MORE CHRISTIANITY YAY

Today i want to cover more broad questions about Christianity, which really make you think. First, i want to discuss how i think its a religion of love and how important the holidays and family is. Christianity is all about people's relationships with other people. You must always forgive everyone and yourself for your sins. You must be kind to others at all times and must never think bad thought about them no matter what they do. Even at church there is a point where everyone must say, 'peace be with you', to express the love and friendship everyone should feel for everyone. Family is also extremely important, and the bond between family members is very significant. This is seen the most during holidays, for that is when families truly come together to express their shared beliefs of jesus and God and all the ideals of theirs we must follow. Another question i think is interesting is if a Christian can be a true Christian without believing in miracles. Personally, i believe believing in miracles is in fact a necessity. Everything Jesus did, from all his healing powers to being resurrected were all miracles, which cannot be re-created. Therefore, we must truly believe in what happened and that it was a miracle. In order to trust everything Jesus has told us and all of the ethical principles he has told us were mandatory in order to go to heaven, we must first completely believe in what happened with him, all of which can only be explained as a miracle. Overall Christianity has a lot which you can debate about, but in general it is a very powerful religion. Although not as demanding it relates to every aspect of life and can be quite controversial. However, it was very interesting to learn about from an outsider's point of view.

Christianity

Being a Christian myself, learning from an outsider's point of view the religion has been quite interesting. I already knew mostly about Jesus's life, yet there were many things i had forgotten that my family never focused on. For example being baptized by John the Baptist. I also didn't know certain details but rather i focused on broader events in my learning. For instance, i knew about the Last Supper, but i never really knew how it came about. I also knew Judas betrayed Jesus, but i was never sure how. Some of the events we learned are very well known though, and i feel like they've been apart of my knowledge my whole life. Such as Jesus being born in Bethlehem by the virgin Mary and Joseph. Also his fast for 40 days and 40 nights is very well known. He also performed many many miracles such as healing the sick, which has always been focused on in my learning of the religion. Lastly, there is the betrayal, the trial, the crucification, and the resurrection. These events are probably the most focused on because of how dramatic they are. Also, there are many other parts to Christianity besides Jesus's life. There are the three temptations, which are greed, lack of belief/trust, and power. There are the 7 sacraments, which are baptism, confirmation, marriage, holy orders, extreme unction, eucharist/communion, and confession. These are all fundamental parts of Christianity. Other beliefs are that of atonement, which is the forgiving of one's past sins. There's incarnation, which is God becoming Jesus. There's the trinity, which is the father, son, and the holy spirit. Lastly, there are just overall Christian ethics, which have always seemed like the most demanding and largest part of Christianity. It involves being forgiving, humble, pure, honest, giving, and you can't judge people, steal, hit, kill, etc. Although this seems easy, it is also easy to slip up and do something small, which is not allowed. However, God will forgive you for all of your sins no matter how bad as long as you repent. That is probably one of the most memorable parts of Christianity and my personal favorite, that you can always be forgiven. Overall, i am definitely enjoying my learning of Christianity, even though most of it is repetitive.

MORE AND MORE AND MORE ISLAM

I now feel as though i have a very strong base understanding of Islam. When we watched the movie about the American girl converting to Islam and participating in the Hajj i could successfully follow along with what was going on and which of the 5 pillars were being done. It was very interesting to see Mecca, though, and how many millions of people were there. It seemed impossible that so many people were fitting in the small town of Mecca. As she went through the specific certain ceremonies necessary i become more and more entranced. Specifically when everyone thew stones at the 'devil', which are represented by pillars. I thought this was very unique and rather magical. However there are dangers to the actual people, for many people have died by being hit by stones and being trampled. Overall i thought it was amazing that this American Muslim girl was willing to go to Mecca with all of these other Muslims. She even had to get permission from her son, which i think is a little ridiculous. Again, the one thing i dont like about Islam is the gender segregation and sexism. However as she mentioned people didnt give her a hard time at all. All of the Muslims come together and become united as one big family in Mecca, which truly inspires me. Also in response to the government's attempts to re-construct Mecca i dont think it is at all a good idea. Basically, i think its a little ridiculous that the government wants to add all of this construction. It seems as though it is only for money, even if they won't admit it. The Hajj is about muslims coming together for an amazing experience in which they leave behind worldly things. Its not about the fancy construction, in fact that may be a distraction. I understand that they need to accommodate the millions of people going to Mecca, but i don't think they need to bring New York to Mecca. It doesn't need to be untraditional and fancy just for the money.

EVEN MORE ISLAM

As we continue to learn more about Islam i find myself becoming more and more interested by it and fascinated by the dedication required. The Five Pillars are a major part of the religion, and they require a person's utmost focus and concentration. They are the religious duties that every Muslim person must do. First is Shahadah, which is the belief tat there is not God but God, and Muhammad is his messenger. Then is Salat/Salah, which is a prayer than each Muslim must say 5 times a day. (they are spread throughout the day, and each person must face Mecca as they pray). Next is Zakat, which is alms, which means a person gives 2.5 percent of their wealth to charity. Next is Sawm, which is fasting from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan. Last is Hajj, which is the pilgrimage each Muslim must make to Mecca. From pictures Mecca seems to be very fascinating, for millions of muslims arrive there all inside the small city.

When we visited the Mosque it was intriguing to actually see Muslims doing the prayers we had studied. The only thing that bothers me about the religion is the segregation of women and men. When we were at the Mosque women had to sit in the back and men in the front. Other than this, i thought the dedication of all these people showing up and praying was amazing. I dont think i could find the dedication in myself to do that, simply out of laziness. However, i highly respect the people who do, and i truly hope it pays off for them in the afterlife.

MORE ISLAM

Muhammed is a very interesting person, and i find him to be one of the most fascinating parts of Islam's history. He was an orphan and became a seeker and was dedicated to looking for religious answers. I think this original initiative is a promising one, for he wasn't just told what to believe but he went out and found it. Then during the Mecca period he believed in God's words and orders however he was still seen as questioning the entire belief and religion of Mecca. He believed in being loyal to people, which is something i completely agree with and can understand. I cannot follow one religion completely without question

ing all parts of it. I also like the symbolic places of Mecca and Medina. Mecca is a commercial society, which has a loss of traditional values and religious beliefs. I like that Mecca is changing with the religion and is becoming more modern. I also think it's interesting that these two places are so important to this religion. Another aspect of Islam, which i think particularly impressive is their devotion to one God. They are able to focus all their devotion and dedicate their whole lives to one God. Every action they do and every thought they have is connected with this God. The idea of the Final Judgement Day is a particularly disturbing one. I don't like the idea of seeing all of my mistakes once i die. I believe the past is in the past and people move on from things and should not have to relive all of their regrets. However, i do think people should be judged and should go to Heaven or Hell depending on how they lived their life. Also if people believe this hopefully they will act better and be an overall person. The Qu'ran is also very interesting, which is the major text of Islam. It is translated many different ways, but the true Qu'ran is only in one language. Overall, i like Islam although there are some aspects i don't agree with. However, that seems to hold true with almost every religion we study.

Islam

We started our unit on Islam the other day, which turned out to be extremely interesting. We listened to the chant they say 5 times a day. The dedication this requires immediately baffled me. Why must you pray 5 times to God? I understand praying to worship God or to receive things you want, but doing so 5 times a day seems unnecessary. I think God would want his/her people to do amazing things with their lives and not to center them around God. Simply praying and begging shouldn't be enough to get people what they want, they should work for it. I think there are also many unique aspects of Islam, such as the Hijra, which is a migration to Medina. This migration seems like a good idea though, for it brings you closer to your religion. Specifically for Islam it brings people closer to Muhammed/Allah. Having this one sacred place, Mecca/Medina, is something i think most religions have and it provides a necessary foundation to the religion. I also like the idea of Ummah, which is a community in Islam. i think community is extremely important to a faith, for being able to connect with your close ones makes the religion seem stronger.

Chinese Religion

A main part of Chinese religion is Taoism. Taoism seems very similar to other religions we've studied. It is very abstract and quite difficult to understand at times. I particularly like the idea of when you fill something to the brim it spills, etc. People shouldn't obsess, but they should just let things be. If you obsess too much or you do anything in excess, it spills. This religion is not very responsible, for it involves going with the flow of things, and therefore it is hard to plan in advance. However, it seems like a relaxed religion i could enjoy. A term, which describes Taoism, but it sort of difficult to understand is Wu Wei. Wu Wei means "not doing", so things just happen, but the individual doesn't do them, rather they simply let it happen to them. The actual word Dao means "the way" and it seems to be sort of the basis of Taoism.

My life would be very different if i followed Taoism, for things that mattered would simply not matter any more. I wouldnt worry about getting good grades, and i wouldnt feel guilty for handing in papers late. It wouldnt matter if i brushed my hair int he morning or what i wore to school. I wouldnt worry about the future and where i was going to go in life, rather i would simply let it happen to me without questioning it. I wouldnt be upset about what life handed me, i would just accept it and move on.

Confucianism is also a part of Chinese Religion. Although Confucius was not very successful in converting people, it is a well known religion. It involves looking towards tradition, for that is the only way to save society. There are many aspects, which come with Confucianism. For example, Ren, which means benevolence/ treating other well. There is also Li, which are rituals/rites. Ren and Li together make up a good life for a person following Confucianism. A gentlemen, a person who follows Ren and Li, is called a Junzi. There is also Xiao, which is the filial piety all people must feel. There are important relationships in Confucianism. there is ruler-subject, husband-wife, father-son, older brother-younger brother, and friend-friend. The person above you is the one who you must listen to and follow.

Confucianism also seems like a relatively interesting religion, but personally i would prefer Daoism. I don't like tradition much, and i wouldnt want to have follow it for the rest of my life. I think traditions are made to be changed and made better.