Dante's Concept of Hell

Dante basically describes Hell as 9 circles with each circle representing a different level of sin, varying from insignificant to very significant in nature. The first circle is called Limbo and is inhabited by the unbaptized and those who did not accept Christ. The second level is Lust and those who inhabit it are blown violently back and forth by a great storm. The third level is for the Gluttons who are forced to lie in a slush produced by a ceaseless icy rain. The fourth level is for the greedy and their punishment is fighting each other with heavy weapons that are attached to their chests. The fifth level is for the wrathful and their punishment is fighting each other in the river Styx. The sixth circle is for the heretics who are trapped in flaming tombs. The seventh level is for the violent and is divided into three different rings, those violent against people and property, those who comitted suicide, and those who are violent against God and nature. The eight level is for the fraudulent and is divided into ten different Bolgias, or levels. The ninth and final level is for those who were treacherous in life. They are frozen in a lake of ice, with Satan frozen in the middle of the lake.

Nostos

My Wikipedia project was over the theme of Nostos from Homer's The Odyssey. Nostos is the theme involving the return home of an epic hero from a foreign land, being shipwrecked, and having to go through many hard and difficult tasks to try and return. Nostos also involves trying to retain a certain identity when the hero does arrive home. In The Odyssey, Odysseus fights in the Trojan War, and upon his return he is shipwrecked on different islands. On these islands, he encounters different things that he and his crew must overcome, such as a monstrous cyclops, the song of the Sirens, or the Lotus-eaters. Once Odysseus does make it back home, he has to regain the loyalty of his servants and also gain back his wife and son. Nostos is also used today in many movies and forms of literature.

Similarities Between the Quran and the Bible

One might not believe there are many similarities between the Quran and the Bible, but there are actually tons of them! Both books recognize many of the same characters. One of the many examples is the story of Saul and Gideon being military leaders of Israel and of Saul being afraid to fight Goliath. Both books also recognize Jesus as being real but the Quran only believes he was a good man and does not believe him to be the savior. Both books also recount the same stories of creation. Both stories have a man being created by God out of dirt, woman being created out of man, both being told to eat from any tree except for the tree of knowledge, boht being ashamed after they eat the fruit from the tree. Another similar story is when Moses leaves some of the Hebrews who then leave Egypt worship worship a golden calf. Moses says, “Throw out your calf-idol, O Samaria! My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of purity? They are from Israel! This calf – a craftsman has made it; it is not God. It will be broken in pieces, that calf of Samaria.” A verse in Hosea 8:5-6 contains the same content as Surah 20.97 where Hosea refers to the Jeroboam calf and the Qur’an refers to the earlier calf. Both feature a prophet speaking to the Samaritan/Samaria promising to destroy the calf. These are just some of the many similarities between the Bible and the Qur'an.

The Relevance of the Bible Today

I believe that the New Testament of the bible is VERY relevant to modern times today. Although, in recent years it seems like the world is progressing towards a more bible-less centered society. All throughout the 20th Century and even still today the bible is used as a guideline for how we live our lives. We set forth our morals from how Jesus lived his life and try set forth an example of being Jesus-like to other people. Here are some quotes from Jesus in the New Testament:

• Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
•  If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.
•  But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 

From these quotes we can see that Jesus was humble, loving, and reverent. He loves the poor and wants to give to them. He loves his enemies and forgives those who wrong him. These are the principles that people today need to live by. It seems like there is hate everywhere in the world today whether it being protests in Ferguson, ISIS, or even the Democrats and Republicans battling each other in the political race. Now more than ever the new testament needs to be viewed as relevant to today's society.

21st Century Confucian Politics

In my opinion, it was very helpful to look at each candidate an compare their ideals to the ideas of Confucius in class this week. What was really great was it got us thinking about the different candidates and their different political beliefs and even spiritual beliefs. I didn't know that my candidate, Ben Carson, was as profoundly Christian as I thought he was and that makes me like him even more. It got some very good debates and ideas flowing around the room (some of the other debates we've had in class I thought were just kind of scattered). I don't believe however that any one candidate can have the same exact ideals of Confucius because there are so many. I also believe that some of the ideals might not relate to today's society since he was alive thousands of years ago and society has changed so much since then. 

Ben Carson

I personally believe that Ben Carson is the presidential candidate which encompasses the ideals of Confucianism the best. Carson has very good Jen (human goodness). Ben Carson loves people and wants to make this country great again. Carson is nice and respectful when attacked by other candidates or the liberal media, unlike Trump who seeks to put everyone else down for his own gain. Carson has a very strong sense of Chih (the knowledge of right and wrong). Carson condemns abortion as it is wrongfully killing unborn babies. Carson condemns recreational cannabis because he believes it is a gateway drug that leads to other drugs. Carson believes that all citizens should be able to own guns and to be able to defend themselves against an invasion. He truly cares about the citizens of the United States and for our well being. 

Seeing my eternal soul

Last night me, my dad, and my girlfriend were stopped at a stoplight in Destin, Florida while on vacation. We were rear ended by a woman who was going 50 miles an hour and who wasn't even looking when she hit us. One second we were talking and the next second the car was smashed between the car that hit us and the car in front of us. My dad suffered a quadriceps disruption, I suffered a head contusion, and my girlfriend suffered severe whiplash. I don't believe in the Buddhist "eternal soul" but I do believe in having an eternal soul and going to heaven. I thought when our car was hit that we were entering into our eternal souls and going to be with the Lord. I saw my life literally flash before my eyes no matter how cliche that sounds. I thank God for keeping us safe and somewhat uninjured (except for dad). We could've been seriously hurt or killed and it seems that all the trivial things in life now just don't seem as important.