Interpretation of Matthew Passage Essay Example for Free

Interpretation of Matthew Passage Essay The book of Matthew is one of the four epistles. This in other words is to mean that the book, which is in New Testament, happens to be the first book that records the teachings of Jesus Christ, at the believed time when He was on the earth. In this paper, the interpretation will come from Matthew chapter 6 verses 25-34. These verses contain Christ Jesus teachings on how Christians should live here on earth independently but with the divine intervention of their God. This in other words is to mean that the verses emphasizes on God and Christians perceptions of possessions. Different strategies of argumentation will be used to discuss this chapter, that is, verse by verse interpretation will be one of the strategic ways of interpretation of the chapter. This will be in an endeavor to bring out the theme of divine providence that Christ Jesus teaches his believers while at the same time drawing a closer look at the theme of cynicism as portrayed by the tone of Christ Jesus in his teachings. In the process of interpretation, contemporary literature will be used together with various comparisons. This will in an effort to bring the text and its context to the conventions of thought and the characteristic way of life of its people at that particular time. The arguments depicted in this passage will be identified and commented on. This is especially on how the arguments form a persuasive tone as a whole. The contents of the verses in this chapter will also be compared with the discussions of divine providence by Epictectus and Dio. This will be help to analyze the verse which comes closer than the other. At the end of the discussion, the verses will also be related to chapter 5 verses 7 of the book of Matthew, where the context of the verse brings a personification of Jerusalem (Good New bible 809). In this chapter, Christ Jesus teaches Christians not to worry about their lives but instead, be trusting. This is to mean that Christians are obliged to trust their maker, their God, for their divine provision. Looking at the lives of the people at that particular time and even today, one can easily decipher the fact that our lives have gone past the worries implied in the text. This is because of the fact that many people get worried of the things that they do not even need. In verse 24, Christ Jesus talks of the two masters that a Christian can serve, either God or the material things. This is the verse that carries weight in the whole of this chapter. This is because; the others are based from it in the sense that Christ Jesus believes that Christians are more inclined into serving both or focusing mere on material things, where on the other hand, his teachings are centered on serving God, and seeking his righteousness first, and â€Å"the rest shall be added† (Good New bible 809) In verses 25: Christ Jesus is commenting on the worries that Christians or the disciples at that particular time needed. These include food, drink, and clothing, which are the basic necessities of life. At this particular moment, the disciples and the believers at this particular moment were worried about getting enough to get by (Good New bible 809). The principles of chreia (which is defined as a brief reminiscence aptly attributed to someone) are clearly illustrated on this verse. The chreia saying that Jesus made was: do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will put on, is not life more than food and the body more than clothing. The elaboration of Jesus chreia is quite admirable due to the aspect of sarcasm and rhetorical. It’s considered rhetoric to tell people not to worry about their own lives, the clothes, food and shelter, of which are the basic needs of human being. But to some extent, the chreia in the sentence can be appreciated from the fact that the believer live by the power of God and therefore he who is able to give life can also provide the rest that they need. In one way or another, the chreia is also expressed in other verses, for instance in verse 33: but seek first the kingdom of God and the rest shall be given unto you. The believers who desire the gifts from God must first seek his kingdom, irrespective of whether it’s a hard and a bitter process or not. this can be compared to such chreia sayings as ‘the roots of education are bitter but the fruits sweet’. This is to mean for one to enjoy the fruits of education, they must first taste the bitter roots of education. The same case with believers; for them to enjoy the gifts of God they must first seek the kingdom of God. Verses 25 to 34 as unit can be said to contain one teaching of Christians, in his admonition, and teachings. The verses are interlinked, in the sense, they indicate the conditions that believers should follow in order to acquire God’s blessings. The word ‘therefore’ links with verse 24 in the sense that for believers, they cannot serve two masters, that is, God and satan. The word believer in the context of Christianity originates from believe in one God as the creator and maker of heaven and the earth, and therefore having believed in God wholeheartedly, Christians or believers, ‘therefore’ should not worry about their lives. The word ‘therefore’ in this context is used to connect the two verses and subsequently introduce the other verses. While on the other hand, some of the believers were in the current generation worry about what to do with all the material possessions that we have. Jesus emphasizes on the fact that God is the provider and therefore believers should not be worried about what to eat or drink, but should be satisfied with the little they have. This in other words is to mean that Jesus raises the eyes of the believers above their worries by redirecting their thinking. He raises their sights above the worries of this world to faith and trust in God, who is their heavenly father and therefore will not forsake but provide for them. This is again to mean that Christ Jesus takes the Christians to the source of their blessings and where their help is guaranteed, that is, from their heavenly father (Good New bible 809). In verse 28, where Christ Jesus is talking about worries on clothing, He delivers his teaching by giving a comparison with the lilies of the field â€Å"how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these†. If God therefore is able to clothe the grass of the field today, which is alive today and gone the following day, who are Christians who are made in his own image not be clothed by Him even more. This is to mean that Christians should focus more on the things of the kingdom of God have a security. Christians should therefore stop the single minded pursuit of financial security but on the contrary should seek the things that last (Good New bible 809). He also brings a comparison in verse 26 where he emphasizes on the fact that Christians are more valued by God than any other creature. The birds of the air neither sole or reap, nor gather into barns, and yet they never go hungry from the fact that Heavenly father provides for them. This is to mean that Christians, who are better than the birds of the air, should focus their hope from God alone for divine provision. He therefore gives the second reason why Christians are not supposed to get worried. This is found in verse 32: â€Å"we have a heavenly father who knows what we need†. This is to mean that the heavenly father as portrayed by Christ Jesus is kind and loving and will therefore provide for their needs (Good New bible 809). Christians should therefore trust and believe in the heavenly father for his divine provisions. God has therefore given us strength and the ability to work to earn our living. He controls our minds and helps us make wise decisions. He also provides to believers through other people. This can be through our fathers and mothers, relatives, church, friends among other people. These are some of the divine channels that our father in heaven uses to provide for Christians here on earth (Good New bible 809). In verse 28, Christ Jesus gives the third reason why Christians should not worry about the things of this world. This is because there are more important things that Christians should be seeking after. Christ Jesus says that â€Å"therefore do not be anxious, saying, what shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or what shall we wear, for the gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly father knows that you need them all. Here the theme of cynicism is portrayed from the fact that Christ Jesus understands the fact that many Christians are pessimistic and anxious about their daily needs (Good New bible 809). Believers seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you†. Here Christ Jesus is trying to emphasize on the fact that Christians should understand that their heavenly father will always provide for them and therefore they should center their focus on the things of the kingdom of God, which will last forever. He is therefore teaching Christians to focus on their energy in seeking the kingdom of God and his righteousness. This is to mean that it’s more seeking that the material things of this world. Christ Jesus came teaching about this fact; the paramount importance of seeking the kingdom of God and his righteousness. In this verse, the theme of divine providence is depicted in two ways (Good New bible 809). First, Christians are advised to seek the kingdom of God first. This is to mean that they should work and strive towards attaining the heavenly gifts which only God can give. This being the case therefore, their heavenly father, God, is portrayed as the provider. The only one who is in a position to provide the things of the kingdom, and his righteousness? The second point comes at the end of the verse whereby, Christ Jesus says that â€Å"and all things shall be added unto you†. This is to mean that after seeking the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, they shall or will receive a divine provision from their father, that is, all things they have desired shall be provided. This is a portrayal of the theme of divine providence (Good New bible 809). Looking at the way Christians had misused Jerusalem church; Christ Jesus drives them out claiming that â€Å"his house shall be a house of prayer†. The believers at that particular time were using the church to gain material possession; a place where they were supposed to seeking God and his righteousness. This also brings out the theme cynicism, from the fact that Christians had much doubt and even pessimistic about seeking God. They therefore opted to seek material possessions even his house own house, that is, the church, where they were supposed to seek God (Good New bible 809). The last verse in this chapter gives the ‘Christ Jesus conclusion’ on the whole issue. Christ concludes his teachings with the following; †¢ Christians should first seek the kingdom of God first and his righteousness †¢ After seeking the kingdom of God, all other things shall be added unto them. †¢ They should therefore not get worried about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about its own things. †¢ He finally concludes that each day has its sufficient trouble and therefore Christians are not supposed to worry about their future. Although the above conclusions are true, there are other results are conspicuous throughout this chapter. These are based on the theme of divine providence and the theme of cynicism. The results indicate that for Christians to partake of the heavenly gifts, that is, the divine provision from their father, they must have; †¢ Have faith and trust in Him †¢ They must also believe in Him †¢ They must also seek his kingdom and righteousness first. †¢ Have no worry about their basic needs for their father cares and loves them to provide for them. †¢ The results also indicate that Jehovah God is the sole provider of both his righteousness and the daily needs that we need as Christians. It’s through the focus on the above results that the whole paper has been formatted. The central verse in the chapter that has been analyzed can was considered and identified to be verse 24. This is because it carries the starting and the concluding remarks of the verses studied. That is, Christians must choose one master to serve, either God or material possession (Good New bible 809). Works cited Good News bible. Early Christian Gospels: The book of Matthew 6: 24-34. USA: American Bible Society. 1994.

What Is Depression? :: Psychology Emotions Papers

What Is Depression? "I feel like I can't do it anymore. There's just too much pressure. I just want people to leave me alone; let me sleep for a while. I hate school. I hate sports. I hate everyone. It's not worth it...life's not worth it. A couple pills and it could all end..." This is how I used to feel. Since 9 th grade I've had depression. As with so many other kids it went unnoticed. I did everything to cover up how I was feeling inside. I thought, "Maybe if I just forget about it, it will go away." I was wrong. I blew up. I cried and thought of killing myself on the spot. I couldn't take it anymore. There was so much anger, stress, and sadness, and I didn't know how to deal with it. I broke down crying in my coach's office one day because I got kicked off the baseball team and he had no idea what was going on. This was the straw that broke the camel's back. At first, all I could do was cry. After about 10 minutes of tears, I finally told my coach how I was feeling. I told him that every day I had to think of a reason to live. I told him I didn't want to deal with it anymore. He was the first person I shared my thoughts with. I still remember how he responded. The first thing out of his mouth was, "I had no idea. I th ought you lived the greatest life of anyone in this school." Then he just listened while I told my real life story; the life that I covered up. When I was finished we both just sat there. After a long silence he finally said, "You need to get some help..." Depression is a long-term or short-term feeling of sadness and usually has physical symptoms associated with it. This is the clinical definition given by the National Institute of Mental Health in their article, "Depression." Everyone feels sad at some point and it can last for a while.

British Literature Essay

Literature is one of the most effective ways to protest against the society, iniquities in this society. From early times writers and poets used rhythms and stories for ridiculing the upper class of a society. Why do poets use poems to tell about social injustices? The answer is simple. This way a poet can catch and hold the reader’s attention, his emotions. Usually poets in their works present facts in order to capture attention of many people. These are not new facts that are presented to an audience. From early times poets used the words effectively to make people think about the situation and make want them to act in order to change the present state of things. Poets and writers know the exact words and phrases that can influence people’s attitude to this or that situation so that they start acting. Poems are always aimed to reach feelings of people and thus, to pull strings. Literature of every state shows all the complexity of every epoch. When the situation is the same at several countries, it has a worldwide significance. Before talking about poetry, we should answer the question: What is poetry? Poetry is a special way of describing situations, things, ideas, feelings. Poets present their ideas in short phrases. They use rhythm to emphasize their feelings and ideas. Besides, a poet can appeal to reader’s emotions via poems. That is why a poem is easily remembered. A poem can be compared to a photograph as it reflects real life, real situations and feelings. In a poem a poet captures the exact moment and represents it the way he/she has seen it. When you read a poem you see the poet’s subjective evaluation of facts, situations and the epoch in general. Poets of Romantic Movement wrote their poems to share their feelings. They wrote to help people understand their time from the poet’s point of view. This paper is about Romantic Movement in Great Britain. It is devoted to William and Dorothy Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Lord Byron, William Blake, Robert Burns, Mary Wollstonecraft and Joanna Baillie who became a radical group in British literature of their epoch. In the paper special attention is paid to the use of lyric poetry (ballads) and blank verse in poetry of the nineteenth century. British poetry. â€Å"The poem on the page is only a shadow of the poem in the mind. And the poem in the mind is only a shadow of the poetry and the mystery of the things of this word.†   Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Stanley Kunitz Before analyzing the British poetry of the nineteenth century it is necessary to mention the changes in political, industrial, scientific and cultural spheres of life of that time and caused the changes in British literature having challenged the standards of form and structure in poetry. From 1776 the American and French Revolutions and later the Industrial Revolution astounded Great Britain and Europe and caused disturbances among people. In the second half of the century Charles Darwin published Origins of Species and The Descent of Man that caused the revolution in scientific thought. This was an unrest period and people were forced to evaluate their values and beliefs again. There is no wonder that the British poets changed their world outlook. The first stage of Romanticism in English literature began in 1790s. William Blake was the first major poet who reacted to these changes. His poems were far from standard patterns. The poetry of Blake is characterized by long, unrhymed lines, a steady interplay of opposites (Damrosch 458). A metaphor can be found in titles of Blake’s works. For instance, his series of poems: Songs of Innocence in 1789 and Songs of Experience in 1794; The Marriage of Heaven and Hell etc. Blake believed that opposites are integral parts of life. He wrote about things that we too often forget making the reader look at events from another point of view. Blake tried to use the joy of words. He used figurative language to describe things in an unusual, in a completely new way breaking down the traditions in poetry of his time. Blake’s beginnings were supported by the efforts of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. They have written a collection of poems, anonymously authored, famous for its poems and its preface, entitled Lyrical Ballads in 1798. In the preface a poet deems that poems must regard ‘situations from life’ in ‘the everyday language’. Wordsworth describes poetry as ‘the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings’. This expression was the manifesto of the Romantic Movement in poetry presenting revolutionary idea for that time. Moreover, the poet emphasizes on the avoidance of artificial poetic style. He believes language must be understandable and enjoyable for ordinary people. Lyrical Ballads is one of the most significant books which became a major change in the history of English poetry (Damrosch 462). Poems from the collection are written in simple, everyday language. They are concentrated on the appreciation of the power of nature, examination of human personality, inner feelings, emotions and thought with an emphasis on imagination. Lyrical Ballads starts from Coleridge’s long poem Rime of the Ancient Mariner and continues with poems manifesting the nature appreciation, the superiority of emotions and feelings over reason. The romance emphasizes individuality, beauty of nature contrasting to formality and artificiality of the standards in poetry of that epoch. A collection contains Tintern Abbey, The Idiot Boy and other controversial poems of Wordsworth written in everyday language. Poets used an every day language before, thus, they did not use it so that they broke down the rules and standards. Samuel Taylor Coleridge is famous for marvelous The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and the ‘conversation poems’, for example, Frost at Midnight and This Lime-Tree Bower My Prison, as well as for his unfinished works Christabel and Kubla Khan, which is like an obsession that haunts your mind (Damrosch 466). Dorothy Wordsworth, William’s sister, is an English prose writer. Her famous Alfoxden Journal and invaluable Gramere Journals were published in 1897. Her works are full of imagination while describing nature and personalities of unusual qualities. Dorothy’s prose is sudden, clear and natural. You may disagree with her ideas or conclusions. However, the writer could possibly say that it is enough that a reader reflects on her ideas. William Wordsworth wrote many short poems which were aimed at breaking down neoclassical verse. He included new poems in the second edition of the collection – The Brothers and Michael. In his works the author tries to speak about life truthfully sharing his feelings with a reader. Sometimes they share ideas, sometimes – a question. These poems and marvelous lyrics were written in his great decade. Thus, the most famous poem of William Wordsworth is his autobiographical philosophical poem The Prelude. This is a spiritual autography in which the author puts questions of philosophical value, about the purpose of his existence, of his value as a poet. In this work William Wordsworth is the major hero. The author places imagination on the first place among human talents. This work is better to call an epic as it consists of 8000 lines and is separated into 14 books (Damrosch 471). It is necessary to mention Joanna Baillie, a poet and dramatist. She wrote plays in verse which were highly appreciated. However, she is famous largely for her first published work, a collection of lyrics Fugitive Verses in 1790. Another talented English writer is Mary Wollstonecraft. She is famous for her works about equality of women concerning education and social life. Mary Wollstonecraft was a member of a radical group together with William Blake and later William Wordsworth. All her life Mary Wollstonecraft remained a passionate defender of women rights. In her works she was bringing up a fulmination against social inequality of women. She wrote Thoughts on the Education of Daughters in 1787 and A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, which contains a fulmination and a plea concerning equality for women, in 1792. The second stage of Romanticism began in 1805 and was marked by appreciation of history value, attention to origins, to works of Renaissance time. One of the most noted poets of the second stage is George Gordon, Lord Byron. He put the poet in the central place and spoke about imagination in his works (Damrosch 458). Romantic Movement reached its high point of art in the works of Byron. In his poems he emphasizes the individual feelings, emotions of a person, not of several ones; expression of feeling opposes to morality and value of nature to a state. The works of Byron are unique and brilliant, his poetry is an outstanding event connected with the Epoch of Romanticism. When an artist puts paint on canvas, he/she attentively traces shapes and colours for attaining a needful effect. The same Byron does when he writes a poem – he arranges words so that a poem is simple and comprehensible. Byron uses language in unusual way: he chooses words for sound and meaning. He carefully selects and arranges each word to achieve the desirable sound and effect. His major hero is a romantic person who is out of the society. In his poems the author raises the question of immortality. Besides, his works are notable for their flippancy. In 1820s there was a third stage of Romanticism that spread romantic ideas in literature worldwide (Damrosch 458). Summarizing, the Romantic Movement in Britain has three stages; every of stages is famous for poets and their works. At this time poets broke with tradition and tried the relaxed rhythms, everyday language and imagination in their poems. Conclusion. The paper briefly analyzes the three stages of Romantic Movement in Great Britain in general and poets who contributed greatly to the poetry of their country in a more detailed way. Besides, the paper analyzes the peculiarities of literature of that epoch. Having examined the works of William and Dorothy Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Lord Byron, William Blake, Robert Burns, Mary Wollstonecraft and Joanna Baillie, it is clear it was a new generation of poets in the British literature. References: Damrosch D., Wolfson S. J., Manning P. J. (2005). The Longman Anthology of British Literature, Volume 2A: The Romantics and Their Contemporaries, Longman, 3rd Edition, 1120pp.

How Game Theory Can Be Viewed As A Conflict Resolution...

ABSTRACT: The Internet is an integral way of conducting daily business from government agencies to entertainers. Protection of attack, damage, or unauthorized access is necessary with the increase of mobile users, digital applications and data networks. A cyber security problem can be viewed as a conflict-resolution scenario that typically consists of a security system and at least two decision makers (e.g. attacker and defender) that can each have competing objectives. For instance, the defender may be interested in ensuring that the system performs at or above a certain acceptable level. The attacker’s objective may be to disrupt the system and degrade it. Game theory is a well-established tool that can be used to analyze such problems. In this work, we present a brief survey of how game theory can be used to find appropriate strategies for both the attacker and the administrator (defender). We model the interactions between them as a stochastic game. Various formulations of game theory will be presented to deal with different cyber security situations. We will present mathematical models of security systems to analyze the system’s performance and to predict the likely behavior of key decision makers that influence/control the system. 1 INTRODUCTION The purpose of this paper will be to provide a brief survey of stochastic game methods in cyber security. The fast development of this area explains the abundance of literature and models. Due to our specific emphasis, andShow MoreRelatedStochastic Game Models Within Cyber Security- A Survey1651 Words   |  7 PagesStochastic game models in cyber security- a survey Kandethody Ramachandran and Zheni Stefanova University of South Florida Department of Mathematics and Statistics Tampa, FL 33620-5700 Abstract The internet is an integral way of conducting daily business from government agencies to entertainers. Protection of attack, damage, or unauthorized access is necessary with the increase of mobile users, digital applications and data networks. A cyber-security problem can be viewed as a conflict-resolution scenarioRead MoreThe Theory Of Conflict Management Theory2125 Words   |  9 Pagesdisagreement displayed in Scenario 10 is categorised as process conflict as it relates to how the work is done in a business. Looking at the interactionist view of conflict, some process and task conflicts can be seen as constructive and functional to employee performance. However the process conflict in this situation is impeding on work relationships leading to unproductivity. It is essential that a solution is made before workers become unhappy and lose motivation. Further harm can occur if the issueRead MoreGroup Dynamics4451 Words   |  18 Pagesfacilitator, can assist a group in accomplishin g its objective by diagnosing how well the group is functioning as a problem-solving or decision-making entity and intervening to alter the groups operating behavior. Because people gather in groups for reasons other than task accomplishment, group process occurs in other types of groups such as personal growth groups (e.g. encounter groups, study groups, prayer groups). In such cases, an individual with expertise in group process can be helpfulRead MoreThe Darfur Crisis Essay3078 Words   |  13 PagesIntroduction The â€Å"Responsibility to Protect† (R2P) is a concept that has its roots in the philosophy of â€Å"Human Security†. Human Security can be defined as focusing on the individual human being as the referent object of security as distinct from the nation-state. R2P and Human Security have gathered impetus in the international community both in academic and policy spheres with a view to these concepts being justifiers for humanitarian intervention. Taking realism as the securityRead MoreEssay about World of Board Games: Forbidden Island 1807 Words   |  8 PagesAs defined by the creators of the board game, the primary object of Forbidden Island is to, â€Å" . . . work together to keep Forbidden Island from sinking in order to buy enough time to capture its four treasures. Once . . . captured . . . (the team of adventurers) must make it to Fools’ Landing and escape by helicopter to win. If however, the island sinks before (the team) can complete (its) tasks, the mission ends in defeat!† Since a game like Forbidden Island was designed to encourage collaborationRead MoreAC131 Combined Reading6288 Words   |  26 Pages(MLC) 2015 Common Core AC100 Across Cultures Advance Sheet for Lesson AC131 Cultural Considerations of Negotiation 1. SCOPE a. This four hour lesson is intended for Army Leaders on the subject of cultural considerations of negotiation for conflict resolution. The lessons learned from Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) require that Soldiers at all levels of command participate as U.S. Military Representatives in meetings and negotiations with coalition partners, localRead MoreQuestions Related to Globalization2880 Words   |  12 Pagesindicates the mass movements of populations, goods , services and capitol spread out to new and different localities, but what if anything can the populations do to either control or modify these impulses? The purpose of this essay is to examine certain health issues as pandemic threats as a result of the globalization process and discuss ways that governments and nations can respond to such threats. Additionally, I will explore my personal opinions about what effective behaviors are necessary to successfullyRead MoreNegotiation: Game Theory and Games13514 Words   |  55 PagesNEGOTIATION Negotiation theory Last updated 9 months ago The foundations of negotiation theory are decision analysis, behavioral decision making, game theory, and negotiation analysis. Another classification of theories distinguishes between Structural Analysis, Strategic Analysis, Process Analysis, Integrative Analysis and behavioral analysis of negotiations. Individuals should make separate, interactive decisions; and negotiation analysis considers how groups of reasonably bright individualsRead MoreGame Theory Introduction17342 Words   |  70 PagesStrategies and Games Strategies and Games Theory and Practice prajit k. dutta The MIT Press Cambridge, Massachusetts . London, England  © 1999 Massachusetts Institute of Technology All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from the publisher. This book was set in Melior and MetaPlus by Windfall Software usingRead MoreFactors That Lead to the Achievement of Industrial Harmony, That Create the Environment for Best Practices in Management14180 Words   |  57 PagesCHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1. Introduction Industrial harmony has been viewed as an abstract concept. It is ideal and its existence is not felt in most organizations, as they are unstable and chaotic, resulting in tense working environment. This has been shown by the fact that most employers tend to believe they are the only ones who can be wronged. They overlook the fact that some of their practices could compromise relations with their employees. Management’s focus has been on the disciplinary