Research Paper 1st 2 Paragraphs

There are many things that have split Christians and denominations over the years because they are so controversial. More specifically, the idea of free will versus predestination. As defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary predestination is "the doctrine that God in consequence of the foreknowledge of all events infallibly guides those who are destined for salvation." Also defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, free will is the "freedom of humans to make choices that are not determined by prior cause or by divine intervention. Romans 8:28 gives a valid argument that we are predestined. "For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers." Whereas, Romans 1:10, "In my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God's will the way may be opened for me to come to you" talks about will.

This topic of free will versus predestination has been a hot topic in many theological conversations for many years. Did God did humans free will? Are humans predestined by God to either salvation or damnation? If we are predestined to either Heaven or Hell, is Hell fair? Does predestination make God mean? Why doesn't God save everyone" These are just some of the questions people have been arguing and pondering about for a long time. Do they all have a clear answer? Do any of them? Lastly, why wouldn't God make it absolutely clear in the Bible that we were either predestined or given free will?

Test Blog...

This summer I had an opportunity to go to Japan with my handbell choir. One day we took a boat over to an island and this is at the Buddist temple. The second picture is of my best friends and me. We hung out pretty much every day this entire summer and I don't know what I would do without them. :)

Taoism

I learned a lot this last week about Taoism and the beliefs that Taoists have. There are some things I agree with and some things I disagree with. Some of the things I like/ agree with in Taoism the the lack of stress and peace. I don't think people should just go out and get into a fight just because they feel like it or because someone made them mad; its not right. One of the things I don't like/ disagree with in Taoism is the concept of the Yin Yang. I believe as a Christian that there is a distinct line between good and evil. The Yin Yang shows that good and evil mix with each other. There is a little bit of good in evil and a little bit of evil in good. Isaiah 5:20 says, "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter." This shows the concept of the mixing of the good and evil in the yin yang does not fit with the Christian view.

Koran

In reading the first book of the Koran I found many things in common between Christianity/the Bible and Islam/theKoran as well as many things that challenged me. For instance many of the stories are similar. Although many things are somewhat similar it is a very hard book to understand and it jumps around quite a bit. It is also based on what one man who had no witnesses said he got from a vision from "God" that he memorized whereas the Bible has many witnesses and is easy to understand. Another thing that challenged me was that Allah doesn't love everyone. Anyone who doens't believe in him is an ememy of Allah. On the other hand we have God who loves believers and nonbelievers and wants everyone to come to Him. Allah has apparently already decided our fate. I learned a lot from reading the Koran and I think it was beneficial to read and get a better understanding of another religion so that we will be more prepared if we have to defend our faith to someone of the Islam religion.

Camelot

Camelot was a pretty good movie. I actually like musicals so it was a pretty good movie once you get past the oldness of it. Some of the universals I found in the movie are: King Arthur is the hero, Lancelot is the sidekick, Guenevere is the madden. Christian themes are forgiveness is important, Love is unconditional, humans are far from perfect, sin is inevitable. Guen's secret love with Lance represents sin. Even thought Guen has a relationship with Lance and is in love with him Arthur still loves Guen and wants to have a relationship with her just like God wants to have a relationship with us even though we reject Him and love other things and other people. Even though Lance stole Guen's heart like the devil or other idols in our lives try to steal our heart Arthur still has hope that she will come back. This movie has many universals and themes that go along with the Bible/Christianity.

Troy/Iliad Comparison

There are many differences between the epic, the Iliad and the movie, Troy. One of the differences between the Iliad and Troy was that in the Iliad there was a lot more evidence of gods and other supernatural things. For example, in the Iliad the gods interfere and stop Achilles from killing Agamemnon but in Troy he is stopped by the slave girl. The reason they do this is to make it more realistic and believable. They used most of the same characters. One example of where they changed the characters was in the movie they combined the slave girl and daughter of the priest. I think it was to make everything easier to understand. Some of the similarities were that both the epic and the movie depicted Achilles personality the same, angry. They both have similar fighting scenes and reasons for fighting. Troy has aspects of the original epic of a war over a girl.

Strategy and Success Blog

I like that we have a lot of discussions and not a lot of homework. My greatest disappointment so far is my quiz/test grades. I forgot to study for vocab. I studied for the reading quizzes by reading the story a couple times and going over important (underlined/highlighted) words. I studied in a quiet place with no distractions. Yes, I am a visual learner. I have to see things to completely understand it. When I study things I can see what I studied. I don't do well with listening to lectures without visuals.