Old Testament Vs. Hellenic Divine Intervention :: essays research papers

Old Testament vs. Hellenic Divine Intervention The Old Testament and Hellenic texts we have studied have numerous examples of divine intervention. The range and complexity in human affairs that these interventions occur have similar, yet different attributes. Both texts describe divine intervention as a way of explaining "why things happen(ed) and being "chosen" by God or gods to fulfill a destiny. Both also see divine intervention as something that can not be understood by humans; God or the gods have their reasons why people are "chosen" and why certain gifts, events, and catastrophes happen and we will never understand the reasoning. Differences in the texts stem from the reasons they are the same; why certain people are chosen, why events happen, etc. The range and complexity in human affairs of divine intervention as described in the Hellenic texts and the Old Testament are similar because of the interference in human affairs, yet they are different because of why certain people are chosen to fulfill a destiny. For instance, in the Old Testament, God chooses Noah and his family to be the only survivors after the flood that wipes out the earth. His destiny was to build the ark and take a pair of every living creature to help repopulate the earth after everything is wiped out. This is similar to Oedipus at Colonus, in the Hellenic texts, because the gods choose Oedipus to save the city of Colonus from his own sons. They differ because God, in the Old Testament, chooses rather blindly. He does not choose people for any reason except that is who He wanted. If He does choose, it is based on goodness or loyalty to Him. The gods of Hellenic texts, like in Oedipus at Colonus, the gods choose Oedipus because of his wisdom and his family line. The Hellenic texts choose based on prestige, family, and honor. Another example of this is the story "Joseph" in the Old Testament. Joseph was chosen to be a powerful ruler in Egypt for no reason whatsoever, just because God wanted him to be. In The Illiad, this would never happen, Achilles is chosen to defeat Hector because of his prestige, honor, and family line. Achilles is not chosen because Zeus just wanted him to. Not just anybody could have killed Hector, it had to be someone famous. In the Old Testament, divine intervention, especially in "Genesis," plays a very important part. For example, in "The Creation of the Universe," God wills everything into being. "God said, ‘Let there be light,'" (Genesis 1:5) "Then God said, ‘Let the earth produce growing things,'" (Genesis 1:11)

Letters Home From Vietnam Review Essay

The powerful emotions triggered through watching this film can be acknowledged without question. What I found the most interesting was the use of real news footage from that time period that aired on major news networks, swaying people’s opinions about our justification for being in Vietnam. Being able to view that gave me a 1st hand look into soldiers’ opinions of the war as well as protests and how they differed then. The actors reading the leaders with pure emotion and feeling in order to accurately portray how much these soldiers put into these letters was remarkable because I felt as though I was experiencing that time period as if it were real and the soldiers were scrambling to write as I watched on. The stories they depicted throughout their words definitely provided for a flurry of reactions. I wanted to be happy for those men honored for combat, living through the horrors of hell, and seeing the relief on their faces when being honorably discharged and sent home. I was equally and oppositely somber, however, for those men’s lives stolen in combat, for those permanently crippled and bitter, to hear of the unspeakable horrors awaiting prisoners of war, as well as letters from optimistic soldiers killed in action shortly after. Another thing I found effectively executed by this film was the specific numbers given. They showed the variation in the number of soldiers deployed to Vietnam over the course of the war, as well as the rising KIA numbers and wounded in combat. A gruesome part of this war as well was the thick jungle that the soldiers had to navigate through blindly until ambushed by the Vietcong, and I thought the film did an excellent job of revealing that to the public. One of the most powerful moments of the film was when a soldier, grieving over his superior officer exclaimed that â€Å"he’ll be given a silver star, and somehow that is supposed to suffice for his life being taken.†

Take a stand Essay

Energy drinks have become very popular amongst today’s youth. America’s youth has easy access to these dangerous drinks and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at this time does not regulate the amount of caffeine that is allowed into these beverages (Cool, 2011). These drinks contain high levels of caffeine and other herbs that have ill effects on ones heart, along with high sodium and sugar levels that can adversely affect ones overall health.The FDA on should regulate the allowable caffeine content in these drinks and energy drinks should be prohibited for children under the age of 18 years. The dangerous ingredients, ill side effects, and the deadly amounts of caffeine found in these drinks will be discussed in this paper. It is important that Americans become educated about the deadly drinks that are being marketed as safe, and pushed on our youth (Clair, 2013). There are similar ingredients found in all of the energy drinks on the market today.Some of these are Caffeine, Guarana, Taurine, Sugar, Genseng, and Bitter orange (Rath, 2012). Caffeine has adverse effects on the body such as nausea, heart palpitations, headaches, sleeplessness, hypokalemia, rabdomylosis and atrial and ventricular tachycardia that can both be deadly (Rath, 2012). Guarana, while not as harmful, still has many adverse effects of its own, some of which are: nervousness, tachycardia, anxiety, chest pain and cardiac dysrhthmias (Moodie, 2009). No evidence at this point has shown Taurine to have any adverse effects on one’s health.The high sugar content promotes obesity, diabetes and cavities. Ginseng has effects such as hypertension, tachycardia, heart palpitations, insomnia, vaginal bleeding and breast tenderness (Rath, 2012). Bitter orange has been linked to heart attacks, strokes, seizures, disrythmias, and migraine headaches. Almost every ingredient found in these drinks can have deadly side effects. Of the above mentioned ingredients, five of the six have s imilar effects on the body. All of these combined into one drink makes a deadly combination especially when used in excess.There are other side effects that can be caused from energy drinks aside from the deadly cardiac effects that these drinks cause. Because caffeine is a stimulant and the other ingredients with the same effects on the body, these drinks cause high blood pressure, elevated heart rates, liver damage, and even death, just to name a few (Cool, 2011). There has also been a link to women experiencing late miscarriages as well as stillbirth and drinking energy drinks (Claire, 2013). Drinking energy drinks can also give a person a false sense of sobriety when mixed with alcohol.This could lead to a person driving more intoxicated than they feel that they are, thus; increasing risk for alcohol related crashes (Moodie, 2009). Caffeine is a stimulant that is found in many products that we consume daily. In small amounts it can be safe and works as an energy booster in some cases. â€Å"Caffeine found in energy drinks can range from 80 to 300mg in an 8 ounce serving† (Rath, 2012, p. 72). The main problem with this is that most energy drinks are sold in cans sizes that range from 16 to 24 ounces.This doubles or triples the amount of caffeine a person is consuming. The FDA limits the amounts of caffeine that soda companies are allowed to put into soda beverages to 71mg per 12 ounces (Cool, 2011). The same is not true for energy drinks, there is no limit placed on the amount of caffeine that companies such as Red Bull or Monster can place in their energy drinks. Teenagers and children are ingesting unsafe levels of caffeine mixed with other dangerous ingredients and the FDA has turned a blind eye to this growing problem, in turn; putting our youth at risk for death.Adults must wake up and realize that there is a poison in soda machines and grocery stores across America, and our children have easy access to it. Caffeine is an addictive drug that has been made readily available to our children in alarming amounts. The FDA must regulate the amount of caffeine and other dangerous ingredients allowed or ban the selling of these drinks to minors, in order to prevent ill health effects to our children. The public needs to be educated on the deadly side effects that these drinks cause and demand action by the FDA.