Summary 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Summary 4 - Essay Example It goes without saying that the story of the life and deeds of this great man are now intermingled with numerous mysteries and myths. Thus, it is still unknown when St. Benedict was born, though â€Å"tradition teaches† that he was born in 480 and died in 547.1 According to Gregory the Great, who was St. Benedict’s biographer, the saint lived from 480 up to 543.2 St. Benedict was born in â€Å"the province of Nursia of honourable parentage and sent to Rome to study the liberal sciences†.3 However, at the age of fourteen Benedict abandons the school and starts his glorious way of a virtuous man and spiritual shepherd.4 He starts living in solitude in one of the caves of the mountains not far from Rome. Soon he starts living in monasteries where he inspires other monks (and other people) by his virtues. Admittedly, the life in monasteries was the necessary background for the creation of his code of rules. It is noteworthy that he could read Latin which made it poss ible for him to get acquainted with works of Cassian and other prominent monastic writings.5 At this point it is necessary to point out that in his biography Gregory the Great also mentions numerous miracles worked by St. Benedict. Of course, this cannot be regarded as facts from the saint’s biography. ... d and God has not abandoned his people; he continues to bless them with holy persons†.6 It goes without saying that Benedict did lead a virtuous life and made a lot of rightful things to become such a symbol for millions of people. He established 12 monasteries and never stopped teaching monks and other people to live rightfully. However, the major work of St. Benedict is his Rule which he, presumably, wrote in Monte Cassino.7 The Rule contains the major guideline for monasticism which â€Å"was and is still used in many monasteries and convents† worldwide.8 The reason why the Rule has become the guideline for millions is quite simple. The principles articulated by St. Benedict were simple and rightful. The Rule is properly structured and is written in a form of preaching, or rather exhortation. In the first place, Benedict reveals the aims he is eager to achieve in his Rule. In the Prologue he states that only obedience and rightful work can bring monks to their Holy Fa ther. In the Prologue Benedict calls monks for changes: â€Å"It is now the hour for us to rise from sleep†.9 Thus, St. Benedict claims that there is a need to change some wrongful ways and turn to God. It is important to note that in his Rule Benedict points out some misdeeds. For instance, he warns abbots of â€Å"more care for fleeting, worldly things†.10 The major reason why Benedict’s Rule has been accepted in the entire western world is that it promulgated basic principles of Christianity. The Rule shows the way to make Christian monasticism rightful. Notably, St. Benedict pays much attention to the role of the Abbot. In fact, St. Benedict depicts the â€Å"rightful† Abbot, who is patient, reasonable, and virtuous. According to Benedict the rightful Abbot should inspire his disciples by his deeds,

Influencial Person during the American Revolution Essay

Influencial Person during the American Revolution - Essay Example He was born in Thetford, England, to a corset-maker father and a religious mother, both of whom were Quakers1. He enrolled in school, attending regularly until almost the age of thirteen, when he was forced to drop out and learn his father’s trade. Deciding that he disliked being a corset-maker, he tried a number of other trades, including teacher, grocer, and excise tax collector2. While he worked his best at these occupations, Paine really had no desire to make these occupations his for the rest of his life, and therefore fared badly in all of them. Paine came to the colonies in 1774, settling in Philadelphia after meeting with Benjamin Franklin in London. Franklin wrote what was known at the time as â€Å"letters of introduction† for Paine, and Paine left for the colonies to begin a new life3. Less than two years later, Paine found himself embroiled in the American Revolution. Many Americans believed, at first, that the fight with the British was not about independen ce or gaining any sort of freedom, but rather to plead with the King for a redress of grievances4. In 1775, when the revolution had progressed as far as the Battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill, four of the Founding Fathers, including John Adams, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, and George Washington, met to review dispatches, during which time Paine entered the room5. After being introduced by Franklin, Paine states frankly, â€Å"These States of America must be independent of England. That is the only solution to this question!†6 Though most of the men felt that this was, in essence, a shocking statement, they all realized that Paine was right, and that independence must be achieved if they were to live freely from England7. Paine proceeded, not long after, to write the pamphlet that would energize the American people, entitled Common Sense. In this pamphlet, he addressed the problems of the English monarchy, the advisability of separation from England and gaining American independence, the nature of the American colonists as a society, and also made some modest proposals for a new form of government8. His motive, in writing the pamphlet, was not only to plant the idea of independence in the minds of the colonists but to turn the anger of Americans away from particular parliamentary measures and towards what he considered the root of the problem, which, in his mind, was the English constitution itself9. Common Sense sold more than 100,000 copies in only a few months, and helped to create a rapid growth of support for the idea of independence in the early months of 177610. One of the reasons for its success was that, by coincidence, it was published first on the same day that a speech from the King of England reached the United States, denouncing all Americans in the colonies as traitors and rebels, and stating frankly that it would be the right of England to bind the colonies forever11. Though at first it was read with a wide amount of alarm, as most colonists knew from almost the first words that it was a statement against the grain of normal thought at the time, after taking many pauses and re-reading it over and over again, most of the American public came to realize that Paine was right, and that independence would be the only way to free themselves from English tyranny forever12. Paine had an audience ready to listen to him and hail him as a prophet not because of his words, but