Fraternity

The definition of fraternity is as follows a local or national organization of male students, primarily for social purposes, usually with secret initiation and rites and a name composed of two or three Greek letters or another primary definition is any group or class of persons having common purposes, interests, etc. When put into a complete world view, the brotherhood of all people exists regardless of conflict. The people of this planet will be joined by one common aspect regardless of all other, we all inhabit the same Earth. The world can be seen as one continuous band of brotherhood even through separated by borders and different cultures. i would draw the parallel between fraternity and religion. Each country can be seen as a different fraternity, speaking as fraternities as they are seen on college campuses, the brotherhood exists in the population being the members of the fraternity. In this fraternity, both sexes are included. As with each different religion, Islam, Buddhism, etc these can also be seen as a symbolic fraternity. Each religion or fraternity brings something different to each member, identity, community and social bonds. Both fraternities and religion offer similar benefits such as identity, belonging and support for their members. regardless of the country, religion or fraternity, all people are part of a community that relies on each other for many social rewards. Each of these has the connection of brotherhood.

World Religion and their Deities

While I was working on my website paper, I discovered this site where many major religions were showed with their deities and creation stories. I found it interesting how different they were but yet the striking similarities between them as well. The first discussed was Christianity grouped with Judaism. These two religions have the most similarities, both being monotheistic and using the Bible for the majority of their faith. Since I knew most of these two religions, I was most interested on what the rest of the site had to offer. The next religion discussed was Islam. Abraham was discussed into detail and how Islam had many continuities of the Bible. The five obligations to being a Muslim were also discussed which I found the most interesting. The Five Pillars were explored in detail due to being the most important aspect of Islam. The next religion addressed was Zoroastrianism. I had never heard of this religion but it was most popular in ancient Persia and had considerable influence on Christianity. Zoroastrianism is a diminishing religion but still exists with major alterations. Hinduism is a diverse religion that follows three distinct principles. You can worship Krishna, Shiva, or follow a Brahman and the sacred texts and try to find Ultimate Reality. Hinduism revolves around a set of four sacred texts known as the Vedas. Sikhism is a relatively small religion with about 20 million followers in northern India. The religion was meant to bridge the gap between Hindu's and Muslims and cut out social caste and standing and look inward for enlightenment. All of these religions have very different deities yet worship and find identity through their certain communities. I found the similarities and differences very interesting.

Jane Addams

Jane Addams helped hundreds of women gain a life in the city of Chicago. She took women into her house and taught them how to live independently. Addams taught women how to get jobs, and how to survive in a big city. Although Addams was a deeply religious individual, I do not believe that this was a religious mission. Addams didn't think that women needed to be "saved" or protected but rather how to live their life to the fullest. Addams did not try to push her religious views on these women but taught them basic survival skills. Addams believed that everyone was valuable and should be given a chance to live a successful, rewarding life. Jane Addams' life goal was to make women independent was based on morals, not religion. She believed it was her duty to help others less fortunate. This might have stemmed from her religious background but this does not make her life project a religious based goal.

The Value of Silence

Within the Quaker faith, it based on the oddest of values, silence. These religious people find God and understanding by sitting with others that share similar views without doing much talking. Individuals will sit in silence until they have something very important and informative to say that will benefit the whole group. One interesting aspect of this group is that there is no leader to guide the group through worship. The leadership is spread equally throughout the group letting their own personal thoughts "guide" the discussion. This form of religion holds a lot of importance in reflection and solitude. Everyone is allowed to think in silence but also share important thoughts with others in the group. Quakers do not use the bible for worship but let the "inner light" speak through them. In a world full of religions where speaking is the sole way to communicate their ideas, Quakers have decided to honor the silence. Quakers maintain that everyone is equal and everyone is worthy of their own personal beliefs. Freedom of speech is the most important aspect of Quakerism but this freedom is found through silence.

Early Feminism??

Being a feminist, I found the article by Margaret Fell very intriguing; she provided a substantial amount of evidence supporting women's rights. She brings to the readers attention how no where in the bible does it suggest that men are stronger than women. Fells defends women with regards to the slight mishap with the Serpent and the Garden suggesting that both man and woman were tempted and both ate from the tree. Fell picks out numerous Biblical passages where women speak out and the Lord is pleased and listens. She also suggest that the Church may be represented by a woman. Fell dictates that the sex of an individual is no reason to suppress their rights. Fell demonstrates God and Jesus's love for women by giving countless examples of such and explaining each of them in detail. Fell uses the Bible to prove equality of both sexes and does so in a spectacular and informative manner. I respect Fell for speaking out in a society that disregarded women's rights. She used the resources that had to make a strong argument in her and all women's favor.

Rastafarism

The lecture on rastafarism intrigued me immensely. I was very interested in the idea of a religion centered around music. Rastafarians connect to their deity through their playing and listening to music. This is a very different approach to religion than we have talked about in the past. Rastafarians do not care what others think of them but rather enjoy their religion and love their individuality. I feel that Rastafarians become closer to each other because they differ so vastly within the religious community. Rastafarism took a man and made him into their God, worshiping him in different ways than any other religion. This religion was posed towards those that were suppressed and brought them together into a community. This religion worships everything wonderful in the world, peace, love and equality. I felt Bob Marley was a perfect Rastafarian to examine due to his deep belief in Rastafarism. You could feel his love for his religion through his music. You could see how moved he was by the religion he sang about. It is a beautiful thing to see a religion move someone so much as Rastafarians. I believe that other religions should focus more on love and peace, rather than other topics such as hate.