Had to Do This to Make an Account

I believe the overall message of Henry David Thoreau´s “Solitude” is to differentiate solitude and loneliness which are totally different. It is more of a state of mind than something real. People around by other people would feel more loneliness than people who are physically alone. For Thoreau being in solitude is the best way to discover your mind and spirituality and is the best way to know yourself.

“The Virtues of Isolation”, written by Brent Crane, states that under the right circumstances being alone can provide significant psychological help. The article stated that scientists often associate isolation with negative outcomes due to it having adverse effects on the minds of children. However, when it is voluntarily pursued, it can be shown to have significant befits—some would even say its therapeutic. That temporarily isolating yourself gives you a chance to take a step back and take a good look at yourself. It alleviates the stress on our everyday lives and lets us relax. That the difference between solitude as therapy and solitude as misery depends on the quality of self-reflection that a person experiences, and the ability to reintegrate into social groups when their ready.

Christianity is a widespread and powerful religion because of its beginning in the Roman Empire. Factors contributing to this included spreading ideas without difficulty throughout the entire empire, the appeal of Christianity to the people, and the rule of Emperor Constantine.

I find that after spending time in solitude, I am able to serve others better. The inner solidarity borne out of a heart of solitude lessens my frustrations and enables me to accept others where they are.

When discussing the intertwining of church and state; soul liberty and freedom from religious belief, we must recognize that freedom and faith were at one point complementary ideas. Faith was once the foundation for freedom and vice versa. The Declaration of Independence clearly states, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal and endowed with certain inalienable rights." With these words from the Declaration of Independence, our founding fathers set up their vision of what this country would come to be. Among those rights, which are deemed “inalienable”, is the right of religious liberty. (Neumann, 1990: p. 241)

Friendship is integral to interpersonal relationships. Communities cannot be based on justice alone; friendship is the necessary binding agent that holds communities together. It is like the soul which powers the body. However, friendship is not something that appears immediately. The strength of friendship comes from the long-term cultivation of communal bonds. Thus, friendship is the greatest of the external goods. Aristotle explores the virtues, types, and benefits of friendship to explain why it is so precious.

Camus’ Siddhartha and Herman Hesse’s The Stranger have recurring experiences of solitude. Whether it be physical or mental, solitude plays a major role in allowing each protagonist reach a point of enlightenment. Through solitude, each protagonist goes through rebirth, their lowest point, and awakening, revealing things about themselves in the process. Although the two protagonists reach enlightenment in the end, the two have very different outlooks, Meursault is a reserved person who goes with the flow while Siddhartha is the opposite. The two works show that no matter what the initial outlook on life is, points of solitude are key to reaching a point of enlightenment in the end.

Religions take a hold on societies in different ways. Christianity started as a revitalization movement against the Roman hierarchy, and was comprised of mostly woman and the poor. The Roman Empire took up most of the Mediterranean and North Africa. With the death of Jesus, around 33 CE, came a new, unique, religion that was a spin off of Judaism but they believed that Jesus was the foretold Messiah. Although they were persecuted, Christianity took hold in the ancient world because it offered salvation, was fair to all, and preached love and peace.

Christ preached about the “Golden Rule”, which means to do unto others as you would have done to you. The Roman’s felt threatened by Christ’s popularity so they had him crucified on a cross. That’s when the cross became the symbol of Christ and his disciples spread his teachings. A institutional church was established in Rome over the next 400 years. Christians started spreading their religion throughout Europe.

-The promise of salvation attracted many, and it highly advanced the Christian church and then Christianity slowly became the official religion. At first, persecution was done to non-believers, but as time went on it became the

As the authors contend, the purpose of a democratic government was not to produce moral citizens, but rather, moral citizens had the duty of preserving and acting as the custodians of democracy. In this regard, the business of morality was effectively relegated to the realms of private concerns (Kramnick and Moore 151). Midway through this penultimate chapter, the book turns to demonstrating the problems created by the religious right. The discussion provides a historical account of the debate concerning the separation of the state and the church, and contends that the present religious right misapprehends American history, especially with regard to the framing of the constitution, and endeavors to distort both religion and politics by using religious or spiritual ties in achieving political

As Christianity was spread throughout Rome, people began to question the teachings of Jesus. Out of fear, officials arrested and killed a multitude of Christians as a result. The everyday plebeian became impressed with these people dying for a belief. Although persecutions became more common, the number of Christians stayed the same and maybe even grew because of the influx of polytheistic Romans converting to the monotheistic religion of Christianity. People were converting quicker than they were being killed off because of the likeable teachings of love, the bravery of these people dying because of what they believed in, and their appealing message to those not in the affluent classes.

When the boundary between Church and state is clouded, men may begin to “believe they are performing a bold action in killing anyone who does not accept its gods”

Thoreau opens "Solitude" with a melodious articulation of his pleasure in and sensitivity for nature. When he comes back to his home in the wake of strolling at night, he finds that guests have ceased by, which prompts him to remark both on his strict separation from others while at the lake and on the non-literal space between men. There is closeness in his association with nature, which gives adequate fraternity and blocks the likelihood of forlornness. The immensity of the universe puts the space between men in context. Thoreau brings up that on the off chance that we accomplish a more prominent closeness to nature and the heavenly, we won 't require physical nearness to others in the "station, the mail station, the tavern, the meeting-house, the school building" — places that offer the sort of organization that diverts and disperses. He remarks on man 's double nature as a physical element and as a scholarly observer inside his own particular body, which isolates a man from himself and adds encourage point of view to his separation from others. Also, a man is constantly alone when thinking and working. He finishes up the part by alluding to allegorical guests who speak to God and nature, to his own unity with nature, and to the wellbeing and imperativeness that nature gives.

     The next topic that we will discuss is the Christian’s involvement in matters relating to the division of church and state and religious liberty. I believe that a