The priests are there so that God can intercede through the priests. As our lives move forward, we sin against God, ourselves, and our neighbors. Reconciliation can keeps us on the straight path to God and help us to control ourselves so that we don’t harm one another. Since Christ has given us this sacred sacrament, we should trust that this is what He wanted for us. There is proof in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, in Sacred Scripture, and in the Introduction to Catholicism that we as Catholics are entitled to go to confession in the way that Jesus’ taught us to.
The simple fact that the declaration gives power to the legislature to command the people to attend religious teachings is irrefutable evidence that Massachusetts felt that there should be a connection between church and state. Also, the fact that the public can use their taxes for the maintenance of the public houses of worship and religious instruction “to promote their happiness and to secure the good order and preservation of their government” also lends its support. The declaration, at times, reads vague and confusing. Its exact message may seem unclear, but the point seems to be that Massachusetts, while in favor of some individual religious rights, wants to keep a handle on just how far those rights can extend. The Virginia Statute of Religious Liberty conveys the far-reaching
Critique of Two Theories: Nouthetic Counseling Vs. Misbelief Therapy Sandra Hanford Liberty University Summary Dr. Adams (1986) opens his book, How To Help People Change, by stating that all counselors agree on “the aim of counseling is to change people” (p. xi). The main difference is the question is what the people are supposed to change into. Each theorist has a different answer to that question. Coming from the perspective of a Christian, Dr. Adams (1986) suggests that the central issue of change centers on the process of changing the human heart. The Holy Spirit is important in causing the change and the Word of God is the source of helping the client to become Christ -like.
The writings of Protestant historians such as Motley and Oman can be taken to reflect more the attitude of the writer then the true events of the period. They wrote in a way that identified progress with Protestantism and Catholicism with reaction and superstition. They believed that the thought behind Philip’s foreign policy was to create a Universal Monarchy by means of a Catholic Plot. Other proponents of religion as a main factor include Geoffrey Parker who wrote that Philip had a ‘grand strategy’ and that was to spread Catholicism and to fulfil the Habsburg moto “the world is
Source 1 is a letter personally written by Wolsey to Henry and it indicates that his efforts were noticed by Stafileo and this shows that he did attempt to speak to the Catholic Church in some way. It also shows that he did not want to let Henry down and he gave Henry hope that he was trying his best to get the annulment by explaining that Stafileo was on their side by writing a book which supported this case. This is also shown in Source 3, when Catherine of Aragon says ‘you have kindled the fire in Henry’. This quote shows that Wolsey was acting on Henry’s behalf even if it does mean that he had a role in ending the marriage. Since Source 1 is a letter to Henry from Wolsey, there is no chance that Wolsey would lie to his master and it also shows Wolsey’s confidence as he managed to convince Stalifeo to agree with the annulment and to write a scholarly book.
Jeff Kaetzel Fall 2012 Alexander II and the Emancipation of the Serfs Alexander II emancipated the serfs in 1861 primarily because of his deep religious convictions. Religion played a key role in Alexander II’s decision to emancipate the serfs because it served as an avenue through which he could address the pressures he faced from both his advisors and the sociopolitical developments in Russian society. The emancipation of the serfs was not a new concept in Russia. Alexander II used the previous autocrats’ push towards emancipation as a platform to launch his own emancipation efforts. He was able to utilize the previous autocrats’ work as a springboard for his reign to complete the act of emancipating the serfs.
He had a true zeal to learn the word of God for himself and pass it on to other. “Luther trusted Christ, and that Christ was with him in his and all people’s suffering; God was accompanying, calling, bringing him and all fellow sufferers into the life of hope and resurrection.” “Most fundamental is the first step, Luther’s teaching that by faith alone we are united with Christ. Protestants loved to talk about “accepting Christ by faith,” which certainly owes a great deal to this fundamental teaching of Luther’s. Usually, however, it is presented as a decision we must make, as if it were by our own free will. Luther, by contrast, hates the very idea of free will when it is applied to matters of salvation, for our confidence in our own free will lies at the core of our efforts to be justified by good works rather than faith alone.
Luther believed that all believers should abide by the words of ‘our Lord and Master Jesus Christ” and repent of our sins (Morris, 1998, p. 56). The problem Luther had with the Catholic Church and the priests specifically was the use of the word of God as a sacramental penance, rather than a real act of repentance from the heart intending to change the behavior of the man (Lohse, 1998, p. 4). Luther demands that the inward changes be reflected by the outward actions that the world can see (Lohse, 1998, p. 4). If one is harsh to others outwardly, their inward harshness is just as readily seen. Man must see their repulsion to sin must continue or
Everything can be overridden by Love/Agape, it can be used as an excuse to justify any action. All ethics are judgments on behaviours, intentions and consequences. Situational ethics is about consequences, outcomes, however if love overrides all of the rules, then the only judgement that should be made is whether the outcome is one done with love. It is people who decide on the rules, making the moral judgement, deciding on what LOVE/AGAPE means in real situations. People who are trying to apply this broad, deep, Christian version of the word love/agape.
Throughout Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, he depicts the realities of religion in democracies, while illustrating the importance of Religion in the continued success of democracies. He also states that for a number of reasons, and not unlike all other forms of government, there are dangers. He points out the importance of religion by displaying how it aids the avoidance of these dangers and, the sustained prosperity of democracy. To first determine the importance of religion in democracies, you must first determine its dangers. The first of these dangers is susceptibility of Americans to extreme individualism, and isolation from the community.