The views that Bharati Mukherjee and James Baldwin have in common In his essay, “stranger in the village”, James Baldwin explains his experience in a small Swiss village. When Baldwin visits the village in Switzerland, he realizes that he is the first black person ever to visit the village. Although everyone in the village knows his name and that he is a friend to a local woman and her son, Baldwin experiences a sense of alienation and isolation from the people around him. Baldwin is treated as a stranger by the villagers; children shout “Niger! Niger!” and the villagers are curious about his physical appearance. In the essay “American Dreamer”, Bharati Mukherjee gives an account almost similar to Baldwin. Mukherjee moved from Calcutta India to the United States, where she experiences both self and cultural transformation. Being an immigrant, Mukherjee had to find a new cultural identity because she was no longer a “majority” but among the minority group of multicultural student. During her years in the University of Iowa, Mukherjee fell in love with Clark Blaise who was a…

Raphael, Ansidei Madonna This is a painting by Raphael, who was an Italian high renaissance painter. The painting was between 1505 and 1507 during his Florentine period. The painting shows an image of Virgin Mary sitting on a throne. From a closer look, the throne appears to be wooden based on its color and texture. Child Jesus Christ is on her laps. On the left side is Saint Nicholas who is reading a book and on the right stands John the Baptist who appears to be listening carefully to the words of Nicholas is reading. Notably, the poise of the painting is incredible and the lighting impressive. The white arch behind the throne illuminates the throne relatively well giving a sense of holiness and righteousness. A close observation of the throne, the internal architecture of the throne is not entirely logical in regard to the shape of a trivial throne. The throne has no arms, and the wooden stairs are too steep to be practical. The intention of the painter ate this level was to present the sense of a…

Compare the voyages of non-European people before 1500 to those of the Portuguese and Spanish from 1400 to 1550.             The non-European people used their knowledge of the heavens and in essence the weather for them to navigate the seas. This was different from the Spanish and the Portuguese, who had maps and navigational equipment for their expeditions. The size of the fleets used by the non-Europeans was also larger than that of the Spanish and the Portuguese. The Chinese would travel with large ships and many ships in the fleet as compared to the others. Spain and the Portuguese went on an expedition to spread Christianity to the newly discovered areas. This was their major reason for sending out expeditions. The non-Europeans went on expeditions to showcase their wealth or to conquer and rule the new world. Why were the Spanish able to establish a territorial empire in the New World? The Spanish had a larger population and a greater resource base which made it easier for them to build a larger territory than their Portuguese counterparts. Although they…

Black theology For many, religion provides an outlet for everyday life problems. The church served as the foundation for the whites to ‘stand out’ from other races. The black theology rose to help the African Americans overcome the oppression. It seeks to fight against the many forms of political, economic, social, and religious injustices against blacks. Black theology mixes Christianity with the question of civil rights, which has been the main fight of many blacks for many years. It is no secret that slavery was practiced in America. The white Christians showed interest in the practice of slavery and racism as well. They questioned such practices because of the implication of inequality in the bible. They were also afraid that providing education to the slaves could lead to them fighting against them. Church elders assured the whites that no relationship existed between Christianity and freedom in civil matters. Some even argued that Christianity made black slaves even better. Christianity began with the white people, and they took the initiative of slavery as an institution and segregation as a pattern in…

Challenges faced by Christian universities Christian universities face challenges in various issues. Same face legal battles when they seek to keep faith identity in modern society. The universities strain a lot to fit and satisfy everyone, just like other universities. They still need pleasing universities like others and offering the best to their students. Some of the challenges likely to be encountered are discussed below; Financial issues Due to increases in higher education costs, various Christian universities face financial difficulties. They encounter a low enrollment rate and other financial related obstacles. Some of the things with increased costs include textbooks, boards, rooms, and even style of living. Christina universities must have unique places for worship, seminars, and all this entails spending a lot of money. Competition with public counterparts in modern society, most of the generations are not interested in Christianity but with diversity. Most of the young people feel that Christian universities only limit them from their freedom. This is due to the perception that Christian universities are strict. Therefore, the universities might end up been completed by the…

Diversity Experience I have always been curious about Islam and the happenings that occur in the Mosque. As such, for that reason, I decided to visit the Mosque and satisfy my curiosity. I went to the Islamic Mosque on 48th street to experience an evening prayer. At first, I thought I would be prohibited from entering the Holy Mosque, but I was welcomed with open arms by the Imam. I was told to remove my shoes as it is a custom for Muslims. Shortly after removing my shoes, a gentlemen voice came over the sound system conversing something in Arabic. The Imam shared that the announcement was a call to prayer. Many members began entering the Mosque, and since I was there to observe the evening prayer, I sat in the back. All the men present in the Mosque stood together in a line. The Imam, on the other side, stood in front of them. As stated earlier, this was the evening prayer, and as such, they began with a formal prayer. Notably, the entire service was conducted in Arabic.…

The Fall of the Western Roman Empire The fall of the Western Roman Empire was the course of loss of power and decline in the Western Roman Empire, where the empire was unable to enforce its laws and overall rule over its provinces. Many are the reasons that caused the fall of Rome and the loss of its strengths. Firstly, the decline of Rome was caused by the rise of the new faith; Christianity. Once Christianity was made legal by the Edict of Milan in 313, the traditional Roman values system was windswept, and the decree made decades of persecution come to an end. Christianity removed the Romanian religion, which saw its emperor as having a divine status quo, which caused a shift in the focus of glory from the state to one deity. When Diocletian became emperor of Rome, he split the entire empire into the West and East to better protect the empire. Instead of the latter result occurring, the East became stronger than the West due to higher concentrations of wealth accumulated and had better military protection…

Judaism and Christianity The total faith of the world accounts for more than two-thirds of the global population. A great majority of the total faith in the world falls in between the twelve main faiths in the world. The twelve religions are termed as the most prominent traditions that are still in existence. There are as well some small religions that are not commonly known in the world and are less referred to. However, because of how the religions have been laid out differently in the world, one might never understand the traditions and the beliefs that have been laid down by the religious people all across the globe. It is, therefore, essential to have an understanding of the difference between Judaism and Christianity. Judaism Judaism is known to be the oldest of all monotheistic faiths. The faith confirms the existence of one God and who entered into a covenant with the descendants of Abraham, who are known to the chosen people of God. The holy writings of Judaism have revealed the presentation of God for being with them all…

A Book Report of “The Prodigal God” by Timothy Keller “The Prodigal God” by Timothy Keller is among popular theology literature on the parable of the prodigal son. Keller aimed to challenge believers on self-imposed standard of morality. Keller’s strong religious background influences his inspiration to write the book.Timothy Keller was born in Pennsylvania(). He attended Bucknell University, Gordon-Conwell theological seminary, and Westminster theological seminary. Keller’s first pastorate was at Hopewell, Virginia, in 1989(.Keller,76) Keller started the Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York with his wife Cathy and their three sons. Up to date, redeemer has helped launch more than three hundred churches around the world. Maxwell draws the title of his book from the parable of the prodigal son from the bible. Thesis Summary of “The Prodigal God” In “The Prodigal God” book, Keller’s targets to lay out the essentials of Christianity to both believers and nonbelievers through the parable of the prodigal son. In the first chapter, the writer explains the younger brothers’ rebellion against traditional morality and authority. By comparison, the elder brothers are religious, moralistic, and…

The development and spread of Christianity If we can trace back from the growth and spread of Christianity, the efficiency of the Roman Empire has played a significant role. In the past, the core principles of Christianity was misunderstood, and those who supported Christianity were seen as a threat not only to society but also to other religions in the Roman Empire. It is believed that despite Jesus having died, the message was not dead. The reason why the news was not dead is that the discipline Jesus had while he was preaching the Gospel, took on the mantel and did spread the same message to the Jewish society, which was made easier by the Roman Empire and the energetic disciples. Disciples such as Paul were fully committed to the spread of the Gospel. The disciples took the initiative and transverse across various cities to preach the Gospel such as Ephesus, the Athens and Philippi to mention but a few, who were their target audience because of the social and economic status. Paul took the message to the people’s doorstep…