different employees associations. We have become more productive with the help of personal computers, electronic mail, scanners, facsimile machines, and voice message systems. Our mobile phone can take us out of bed to solve urgent problems. â€Å"Super† clients can keep us at work on the birthday of our little daughter. Where is our privacy? Where is our real life? â€Å"Buying† rules have changed and so have â€Å"sellingï ¿ ½... Free Essays on Essay Free Essays on Essay â€Å"We ought then regard the present state of the universe as the effect of its previous state and the cause of the one which is to follow. An intelligence knowing at a given instant of time all the forces operating in nature, as well as the position at that instant of all things of which the universe consists, would be able to comprehend the motions of the largest bodies in the universe and those of the smallest atoms in a single formula - provided that it was sufficiently powerful to submit all these data analysis. To it nothing would be uncertain and the future would be present to its eyes as much as the past.† This passage comes from P.S. de Laplace’s â€Å"Philosophical Essay on Probabilities.† If such determinism is true, then everyone’s every thought and action must be inevitable; that no one really has any choice about anything, because we are all helpless products of blind forces which have made us what we are. Determinism is not plausible. There are many reasons for determining how determinism is false. The arguments for determinism, can be refuted.. There are those who think that our behavior is a result of free choice, but there are others who presume â€Å"we are servants of cosmic destiny or that behavior is nothing but a reflex of heredity and environment.† The position of determinism is that every event is the necessary outcome of a cause or set of causes. That everything is a consequence of external forces, and such forces produce all that happens. Man is not free. If we accept the determinist argument and assume human behavior as a consequence of external factors rather than of free choice, then we must realize that our explanation of human be havior leaves no room for morality. If people do not choose their actions, then they are not really responsible for them, and there is no need for praising or blaming them. If determinism were true, then there would be no basis for human effort, for why should a perso... Free Essays on Essay Experts say the most influential years of a child’s life are from six to fourteen, I’m hoping they are wrong. When I was 7 my father experienced some legal troubles, which forced him to leave the house, the family, me. I remember the day perfectly; it was the day my life would change forever. I was too young to realize what was going on then, so I couldn’t comprehend why my father was leaving me. I begged him to stay and I reminded him countless times how important he was to me. But it was all in vain; I only accomplished making his departure more painful, for both of us. I began seeing the results of the tragedy and its impact on my family, the way it changed my mother, sister, and I. The damage it caused, and how each individual was able to handle adversity. My mother experienced the most difficulty adjusting. She was forced to take on a second job and still could not make ends meet. The daily torment of seeing no way out, no way to lift us out, began to take a heavy emotional toll. She did not have time to spend with us and began growing cold and irritable. The loving relationship I had with my mother came to a stop after a few years and then took a turn for the worse. She was not the kind loving person I knew her to be. When not working, she was always irritated and angry. Most of the time she would take this frustration out on my older sister. I would cry and tell her to please stop; I knew she was driving my sister away. As soon as my sister was old enough to leave the house, she did. Now I was left alone with my mother. I did not fault my sister for leaving. I knew she must search for something better. I had always idolized my sister, and for several years she acted as my mother. She was the one who punished me when I misbehaved, made me dinner, and gave me advice. I learned the things young women need to know from her, as well as the things children can’t comprehend the importance of yet. She became my mother while st... Free Essays on Essay Look at our life today; look how it has changed. Just one hundred years ago we could see O’Henry’s little secretaries typing for ten hours a day. Weak and deprived of rights, they could be easily dismissed, experience sexual harassment or encounter health problems. They had nobody to be protected by, nobody to turn to. Dark rooms, bad air, and sitting for whole day. It was cruel, but innocent world. Hours, after work, spent in front of windows of an underwear store, cheap food and little dark rooms with gas lighting in the evenings. When she stepped outside her office, she forgot where she worked, she stayed alone with herself, she was on her own planet, she was in her own world. Today we can see the same girl in front of the same underwear store with a mobile phone in her hand giving orders to bank or suppliers. Life has changed. Rhythm has changed. Conditions have changed. For good or bad? Our little hero can’t be dismissed anymore, just because boss’s wife doesn’t like her. She can’t be forced to make things she doesn’t want to do. There are days when she works for 16 hours, twice more than she should, but she is paid for these hours. Her office is cozy, bright, and comfortable. She can be promoted. She can be sent to learn. She is protected and independent. But no matter where she goes with her mobile phone on her - it’s on. Always. We find ourselves today, at the beginning of the Twenty-first century, in bright well air-conditioned offices, protected by contracts in our pockets and by armies of different employees associations. We have become more productive with the help of personal computers, electronic mail, scanners, facsimile machines, and voice message systems. Our mobile phone can take us out of bed to solve urgent problems. â€Å"Super† clients can keep us at work on the birthday of our little daughter. Where is our privacy? Where is our real life? â€Å"Buying† rules have changed and so have â€Å"sellingï ¿ ½...

Discipleship in Matthew Essays

Discipleship in Matthew Essays Discipleship in Matthew Essay Discipleship in Matthew Essay Global discipleship making disciples for the sake of the nations A study of the Gospel according to Matthew Introduction Matthew’s handbook for the church Why did Matthew write his gospel? John clearly had an evangelistic aim (Jn 20:31), but Matthew wrote his gospel for the church, for those who already follow Jesus. It is a teaching gospel, which arranges its material into subjects, summarising the teaching of Jesus and illustrating it with examples from his life. Matthew’s is the only gospel that mentions the church (16:18; 18:17). In short, Matthew wrote the first discipleship training course! Matthew divides his material into 5 sections, each of which contains a number of stories from the life of Jesus, and concludes with a chapter (or two or three) of extended teaching by Jesus to his disciples, before finishing with the passion narrative of the death and resurrection of Jesus. This fivefold division was no accident, for Matthew was a Jewish Christian (and former tax-collector), and all Jewish writings of his time followed this pattern (based on the 5 books of Torah Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy). Why did Matthew write this gospel for the church? He probably wrote it at a time when church and synagogue were growing apart, when the distinction between Jew and Christian was becoming more obvious. At first, most if not all followers of Jesus were Jewish. But over time, as more and more Gentiles found new life in Jesus, an ‘either/or’ situation developed. Matthew’s church was probably made up of Jewish Christians, facing increasing pressure over their (apparently) divided loyalties. And he wanted to show them that Jesus was indeed the long-awaited Messiah, fulfilment of the Hebrew Scriptures, and that they were not being unfaithful to their roots by being Christians. So how is this relevant to us? Matthew’s church has been described as â€Å"a community cut off from its roots divided in itself as to what its priorities should be, groping for direction in the face of previously-unknown problems† (David Bosch, ‘Transforming Mission’, p58). Does this sound familiar, such as our own context today? And Matthew’s response? â€Å"His concern is not simply to help his people cope with the new pressures they confront, but to assist them in developing a missionary ethos that will match the challenges of a new epoch† (Bosch, ibid). Matthew’s aim is therefore both pastoral and missionary – pastoral, in wishing to convey selfconfidence to a community of Christians facing a crisis of identity; and missionary, in seeking to embolden them toward seeing opportunities for witness and service around them. So this is very relevant to us. Matthew has written a gospel for the church, for those who follow Jesus, to encourage and motivate them, to give them confidence about who they are, and to direct them outwards, to share the good news with others. Matthew’s understanding of mission making disciples The theme of discipleship is central to Matthew’s gospel, and the term ‘disciple’ is used far more often by him than by Mark or Luke (Mt 73, Mk 46, Lk 37 times). But while in Mark and Luke, ‘disciple’ is the term reserved only for the Twelve, in Matthew it is used more widely, of any follower of Jesus. The Twelve are the prototypes for all disciples, who are to copy them, doing the things they did. And as well as being linked to the first band of disciples, any contemporary disciples are also linked to each other. No disciple can follow Jesus alone, but is irrevocably linked to the fellowship of disciples, the ekklesia, the church (which, as above, is why Matthew mentions it). There is a strong emphasis in Matthew’s gospel on doing God’s will, keeping his commands, and the challenge to be perfect, to surpass or excel, to observe or keep, to teach, and to bear fruit. Consider for example the concern for doing God’s will. In the Lord’s Prayer, we are to pray that His will be done (6:10); only those who do the will of the Father will be saved (7:21-23); in the parable of the two sons, it is the one who did his father’s will who is commended, not the one who said he would (21:28-31). For Matthew, actions are the test of the authenticity of words. It is not what we say, but what we do, that matters. Orthodoxy is not as important as orthopraxis right action surpasses right belief. Discipleship is about doing, about service. Another concern for Matthew is that any disciple of Jesus should give evidence of dikaiosyne, that is, justice-righteousness. It is a difficult word to translate into English, since it carries the connotations of both these words. ‘Righteousness’ refers to a right relationship with God; ‘justice’ refers to a right relationship with our fellow human-beings. It is neither only spiritual, nor only pragmatic. A right relationship with God protects us from legalism, and a right relationship with others protects us from empty words (both mortal sins in Matthew’s eyes). Discipleship includes a concern for both justice and righteousness. Who is to be discipled? This is the most Jewish of the gospels, full of direct Old Testament quotations and allusions. On two occasions, Jesus appears to restrict the work of himself and his disciples only to Israel (10:5-6; 15:24). And yet Matthew still manages to conclude his gospel with one of his most famous passages, the ‘Great Commission’, sending his disciples to make more disciples, of all the nations (28:18-20). Is this a bit of a surprise to the disciples, an afterthought by the soon-departing Jesus? As if he were saying, â€Å"Oh, by the way, here’s something I should have mentioned earlier, but I forgot. If you feel like it, and are not too busy, could you disciple a few nations for me? †. But the ‘nations’ (Gentiles, ethne) are in fact never far from sight throughout Matthew’s gospel. They are included in Jesus’ genealogy (1:5); they are the first to worship the new-born Christ (magi 2:1-11); Jesus lived in Galilee ‘of the Gentiles’ (4:15); news of his activities ‘spread all over Syria’ (4:24); the ‘plentiful harvest’ of 9:37 alludes to a wider perspective; the quotation of Isa 42:1-4 in 12:18-21 mentions ‘the nations’ twice; in the parable of the wheat and the tares, the field is ‘the world’ (13:38); Jesus was willing to enter non-Jewish homes (8:7); Jesus commends the faith of Gentiles, including the Canaanite woman whom he apparently initially rejects (8:10; 15:28); he explicitly promises that many from ‘the nations’ will participate in the messianic feast (8:11), and that finally the gospel will be preached in the whole world, as a testimony to ‘all nations’ (24:14). Thus, for Matthew, the mission of the church is to make disciples, followers of Jesus, who will do the Father’s will, from every nation. Discipleship is self-reproducing. Disciples will make disciples, who will in turn do the same, into every nation on earth. The ‘Great Commission’ Matthew’s summary of what disciple-making means When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, â€Å"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and makes disciples of all nations, baptising them in the names of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age† (Matt 28:17-29). These are some of the most used (and abused? ) verses in recent Christian history. Often taken out of context, and used to support missionary appeals of all kinds, this ignores the context we have outlined so far. They are not, as I suggested above, an afterthought, but rather the climax, a culmination of everything said up to this point, a summary of Matthew’s entire gospel, written so that we might â€Å"make disciples of all nations†. For Matthew, discipleship is the mission of the church, with all the nations in view. The content of this disciplemaking is teaching and baptising. The ‘going’ is not an imperative in Greek but a present participle thus it is not a command, but an assumption. The overall aim of the church, and therefore of all discipleship, is the winning of all nations to the status of true followers of Jesus. So how does Matthew suggest this is to be done? Mark uses ‘proclaim’ (kerysso) and ‘teach’ (didasko) interchangeably. Matthew never does. Jesus never ‘preaches’ to his disciples. He teaches them. In the first commissioning, the disciples are sent to ‘preach’ (10:7), a ‘proper’ missionary activity. But in the Great Commission, this is not so. The disciples are sent to ‘teach’, an activity reserved for the benefit of disciples, those who already follow Jesus. To understand this, we need to remember that, for Matthew, teaching is no mere intellectual enterprise. Jesus’ teaching appeals not to the mind, but to the will. It is a call for a concrete decision to follow him, and to submit to God’s will (as revealed in the life and ministry of Jesus). Proper actions, not words, are what count. This is what it will mean to disciple the nations. It is not enough simply to proclaim that ‘Jesus is Lord’ people from every nation are to be turned into mature, active followers of him. Jesus has universal authority. Why then make disciples? Because this fact has to be proclaimed to all. If Jesus really is Lord, it simply has to be proclaimed. No-one who knows can keep silent about it. They can only do one thing help others to acknowledge Jesus’ lordship. Only Jesus’ authority inaugurates and makes possible a worldwide mission. The universal, unlimited dominion of the risen Jesus evokes an equally universal, limitless response from his followers. Jesus promises to be with the disciples always, to the end of the age (Matt 28:20), is rooted in the first title given to him Immanuel, God with us (1:23). This presence is permanent, FACT, based on nothing more spectacular than a simple promise. No fireworks, no Pentecost. This presence and empowering is not simply for our own comfort, but is intimately connected with mission. It is only as it makes disciples that the church knows the presence of Jesus. The disciples are clearly modelled on Jesus, to do the things that he did (â€Å"teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you†; cf 10:24-25). But the disciples are not expected to be perfect. They are referred to as being ‘of little faith’, ‘afraid’, or ‘full of doubt’. Even in Matt 28:17, all worship, but some doubt. This communicates that mission never takes place in self-confidence, but in the knowledge of our own weakness, at the point of crisis where danger and opportunity come together. Like the first disciples, we stand in the place of tension between worship and doubt, faith and fear. Mission is â€Å"not a fringe activity of a strongly-established church, a pious cause which may be attended to once the home fires are first brightly burning† (David Bosch) . it is not one of the things the church does. It is the framework for all that the church does and is. It is the reason, the goal, the end of discipleship.  © Richard Tiplady December 1996

World War Is Mitteleuropa

World War I's Mitteleuropa German for ‘Middle Europe’, there are a wide range of interpretations for Mitteleuropa, but chief among them was the German plan for an empire in central and eastern Europe that would have been created had Germany won the First World War. War Aims In September 1914, a few months after the start of World War I, German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg created the ‘September Programme’ which, along with other documents, set out a grandiose plan for post-war Europe. It would be enacted if Germany was totally successful in the war, and at that point nothing was certain. A system called ‘Mitteleuropa’ would be created, an economic and customs union of central European lands that would be led by Germany (and to a lesser extent Austria-Hungary). As well as these two, Mitteleuropa would include German domination of Luxembourg, Belgium and their Channel Ports, the Baltic and Poland from Russia, and possibly France. There would be a sister body, Mittelafrika, in Africa, leading to German hegemony of both continents. That these war aims had to be invented after the war started is often used as a stick with which to beat the German command: they are chiefly blamed for starting the war and didn’t even know what t hey wanted beyond having threats from Russia and France removed. It’s unclear exactly how far the German people supported this dream, or how seriously it was taken. Indeed, the plan itself was allowed to fade as it became obvious the war would last a long time and may not be won by Germany at all. A variation emerged in 1915 when the Central Powers defeated Serbia and Germany proposed a Central European Federation be created, led by Germany, this time recognizing the needs of the war by placing all military forces under German command. Austria-Hungary was still strong enough to object and the plan again faded. Greed or Matching Others? Why did Germany aim for a Mitteleuropa? To Germany’s west were Britain and France, a pair of countries with a vast global empire. To the east was Russia, which had a land empire stretching to the Pacific. Germany was a new nation  and had missed out as the rest of Europe had carved the world up between them. But Germany was an ambitious nation  and wanted an empire too. When they looked around them, they had the hugely powerful France directly west, but between Germany and Russia were eastern European states that could form an empire. English language literature racistly considered a European conquest as worse than their own global conquests, and painted Mitteleuropa as significantly worse. Germany had mobilized millions of people and suffered millions of casualties; they tried to come up with war aims to match.In the end, we don’t know how far Mitteleuropa would have been created. It was dreamt up in a moment of chaos and action, but perhaps the Treaty of Brest-Lit ovsk with Russia in March 1918 is a clue, as this transferred a vast area of Eastern Europe to German control. It was their failure in the west that caused this infant empire to be erased.

Racism in Football (soccer) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Racism in Football (soccer) - Essay Example Basically race and football presents itself in several forms. Since the early years of the last century, many fans have used their football matches to express their racial chauvinism though it has been discovered that these were just a minority of the population but causing great trouble. It's very critical how the minority groups could become very dangerous to coaches, players, and fans. Basically the problem could be worse than implied because many respondents perceive not to give bad impressions. This research will study the extent of racial discrimination in football especially at international and professional levels, and the strategies to alleviate this problem. Racism is a big concern in the world of football all over. In essence, racism is not simply aimed at undermining or intimidating football players because of the colour of their skin (Russell 1997). In recent times, coaches, officials and even fans have fallen victims of racial discrimination particularly based on their nationality, ethnic origin and religion. Some people are targeted because they are associated by their opponents rather than the colour of skin and ethnicity (Back & Solomos 1998). There have also been cases where people have been individualized and insulted by their own fans, the most notable incidence was that of John Barnes. Racism is a major problem especially in the European nations and a very critical factor in the cases of hooliganism in football. The real degree to which racism is practiced is virtually difficult to measure since there is no detailed information as evidence or important data and statistical analyses are non existent (Russell 1997). Nonetheless, the activities of disorders in football are particularly on the international level are often referred to as racists or they are perceived to be perpetrated by a groups of racists and currently even some clubs are being considered as being inherently supporters of racism. Types of Racism Racism in football takes a variety of forms and some of them are not clearly seen as discriminatory. However chanting against a team, player, coach, football official or fans has been a common form of racist activity. This was very common especially in the English football in the period around 1970s and 1980s. A crowd of some fans usually made some funny noises at players; in England, fans made monkey noises to intimidate black football players on the field. Some other cases included even more personalized abuse and insults (Back & Solomos 1998). A outstanding case is that of Deptford fire where thirteen black players in their youthful ages were burnt by a mod to death, while chanting insulting songs- ' niggers burning better than petroleum' could be heard even as far as Milwall. There have been anti-Semitic songs targeting for instance the Tottenham Hotspurs fans. Other songs are patriotic and connected to country's national anthems. Due to the increasing number of cases of racist chanting during football matches, a law was enacted in 1991 termed as the football offences act which made these chants during soccer matches an illegal activity but this law is still inadequately effective in its definition of chanting; chanting is defined as 'utterances of any words made repeatedly or making of some sounds in unison with one or a

A creative love story Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

A creative love story - Essay Example he eternal love story, â€Å"Romeo and Juliet† and our love story indeed took a start in the same way, like all star-crossed lovers falling onto each other’s arm and then reaching the climax to fall apart but in my case Jane, my Romeo was a magician, he promised me to be together and he said me that I’ll never have to be alone. Jane was two years senior to me in my school and we fell in love with each other very soon while going down the vales, crossing the woods and running after the butterfly on our way to school. Summers passed and spring was in the air, with flowers, colors and smell in the air and we were engrossed in each other under the blue sky and full moon. I asked Jane, â€Å"Honey, I do not want to be alone anymore. â€Å"I do not want to lose you†. Jane replied, â€Å"Do not worry, Scarlet, we will be together forever.†Days passed by and it was white around. It was Christmas! Jane was on my balcony crossing the garden. To meet me, he threw pebble on my window. A trick he had taken a number of times to send me signals. Unfortunately, that Christmas Eve my dad received the sound of the pebble and came out in the yard to catch me and my love red handed. I could only see him pushing back Jane and a loud sound came to ears, â€Å"Stay away you jerk! Stay away, from Scarlet. That was the last time I saw my Jane. Snow melted fast and new leaves were on the branches of the tree, people on street and birds out of their nests. Only I was inside my room then for more than a month. Suddenly, I don’t know how, my friend Catherine arrived one Sunday morning and insisted me to go out with her. I was very sure that dad won’t allow us. However, to my despair, he let us go to the outskirts and there the greatest excitement of my life was waiting. My Jane was waiting for me. I was meeting him after a month and I could see the same spark in his eyes. I said to Jane, â€Å"There’s no way left, apart from running away†. â€Å"Please Jane take me away very far where nobody