The priests hoped to resolve the issue when Pope John Paul II visited Nicaragua in 1983. During the pope’s visit to Nicaragua, many Catholics in the country held high expectations of him. The Nicaraguan Catholic hierarchy hoped that the Pope would support them on the atheist approach used by the Sandinista government. The Sandinista government also fought for their belief to have peace. These people were hoping the pope would say some words of wisdom and of consolation to the families who lost loved ones to daily counterrevolutions.
Abortion is one of the most tempestuous political, and religious issues in today’s society. This paper will show the different viewpoints and beliefs of Christians on abortion. There are many different platforms regarding the issues of abortion. Abortion draws out conflict between two divergent world views, including the pro-life and pro-choice advocates. Abortion is interpreted in many different ways by various people.
The Kings were converts of Christianity just to establish closer relations with Portuguese whereas Chinese has great problems with the exclusivity of Christianity but the Jesuits were respectful of Chinese culture and won a few converts. China had an outstanding naval capacity in the early 1400s and the Chinese used a tribute system as a basis for trade and restricted access of foreign traders to Chinese markets, particularly by limiting them to specified ports under controls established by the central government. China experienced economic changes,
Practices have changed in both religions, yet the Lutheran and Catholic remain present to this day. Since and before Reformation religions have constantly been changing to meet the ethics of the society that typically holds them and must always change in order to keep the people in the religion for personal or political gain. Although the Catholic and Lutheran reforms had many similarities, there were many differences. In contrast, the Lutheran movement did not believe that rituals and traditions would necessarily make one more likely to get into heaven. Great differences were also evident in the beliefs surrounding salvation.
Whereas in the Americas, Christianity was being spread in a politically uprooted and shaken society, Christianity in China was being spread in an already prominent Eastern, Confucian culture and society during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Because of this already existing culture, Christian missionaries took a more academic approach, learning Chinese and classical Confucian texts in order to dialogue with Chinese scholars. Initially, the downplayed their aim to gain converts and focused more on their interest of exchanging ideas and learning from ancient Chinese culture. The missionaries were respectful of Chinese culture and actually gained favor of the scholars and officials. However, the success of Christian missions dwindled, as Christianity did not have as much to offer to the already established Chinese society with their Confucian beliefs and faith.
At the Council of Trent the Catholic authorities attempted to clean up the act of the Protestants by trying to persuade them to believe in all seven sacraments and reaffirmed this belief as well. Many other beliefs were reaffirmed as well; beliefs such as Monasteries, Miracles, Saints, Holy Relics, etc. Protestant beliefs constantly differed with a good amount of the beliefs from the Catholics, which caused it to branch off as a completely different religion itself, however the purpose of this council was to set the Protestants straight by reading to them doctrines from the Catholic Church, and other biblical beliefs. Although it might not have worked completely, it did subside some tensions between both
The Renaissance monarchs were growing impatient of the Church, and society was growing to become more humanistic and secular, as well as individualism. Various other religions were established as well, with Luther’s teachings leaving their mark well past Luther’s own existence. The Reformation in Western & Central Europe officially began in 1517 with Martin Luther (1483-1546) and his 95 Theses. This was a debate over the Christian religion. Luther’s arguments referred to a direct relationship with God and using the local vernacular to speak to the people.
Buddhism, another belief practiced by the great Asoka Maurya, did not support the caste system and was, just like the Chinese Daoism, a religion of pure salvation which practiced elimination of desire in order to achieve a higher spiritual status or nirvana. Spread by missionaries it was one of the most practiced religions of that time, both in India and China, but it had little political impact due to its nature. Like in China, Indian social and political structure depended on the belief system, but it was not influenced by the dynastic
But, with the enforcement Shariah law onto northern Nigeria, it has given cause for many Christians to be outraged. In America, the Catholic Church has protested the laws on abortion for as long as the government made it legal. In both cases, religious beliefs are interfering with government standards. Catholics may need to be cautious of bringing their religious beliefs into congruence with national law. Abortion has been a main topic of discussion in Catholic churches for a long period of time.
Comparing to them, China lacks far behind in many aspects, especially influence, and can only be considered a partial power now. The fact that China is unable to project power, be it militarily or politically, outside of the Asian periphery shows that it still does not have a clear sphere of influence a superpower should possess, and it is not shaping the actions of other countries. The US were able to send troops to areas well beyond its territory, to Afghanistan or Iraq for example, either for their own interests or for global security, but not the Chinese. The fact that the Chinese are unable to dominate international relations or project power globally shows it’s still far from being a superpower. China is also too passive and does not take part in global politics and issues significantly.