Heavens Gate Essay

In the 1800s a Market Revolution began, changing the way in which America operated and in the midst of all that was a Second Great Awakening, causing people to once again, question their religious beliefs and practices. Paul Johnson and Sean Wilentz tell the story of Robert Matthews, or the Prophet Matthias and his followers. Matthias had an unconventional childhood, he became an orphan at a young age and was raised by church elders. He worked under one of the elders to learn the carpenter’s craft. He easily found work but had trouble keeping it because he was always preaching at his fellow workers about their sinful ways. Matthias was eager to make good but continually fell into misfortunes, “which led him on a prolonged and erratic religious journey” (49). The Kingdom of Matthias gained and lost members, had changes in beliefs, and was full of ever changing marriages. Although looking back on it now, Matthias’s messages and beliefs seem almost laughable, but at they time his followers found his message, ministry, and lifestyle very compelling.

The four pillars of the National Honor Society create a unique balance for any student that follows them. Personally, I excel in scholarship because I truly enjoy going to school and intend to go many more years in the future. My college interests involve the honors college at the university I am attending as well as a pre-medical path; therefore, my education, or scholarship will be a vital part of my college experience. In regards to the other three pillars of this Honor Society, service also adds balance to a student’s life. To serve others brings one a sense of integrity and an amazing feeling of generosity. Through the National Honor Society, I have learned many extraordinary ways that I can help my community whether it is something small

Hull, Bill. The Disciple-Making Church: Leading a Body of Believers On the Journey of Faith. Updated ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2010.

This surge of spiritual awakening brought some to question religion, specifically Christianity. In the years before the “Kingdom”, Robert Matthews “began putting it about that he was no Christian at all…He was in actuality, a prophesying Hebrew.”(Johnson, 64). This marked the beginning of his decent into the cult he called ‘The Kingdom of Matthias’. The Second Great Awakening marked a constitutional conversion of American religion. Many early groups put emphasis on the corruption of human beings, believing they could be saved only through the grace of God. These groups formed as instruments of reform, in reaction to urban growth and industrialization. However, it also put emphasis on the human ability to better their positions, thus creating amore optimistic view of humans and the human condition. Robert Matthews, now called Matthias, delivered a number of sermons regarding the path to forgiveness and just how he, being Matthias, would cast judgment upon all. “In short, Matthias would damn the enemies of the Jews – above all, the meek Christian devils and their disobedient women.” (Johnson,

Hunter’s first essay, titled “Christianity And World-Changing” attempts to refute the common assumption that cultures can be changed “one heart at a time” or, in other words, from the bottom up. Hunter argues the contrary, that cultures are usually changed from top to bottom through small networks of elites. These networks create space for thinking about an alternative culture, which allows our thinking to then spreads outward (p. 78). In other words, Hunter explains his want and anticipation for Christian leaders to come forth and create the foundation for a more powerful change in culture. However, he explains that this needs to be done without resorting to force or imposition. He later calls the “Constantinian error” (p. 152).

In our book “American Jesus” by Stephen Prothero, the chairman of the religious department at Boston University, has published an engaging book that explains how the Son of God “Jesus Christ” became the nation’s most known and forming celebrity figure. While the United States of America was founded on religious freedom, Prothero explains to us that America has more active Christians than any other nation in history. And while this nation has been somewhat of a hedonistic society, Americans are more interested in the figure of Jesus than their Puritan forefathers, who were, as Prothero writes, "a God-fearing rather than Jesus-loving people." But that’s no surprise; Prothero warns us that Jesus may rule the country, but the people in the country

First, Heaven Gate have a persuasive leader-Do, who foster loyalty. Do said in the video that if the members want to go to the heaven, they have to follow him, because he is the man who have the key now. Because the members already have the dream of entering the heaven, Do’s control of the “key” made them follow him quite well, even some of the group members called him the twentieth- century Jesus.

Heaven’s Gate is a California-centered notoriously known ‘destructive doomsday cult’ consisting of women and men ranging from 26 to 72 years old. On the 23rd of March, 1997, 21 women and 18 men voluntarily committed suicide in three groups on three consecutive days (B.A. Robinson, 2009). Heaven’s Gate was the latest of three organisations founded by Marshall Herff Applewhite and Bonnie Lu

Arcadia refers to a Utopian ideal: the idea of harmony with nature and the entire world. The term is derived from a Greek province, which bears the same name. The Province’s mountainous landscape and history of containing a sparse population of farmers later caused the word “Arcadia” to develop into a poetic byword for an idyllic vision of unspoiled natural beauty. The inhabitants are regarded as living without pride and avarice that corrupted other regions of the world. The inhabitants of Arcadia are regarded as living close to nature, uncorrupted by civilization, and being virtuous. In other words they live in a place that many people would consider a paradise.

Characters in a novel are normally not just static. They develop in myriad ways ranging from intelligence to physical characteristics. Charles Marlow from Heart of Darkness is one of these types of characters. Marlow’s development is not like most characters. His changes are not simple they are multidimensional. These changed qualities add up to create an overall sense of enlightenment. What exactly is Marlow’s enlightenment is something very hard to distinguish as there multiple definitions for enlightenment. However, Enlightenment can be best defined as a state in which one person becomes more knowledge or more spiritually aware that is greater than themselves. Therefore, it is possible to say that there many degrees in which a person is

A Book Review of “Turn the Ship Around! A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders”

The New Testament leaders are an example of how church leaders of today should also behave and work[8]. They ought to be able to teach, guide the believers in the way of God and nurture their spiritual gifts. The New Testament leaders had to boldly defend the word of God in case of any false teaching. Basing on this New Testament leadership, it is important to make sure that any believer appointed to the leadership office has the laid down qualifications[9].

     Many people wonder if heaven exists, and if so, what it consists of. There are many theories that will tell you different stories of heaven. In the bible heaven it is named Eden, where man can walk and talk at the side of God. Heaven is an intangible place where only the true ideals of life can be realized. On earth there is no way to know the true meaning of life. People can never fully comprehend the reason behind existence. The human world is full of many outside sources, such as evil, corrupting many lives. There will never be peace on earth due to that corruption. Many people are envious of other lives and are bound by senseless ideals. They spend much of their life with the want for

It was shortly before dawn in January 1997. I woke up to my mother’s loud agonizing cry. My mother’s brother Godwin was dead. My mother hit herself to the ground and swore that his death must be avenged. I wondered why she wanted his death avenged and what the cause of his death might be. Uncle Godwin loved to drink himself into a stupor. He loved the local palm wine and drank all manner of alcoholic drinks. “Why are his eyes always yellowish?” I always wondered. I was too young to understand the toll his drunkenness had taken on his body. One thing I knew then, was that no one can drink the way he did and not die of something. My mother believed that he was killed spiritually by his enemies. She believed he would avenge his death in the afterlife. “That is rubbish!” I thought to myself. At that moment, I knew my family needed a redemptive intervention. I believed he died from complications due to his unhealthy lifestyle.

Spirituality plays a very sub sequential role in my personal life. First of all, spirituality helps me govern what is right and what is wrong in my life. Many of the decisions that I make everyday, I believe are a direct result of my spirituality. For as long as I can remember I have been raised to believe that I should live my life the way God would want me to live it. Therefore, whenever I have a decision to make, I have to consider, what is right? And what is wrong? Second of all, it also helps me to feel more secure about what will happen to my spirit once my life here on earth is over. I believe that there is a better place for our spirits once we leave this earth.