The origins of two modern Jewish groups Essay Example for Free

The origins of two modern Jewish groups Essay Q1- Describe the origins of two modern Jewish groups and explain the ways in which they have developed. There are two main Jewish group, reform Jews and Orthodox Jews. In some ways the groups could be seen as opposites but thought this is partly true both groups have their similarities to each other. Orthodox Jews are very strict when it comes to their religions. A colloquial term used by Jews for the word strict is frum. The more frum the Jew is the more strictly he or she keeps to the mitzvots given by God to Abraham. There are many different Jewish groups as well as these including Jews for Jesus. Jewdaism is the personal relationship between god and the Hebrews which was established through Abraham. Abraham is believed by Jews to be the first person to recognise and worship the one god. Moses is also an important figure because he united the Jews as a people when god brought them out of slavery in Egypt. Moses was also the person who was given the Torah (Laws and Teachings) by God on Mt. Sinai. Chassidics are the traditional Jews follow the laws of Judaism very closely, both written and oral. They believe that the laws from god are absolute and unchanging. Orthodox Jews are willing to accept Jewish traditions and practices and realise their importance even if they dont observe them themselves. The major reason that Jews divided into the two main groups, Reform and Chassidism was all to do with the way that Jews were treated in history. In Eastern Europe during the 17th century many thousands of people were living in poverty. Part of the reason for this was because of an uprising when Sweden and Russia invaded Poleland. This caused many thousands of deaths and it effected the economy dramatically. Before the uprising many talented young men had the opportunity to attend the Yeshivot (Talmudic academies) which was where your learned intensively about the Torah. After the uprising, numbers of people that could enter the Yeshivot decreased rapidly because only large town could afford the costs of maintaining such a place. This meant that thousands of Jews could not be educated and it left them feelings if they were second-rate Jews and that god didnt value them. Reform Judaism came about during the time of the French revolution, it was a time when European Jews were recognised as citizens in the countries they lived for the first time. It was a great time for the Jews because for the first time they had the freedom to settle where the pleased, dress as they liked and have occupations they wanted, all the ghettos were being abolished and special badges were no longer worn. It was because of this freedom that many Jews began to live outside Jewish districts and lived like their neighbours, this meant they spoke less Hebrew and more of the language of the land. They also went to public schools and universities and began to neglect Jewish studies. In 1815 after Napoleons defeat Jews lost their rights to citizenship in several countries. It was because of this that may Jews converted to Christianity to retain these rights. Rabbis saw this problem but no matter how hard they tried to convince Jews not to go to public schools and universities it didnt work. Leopold Zunz suggested something different. He tried to get the Synagogue services to change, he wanted them to be spoken in the local language and have local music. However, local Rabbis didnt like this idea and change it back. Was this just proof that they werent prepared to move with the times? Shortly after this Rabbi Abraham Geiger suggested the observances be change to suit modern people. He discovered that Judaism had gradually but steadily changed over the last 2000 years to make Judaism easier to follow for modern people and he decided it was time for some more changes in order to make the religion more attractive to Jews. Between 1810 and 1820 three cities in Germany; Seesen, Hamburg and Berlin made some dramatic changes such as mixed seating in the Synagogue. Many rabbis of reform movements took a rejectionist view on some traditional rituals. For example: * Circumcision was seen to be barbaric and not practiced * The Hebrew language in the liturgy was replaced with German * The hope for restoration of the Jews in Israel was officially renounced. * Bar Mitzvah was replaced with a confirmation ceremony * The laws of Kashrut and family purity were officially declared repugnant. * Shabbat was observed on Sunday * Traditional resurrections on Shabbat behaviour were not followed. Orthodox Jews dont believe in the above changes and see it as compromising. The dont see reform Jews to be Real Jews, infact many dont see them as Jews at all. Q2- Describe the worship and lifestyle of these and explain how this reflects and assists beliefs. Because Chassidic Jews along with all Orthodox Jewish groups see the Torah as being divinely inspired and sacred they follow every word while Reform Jews see it as guidance from god that can be interpreted. Orthodox Jews have very long synagogue services each Sabbath lasting up to _________hours. Reform Jews dont always go to the Synagogue, sometimes they only go on special occasions such as Rosh Hashanah. If they do go on the Sabbath the reform service usually only lasts _______hours. Another difference is what they do on the Sabbath. While Chassidic Jews dont do any of the 39 things considered to be work on the Sabbath, most reform Jews do. They think the laws dont apply to modern Jews. Reform Jews see the Sabbath to be on a Sunday to fit in with the Western way of life. Chassidic Jews try their hardest to follow all the mitzvots and go to a lots of effort in trying. Strict orthodox even by pre-torn toilet paper so they dont have to tear. They will not turn on light switches or even the TV. Reform Jews will. Kosher food is another aspects of Jewdaism in which Chasidic and Reform Jews differ in opinion greatly. Chassidics keep to all the food laws such as no fish with cartilage and no birds of prey as well as how all meat is prepared. Reform Jews however do not keep to these laws. Circumsision was abbolished by reform Jews after being classified as Barbaric. Chassidic Jews however see it as a symbol that connects all Jewish boys to Abraham, the Father of the Jews. Bar Mitzvahs were also changed by Reform Jews replacing it with a confirmation ceremony. Reform Jews do not hope for restoration of the Jews in Israel and it was officially stated that Germany was to be the new Zion. Traditionally all Jews wanted to return to the Promised Land given to them by god. Festivals such as Yom Kippur and Rosh Hishanah are acknowledged by Reform Jews as well Chassidics but are not necessarily taken as seriously especially when it comes to the reasons behind the festivals. A Jewsish marriage is pretty much the same for Orthodox Jews and Chassidic Jews both with being under a Chuppa and the Ketuba. However reform Jews permit divorce while Chassidic forbid it. Q3- Jews should try an overcome the differences between groups and Unite. Do you agree? Include different points of Views. There is an obvious reason why the Orthodox and reform Jews should unite. It would mean they have larger numbers and thy could work together. They could learn things from each other and together they could conquer problems, which they may face. They would also appear more powerful and influential, which means gentiles, would respect their beliefs and traditions more. If compared to Christianity, Catholics have many people all with the same general belief but each with a different degree of observance. If Catholics are able to overcome their differences why wouldnt Jews. On the other hand though, Reform Jews and Orthodox Jews have different beliefs. Orthodox Jews think Reform Jews are compromising and dont want to be associated with this. Chassidic Jews go to a lot of effort to keep to the commandments and mitzvots and think it is unfair that Reform Jews still call themselves Jews when the dont put half as much effort or commitment in. Reform Jews dont see the changes they have made as a compromise, they see it as modernisation. They believe as the people change the religion should change to fit. They interpret things differently. For example, not working on Shabbat, they see this to have its literal meaning, not going off and doing your job. Orthodox Jews see work to be the 30 jobs it took to build up the temple in which they worshipped thousands of years ago before they found there promised lands. This means they dont create fire or anything that could be associated with fire like electricity and many other things. Since the Reform Jews have split from the Orthodox hundreds of years ago they have grown apart and now have their own ways o doing things. If there was wars between the two groups over there differences then obviously there needs to be a change but Judaism is the worlds oldest religion and thy have got along fine for thousands of years. I think if Jews are happy with having separate groups then it is their decision and they should be able to stay this way.

Ethnics Of Orang Asli Theology Religion Essay

Ethnics Of Orang Asli Theology Religion Essay Lanoh is one of the ethnics of Orang Asli original people from Malaysia. Previously, Lanoh used to be nomads but now many of them stay permanently in Hulu Perak,a district of Perak. Lanoh people are officially classified under the Negrito subgroup but in term of the language they use the Temiar language. Most Lanoh are dark-skinned and have frizzy hair. Their features resemble the Papua New Guinean or east African people. Location Lanoh as well as other Semang people remained in low-land areas, Near Malays settlement. They prefer to live near river valleys, which is the most foot-hills, The low population density of Lanoh people in pre-resettlement time has caused them to spread between a few principle villages and campsites (basically in Perak area. Among their villages are Air Bah, Tawai, and Cenawi village. Last time, the Lanoh villages and camp[s were small, with a population rarely exceeding thirty or thirty-five people. Last time, they were also had a mobile lifestyle but it ended after Malaysias independence (1957). On 1993, Air Bahs status as resettlement village was finalized when a two-storey mosque was elevated to house Muslim proselytizers during their intermittent to the village. Within the plan of Malay nation state, the Lanoh way of life , like that of Orang Asli , had undergone remarkable changes , many due to land loss, logging, deforestation, new forms of subsistence and commercial activities. Since 1980s , the Lanoh people were regrouped and permanently resettled ,primarily in the village of Air Bah. They have been struggling to reconcile these changes with their cultural values and customary of life. Their house has Temiar-style structure which is more stable than their Lanoh-style lean-to-shelters . They prefer to stay in those houses compared to the large government-supplied plank houses. The size of the houses does not necessarily reflect peoples status or ethnic affiliation. In term of life style, people in Air Bah prefer to spend time with whom they feel close , not necessarily their conjugal family members. Beliefs . Most Lanoh people practice ethnic religion (66%), 33% of them are Muslims and 1% of them are Christians http://www.joshuaproject.net/people-profile.php?peo3=12987rog3=MY .They have a belief of naturalism: Plants and animals energize the own spiritually bestowing upon humans a humbling experience of bondage and love for nature. They also practice an unwritten law that all of the animals caught in the forest should suffer no pain in captivity. According to people in Air Bah, a shaman is a person who can teach the young people stories and good things about Lanoh. Previously, Lanoh shamans also believed to posses invaluable powers such as they could talk to elephants, the guardian father of the Lanoh, and as guide people in spiritual roads. Marriage and family For Lanoh people, they dont restrict marriage between ethnics or subgroups and they are more linear. They get to choose their own partner and their parents will not interfere in their relationship. If a couple are living together, they are consider married. There is no wedding celebration, but the bride will just have to give some presents to the bride groom and his in laws. Only young couples get divorce and usually, the Lanoh people do not get divorce if they already have a child. They belief that after labor, a woman cannot touch the ground for two weeks and salt cannot be added into their food for two to three months after labor. They also cannot consume oily food. Death When someone died, the chief of the village and nearest family members will be told about the news. After the dead body is cleaned, for women, they will put on their jewelries such as ring, necklace and bracelets. Then the dead body will be wrapped in a clean new cloth and then wrapped in a mat. The same procedure applies to a mans body except they are wrapped without jewelries. At the cemetery, a 2 meters hole will be digged and the dead body will be buried with their belongings. Then two sticks will be placed on their grave to represent where is the head and where is the legs. At the head part, relatives will light a fire so that wild animals wont come near the grave. If the husband died, the wife cannot wears make up for 7 days. KENSUI TRIBE At the edge of the Baling district area, there is an indigenous settlement known as the Perkampungan Orang Asli Lubok Legong. It is located at the Mukim Siong, 13 km from Pekan Baling and 188 km from Bandaraya Alor Setar. This settlement is own by the indigenous people of the Kensiu tribe. Based on the Jabatan Hal Ehwal Orang Asli (2003) information, this settlement is the only one available for the indigenous people of the Kensui tribe, this is the sole Negrito exist in Kedah and generally the peninsular of Malaysia. Due to their resemblance to the Negro in Africa, they are classified as the Negrito. History Based on the research done by Dr. Iskandar Carey (1970), from his visit to the Perkampungan Orang Asli in Kampung Lalang around 1968 and 1969, the Kensui tribe has their own settlement. Even though the early history had stated that they lived in norm. This tribe was said to have the smallest number of people compared to the other orang asli tribes in Malaysia. There were also said to be the oldest tribe.Basically the Kensui tribe was said to have family relations at Kampung Rai, Yala, Thailand.While based on the facts, the Kensui people orinigated from Kuala Kedau and Ulu Legong. During the Japanese invasion to Tanah Melayu between 1941 and 1942, the Kensui tribe had escaped all around the Baling district mostly to the Parit Panjang, Kampung Bendang Man di Sik, Kampung Sg. Celak and Kampung Tiak di Kupang, Baling. Nowadays, settlements have been build by the government which is the Perkampungan Orang Asli Kampung Lubuk Legong. The Kensui tribe has been residencing there since 1957 at the No 3623 lot which was offered in the year 1958 as the Rezab Orang Asli with an area of 428 acres. According to M.W. Tweedie, a historian had stated in his book Pre-History, those who live in the peninsular which are known as the Negrito had existed since 8000 BC living in caves and hunting animals. During the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic period around 5000 BC, Kedah was used to be inhabited by the Austronesia which became the ancestors of the Negrito, Sakai and the other tribes. Its hard to describe the physical characteristics of the Negrito due to their division into 4 subgroups of the Kensui tribe known as Mos, Nakil (atau Dalem), Hetot and Tanjen. Overall they have fine-small curly hairs, dark in colour skin and average height of 5 feet below, they have wide iris similar to the West African and most of them are similar to the New Guinea indigenous, Papuans. The identity of the Kensui tribe can solely be described by their culture, material and their life style. They show little to none agricultural practise. This may be due to their origin as one of the fully nomadic indigenous people. Their culture includes the practice of nose piercing and residence build for temporary shelter from the weather and wind. The Kensui tribe moves from one place to another for hunting and scavenging food as well as forest materials. They would move to another place if they found that the area is no longer productive. Work arrangements For the adults of the Kensui tribe, rubber tapping is one of their daily routine. The Projek Getah Mini Estet Fasa 1 dan 2 conducted through RISDA was a success for them. The society gained interest of RM200.00 per month for each family. But there are still among them that are unable to perform the work. Besides that, The Kensui tribe are still practice scavenging forest material to be sold to the outside society and for their own usage. They also have skills producing various handcrafts form the forest materials. Some of the people also work as labour in farms. The society of the indigenous people from the Kampung Lubuk Legong are under the supervision of the pentadbiran Jabatan Hal Ehwal Orang Asli (JHEOA) Perak dan Kedah operating in Ipoh, Perak. While at district level, it is under the pentadbiran Pejabat Hal Ehwal Orang Asli Daerah Hulu Perak dan Baling operating in Grik, Perak. In every village, a leader was appointed as the penghulu among themselves to hold the responsibility of governing the village and a Jawatankuasa Kemajuan Kampung (JKKK) was established to help the government. For now, the title penghulu is hold by Encik Rosman Bin Isa. He is the fourth appointed penghulu. Education level The education levels among the Kensui tribe are extremely low compared to the other indigenous tribes. The numbers of educated people are too little. According to the penghulu of the tribe, the year 2005 has been a history to them for one of them had successfully graduated from a form 1 level education which was the highest level of education until now. Marriage customs and family institutions The life concept which prioritised equality and similarity reflects from the whole life style of the society. Most of the Kensui societies in the settlement have a close relation with each other. There are only two people that had married a Malay woman from the Kampung Baru and one had married an Indonesian. Those who are Islam in the Kensui tribe gets married based on the syariat and the law of the Islamic family. Their marriages were conducted by the religion officer from the Jabatan Agama Islam Negeri Kedah. While for those who are practising animism, their marriages are based on their believes. There are no ceremonies held for the marriage. When a man reaches a time of age where he would like to be married, he just need to get the approval of the women he wants to marry without needing the blessing of both of her parents. If the woman agrees, the man would send her materials in the form of cloth, knife and tobacco to the womans father as a sign that the marriage was on. Later on they would live together as a sign they have married. In the family system of the Kensui society, the family relations are bilateral meaning that it is based on the decent of both parents based on the mens generation There are still abstinence ban practices until now in the family institution of the Kensui society, such as bride is not allowed to interact with the groom and vice versa. The groom is also forbid to interact with the mother-in-law, while the male and the female relatives which are not married are forbidden to interact with their sister and brother-in-laws, nor to speak of their names. They would use an intermediate for any interactions required with the father and the in-laws. Marriages between people of the same tribe are normal but there are some that had married with the Temiar tribe from Perak. Most of the Kensui people are Muslim, 163 of them had convert to Islam while 80 of them remains with animism. They have their own tradisional cultural performance know as the Sewang dance. During the performance, they would wear clothing made out of plants a head ornament made out of coconut leaves. Social organisation The traditional life of the Kensui combines five to six families forming a group. In most cases, all of the family members in a settlement or a camp have close family relations or cognate tribe. Each of the group is led by the oldest member, but he does not have any specific title, one of the leaders will be chosen based on the age, experience and knowledge in faith healing care and mysticism factor. The chief will have the power to make decision such as where so set camp and the time to move but it is still subject based on the view and advice from the member that he is leading. Generally the concept of having a leader is less stressed in the society at group level, they are more concentrate on egalitarian and solidarity. The important element in a social organisation is the family nucleus consisting of husband, wife and child. The settlements for the Negrito are called the kumpulan tabir angin where the society would live under a roof as a momentary shelter. They babies would be would cradle in turns during the moving, with every group consisting a husband, wife and child but only the little ones can stay with them. For boys who are older than 7 years old will have a separate shelter not far from their parents, as for the girls will live in the same shelter with their parents but separated by a bond fire between their beds. All of the decision which are made falls under the fathers decision for he is the head of the family The social organisation of the Kensui tribe in Baling has changed a lot. They have live in kampung Lubuk Lenggong for a long time that the nomad life style has been less practised nowadays. This is due to the existence of a permanent settlement build by JHEOA and supervised by the entire agency. The organisation has also changed, replaced by a settlement unit under the leadership of a penghulu. The penghulu still has his authority to maintain their traditions, but the mode of his appointment has changed based on 2 categories which are descendent and election The basic requirement for a penghulu is that he should be able to read and write the allowance given to the penghulu is based on categories which are A, B and C. these categories are based on the development of the members in the academic and so on. Beliefs The Kensui people believe are the same as the other Negritos, a large number of them still holds on to their traditional believes. This believes promotes the importance of Tok Batin, Karei and Menoi as beings with a ultimate power. The symbol of this power has an eternal nature and it is also regarded as the existence of a supernatural power or a living soul known as the orang hidup or the human that lives forever. The symbol of power and the depletion of power between human and those that live forever are called Cenoi. Cenoi tapn has been regarded as the same level with god or sultan. Cenoi Tapn has the characteristics of a mawas (tawo). The top part of his body is young while the bottom part is old. Cenoi Tapn was said to control the life of the Kensui society and that his anger would be conveyed through thunder and lightning (Kaei). This system was preserved and controlled by the authority known as the Halak, which plays a part as the intermediate between the Kensui people with th e one that holds the ultimate power in their believes. Halak also plays a role in the traditional medicine practice. Both system of medicine and religion consist of ceremony known as the panoh, which involves dancing and singing. Another ritual conducted for the same purpose is called sawan, which also combines singing and dancing in the process. The obedience to both of the system is also reflected through the respect, taboos, values and norms of society. The Halak also known as the Tok pawang are believed to be able to enter the spirit world by making themselves high. Tok pawang was believed to be able to connect with the Chinoi and sometimes becomes the intermediate for help in their agriculture. But nowadays, almost half of the Kensui society has convert to Islam. Language The Kensui have their own language to communicate. But nowadays Malaysian language has been the language used among them. Almost all of the Kensui people are able to speak in Bahasa Malaysia. Even though the old folks are still rusty in speaking in Malaysian language they do understand the language. There are also small children that are unable to speak in their original language due to the mix marriage and the interaction with the outsiders. Some of them can also speak in Thai language. For those that ave relationship with the Temiar tribe they can also speak their language. Burenhult (2001) states that the commonly inherited words of Kensiu would include basic semantic categories including body parts, certain animal and plant terms, natural phenomena like fire, stone, water, basic activities and states like die, eat, stand, walk, basic qualities such as big, small , personal pronouns such as I and you etc. Some of the native Kensiu words for jungle, hill, water tree, leaf and fruit s are kaheb, laheb, betiu, tom ihuk, helik and kebek respectively. The Kensiu also have rich and diverse lexical items associated with their natural environment particularly, the flora and the fauna. Some of them include awei (rattan), ihuk peng (gaharu), sieh (betel leaves), peyang (tapioca), emet (tiger), pelik (bats), ikop (snake), kensen (fox), jelong (flies), nguak (butterflies) and awai (tortoise), just to name a few. Among the exotic animals caught by the Kensius include the protected species, the Malayan Pengolin, Kensiu term, mantei. They are normally exchanged for cash to the local Chinese in the nearby town. Known for their aphrodisiac property, they usually fetch a good price. Malay loan words Beside those commonly inherited words of flora and fauna, there is also evidence to suggest substantial borrowing of words from Malay language. The findings of this study show that Kensiu language has a high number of lexical items that have been borrowed from Malay. Out of 255 lexical items given to the respondents in the study, 149 (58.4%) of the elicited lexical items were Malay loan words. In addition to this, there are also extensive Kensiu words which are code mixed with Malay words e.g. kutip kebek (kutip buah), kumpul awei (kumpul rotan), tom bungak (pokok bunga), bilik betew (bilik air). The findings of the study also reveal that lexical items that are associated with modern living and technologies are all Malay borrowings. They include pensil (pencil), radio (radio), telefon bimbit (hand phone), bas (bas), doktor (doctor). This extensive Malay borrowing suggests their ongoing interaction with Malay speakers. It should be mentioned here that the Kensiu community in this study are in constant interaction with the Malays as their settlement area in Lubuk Legong is in close proximity with the Malay villages. SEMAI TRIBE Background The Malay Island had been inhabited by human that were known as Austronesian or Malay-Polynesia around 5000 years ago according to the historical researchers. They were said to have originated from South of China and Taiwan. Their migration to south was done starting from the Philippines heading towards the Indonesian Islanad until the edge of the mainland Asia, Pacificislands and Madagascar. The Semai are a semi sedentary people living in the center of the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia , known especially for their nonviolence. The Semai is one of the tribes that belong to the Senoi ethnic group. It is thought that the Semai are the remnants of the original, ancient and widespread population of Southeast Asia. According to Keene State Colleges Orang Asli Archive, in 1991 there were 26,627 Semai living on the Malay Peninsula. Northwest Pahang and south Perak, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, central mountain area. This number has increased in recent years with the advent of better nutrition as well as improved sanitation and healthcare practices. These numbers, however, does not include other peoples of Semai or mixed descent, most of whom have assimilated into other cultures and have abandoned their ancestral tribal lands in order to seek better employment and education opportunities, especially in the larger cities. Language The Semai people speak Semai language, an Austro-Asiatic language belonging to the Mon-Khmer language family. But most of Semai people in Malaysia have knowledge of Malay language and they can speak well in Malay. Semai people are very tolerant person and they did not force other people to do things that they do not like it. For example, the word  Bood  has a very interesting meaning. It means not feeling like doing something, for any reason, for example, sickness, shyness or laziness. If it is translated into todays language, it is simply one of our fundamental rights, the right to say no!. The children of Semai are taught the concept of bood from an early age. If a parent asks a child to do something and the child replies I bood, in other words, I dont feel like doing, the matter is closed. The parents would not force their children to do something that they do not want to do. The Semais children Spirituality and beliefs Most of Semai people are animist but but a large minority profess Christianity. They are still gripped by their old beliefs. The Semais main festival is the Genggulang. It is a festive ritual to appease land spirits for a good harvest where the people worship the rice spirit. In this ritual, the spirit is offered with sacrificial chickens, flowers, and unhusked rice. Nowadays, the festival has lost much of its religious meaning, as it has become more of a cultural event similar to the way Chinese celebrate Lunar New Year or Westerners celebrate Christmas. Besides that, Chuntah is another festive ritual that is performed to make the evil spirits leave. Chuntah is performed in the middle of a storm where a man collects rain in a bamboo container until it is full, he then gashes his skin and lets the blood run into the container. The Semai usually have restrictions on eating animals that straddle two groups. Snakes are usually not eaten because moving menhar (animals that lives on the or in the trees) have legs, but snakes live on land, so the Semai consider this unnatural. CULTURE Marriage The day of their marriage, there are several things that the bride and the grooms need to do, which are : -both of them need to berinai at their own houses. -the grooms needs to cut their hair -both of them needs to take a bath with a water that contains a few slices of lemon that have been spell for a good reason. After that the bride and the groom will wear their beautiful wedding dress in their respective houses. The bride will be wearing the wedding dress that have been given by the groom which are called salin tiga dress. Because they have been bath with spiritual lemon water, there are a few orders that mst be followed by both of them , -in a duration of 3 days they are not allowed to leave their village because they might be disturbed by the evil spirits. -in a duration of 7 days also they are not allowed to leave their village for the same reason. C:UsersfarhanDocumentsstudysem 2H.Eru_01.2.jpg The bride Birth When the wife is pregnant, there are a few things that both of the parents must not do to protect the baby and to get a healthy babies. -They cant get close to animals that they believe can harm the baby such as tortoise, monkeys, and snakes. -The fathers family members are not allowed to installing or nailing any part in the house. -They are not allowed to be near to death people. -Not allowed to eat venison, pork and partridge meat. To determine the date of the baby will be born and the health of the baby, the mother will meet the village midwife. The midwife will be the responsible person to stay with the mother until the baby are born. After the baby had born, the mother will abstain for a month. In confinement, the mother are not allowed to eat vegetables, fish without scales , fish that are venomous, chillies, cooking oil, coconut cold water except coffee and warm water. The mothers are only being served or only eat rice with grilled fish or fish that are cooked without oil. They are also not allowed to take a bath with cold water. They can only bath in river after the confinement but need to have a talisman. The ingredients needed for the talisman are a few of small stones, flour and turmeric. The half of the turmeric need to be chew by the mother and spit in the river while the small stones will be seeding in upstream and downstream of the river. Then the mother can take a bath in the river. Death When there is a death in the village, all the members of the village will gather around the house of the person who had died and stop their other work because they are afraid that the spirit of the person will get angry. The body will be buried the next day, so at night all the villagers will stand guard at the house of the person who died until morning to make sure that the bad spirit will not bother the dead person. Flame will be lit around the house to chase away bad spirit that cause the dead of the person. The children will be given talisman by smudging charcoal on both of their eyebrows or on both of their sole. Before the body was buried, it will be wash and wrapped with a new cloth or white cloth then with a mats and it will be buried into a grave of one meter deep. Before overlain, 3 clod of soil that have mix with charcoal will be placed on both of the ears and at the chest of the dead man. It is to cut off the ties between the dead man and his family. If it is not done, they believe that the family of the dead man will fall sick and eventually die. After being buried, a crafted wooden block is placed on the grave as marker then food, water and cigarettes that have been light up are paced on the grave for 6 days. On the sixth day, the crafted wood that were place on the grave is burnt to show that the spirit of the death person has gone to another world. It is then replace by tombstone and one of the family members will hold the tombstone and speak out the death person name to wake up his spirit to fete the food and drinks that have been placed on the grave. Home and taboos There are 4 different kinds of houses that the Semai people have in one village, which are : Yeau Home (Deg Yeau) Ran Home (Deg Ran) Bunch of Banana Home (Deg Pisang Sesikat) Ordinary Home Furthermore, for Semai people there are a few taboos that they should follow to make sure that they are not being harm by the bad spirits or the Nyanik (demons) and to have a peaceful life. MAH MERI TRIBE The  Mah Meri  is one of the 18 groups named by the Malaysian government Orang Asli living in West Malaysia. They are of the  Senoi  subgroup. Most of the members of the Mah Meri tribe live along the coast of South Selangor from  Sungei Pelek  up to  Pulau Carey, although there is at least one Mah Meri Community on the other side of the  Klang River. According to the Orang Asli Office of the Malaysian government,  they numbered around 2200 in 2005.Most of the Mah Meri live in small villages (kampungs) on the fringes of other cities and on Pulau Carey, which has five separate villages of Mah Meri. There is no information on their origin, but the Mah Meri tribe claims to have walked the earth for as long as one can remember. They live in the states of Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Malacca, and Johor. The Mah Meri language, sometimes also called  Besisi  is one of the  Mon-Khmer  language groups but has also borrowed from Malay. Mah Meri Villages Name of Villages The Nearest Town Kampung Orang Asli Bukit Bangkong Sungei Pelek Kampung Orang Asli Tg Sepat Kampung Orang Asli Sungei Kurau Pulau Carey Kampung Orang Asli Sungei Judah Pulau Carey Kampung Orang Asli Sungei Bumbun Pulau Carey C:UsersFaizDesktopmah meriimages (2).jpgC:UsersFaizDesktopmah meriZA (34).jpgC:UsersFaizDesktopmah meriimages (1).jpg Lifestyle Living in small wooden houses set in harmony with the surrounding forces of nature, the Mah Meri prefer to remain forest people. Hence in their villages, life seems relatively untouched by modern progress. They are known for their woodcarving skills, yet their economic activity remains rooted in agriculture and fishing. They resist employment outside of their community. The Mah Meri are soft-spoken and trusting with a propensity to laugh in the face of adversity. While the adults carry out their daily economic activities, the children often ride their fathers bicycles and play their favorite games with sticks, seeds, and other objects. Surprisingly, the Mah Meri community has managed to preserve a tradition of spiritual woodcarving that is truly world class in terms of quality of its craft and artistry. The art, which has rich mythological meanings behind the images and symbols, is handed down from father to son. As not many people seem interested in such animistic carvings, the young Mah Meri do not see it as a profitable trade. C:UsersFaizDesktopmah meriimages.jpg Religion Primary religion : Ethnic religion Major Religions: C:UsersFaizDesktopmah meriimages (3).jpg Buddhism 0.00 % Christianity 0.00 % (Evangelical: 0.00 %) Ethnic Religions 67.00 % Hinduism 0.00 % Islam 33.00 % Non-Religious 0.00 % Other / Small 0.00 % Marriage Mah Meri also inquire charity ceremony, engagement and wedding as the Malay community. The difference is only maintained their customary ceremonial demon exorcisms in its own way, as well as ritual held to inform the ancestors that their grandchildren will hold their wedding ceremony. The event was considered important to ensure that the marriage ceremony is safe, secure, blessed and happy until the children and grandchildren. In the suit, Tok Batin will see the groom preparations to carry to the proposal such as gold rings, cosmetics, kidney stone bowl and requirements such as mortar and other ceremonial. The bride undergoes sharpening teeth. Sharpen the teeth is considered an important custom made. Use of black cloth as a marker placed on the tooth to be sharpened tooth spacing. Ring will be used to sharpen teeth flat and then smoked. This aims to make the prospective bride is always radiant and prevent tetanus during the wedding ceremony.      Mah Meri play traditional Aboriginal musical instrument to celebrate the bride on marriage. However, the desire of the men would like to have a girl of his choice will be disqualified even if the proposal and the wedding day is set, if the expenses for the purpose of the event is not sufficient. If only in the past three months, the men failed to provide a tight, self agreement is considered void and the groom are doing fraud against Tok Batin. As with any other kind of ethnic wedding, they are also making preparations to provide the dais. They will decorate the dais cooperate by putting various patterns woven palm leaves and brightly colored flowers in every corner stage. Touch use palm leaves used by indigenous peoples Mah Meri quarter of uniqueness and difference is displayed with other indigenous tribes in the country. At the ceremony, the wedding ceremony begins with the groom shaman leads a group of girls together turn circles around the bride and smoked nets covered with incense. Ceremony was to cast out demons and avoid bad things. Rotation seven times and on the last lap, the groom should get the bride and flower turns. When the wedding ceremony, a ritual performed as a symbolic coin toss to determine the direction of freedom bride living in the household. During makan beradab, monitoring will ensure the bride eat and ended simultaneously so that they live a happy and long lasting household coped. If one of the bride in advance of their meal, it is believed that the commission will invite accidents in the household in the f

Truman Doctrine :: essays research papers

The Truman Doctrine In order to contain Communism, President Harry S. Truman issued the Truman Doctrine in 1947, which provided aid to Greece and Turkey. The United States gave aid to those countries, specifically, because it felt they were most threatened by Communism during the time of the Cold War (Ferrell, pg.105). Communism is an economic system in which a single party controls the means of production with the aim of establishing a classless society (Encarta). The period after World War II, up until the year 1990, when The Cold War ended, was controlled by two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union. The United States was led by President Harry S. Truman, who was thrown into the presidency by the unexpected death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the Soviet Union was led by Joseph Stalin (McCullough, pg. 371). Each expressed different views on politics, economics and human rights. A number of events occurred which led the United States and the Soviet Union to engage in what is now known as the Cold War. The five areas of conflict were with Poland, Germany, atomic secrets, Eastern Europe, and economic rebuilding of Western Europe. The Cold War was not a war in the typical sense of the word. There were no shots fired, but rather it was a war with words. In some ways this could be considered worse than a real war because that type causes a lot more fear over what could occur at any moment and weather the threats were real or not. Those countries that sided with the United States, which were mostly Western European nations, were known as the free world. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, occupied the Eastern European nations which came to be known as the Communist Bloc (Barrons). During this time, President Harry S. Truman wanted to contain Communism before it spread world-wide. He felt that this was the crucial point and Truman responded by issuing the Truman Doctrine in 1947. Truman feared that third world countries would accept Communism. Communism 2 sounded tempting to these countries because it would equalize everyone and it may even provide those countries with a stable government (Ferrell, pg. 105). The main objective of the Truman Doctrine was to support Turkey and Greece because the United States government felt they were most threatened by Communism during the Cold War. The United States did not want Communism to spread, in fear that it would form in the United States (Encarta). The United States wanted to show the Soviet Union that they weren’t the world power and that the Soviets could not force Communism on other countries, especially weak, smaller countries. The Soviet Union thought they were the most

Perspectives of Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx Essay -- Sociology Compar

Perspectives of Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were full of evolving social and economic ideas. These views of the social structure of urban society came about through the development of ideas taken from the past revolutions. As the Industrial Revolution progressed through out the world, so did the gap between the class structures. The development of a capitalist society was a very favorable goal for the upper class. By using advanced methods of production introduced by the Industrial Revolution, they were able to earn a substantial surplus by ruling the middle class. Thus, maintaining their present class of life, while the middle class was exploited and degraded. At this time in history, social theorists like Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx challenged the aspect of social structure in their works. Emile Durkheim is known as a functionalist states that everything serves a function in society and his main concern to discover what that function was. On the other hand Karl Marx, a conflict theo rist, stresses that society is a complex system characterized by inequality and conflict that generate social change. Both Durkheim and Marx were concerned with the characteristics of groups and structures rather than with individuals. The functionalist perspective in society is a view of society that focuses on the way various parts of society have functions, or possible effects that maintain the stability of the whole. Durkheim developed the idea of society as an integrated system of interrelated parts. He wanted to establish how the various parts of society contribute to the maintenance of the whole. He also focused on how various elements of social structure function to maintain social order and equilibrium. Durkheim stressed that culture is the product of a community and not of single individuals. He argued that the ultimate reality of human life is sociological and not psychological. The sociological reality, which Durkheim called the collective conscience, exists beyond the individual and individual actions. Durkheim characterizes collective conscience as â€Å"a totality of beliefs and sentiments common to average citizens of the same society forms a determinate system which has its own life† (Ritzer , 82). In Durkheim’s opinion a whole is not identical to the sum of its parts, thus society is not just a mere sum of individu... ...sband’s property (Ritzer, 63). Marx says that this corresponds precisely the definition of unequal division of labor in the modern society. Where an employer degraded a worker until the worker becomes the private property of the industry and therefore no different than a slave. Just as a slave is not free to decide whether or not to work on a given day, neither is the worker. Both must work in order to survive. Ultimately, many social thinkers in the history of sociology have challenged the topic of social structure in their works. Social thinkers like Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx have spent their entire lives formulating theories that would explain the status of individuals in societies. From a functionalist perspective sociologist like Emile Durkheim looks at society as a system with various parts that contribute to the maintenance of the whole. On the other hand Karl Marx, a conflict theorist, stresses that society is a complex system characterized by inequality and conflict that generate social change. Both theorists looked at a social system as a set of mutually supporting elements, unlike for Mark, it was hard for Durkheim to explain how change might occur in a society.

Global Warming is Destroying Our Planet Essay -- Climate Change, Argum

Is global warming happening right now, and it is causing climate shifts on the Earth? Scientists are still proving this theory by researching data throughout the world. Though scientists are working hard to verify the theory, all the blame is on us, the consumers. Climate shifts are becoming a problem, and people need to be aware of what consequences may be ahead. People need to know, what can be done by this? Most individuals would not give this topic a second thought, but with the research being done there may be a solution to help our Earth. Opposing viewpoints and arguments are debatable in this case, because everyone has a different opinion but this is how I want to advise people to take caution for the revolutionary weather season. I will be discussing the controversy of global warming, history patterns, greenhouse gases, and the biggest emitters of green house gases; in which, will bring up a few more sub-topics to inform the people on. I support the research being done on gl obal warming and the deep investigation on the effects it may have. Although there may be opposing issues that feed this topic to grow as a controversy, people in the third world neglect the economy, and still expect to fund their yearly needs with no delay. How do we support ourselves when it comes to our necessities and our people are not willing to pay? Global warming is not going to stop, and even our countries leader is trying to resolve the issue about climate change. According to Patrick Jonsson, staff writer of Christian Science Publishing, four in ten Americans now say they place little, or no trust in what scientists proclaim about the environment. Disregard the fact of being republican or democrat, but even President Obama has made his a... ...1 Jun 2010,National Newspaper Abstracts (3), ProQuest. Web. 7 Jul. 2010. Riebeek, Holli. "Global Warming : Feature Articles." NASA Earth Observatory : Home. 3 June 2010. Web. 08 July 2010. . "Snow and Ice Cover." Environmental Science: In Context. Ed. Brenda Wilmoth Lerner and K. Lee Lerner. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2009. 741-742. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Butler County Community College. 7 July 2010 http://butlerlib.butlercc.edu:2390/ps/start.do?p=GVRL&u=klnb_bucc Tomizuka, A.. "Estimation of the power of greenhouse gases on the basis of absorption spectra. " American Journal of Physics 78.4 (2010): 359. Research Library, ProQuest. Web. 7 Jul. 2010. Weaver, R.. "Sensory Overload over Global Warming. " Journal of Forestry 106.7 (2008): 398-399. Research Library, ProQuest. Web. 7 Jul. 2010.

God’s kingdom Essay

John Ortberg’s The Life You’ve Always Wanted book talks of how one can be transformed and live with Jesus inside their life. One should lead a deep spiritual life wherever they are and in all aspects of their life. A proper relationship with one’s God can transform one so that they lead a spiritual life which is very important to a Christian. When one lives with Jesus in their hearts, there are fruits of Holy spirit that they can acquire which include peace, kindness, and joy. When one leads a spiritual life, they cannot have disappointments in their life because disappointments come when they ignore to live the way God wants them to live. One should thus not disappoint the God who created them and Who guides them in everything they do every day. One should understand that they were created by God. Rather, man was made by God to subdue the earth and fill it and also to have dominion on other creatures on the earth. There is a need to know that death is not the end of our lives but that there is another life which will be eternal in heaven. One should understand that the gospel is true and is not like any other tales which are being told here in the world. Consequently, God’s kingdom is open to anyone who can accept Jesus to be their savior and lead his life as the Jesus did by not following and fulfilling earthly needs. One should understand that Jesus came in the world and died for our sins in order to have eternal or everlasting splendor. One should understand that God can transform them at any time regardless of their age. This happened to Moses at a time that he was thinking he had become a person who had been forgotten. God however transformed him and made him the person who rescued the Israelites from the powerful Pharaoh. One should also understand that God hears prayers and answers them as He did to the Israelites in the hands of pharaoh. God heard their groans and sent Moses to bring them out of Pharaoh’s slavery. One should also understand that the desire to be transformed lies in everyone’s heart. Moreover, once they are transformed, they acquire hope in their life and are assured of eternal life in the next world. One needs to understand that Christians should not conform to the world around them. Paul advocated for transformation by renewal of minds. People should also understand that we are on a morphing time and that any ordinary person can receive power anytime and have extraordinary changes. Above everything, one should not forget that Jesus died for mankind’s sins and that Christ brought joy to humanity and that we should follow His teachings. One should have patience and endurance whenever they are suffering, be attending prayer fellowships, and have solitude and meditation on the Scriptures (Ortberg, 2002). I remember one day asking myself many questions after my expectations had failed to come true. I had finished my secondary level education. Moreover, since I thought that I had done my examinations well, I was thus sure that I had excelled and that I will be able to join a higher learning institution to do my bachelors degree. When the results were announced and after hearing that in our school, around five students had passed to join university level, I knew I must have passed because I used to be number one in our class since I was in form one. When I went to pick my results, I was surprised to find that my name did not appear among the first top ten students. I was shocked to an extent that I could not even talk to anybody whom I came across as I was going home. I went home and I did not even talk to any of my family members. I could not even participate in doing any household chores no matter how easy it was. I could not even talk to my friends who used to come visiting me. I stayed indoors for more than two weeks enduring a lot of stress asking myself why God had done that for me. I used to ask myself whether it was because I was not attending morning prayers and church devotions that God had decided to discipline me. My parents, having seen how I was depressed, organized that I go to another school where I would redo my exams. When the results were out, I had passed very well. What surprises me in Ortberg’s book is how and why one gets disappointed with themselves. Another question I would like to ask is what made Moses to ask God who He (God) was as Moses was being sent to pharaoh. Further, is human transformation genuinely possible? Another question which I may ask is how people understand or view this issue of transforming or morphing? Is it that people turn to God or remember the Lord when they are faced with problems? Do people understand that there is life after this one we are living in and that Jesus died so that we can have eternal majesty? Moreover, Ortberg should have asked the old woman how she knew Jesus and how her life was in Jesus. He could also have asked her how she knew about Jesus Christ; was it because she was blind and old or did she know Him when she was still young. What steps can one take to make sure that he or she has transformed as many people as possible? Can Ortberg – the author of this book, be associated with any influence in transforming the faith of many pagan people and bring them to Christianity? At what age or state can one be transformed and accept Jesus as their personal savior? From Ortberg’ book, I have learnt that transforming people is a very important thing since one can change the life of a person completely from a bad one to a good one. I have also learnt that mankind’s wish is not the wish of God. I have also known that when one leads a spiritual life, they can always much happiness and be joyous. Another lesson I have learnt is that material things are not important for they are earthly things. Rather, what is important is God’s kingdom since in it, there is eternal splendor. I have also learnt that the life one wants to live is not always easy to live because God has plans for everyone and that we are not the determinants of our lives. Instead, God created humanity and has the plans for everybody. Another lesson I have learnt from this book is that God is the giver of life and can change one’s lifestyle at any stage or at any age. I have also learnt that God hears the prayers and cries of His children and answers them. Time is not significant in this case since God has explicit plans for everyone. References Ortberg, John. (2002). The life you’ve always wanted. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan.

American History thru 1877

In 1492, Columbus set sail for Asia but found the Americas instead, exploring several islands of the Caribbean Sea. In the following years Columbus made three more voyages, and many other Spaniards explored the Caribbean islands and mainland. During the late Middle Ages, Mongols threatened Europe with pillage and destruction. However, they also unified much of Eurasia, creating trade routes and communication lines stretching from Middle East to China. A series of Europeans took advantage of these to explore eastwards.The trade routes between Europe and Middle East, however, was almost completely controlled by traders from the Italian city states. Upon the collapse of the Mongol Empire, the trade routes to the east soon became far more difficul and dangerous. The Black Death would eventually also block travel and trade. The land route to the East was controlled by Mideterranean commercialists and Islamic empires that both controlled the flow and price of goods. The rise of the expansi onist Ottoman Empire has also further limited the possibilities of European overland trade.The Age of Exploration has begun. During the Rennaisance, scholars rediscovered the works of the ancient Greeks and Roman geographers. Christopher Columbus came to believe that he could reach Asia in the East by sailing West. Instead, he found the New World. With the advances of navigation, military technology and shipbuilding, the Europeans started to explore the world by ocean searching for trading partners, particularly of gold, silver and spices. They sought a viable trade route which would be uncontested by those Mediterranean powers.Similarities and lesser differences among the Southern Colonies The Virginia Company obtained a royal charter enabling each to found a colony, granting the right to coin money, raise revenue, and to make laws, but reserving much power to the king. The object of the lord proprietor, Baltimore, was twofold. He wished to found a state and become its ruler, for h e was truly a man of the world; he loved power and he loved wealth. Second, he wished to furnish a refuge for the oppressed of his own faith; for the Roman Catholics, as well as the Puritans, were objects of persecution in England.He was granted charter to Maryland. He was required by the charter to send the king two Indian arrows each year, as a token of allegiance to the Crown, and if any gold and silver were mined in Maryland, one fifth of it was to be paid to the king. But aside from this the proprietor was invested with almost kingly power. He could not tax his people without their consent, but he could coin money, make war and peace, pardon criminals, establish courts, and grant titles of nobility.The charter, however, provided that the laws be made by the proprietor and the freemen—democracy was beginning to emerge. It was the first colony in which religious toleration had a place. South Carolina differs from most of the colonies in not having had to battle against imp ending dissolution during its first years of existence, and from all the others in depending largely on slave labor from the beginning. Popular assembly began to frame laws on the basis of libery.The charter conferred the right of making laws on the proprietors only by and with the advice, assent, and approbation of the freemen. North Carolina was twin-born with South Carolina and both were not separated politically until 1729 and their histories run parallel for many years. The object in founding the colony in Georgia was threefold: to afford an opportunity to the unfortunate poor to begin life over again, to offer a refuge to persecuted Protestants of Europe, and to erect a military barrier between the Carolinas and Spanish Florida.Georgia was the only colony of the thirteen that received financial aid by a vote of Parliament — the only one in the planting of which the British government, as such, took a part. The colony differed from all others also in prohibiting slavery and the importation of intoxicating liquors. The settlers were to have their land free of rent for ten years, but they could take no part in the government. The trustees made all the laws; but this arrangement was not intended to be permanent; at the close of the proprietary period the colony was to pass to the control of the Crown. Jamestown, VirginiaJamestown, Virginia, located at Jamestown Island on the banks of James River, both of which were named after King James I of England, 60 miles from the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, was founded on May 14, 1607 by the Virginia Company—a group of London Entrepreneurs to whom were granted a charter to establish an English settlement in the Chespeake region of North America, and were instructed to find gold and water route to the Orient. The location was selected primarily because it offered a favorable strategic defensive position against other European forces which might approach by water.However, the colonists soon discovered that the swampy and isolated site was plagued by mosquitoes and tidal river water unsuitable for drinking, anf offered limited opportunities for hunting and little space for farming. The area was also inhabited by native Americans, the Algonqiuan from whom the colonists found themselves under attacked. It appears that eventual structured leadership of Captain John Smith kept the colony from dissolving. By 1609, during the departure of Captain John Smith, only 60 of the original 214 settlers survived, and by June of that year, the settlers decided to bury the cannon and armor and abandon the town.The arrival of the new governor general, Lord De La Ware, and his supply ships brought the colonist back to the fort. Although the suffering did not totally end for decades, some years of peace and prosperity followed the wedding of the daughter of the Algonquian chief, Pocahontas, to English entrepreneur John Rolfe. Jamestown became the first successful English settlement in what was to become the United States of America The Iroquois The Iroquois Confederacy, or simply Iroquois, also known as The League of Pecae and Power, is a group of Native Americans allied together in peace.They were originally composed of five nations: the Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, and the Seneca. They were later joined by the Tuscarora. They were collectively known as the Haudenosaunee, or People of the Longhouse, because of the types of houses they lived in. They became he strongest forces in the seventeenth and eighteenth century, having been involved in the Beaver Wars and the French and Indian Wars against the French, and having participated during the American Revolution. The PilgrimsThe Pilgrims, or The Pilgrim Fathers, is the name commonly applied to the early settlers of the Plymouth Colony. They were members of the Puritans, who were oppressed during the Protestant Reformation in Europe and began to seek a better freedom in the New World. They came to the America in mid November of 1620 aboard Mayflower and drafted the Mayflower Compact, which ensured rights for all the settlers and promised cooperation among settlers for the general good of the Colony. However, like the settlers in Jamestown, were bothered by attacks from the native Americans and suffered during the first winter.They got help from friendlier natives who taught them their skills like woodcraft, hunting, how to make maple sugar, moccasins, canoes, and how to raise crops of maiz and tobacco, all of which helped them to survive. In the autumn of 1621, they produced their first successful harvest and celebrated the first Thanksgiving. Plymouth is said to be the second successful English settlement in North America. Issues and Conflicts In Colonial Politics Most of the original English colonies in North America were private ventures that were less supervised by the English government.The institutions by the colonies' sponsors varied enormously with each other. Most governors in colonia l territories were appointed by the Crown and were responsible for enforcing British trade laws and carrying out other directives, executing colonial laws, administeing justice, and appointing most officers. They were also responsible for provincial defense and diplomatic relations with the native Americans and other colonies. Colonists expected remarkably little from the British government.Budget were low; paid full-time officials were few; civil, judicial, and police establishments were small, part-time and unprofessional; and military establishments were temporary. Politics provided little scope for the active involvement of the citizens. Leadership and institutional structures were weak and undefined, levels of political expertise and socialization low, and political conciousness undeveloped. Under such conditions, public life was volatile, and would-be leaders jockeyed with one another for power, wealth, and prestige.In a few places for brief periods, this primitive politics of competition resulted in the triumph of restrictive oligarchies. The gradual conversion of these colonies into royal provinces helped to develop into roughly similar political systems between colonies, for most of the pattern were derived from English political institutions. However politics developed, public life became more settled. Levels of political socialization and consciousness rose, and institutional and leadership structures became more sharply articulated.A more modern type of polity began to emerge around 1750 with the development of semi-permanent political parties. Factors that moved America towards Independence There were many factors that led Americans fight for their independence against Britain. There were growing grievances against the British authorities among the colonies, from which only one of the original thirteen colonies were formally founded by Britain, others were haphazardly founded by trading companies, religious groups or land speculators.Republican se ntiments were also growing, which, by its very nature, was opposed to heirarchical and authoritarian institutions like monarchy and aristocracy, from which Britain forms it government. Radical Whigs ideas were also widely read by the citizens of the colonies. The radical Whigs feared the threat to liberty posed by the arbitrary power of the monarch and representatives in Parliament and warned the citizens to be on guard against corruption and to be vigilant against possible conspiracies to strip them of their liberties.The colonies were also used to participating in politics, Britain, however has left them alone for many years, denied them representation to the Parliament, while the citizens must obey British laws. Grievances were raised when the British government imposed taxes on their colonies, which eventually led to the Declaratory Act, from which Britain asserted its absolute authority over its colonies. The colonies, however, wanted a share of sovereignty. In 1774, colonists called for the Continental Congress to consider ways of redressing colonial grievances.The Declaration of Rights was drawn, protesting Britain's colonial policies, and sent to the king of Britain. The Congress also called for the creation of The Continental Association. The Association, however, did not call for independence, only to repeal offensive legilation by Britain to its colonies. The Parliament rejection of the Congress' petitions prompted the Association to convene for a second Continental Congress in May 1775, which has eventually adopted the US Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation.The American Revolutionary War had officially begun upon the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The Seven Years War The Seven Years War involved all the major European powers and is a struggle against the French control of North America. It started in May 1756 with the official declaration of war by England against France and ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on February 1763. The treaty ended France's position as major colonial power in the Americas and its position as leading power in Europe.England's success, however, was costly and the Parliament's attempt to cover for its debts and to pay for continuing military presence in America by direct taxation of the colonists soon strained relations between mother country and colonies. The Merits and Menace of Mercantilism The British authoriies embraced a theory called mercantilism, that justified the control over the colonies. Mercantilism states that wealth was power and that a country's economic wealth could be measured by the amount of gold and silver in its treasury, and that the colonies exists for the benefit of the mother country.The british expected the American colonies to furnish products needed by Britain, and to export and but foods exclusively from Britain. The British crown also reserved rights to nullify any legislation passed by the colonial assemblies if such laws worked against the mercantalist system. The merits of mercantilism includes that Britain paid a lot of money to colonial producers, tobacco planters also enjoyed a monopoly in the British market, and that the colonies also benefitted from the protection of the world's mightiest navy and strong, seasoned army of redcoats without paying any tax.Mercantilism, however, stifled economic initiative since colonies could not buy and sell products they wanted to other countries, and Americans found it debasing—they felt used and kept in a state of economic adolescence, never allowed to come of age. Stamp Tax Uproar The Stamp Act of 1765 was passed in the Birtish parliament with the primary purpose to raise revenues to support military force due to the added defense requirements resulting from vast new territories acquired during the war and conflict with American Indians. The act required all legal documents, permits, contracts, newpapers, wills, pamphlets, etc., in the colonies to carry a t ax stamp. It was opposed by Americans stating that the Act would hurt their liberty—that them being taxed without being granted Representation where the taxes are laid, then they are reduced from the character of free subjects to the miserable state of tributary slaves—and that they thought the British army is no longer needed. Any offenders had to be tied in Admiralty Courts and the burden of proof is upon the defendants, which meant that defendants were assumed guilty unless they could prove themselves innocent.Common Sense and the Declarataion of Independence The opening paragraph of the United States Declaration of Independence states that: â€Å"when in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.† Signatories of Declaration have agreed that â€Å"all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness† and that â€Å"whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.† These claims of the Declaration were supported by Thomas Paine's Common sense, in which he states that the end of government is freedom and security; that government is necessary to enforce regulations or laws that were created to mitigate the problems of society, which were â€Å"produced by our wants† and â€Å"promotes our happiness positive ly by uniting our affections. † The Declaration claims that the King of Britain has refused his â€Å"Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for public good† Hamilton's Federalist and Jefferson's Republican The Federalist Party wanted a fiscally sound and strong nationalistic government.Hamilton proposed that state governors would be appointed by the President; the President and Senators would hold office for life; and the Congress would retain exclusive authority to make all the laws of the country. His principles were based on the notion of â€Å"public good† and the superiority of a government which derived its power from the consent of the governed, and believed that only a talented few—understood to mean men drawn from the wealthy and aristocratic strata of society—had the wisdom and dispassionate foresight to implement the measures necessary for the public good.He believed that the great majority of people operated primarily out of s elf-interest and could not be trusted to think or act judiciously in matters of state power. Hence, a proposal such as seating the President for life, so that he would not be subject to the whims of a fickle electorate. He emphasized on an â€Å"energetic government,† which means that government should be proactive in economic and military affairs, have the power the supersede lower governments—as at the state level—and be able to exercise authority directly on the people.He points that only an energetic government would be able to provide the stability and order necessary to secure the blessings of liberty for the people. The Republicans, however, rejected the ideas of Hamilton. They feared that Federalism favored the interests of wealthy patricians over the great number of agrarian laborers, and would set the stage for a return to monarchy. Jefferson argued that the powers of the government should be exercised by by each representatives chosen for such short t erms as should render secure the duty of expressing the will of their constituents.He believed that the mass of the citizens is th safest depository of their own rights, for the evils flowing from the duperies of the people are less injurious than those from the egoism of their agents. He advocated that every people may establish what form of government they please and change it as they please, implying that the same is true with its leaders—the will of the nation is the only thing essential. Uneasy Missouri Compromise In 1818, the Missouri territory applied for statehood and wanted to allow slavery in their state.Abolitionist sentiment was growing in the north, and there were, at the time, eleven free states and eleven slave states. If Missouri becomes a slave state, the tie would be broken and those who favor slavery would be a step closer to legalizing slavery, and the Northern members refused Missouri's admittance as a slave state because of this. However in 1819, Maine a pplied for statehood as a free state, which was, of course, threatened by the Southern members of the Congress to prevent its admittance.The Missouri Compromise was an agreement passed in 1820 between pro and anti-slavery factions in the United States Congress, allowing Missouri to enter as a slave stae and Maine as a free state, and to avoid conflicts in the future, added that all future states north of Missouri's southern border be free states and the future south states be slave states. The compromise remained in effect until 1854, when the US Congress passed the Kansa-Nebraska Act. Articles of ConfederationThe Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, or, shortly, Articles of Confederation, was the first governing constitution of the United stated of America. The thirteen states were independent until the articles' ratification was completed in 1781, whence the legal existence of the United States of America as a union with a confederation government yet retained sovereignt y and every function of sovereignty not specifically deputed to the government of the federation.Although the articles were started to be written in 1777 during the early part of the American Revolution, several years has passed before its ratification because of the states' fear of a powerful central government, the Continental Congress had been careful to give the states as much independence as possible and to specify the limited functions of the federal government. The Articles were enforced from March 1, 1781 to June 21, 1788, when the present Constitution of the United States went into effect. Second War of American IndependenceOn June 18, 1812, President James Madison signed the US Congress' official declaration of war against the United Kingdom to protect American ships bound to France from being stopped, searched and being asked to pay a fee on British ports before continuing. The war was called the â€Å"second war of independence† because it gave an opportunity for the Americans to defend their freedom and honor in the face of British disrespect. The war lasted until 1815, although a treaty was already signed on December of the previous year.One of the battles, the Battle of Fort McHenry, inspired Francis Scott Key to write a poem that eventually supply the lyrics for the â€Å"Star-Spangled Banner. † Secession of Southern Colonies The co-existence of slave-owning South with an increasing anti-slavery Nroth made conflict inevitable. In 1858, Lincoln expressed his desire to â€Å"arrest the further spread of [slavery], and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction. † Abolitionists emphasized on the Declaration of Independence's clause that all men are equal.Southern states depended on slavery to support their economy. The Union was considered a â€Å"voluntary compact† entered into by independent sovereign states for as long as it served their purpose. The north needed a central government to build an infrastructure of roads and railways, protect its complex trading and financial interests, and control the national currency. The South, however, depended much less on the federal government than did other regions and felt no need to strengthen it.Thy feared that a strong central government might interfere with slavery. Compromises were possible as long as niether side controlled the Senate. However, vast territories in the West and Southwest would soon be petitioning for statehood. North and South began a long and bitter struggle over whether the territories would enter the Union as free or slave states. The election of Lincoln, who was a dedicated Abolitionist, was the final trigger for the secession of the Southern States since they feared that the administration would threaten slavery.Compromises were offered before the civil wars but failed to prevent it because of the flaws in the compromise. The Corwin Amendment, for example, would forb id to any attempt to subsequently amend the Constitution to empower the Federal government to abolish or interfere with the domestic institutions of the states, including persons â€Å"held to labor or service,† were objected by Abolitionists who claims that the Constitution, at that time, did not protect slavery.The Crittenden Compromise offered the permanent reestablishment of the Missouri Compromise line but would also guarantee the permanent existence of slavery in the slave states which was, of course, rejected heavily by Abolitionists. Advantages of the Southern and Northern States during the Civil War The Southern states sought independence and would only have to defend itself against the Northern states who wanted to restore the Union, which meant it had to compel the seceded states to give up their hopes to found a new nation.The Southern states would only then need to prolong the war to a point where the Northern States would consider the efforts too costly in lives and money to persist. If the North chose not to mount a military effort to coerce the seceded states back into the Union, the Southern states, who were known to become the Confederacy, would win independence by default. The Northern states, however, planned to apply pressure on the confederacy from all sides. A combined force of naval and army units would sweep down the Mississippi River, dividing the Confederacy’s eastern and western states.At the same time, the Union navy would also institute a blockade to deny the Confederacy access to European manufactured goods. Manifest Destiny The Manifest Destiny was the belief that the United States was destined to expand from the Atlantic seaboard to the Pacific Ocean. It holds that territorial expansion is not only inevitable but divinely ordained. Manifest Destiny eventually became a standard historical term for the expansion of the United States accross North American Continent. The Great Debate: Lincoln versus DouglasThe Lincol n-Douglas debates were a series of seven formal meetings during the Illinois senatorial campaign of 1858, in which Republican Abraham Lincoln argued the issue of slavery with the Democratic incumbent, Stephen A. Douglas. Douglas' Kansas-Nebraska Act repealed the Missouri Compromise ban on slavery and replaced it with the doctrine of popular sovereignty, which meant that the people of a territory coud decide for themselves whether to allow slavery. Lincoln criticized that popular sovereignty would nationalize and perpetuate slavery.Newspapers across the nation reprinted the full text of the debates, and after the election Licoln edited all the text and had them published in a book. The widespread of the original debates and the subsequent popularity of the book led eventually to Lincoln's nomination for the President of the United States by the 1860 Republican National Convention in Chicago. The Dred Scott Bombshell Dred Scott was a slave whose master took him north into free states where he lived for many years.After his master's death, he sued for his freedom from his his new master, claiming that he had been in a free territory and was therefore free. Th Missouri Supreme Court agreed and Scott temporarily gained his freedom, but his new master appealed to the US Supreme Court. On March 6, 1857, the Dred Scott decision was handed down by the Supreme Court, declaring African Americans were not US citizens and therefore could not bring suit in federal court under diversity of citizenship rules, thus overruling the Missouri Court decision.However, the real bombshell statement was that a legislature, including the Congress, cannot outlaw slavery as that would go against the 5th Amendment, stating that a person's property cannot be taken without due process of law. This statement would have been sufficient to declare that the Missouri Compromise had been unconstitutional. The decision would also eventually give rise to the American Civil Warin 1861.