Final Worship Experience

Research:
For my final worship project i wanted to focus on the element of Shintoism seeing as it was one of the religions which purpose was easy for me to interpret. Specifically in Shintoism i liked the idea of kami's, which are the life forces that are found in all things. As described by the Journal of Religion and Film, kamis are "a generative, immanent force that permeates throughout the phenomenal world". In simpler terms this just means that in Shintoism the things around us are more than which they seem and radiate a life and energy of their own. This is an idea that i can relate with very well, all throughout my life i believed that their was more to...lets say a flower than its physical properties. I just felt that when i was out in the mountains or taking a nature walk i was experiencing something greater than i could explain using physical phenomena.   I also learned that in Shintoism people have their own sort of kami which is a manifestation of their mind and spirit, known as the kokoro. Like with the physical world, ones' kokoro can become unclean and to return to a state of purity and one where they can experience kami  one must clean their kokoro. For me this sort of purification would be by experiencing kami or the life found in the world. Thus for my religious experience i wanted to cleanse my kokoro with my own sort of spiritual walk through.

What i Did: Like i stated above i feel like my heart and mind are at their most fresh when im active or experiencing life. When i walk along the river for instance i feel very alive, like im sharing the vitality thats around me. On the other hand when im being very lethargic and just sitting around my house i dont feel much energy in my life and as a result i feel very sloppish physically and mentally. So what i did was take a run by the river will listening to my favorite music (which does a good job of getting my heart rate up). I felt as if running would cleanse my body physically and being around all the energy of the river did a good job of revitalizing my spirit.

Reflection: While i was running i just thought about how good it felt to be active and alive. It was hard for me to actually think when i was running because its kinda of hard to concentrate when you're running. What i do remember is that even though it was hard i felt very good about myself and my existence. re-evaluating my life looking at these Shinto beliefs i can see how a religious experience can be good for one's life.

The film Spirited Away displays the elements of Shintoism is many ways throughout the story. From the very beginining of the movie the idea that there is a life to all things is mentioned as Sen's mother tells her that the little houses on the side of the road are believed to house different spirits, but this is just the start. As the movie progresses the principles of Shintoism are highlighted in the movie in many more ways. One important idea in Shintoism is that of kamis, which are the life spirits of everyday things (pencils, rivers, etc). In the movie spirited away the idea of kami is displayed very well as many of the characters in the movie are kami's themselves. There is a massive radish kami, a kami for a polluted river, and various others. Other ideologies of shintoism that are reflected in spirited away is that of washing away negativity and cleansing your spirit, which is physically portrayed by the movie in the form of a bathhouse.

1. Sen had to go on her spiritual journey to evolve as a person. At the beginning of the movie she was so sullen and unwilling to experience anything new (she didn't want to pull over and explore).

2. Through her time at the spiritual bathhouse she learned how to be sincere and selfless and most of all willing to leave her comfort zone for those she loved. She matured from a childish petulant girl in the beginning of the film to a hard working girl that was ready to experience anything (in the end of the film she wasnt scared to experience school).

3. Her journey helped her change her beliefs. At first Chihiro didnt believe that she would be able to recognize her parents after they were turned in to pigs or even believed that she would be reunited with them. But once she gained confidence in herself and the willingness to put herself at risk for others she not only recognizes her parents but is reunited with them.

Ghandi movie reflection

"An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind."

 Ghandi, a man who devoted his life to the nonviolent pursuit of justice, realized long ago that violence never solves anything. If anything, using violence against other violence only leads to additional problems and more importantly, pain. Thus in his quote above Ghandi is explaining that using violence as punishment against violence leads to nothing but loss. I hold Ghandis quote to be very true. As i have learned through my life, violence does nothing but create additional violence.  The whole movie of Ghandi elaborated on this quote very well. In the begining of the film the indians could almost never achieve victory against the british with their violence ways (because it solves nothing) but once the indians (with the guidance of ghandi) exercised nonviolent resistant against the british's violent ways they finally achieved results. 

"A man is but a product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes." 

This quote is referring to the idea that the things that we think about eventually become the words we say and subsequently the actions we do. Ghandi is trying to make people realize that the things that we obsess about and spend our time thinking about eventually consume us and make us the people we are. In the movie, Ghandi's actions are dictated by his ideologies he has for how he thinks people should behave and act towards another and this is key in shaping his character. For instance, in the scene where he is seen to be deeply troubled by the pass laws in africa, he acts upon his thoughts and eventually stages a public display against the passcodes because of his thoughts on the passcode.

The movie Ghandi has taught me much about how we could treat each other. It has given me much more respect for those that choose to "turn the other cheek" when they could possibly confront the problem violently, and the quote that "when we most needed it, he offered the world a way out of madness" will stick with me forever. 

Easter reflection

The idea of second chances is that all people inherently deserve a second chance to redeem themselves whenever they do something wrong. I believe that this idea is conditional. There are certain circumstances where the crimes that people commit are "small" enough for a second chance to be granted. Yet there are some atrocities that human beings can commit that just never can be fully atoned for. This is based on my belief that there is a universal moral compass that i believe all human beings instinctively possess. This might be wishful thinking on my part but to me i believe this is true. All throughout my life whenever when i was on the verge of doing something bad (or when i passed that threshold) i knew instinctively that i was committing something that was morally wrong. I have also met people throughout my life that I've caught "in the act" of perpetrating a crime, the expression on their face doesnt lie. Yet even though i believe that human beings consciously commit crimes and do terrible things that they shouldnt, the idea's ive learned over the past two weeks about God's unconditional love and mercy have made me rethink my convictions. The story of Easter particularly strikes me hard. For God to have given his only son Jesus to die for the sins of oh so many, he must have been something who really believes in second chances. Like it says in the bible, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." Like it says in the quote, the only way the world can progress when people make mistakes is for love and forgiveness to transcend all the injustices of the world. That being said, I guess that even though people can do terrible and stupid things, we would have nothing if people thought the way i did about second chances. Because of this im going to try and make it my post easter goal to always give others a second chance when they truly need one. 

-PS thank you Ms James for giving me a second chance with my absence forms

For me the universe is so unfathomably complex and
wonderful that for it to all just be a coincidence is impossible. I do believe there is some higher power governing the universe, but i also believe that this power doesnt have complete control over life, or frankly just doesn't care anymore. There are so many instances in human history where faith in a God to help a situation was not realized and although these people may have deserved a right to salvation (ie Holocaust victims who prayed to God right before they were killed). There could be a God and he could have supreme control, but for the most part he just created the world and left away for us to govern it. All of the things that have made me who i am are from the things i have done, and I am in control of my life.

The characteristics of this God are all powerful, all knowing, but unconcerned

The closest experience i have to when I feel like this higher power could have influenced my life is when i was eight years old and i was hiking in a mountain, i walked over an unstable dirt mound and it crumbled and i slipped off the edge, but i was caught by a small mound that seemed to be placed there for no other reason than catching me. But then again the question comes up to why would this god make me want to almost fall in the first place.

Shema: I believe theres a god above me. I believe that this is all for a reason. I believe that there is some central purpose to life. Its just that I'm the god of everything else.

The Parthenon was a religious structure built by the people of Athens to pay homage to the goddess of wisdom, Athena. Its constructing began in 447 during the juncture of the Athene city state power. It is considered to be one of the most magnificent structures ever built, as it is regarded as the symbol of the Ancient Greeks' philosophy of democracy. Current archaeologists believe that the initial purpose of the building was to be a treasury, but during its history is has been used as not only a treasury but also as a church and mosque.



Goddess of wisdom Athena
Bless me with your everlasting intellect
I will uphold the temple so that it may always serve as a beacon of your knowledge
For from you all ideas flourish
Continue to guide the minds of all Athenians and our blades
And forever we will be in your service

Debate over the topic of pro life and anti abortion has spurred a type of "religious emergence" in Britain. This reemergence of religious fervor began a year ago as the "culture wars" in Britain concerning abortion erupted outside an abortion clinic. Although there is debate as to what this truly means in terms for Britain and abortion in the country, time will soon tell.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/feb/01/britain-religious-right-on-rise