This is the End

I must say that I really enjoyed this class. It was not what I expected but I learned a lot from the books we've read. I was surprised on the different views of religion by my classmates and by the authors. I've enjoyed reading the blogs and assignments, commenting on them and reading the comments about my blog and assignments.

I had a rough start because I am not familiar at all with blogging. I do not surf the Internet at all. But the important thing is that I've learned something new. I don't know if I ever use it outside of class, but it was a good experience for me.

I've learned that no matter how people express their views on religion, they all seem to agree that love is most important. In the NKJV Bible, I Corinthians 13:4-7,13 says,

'Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked; thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.'

'And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.'

I believe that each book read for this course represent the themes and messages the authors were trying to express.

Christine, I can see that you put in a lot of thought and research for this class. I've had mixed emotions while reading the books. In A Wrinkle In Time, I felt adventurous. My Name Is Asher Lev, made me feel compassion for little Asher. Uncle Tom's Cabin, gave me hope, fear, and anger. And The Power and The Glory, well, I was a bit confused at first but ended up being sad for the communities that suffered.

Overall, I think Christine did a good job planning this class and I think the class did a great job on the assignments. Thank you and good luck achieving your goals.

The Power and the Glory

After I had read about Graham Greene's life and read his book, it was believed that the characters and the events in this book represented him. He struggled through life like the characters did. He experienced mockery at the school where his father was headmaster. He made several attempts to kill himself because of the teasing. He spent his college years drunk. He constantly cheated on his wife, Vivien, for years before abandoning her and their children. He travelled with a Communist group for months. He believed in Christ but had trouble believeing in God. He struggled with his spirituality and drowned himself in self-pity and shame.

How does these events compare to the characters in the book?

The priest was haunted by his shameful past. He denied himself as a priest to avoid execution. He is bounded by his alcohol addiction. The priest's addiction symbolized his weakness and unworthiness in the country.

Mr. Tench has abandoned his wife and family. He seems strange and mysterious in behavior. Abandonment symbolizes his loneliness and the realization of living in an evil world.

Padre Jose was a coward and was ashamed of his fear of death. He denied the community of spiritual encouragement and love. His fear isolated the community's desire for spiritual guidance.

Coral questions her mother on if she believed in God. Coral's mother did not know how to answer the question and her father went somewhat avoided the question. Her parent's knew that there is a purpose for religion but did not connect that purpose with God.

The lieutenant executed priests that refused to abide by the laws. He succeeded his mission but in the end, his life served no meaning or sense of purpose. The lieutenant felt that the world would be better if we start all over by getting rid of the things and people that initially corrupted the world.

I did not enjoy this book because it is hard to imagine a world without love, hope, faith, unity, and God. But I have learned what life could be without God and I pray that everyone in this world would never know how it is to live without Him.

Every first Wednesday of the month, the Children's Ministry focuses on the missionary organization BGMC. We teach the children that there are people all over the world that have been executed for publicly worshipping God. We also tell them true stories about the dangers the missionaries faced when they started revivals and secretly built churches, provided bibles, and other resources to get the Word to them. We also tell them how they overcame these obstacles and are now building churches, orphanages, and schools for these people in need of the Gospel. Inspired by these stories and awed by the people, with God's help, that are responsible for this amazing breakthrough, the children will donate money through earning the money by doing extra chores in their home and community and by giving some of their money they've received on their birthday. They also prayed for their safety and prosperity for their mission. They could not do this if they did not have the love, support, and encouragement from others. They could not do this if they did not have God.