Uplifting Black Souls: the African American Jeremiad :: Free Essays Online

Uplifting Black Souls: the African American Jeremiad Mission Statement A black jeremiad is a writing or a speech that constantly emphasizes the need for and methods to achieve social change. David Howard Pitney in his book The Afro-American Jeremiad, rightly suggests what the components of a jeremiad are: "1) citing the promise, 2) criticism of present declension or retrogression from the promise, 3) resolving prophecy that society will shortly complete it's mission and redeem the promise"(Howard-Pitney 8). The authors we have chosen have written prominent jeremiads, and we will show why they can be considered jeremiads; why they were important when they were written; and why they are still important today. History David Walker (act.1828-1829), Frederick Douglass (act. 1852-1880), Booker T. Washington (act. 1895-1915); and W.E.B. DuBois (act. 1895-1968) are some of the most important African-American jeremiads in our history. Black jeremiads stem from the Jeffersonian idea of "natural and divine law." This law emphasizes the right to freedom as well as liberty. The American jeremiad originated amongst 17th century Puritans who believed that their destiny was to form a utopian society in the Americas. By the 19th century, black jeremiads had adopted these Puritan ideals and used them to incite the need for the abolition of slavery and to serve as a warning of the punishment that would await those who continued with the sins of slavery. The writings and speeches of these jeremiads was used to uplift and unify their race and to promote blacks to take action in order to achieve equality but not self-separation from the rest of American society. This idea of unification without self-separation, illustrates the idea of black nationalism with established the rhetoric for jeremiads. On David Walker One of the most persuasive African American writers of antebellum America, was able to shake the American society with his pamphlet: Appeal to The Colored People of the United States. Walker, A free Negro born in Wilmington, North Carolina in 1796, although enjoyed a little more "freedom" than the rest of his colored brethren in bondage took on the role of a Jeremiadic speaker and writer to his people. In Walker's Appeal, Walker followed a method used by a Free black man in 1788 using the pseudonym of "Othello" in a two-part essay responding to Jefferson's Notes on the State of Virginia , called Essay on Negro Slavery. Following "Othello's" Jeremiadic essay, Walker had a warning for white Christian America about the wrathful vengeance of God that would befall upon them because of the institution of slavery.

Rapex is a weapon for woman against rape

Rapex is a weapon for woman against rape. It is a diaphragm with teeth which bites when something touches it that is not supposed to, such as a penis. This is both painful and will make the rape stop immediately. It also has to be removed surgically thus it is much easier to identify the rapist. In this essay I will explain and discuss the facts and uses for Rapex, the medical concerns for Rapex and the ethical and safety issues. In South Africa there are 119 people per 100,000 that are raped every year. This is probably 9 times as much because the number that was previously mentioned is only the reported rapes. You could also say that there is 50,000 rapes per year in South Africa. This is again about 4 times as many because rapes of children and acquaintances are never reported. This is an alarmingly high number and measures needed to be made. One of these measures was the Rapex anti rape device. Rapex also prevents pregnancy and the infection of sexually transmitted diseases. This is another important function of Rapex because South Africa has the most people in the world which are infected by HIV/AIDS. 1 of nine people in South Africa are infected with the virus. This scientific development has lead to many discussions of ethical issues such as if Rapex would be used for revenge by an angry wife or girlfriend or that it might cause the men to act violently towards the women and hurt them or even kill them. Rapex is made of latex and polyurethane which is held firm by shafts of sharp barbs. When the man penetrates the hooks are fastened into the tip of the man's erected penis and the Rapex has to be surgically removed after that. Rapex is much like a diaphragm thus it should not stay inside the vagina for more than 24 hours. You should wear it when you know you are in danger of being raped such as walking a long distance or when you are somewhere were there are a minimal amount of people and a rapist can easily be attacked. You should also not wear it when you have you are menstruating. The reason that the men rape women in South Africa is that the men feel superior to them and women don't really count in society. They are suppressed by men and don't have the sufficient means to protect themselves. The reason for men raping children is that there is a smaller chance of sexually transmitted diseases. The man suffers from pain but no permanent injuries are inflicted. The woman may however suffer from violence from the man as a result to the pain the man is having. This could even result in death. Rapex is not as helpful by preventing rape because the man still has to penetrate for the Rapex to have an effect. This still causes the woman to be raped but she stops it immediately and she doesn't get pregnant or get a sexually transmitted disease. She does however get a chance to get the man back. In my opinion it is more a weapon for revenge than for self protection. The defense mechanism, Rapex, should be this hard. At least for the time being to scare men and do reduce the amount of rapes taking place. Also, the men that do rape will be identified. The punishment for raping in South Africa is very low at the moment and if the Rapex I going to be used the punishment should also go up. There should also be a punishment for women that use it as a weapon for attack and not as self defense. The 3 main religions in South Africa are Zion Christian, Pentecostal/Charismatic and Catholic. None of these religions encourage rape and so the religious and cultural issues of the Rapex have no impact on this in my opinion. If they choose to rape, against their religion then they can also suffer from this. To conclude I believe I think that the Rapex is a good idea to stop rape, pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease. However, there is a big chance that it will be misused and that the men will get angry and kill the women. Therefore, I don't think Rapex should be produced in large amounts but I think the whole educational system, civil law system and the society needs to change when it comes to its look on women. Women need to get a better education allowing them to work and became more equal to men. The civil law system needs to change its punishments of rape and the society needs to change in the way that men except woman as their equal. Rapex is only a temporary solution to the problem of rape and instead of investing money in something short term I believe you can better invest it in something that will stay long term such as a change in society and the role of women within that society.

The Development of Female Ascetics in the Early Church

The Development of Female Ascetics in the Early Church INTRODUCTION Christian ascetics in the fourth and fifth centuries were pioneers in working out what must be done by people who find the ordinary human concerns of household and city an intolerable distraction from their commitment to God. They experimented with styles and structures; tried out and competed with each other’s techniques for strengthening the soul against harmful desires and demonic attack; and shared and analyzed their experience. Writers of the period – Athanasius, Jerome, Augustine, Basil – present the ascetic as hero or heroine, as the standard of true Christian commitment in an age when commitment was not longer tested by martyrdom (Book #1, 33). They suggest, and their writings also helped to create, an intense and widespread interest in ascetic practice (book #1, 33,2). There is a wide range of fourth and fifth-century texts concerned with ascetic life and practices: exhortation; sermons; correspondence; rules for communities; lives of ascetics and collections of their sayings and detailed spiritual guidance. Nevertheless, it is often unclear why exactly ascetics chose to do what they did, either in terms of individual motives for leading an ascetic life or in terms of invented or imitated ascetic practice. Some texts (for instance, the Life and Teachings of Syncletica) explain the purpose of fasting, discarding fine clothes, renouncing wealth; others merely admire or give an instruction. This isShow MoreRelatedThe Development of Female Ascetics in the Early Church854 Words   |  3 PagesThe Development of Female Ascetics in the Early Church This paper will explore the development of female ascetics during the early Church and show how these practices affect the 21st century Churches outlook on woman. 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