Bichlorides

Hindu God Lord Krishna, as of course a hypothetical entity, is either a Liar or a Satan. The following simple argumentation supports this claim.

1. In Bhagavad Gita Krishna says that he is responsible for everything.
2. Also he claims that he is almighty.
3. He admits that there is evil in the world.
4. From 1 and 3 we can conclude that Krishna is responsible for the evil in the world.

However, why should an almighty and morally supreme God introduce evil in the world ? (Why, from the very beginning, is everyone not a philosophised yogi ?) He is thus either non-almighty or a Satan playing a game with innocent beings for his own entertainment.

About the Author

Born: 31 Dec 1979

Creator of Superultramodern Science & Philosophy

Founder & President
British Superultramodern Scientific Institution

Chairman & Director
Superultramodern Scientific Ltd
Reg in England No. 5541466

email: kedarkj1@rediffmail.com

Residence: Cambridge, England

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As expected, though a bit later than most people thought, dongles are more just an electronic device and have become a fashion statement. Being hailed as “the must have accessory” of this season, a fashionable dongle design is being offered by O2, the mobile broadband provider.

O2 had teamed up with none other than the House of Holland to design the dongle. The label is owned by 25 year old, Henry Holland, who gained popularity in 2007 for his T-shirts with the slogan “Frankie says..”.

The new dongle will be exclusively available with O2 pay as you go deals from Feb 27 onwards & only until stocks last. The dongle is black and white polka dotted & has the blue House of Holland logo, making it a cut above the rest as a technological fashion accessory.

Henry Holland who designed the new dongle has moved from re-creating 80’s fashions to fashioning mobile broadband and says the new dongle is something everyone including the likes of his friends would need and he is really happy to have designed the same.

Now that someone has come out with the much awaited product, hopefully we will see more variety and style in the dongle, a product being used by a huge number of people now.

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Part 1: The Collapse of the Church Culture.
By Maurice Goulet

Having traveled the four corners of this country, I have witnessed firsthand, the imminent demise and the collapse of the unique culture in North America that has come to be called church. This church culture has become confused with biblical Christianity, both inside the church and out. A growing number of people are leaving the institutional church for a new reason. They are not leaving because they have lost faith. They are leaving the church to preserve their faith. Not only do we not need God to explain the universe, we don’t need Jesus Christ to operate the church. It’s written in the word that in the last days of this age Christ is outside of the Church knocking and looking for anyone who is willing to let him in. Many operate like giant machines, with church leaders serving as mechanics. The Lord doesn’t have to show up to get done what’s being done. People no longer want the powerless God of the modern church.

Some are asking, how Do We Do Church Better? All the effort to fix the church misses the point. You can build the perfect church and they still won’t come. People are not looking for a great church. Most of the growth of mega churches represents people transferring from small fishing boats to cruise ships. The real question should be, how Do We Deconvert from Churchianity to Christianity?

I have observed that there is a spiritual awakening occurring in America. However, it is not informed by Christian theology, and it’s not happening in the church. God is pulling end runs around the institutional North American church to get to people in the streets. God is still inviting us to join him on this quest, but it is the invitation to be part of a movement, not a religious club.

The Church Growth Movement that began in the 1970’s had both some things that were right and some things that were wrong. Here’s one of the wrong things: Unfortunately, it fell victim to an idol as old as the Tower of Babel, the belief that we are the architects of the work of Christ. As a result, we have the best churches men can build, but are still waiting for the church that only Jesus Christ can get credit for. I say this because I hear the wrong question asked frequently. How Do We Grow This Church? How Do We Get Them to Come to Us?

In their quest to be attractive to potential congregants, churches added staff, added programs, added buildings (including full health clubs), all to improve their market position. And it worked! A study released in 2002 found that one-half of churchgoers attended churches in the top 10 percent of church size.

Keep in mind all of this has been done with what results? Diminishing returns! In other words, overall church attendance continues to decline. We can keep on this track just to watch even more dismal results, or, we can change our focus to: How Do We Transform Our Community? How Do We Hit the Streets with the Gospel?
The Pharisees’ evangelism strategy sounds eerily familiar. Their approach to sharing God was, “Come and get it”. Jesus’ evangelism strategy directly challenged the Pharisees’ approach. Instead of “Come and get it” it was “Go get’em”.

Jesus’ strategy was to go where people were already hanging out. This is why he went to weddings, parties, and religious feast day celebrations. Taking the gospel to the streets means we need church where people are already hanging out. We need a church in every mall, every Wal-Mart super center, every Barnes and Noble.

Bottom line: we’ve got to take the gospel to the streets. This is the only appropriate mission response to the collapse of the church culture. I am not talking about short forays into ports off of the cruise ship. I am speaking of an intentional 24/7 church presence in the community.

We need to go where people are already hanging out and be prepared to have conversations with them about the great love of our lives. This will require our shifting our efforts from growing churches into transforming communities. They’re not coming to us. We’ve got to go to them.

The first Reformation was about freeing the church. The new Reformation is about freeing God’s people from the church (the institution). The original Reformation decentralized the church. The new Reformation decentralizes ministry.

The historic Reformation distinguished Christians one from the other. The current Reformation distinguishes followers of Jesus Christ from religious people. In India and other places these people are called “Great Commission Christians” to distinguish them from mere pew sitters.

Today, ministry is being defined largely in church terms and lay people often being viewed as functionary resources to get church work done. The collapse of the church culture and the emergence of kingdom growth as a paradigm for renewal spell the end of an era of church members playing support roles. Many clergy just don’t get this. They view the recruitment difficulties they are experiencing as a motivational issue rather than understanding the significant shift in how people are making decisions about how they will spend their lives.

I propose that we begin studying the culture of the people we are ministering to. North American culture is increasingly postmodern. The church in North America is thoroughly modern (i.e., out of touch with its surrounding culture). The result of the modern church’s form of spirituality is a North American church that is largely on a head-trip. This is at the heart of why the lifestyles and values of people in the church mirror so closely the lifestyles and values of people in the larger culture. We have a rational faith. The test for orthodoxy typically focuses on doctrinal stances, not character and spiritual connectedness to Christ and others.

In keeping with modernism, Christians in North America practice their faith in a segmented approach, separated from other parts of life (business, family, and so forth). This is why we go to “church” to do our spiritual activity. This is why we don’t do spiritual formation at home. That’s what the church is for. After all, spiritual “education” should be left to the professionals who have the training and credentials for it.

The end result is parents unable to talk to their kids about God, church members who take their teenagers to church (believing that this activity inoculates them against the influence of a pagan culture) but don’t talk about life implications of faith, couples who are embarrassed to pray together – the list goes on and on. True Christianity starts in the home and is built upon the following three truths. First, God is no respecter of persons. Everyone in the church is an integral part of the Body and is no more or less important then any other. Second, every Christian home can become a center for fellowship. Neighborhood fellowships build strong communities and become centers of outreach for those who are seeking Spiritual nourishment, but do not have a church of their own to attend. Third, every Church building with a local pastor should be a training center to support the home fellowships. This approach will give the local pastor the time to work with those who have the ability to minister to small groups and at the same time build unity within the church.

Maurice Goulet is the Author of Lord Of Darkness ~ Lord Of Light.(Unfolding The Signs Of The Times And The Hope Of A New World) Now available Online at www.CDBN.com.

About the Author

Maurice Goulet is an ordained Minister and the founder of The Chosen Path Home Fellowship Ministries. He teaches and writes an online newsletter on the principles of building a successful home fellowsip program. He is also the Author of Lord Of Darkness ~ Lord Of Light. (Unfolding The Signs Of The Times And The Hope Of A New World)
Now available Online at www.CDBN.com.

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It’s been forecast that the largest 685 skiing mountains will be decreased to 390 by 2047. Morgana Gallo reported that tourism will notice the pain long before that, not due to a want of precipitation simply from a general shrinkage in buying ability linked to the rising cost of oil. And what about rising temperatures? Experts have showed that a doubling of carbon dioxide levels will increase ground temps by 5 – 5 degrees. Even so there remain some unanswered queries. The speed of climate change and the consequence on climate. Several Celsius warming in the last 100 years has not been recorded over the last one million years. During the ending of the glacial period 21000 years ago the increase of 3 degrees was during a period of seven to 8 thousand yrs. Prior to that Hautacam and Les Contamines-Montjoie were under thick ice and Alpe d Huez was similar to Antarctica.

Therefore what what does the future bring for mid mountain skiing domains areas? Fuel problems will begin to be felt by 2016 – 18, leading to increased costs for Chamonix chalets, ski transfer businesses and skiing lift firms alike. The majority of the economy hinges upon oil and the French imports 95 percent. The current total amounts to 3 percent of GDP. When the price of crude oil steps up as expected that will constitute 39 % of GDP, one can envisage the recession. The French Alps will see the price of agrarian commodities rising, plant species will modify following a change in precipitation. Lots of people will leave the region because of the summertime heat. Hydro power will be a worthwhile supply of power on the other hand it is not obvious that it will be a boon since there will be much less snow, a lot of water in the winter seasons and less in the summer.

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Texas Exotic Hunting is a popular sport in this state. Hog hunting in Texas and dove hunting in Texas are both considered exotic.

Have you ever tried to hunt a hog? These wild pigs can be fierce and furious. Can you imagine a wild hog charging you with thunderous speed, hooves slashing with a head the size of Texas swinging back and forth in the air. I can!

This grunting and squealing pig is an enormous beast! He came charging out of the brush right in front of me. Now being from up north this startled me, no it scared the ……right out of me. I dropped my bow and took off as fast as I could, climbing a small tree. Now I know that hogs can not climb trees, but as I sat perched in the tree the only thing running through my mind was the old phase “when pigs fly” and believe you me I was waiting for this pig to fly!

No, they can’t fly can they? The nasty wild hog stomped around the base of this little tree waiting for m. As it stomped it rooted up the ground around the tree. I would image all the noise it was making was to let me that I was in his territory.

You are probably laughing at me as you read this. But I swear this was the largest meanest and wildest pig that was ever put on this planet!

Now not to far away was a party of hunters who had heard all the racket and noise from me yelling and the pig snorting. They came running down the trail to see what was going on. It must have been a sight! What with me in the tree, my bow scattered thirty feet away, and this hog stomping around the base of the tree, just waiting to devour me.

I am not sure how long I was stuck in this tree, but it seemed like a life time. My Texas exotic hunting adventure was getting off to a fine start.

With the sound of the other hunters coming down the trail, the mean old hog must have figured it was out numbered because it charged off into the bush.

My new found hunting friends told me that Texas exotic hunting required a guide, and that these hogs could be a handful for the hunters who had little or no experience, especially if you were hunting with a bow. I’m thinking now someone tells me this.

They said that bows were OK for white tail, but with the short range of the bow one should really have a better weapon. They also mentioned that one should have a good understanding of wild hogs.

Picking up my bow I peered into the brush looking to see if my little friend was still around. I figured that I was pretty safe as the other four hunter all had rifles.

Just as I thought, the wild snorting hog had run away to fight another day and torment someone else. I had already decided my next trip would be with a guide as I was not ready to go and get cornered by a wild hog again.

The guide that was with the hunters gave me a card which had directions to his lodge. I told him I’d be in contact real soon!

Finding my jeep was no easy task but I did manage. I headed off to the guides lodge where I was met by a very friendly lady at the office. She explained all the costs for a guided trip.

As I signed all the paper work, I looked forward to my next experience. The hunters who had came to my aid had just arrived back at camp and they were still howling about my Texas exotic hunting experience.

That evening around a roaring camp fire I told my story about my encounter with the largest wild hog on the planet. Every one got a good laugh and I made a few good friends over this little incident.

Oh by the way I got my hog with the help of my guide. But that first big one got away to torment its next victim

About the Author

Tom Strayhorn is one of the few real cowboys left so why not saddle up and come visit him at Cowboys-n-Campfires

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Michael Jordan.s son to play at Illinois

A great number of betting afficionados may have encountered the phrase “offshore sports betting”, though some may not be entirely certain what that refers to. A foreign gambling website basically acts outside the territory of any specific nation or alternatively it could mean an internet gambling web site that has all of their host computer inside the borders of a land where internet based gambling isn’t at the moment unlawful. Succinctly therefore, it is a gambling agency running outside the area of the participant. Internet betting sites are mostly regulated via 3 governing bodies. These agencies are the OSGA (the Offshore Gaming Association), IGC (Interactive Gaming Council) and the Fidelity Trust Gaming Association (the FTGA).

The OSGA is in fact an unbiased watchdog office which audits the thriving overseas sports gaming business, they want to afford sports gamblers the means to easily find good internet organizations to play betting games with. It aims to champion consumer’s rights, moreover they charge no joining or annual costs. The agency are an extremely well-qualified and nonpartisan third party association who voice non-biased impressions, founded on customer feedback, independent investigation, phone chats, inside prompts also imparts industry information.

The IGC are a non commercially driven organization. The administration was established to supply a forum for curious people to talk over topics and also to further collective concerns in the international online sports gaming business, to ensure civil and healthy professional standard procedures and habits which endeavor to heighten customer confidence in internet based wagering merchandise and benefits, also to aid as the industry’s public strategy defender and the Interactive Gaming Council also provides an info clearing house.

The Interactive Gaming Council have made a name for promoting honesty, consistency and also solidity by reason of the principles it demonstrates, also its allure to moral businesses. The IGC regulates offshore betting via championing a characteristic ten step general policy instructions and bills sports gaming business enterprises a license fee to feature the council’s logo. Vexed gamers can also state any of their challenges to the IGC.

The Fidelity Trust Gaming Association has been set up in order to generate a benchmark which will improve the transactions of online gambling websites. The Interactive Gaming Council suggest that doing business entirely with good enterprises, they can build a membership of the fairest and most expert online gambling companies all over the planet.

To summarize, there are organizations that coordinate the practises of web based gambling and which should through time aid to assuage most of the insecurities held by cynics. Internet based betting internet sites are at present consistently trustworthy, in as much as personal details aren’t submitted also the compensation not to mention the odds are equivalent to a normal Vegas-type sportsbet. These sites eliminate traveling, but keep the atmosphere of a Vegas style gambling website, however nowadays you are able to bet in your home.

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Writing articles for the sake of writing them online and hoping to get them noticed isn’t enough these days. You need to be competitive. With a lot of search engine optimisation experts out there waiting to link your website to promote it, surely you won’t have a problem. But, still, you made a mistake. One thing about Search Engine Optimisation Melbourne is that it is not only about links. It’s about quality content. Readers must be attracted to your site because of its fine quality. People come back to your site to read the stuff you write about because you have quality in your work. Now, if you do have the quality I’m talking about then, the rest is easy. Having all the standards met with regards to your articles, then SEO or Search Engine Optimisation experts would be delighted to help you with that matter since it is now very easy to link your website to a certain search engine. And once you have the right keyword, any user around the world would see your website on top of the search results list. Beat that. Now, you have the edge, both on quality writing and on quality marketing or advertising strategies with the use of search engine optimisation.

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When I observe most colleagues and friends working on their PC’s they mostly use the mouse as they are unaware of the powerful Windows keyboard shortcuts that will make their lives so much easier. Some people might be aware of the keyboard shortcuts, but they are used to be working mostly with the mouse and old habits are hard to let go.

In this article I will take things step by step so you can learn the keyboard shortcuts that are required to navigate your way around the Windows operating system.

Let’s assume your machine is starting up and due to a faulty mouse or some other related problem your system cannot be accessed with the mouse. A user that is not using keyboard shortcuts on a regular basis will be completely lost. Ok it’s relatively cheap to replace the mouse, but what if you had to quickly perform a task that cannot wait until a new mouse is acquired or the problem is fixed?

Navigating the Start Menu in Windows XP

I will firstly explain how to launch an application without the use of the mouse and instead use keyboard shortcuts. Immediately after system startup if you are required to log in, type out your password and press the Enter key. Once the system have fully initialized you will be presented with the Windows Desktop. As an example we will launch Notepad. Follow the steps exactly as explained below:

Press Ctrl and Esc to show the Start menu or press the Windows Logo key. Now press the Up Arrow until you can see the selection rectangle moving upwards in the Start menu. Once the selection rectangle enters the Start menu press the Left Arrow to move to the left section of the Start menu. Then press the Down Arrow until “All Programs” is selected. Press the Right Arrow to expand the “All Programs” menu. Press the Down Arrow until “Accessories” is selected. Press the Right Arrow to expand the accessories menu. Now press the Down Arrow until the Notepad menu item is selected and the press Enter. This will cause the Notepad application to launch.

Armed with this basic keyboard shortcut knowledge you will be able to launch any application without the use of the mouse.

Moving Around the Desktop

Frequently users place icons on the desktop to quickly access some application, files or folders they regularly use. What now if the mouse packs up and you have to get to that file? Here is how to make use of the Windows keyboard shortcuts to get that done:
Depending on the current situation different steps might be required so keep in mind that you do not have to do all the steps.

Press the Windows Logo key and M simultaneously to minimize all Windows. Press Ctrl and Esc simultaneously and then press Esc again. (Only required under certain conditions so you might only need to perform this step if you do not get the desired results from the step below). Press the Tab key and release it. Keep on pressing and releasing it until you see a “focus rectangle” surrounding one of the icons on the desktop. If there are a lot of icons on the desktop you might need to look carefully if any receives the focus indicated by the focus rectangle. Also occasionally use the arrow keys to see if you can move between different icons if it is difficult to notice the icon with the focus rectangle. Normally the focus will move between the Windows Taskbar and the last icon that had the focus (being selected) on the desktop when the Tab key is pressed. Once you got the “focus rectangle” on any icon on the desktop it is just a matter of moving to the icon of your choice using the arrow keys. When the required icon got the focus or is selected press the Enter key to open the file, folder or launch a program.

Working with Windows

Our next step in this Windows keyboard shortcuts article is to manipulate windows in the context of minimizing, maximizing, moving and closing them. To minimize the currently active window press Alt and Spacebar. The Control Menu for the window will appear. Now press N to minimize the window.

To maximize or get a window to its restored state when it is minimized to the Windows Taskbar hold down Alt and then press and release the Tab key until the desired window is selected. When the window of choice is selected also release the Alt key which will ensure that the window will either be maximized or restored depending on its previous state.

If you want to maximize a window from its restored state press Alt and Spacebar. After the Control Menu appears press X to maximize the window. To restore an maximized window press Alt and Spacebar. When the Control Menu appear press R to get the window from its maximized to restored state.

To move a window press Alt and Spacebar. When the Control Menu appear press M. Now use the arrow keys to move the window to the desired location and press the Enter key to round of this operation.

When you want to re-size a window press Alt and Spacebar. When the Control Menu appear press S. Now press the arrow keys depending on which side you want to size the window from. Right will take you to the right edge of the window for sizing and the Down arrow will take you to the bottom right corner for sizing purposes. When pressing the left key first you will be taking to the window left border to carry out sizing from that side. Once you have selected your sizing location by pressing the left or right arrows and up or down arrows do the sizing by using any of the arrow keys. When finished press Enter to complete this operation. Pressing the Esc key will leave the original size of the window intact.

To close the currently active window press Alt and F4 or press Alt and Spacebar, then press C.

General Use Windows Keyboard Shortcuts

Take note that the WINDOWS key is the Windows Logo key on the keyboard.

ALT+TAB
Display list of open programs and switch to next program.

(Press TAB again to advance to the following program).

ALT+SHIFT+TAB
Display list of open programs and switch to previous program.

(Press TAB again to select the pervious program).

WINDOWS or CTRL+ESC
Displays the Windows Start Menu.

WINDOWS+E
Open My Computer.

WINDOWS+D
Toggle between Show Desktop and Show Open Windows.

WINDOWS+M
Minimize All Windows.

F2
Rename selected folder, file or shortcut.

CTRL+N
Create a New document for the active application.

CTRL+O
Display the Open dialog box of the active application.

CTRL+S
Save the current document of the active application.

CTRL+P
Print the current document of the active application.

CTRL+A
Select All content of the current document.

CTRL+X
Cut the selected text or object.

CTRL+C
Copy the selected text or object.

CTRL+V
Paste contents of clipboard into active document.

CTRL+Z
Undo the last operation.

CTRL+Y
Redo the last Undo operation.

CTRL+B
Make selected text bold or remove bold formatting.

CTRL+U
Underline the selected text or remove underline.

CTRL+I
Make selected text italic or remove italic formatting.

CTRL+F
Displays the Find dialog box.

CTRL+H
Displays the Replace dialog box.

Paul van Zyl is a programmer and one of numerous applications written by him is Shortcut Wizard. To download keyboard shortcut reference and training software, visit the Shortcut Wizard Page to get 100’s of Windows Keyboard Shortcuts at your fingertips. High quality products from other developers is also listed at the Best-of-Computing site.

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INTRODUCTION:

According to Developmental Psychology, Religion is not an innate aspect in human beings. It is an acquired phenomenon. As J.J. Smith (1941) views it is like any other quality that is acquired by the child while growing up.
“A child is non-religious at birth as he is non-moral, non-aesthetic, non-thinking. He inherits none of these qualities in a functional form but acquires them gradually through experience.”

It is one of the concerns of Developmental studies to deal with the changes in religious concepts with one’s age and how it originates, develops and gets refined with age. These changes can be clearly observed from the research findings of Harms on the stages of religious beliefs. He evolved a three fold structure.

Stage 1- (3 to 6 years)- The fairy tale stage of Religion. Here God is perceived as a great King, Daddy of all children living in clouds etc..

Stage 2- (7 to 12 years) – The realistic stage. The child is more able to adapt itself to nstitutional religion.

Stage 3- (12 & above)- The individualistic stage. Children show a variety of interpretations from the conventional to the creative & mystical.

The above findings show that there is a constant change or rather development in one’s way of understanding religion. This process to a greater extent depends also on the religious education offered to the pupils at different stages of growth. Hence it is the responsibility of the religious educators to impart right knowledge at right time. It should be borne in mind that the religious education offered is neither too elementary nor beyond the power of apprehension of a particular group. This essay will discuss about the type of religious education that is more appropriate for adolescents in terms of Developmental Studies.

RELIGIOUS TRAITS OF ADOLESCENCE:

It is important to take a brief look at the religious traits that can be identified among the adolescents before we delve in to the discussion on religious education that is more appropriate for the adolescents.
Adolescence is the period that is beginning with puberty that is approximately 13 years, and up to about 18 years. It was Stanley Hall (1882), the first one who drew the correlation between puberty and conversion experience. This conversion experience may occur in three different types as explained by Allport:

1) Definite crisis or conversion experience

2) Emotional stimulus type of awakening where a significant event or factor can be attributed to such an awakening or religious re-orientation

3) Gradual awakening which does not have any particular occasion whereby one experiences a sudden conversion.

Therefore adolescence is not only an age of sexual maturity but also a period of spiritual transformation. The religious belief which was at fairy tale stage gradually develops to the realistic stage. This stage is a crucial stage when the adolescent’s attitude changes ‘from egocentrism to altruism’. Also the adolescents at this stage undergo an intellectual and moral crisis trying to justify between his scientific knowledge and the traditional concepts of an all powerful creator God.

Few other traits that could be identified are: wavering faith which oscillates from self-assertion to self-abnegation; from a fanatical dedication to religion, to discarding of traditional doctrines; feelings like alienation from parents and the Church or the religious institute one belongs to; harsh moral judgements and questions about problems of evil and existence of God will be predominant. According to Erickson’s stages it is a stage of ‘identity confusion’.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION:

The religious educator should have a clear understanding of the nature and the needs of the adolescents as discussed above so that the education offered would really promote growth in the individual.

As far as the religious education is concerned, there is always the danger of over stuffing the pupils with the historical facts, doctrines, chronological and informative details about religion. As Pierre Bouet (1878-1965) says,
‘the primary task of religious education is not the inculcation of doctrine but the loving transmission and evocation of love.’

One should also pay attention to, ‘How adolescents are taught’ because it is as important as ‘what they are taught’. The most common complaint of adolescents is that they are being treated like children. Adolescence is a period where there is a search for identity and a need to prove that they are someone. They try to project themselves as grown ups. Therefore they should be treated likewise, if contradicted in this respect; there is a possible danger of refusal to accept what is being taught. Instead of spoon feeding them they should be allowed to think on their own. Their tendency to question and explore into the problems and to verify the truths should be positively utilized rather than restraining their capabilities. Dr. Hilliard suggests that,
‘the teacher now has to begin deliberately and consistently to help his pupils to explore the inner meaning of stories, incidents,… myths, magic, miracle, …angels, evil spirits, and heavenly voices all these phenomena must be discussed in terms of which thoughtful adolescent can accept’ and understand as ancient modes through which a particular religion was expressed.

GOAL OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION:

It is substantial that the religious education offered during this stage makes one realize or to identify one’s vocation. By vocation we do not necessarily mean religious consecration as opposed to marriage, but the universal call, the vocation to follow one true God and to love and serve the society, which is one’s vocation as a religious person and as a professional. The religious education offered should enable one to clearly understand who s/he is, that is s/he is only a ‘creature’ and not the ‘Creator’ and hence teach humility, and what s/he wants to become for the good of the humanity. In other words it should lead one to ‘identity formation’. It should help one to transcend the mundane standards and to attain maturity and realization of the call to love and that set as one’s goal of life. In the words of Hall, ‘To love and to be interested most in those things that are most worthy of love and of interest that is the end of life.’ It should also build in the individual, basic trust, initiative, industry, identity and integrity.

CONTENT OF TEACHING:

The content of religious education should be decided keeping in mind the above aim. The intellectual state of an adolescent would allow abstract thinking and hence to understand the truths of one’s faith and belief system. The adolescents at this stage will be able to incorporate the religious values into one’s own life.

Therefore two major areas of concern that would facilitate the inculcation of religious value thereby to the realization of one’s vocation would be initiation into 1) Scriptural Themes and 2) Life Themes.

1) SCRIPTURAL THEMES:

The adolescents should be initiated into one’s own Scriptures and should be helped to identify respective Scriptural themes such as forgiveness, salvation, life, prayer, law, morality, charity, interpersonal relationship, relationship with God, marriage etc. it is the responsibility of the religious educator to provide adequate motivation required in order that the pupil may appreciate and accept these values as life guiding principles. Besides providing the adolescents with the history of religion they should also be made aware of the effect which their Scripture and their religious leaders are having on the world. This is to give the pupil an idea of what is expected of them as an adherent of any particular religion.

2) LIFE THEMES:

Religious education can bear fruit or rather can only begin, when the pupils are exposed to the concrete problems of the world. Religious education should incorporate social awareness. It should make one’s religion real and as something enacted in everyday life.

Harnold Loukes suggests ten such life themes: ‘Friendship, sex, marriage, snobbery, money, work, leisure, prayer, death, suffering and learning.’ The individuals should be enabled to question themselves about their attitude towards each of these themes and where one stands with regard to these. This questioning should gradually lead one to self-realization.
Apart from leading one to self realization the adolescents should be involved in the practical approaches related with social concerns and needs like helping the sick, the orphans and elderly for whom there is no one to care for, aids victims, the handicapped and the refugees etc. This would help one to recognize and discern in what way one is capable of serving the humanity. However if these values are not incorporated into religion the adolescents can justifiably disregard religion as impractical and useless to everyday life.

EDUCATION ABOUT OTHER RELIGIONS:

After all religious education should contribute towards the maturity of the individual. One’s maturity can be gauged through his or her capacity for tolerance towards the other religions. Today’s world with the vast movement of people from one end of the world to the other and with the immigrants filling in different parts of the world, forces one to come into contact with different religions, cultures and faiths different from one’s own. Since adolescence will be a period when basic attitudes and values are formed religious education at this stage should inculcate toleration and respect towards other religions and faiths while still being faithful to one’s own religion.

CONCLUSION:

In this essay we tried to have a brief look at the religious education that is appropriate to the adolescents. But, ‘is this religious education all that important?’

In today’s world it is a common sight to notice the sordid and callous behaviour of humankind. It is only the human race which can degrade into a lower state of ‘bestial existence’ and it is not the animals that can descend to a lower state . This curse on the human kind is because of the freedom s/he has been endowed with. This freedom when left unbridled without any principle or guideline to counter check, will shove one into this ‘mean existence’. This is where the role of education is called upon. The prime goal of any discipline of education should be to elevate one into a fully dignified status as human beings. Therefore one should realise the gravity of religious education which is all the more important in making one fully human and in helping one to maintain his or her status as a human being by widening the horizons of one’s ability to love through their relationship with the Divine. It is not only the stage of adolescence that is important but also the other stages of life which needs to be studied in order that an appropriate religious education may be availed to all.

P.S. Footnotes for the above article are available on request. For endnotes and more articles on religion, psychology, philosophy visit:
www.cashyourcontent.com

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ALLPORT, G., The Individual And Religion, The Macmillan company, NEWYORK, 1961.

BERRIDGE, D.M., Growing To Maturity, Burnes & Oates Ltd., LONDON, 1969.
BROWN, L,B., (edr), Psychology And Religion, Penguin Education, AUSTRALIA, 1973.

BROWN, L,B., The Psychology of Religion An Introduction, SPCK , LONDON, 1988.

GOLDMAN, R., Readiness For Religion, Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., LONDON, 1970.

GOLDMAN, R., Religious Thinking From Childhood To Adolescence, Routledge & Kegan Paul, LONDON, 1968.

WULFF, D.M., Psychology Of Religion, John Wiley & Sons, NEWYORK,1991.

ZUNINI, G., Man And His Religion, Geoffrey Chapman Ltd., LONDON,1969.

END NOTES
Available on request.

Analytical Thinker!

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Create a New Tradition this Christmas – Give Jesus a Gift from Your Family Book Review – A Stocking for Jesus by Suzanne Middendorf Arruda & illustrated by Betina Ogden Reviewed by Lisa M. Hendey

It’s never too late to begin a new family tradition, especially one which emphasizes the true meaning of the Christmas season. With her book A Stocking for Jesus (Pauline Books and Media, September 2003, paperback) author Suzanne Arruda shares the inspiring story of one little girl who remembered what Christmas is truly all about.

Young readers and their parents will be inspired by the story of young Elise, who takes time amidst the holiday decorating to remember Jesus on the occasion of his birthday. Elise and her family create a new family tradition by giving gifts to Jesus in the form of acts of love, service and prayer. The family gifts are noted on slips of paper and placed in Jesus’ special stocking.

Along with the fun story and bright illustrations, this book comes complete with a ready-made family activity, enabling your child or family to create and fill your own “Stocking for Jesus”. With its emphasis on the true meaning of giving, A Stocking for Jesus deserves a place in your family’s holiday reading repertoire.

For additional information on A Stocking for Jesus visit http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0819870765/digitalcropper- 20

Lisa M. Hendey is a mother of two sons, webmaster of numerous web sites, including http://www.catholicmom.com and http://www.christiancoloring.com, and an avid reader. Visit her at http://www.lisahendey.com

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