Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for Religion for Baccalaureate

Change and religious conflicts. Reformation and Counter-Reformation

The causes of the Reformation

• Disdain for the papacy and clergy: People believed that popes were concerned with their own interests; bishops lived a life of luxury and didn't reside in their dioceses; lower-ranking clergy lacked education, didn't preach and failed to set a moral example; and religious orders didn't adhere to the established rules.
• The abuses of the Church: Nepotism, favouritism by the high-ranking clergy towards members of their own family when allocating ecclesiastic positions; nicolaism, marriage practiced by priests; simony, the sale of ecclesiastic posts. Pope, bishops and cardinals sold forgiveness for sins to whoever bought a document of indulgences.

Reforms

Ramon Llull's Literary Works

Evast & Blanquerna

The protagonist of the novel Evast & Blanquerna, written in Montpellier in 1283, is a hero without stain who has the gift of always choosing the best option. He lives life from the Lullian perspective. At eighteen, he leaves his parents, Evast and Aloma, and the proposed marriage to Natana, in search of the spiritual perfection of the hermit. This, however, is the end of a long journey during which he has been a monk, an abbot, a bishop, and the Pope. Throughout the book, there are abundant small instructive moral stories, known in medieval times as eximplis. These examples, used by preachers to embellish sermons on doctrine, served to provide a picture that was plastic, entertaining, and...

Dante's Divine Comedy

The Divine Comedy is Dante Alighieri's most important work (1265 621) and is considered one of the most important works of Italian and world literature.

It is a medieval epic poem describing the structure of the afterlife according to the conception of its time. The book has three parts: Inferno (Hell), Purgatorio (Purgatory) and Paradiso (Paradise). Each part consists of 33 cantos written in interlocking tercets of hendecasyllabic lines (terza rima).

Features

The title Commedia (comedy) follows Aristotle's poetics, which defined comedy as a work with a happy ending in contrast to tragedy (Aristotle). The adjective Divina (divine) was added later, in the 14th century.

Many episodes emphasize sin and excessive punishment; the...

Ralph Waldo Emerson: Biographical Influences and Philosophy

Ralph Waldo Emerson (The Transcendentalist)

• Born May 25, 1803, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.—died April 27, 1882, Concord, Massachusetts.
• On May 12, 1811, Emerson’s father died, leaving the son largely to the intellectual care of Mary Moody Emerson, his aunt, who took her duties seriously.
• In 1817 he entered Harvard College, where he began his journals.
• He graduated in 1821 and taught school while preparing for part-time study in the Harvard Divinity School. Though Emerson was licensed to preach in the Unitarian community in 1826, illness slowed the progress of his career, and he was not ordained to the Unitarian ministry at the Second Church, Boston, until 1829.
• In 1829 he also married

Alfonso X

Issues

Alfonso X aimed to preserve and promote Castilian language and culture. He believed in the importance of recording all areas of knowledge, including legal, social, economic, and scientific topics. This is reflected in the variety of themes present in his work.

Right

The Book of Laws, or Seven Parts, aimed to provide clear and rational legal rules for the people. It drew inspiration from Roman law and existing legal traditions.

Sciences

Alfonso X commissioned treatises on astronomy and studies on the properties of gemstones, demonstrating his interest in scientific knowledge.

Games and Entertainment

His work on chess, dice, and tables, translated from Arabic, provides insight into various forms of entertainment popular at the time.

History

Alfonso...

Medieval Fiction

Between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries, different types of narrative developed: religious and moral (Ramon Llull), history (chronicles), philosophy (Bernard Metge), and novelistic.

Ramon Llull

Life

Ramon Llull was born in Mallorca in 1232, just three years after King James I conquered the island from the Saracens. A descendant of a wealthy Barcelona family, he received a good education, enabling him to become seneschal at the court of King James II of Majorca. He married, had two sons, and cultivated troubadour poetry.

In 1263, as he explains in his autobiography, Jesus Christ appeared to him crucified. This vision led him to abandon court life and dedicate himself fully to converting infidels to Christianity through three...

1. Expository and Argumentative Texts

1.1. The Expository Text

An expository text aims to transmit, orally or in writing, content on a specific topic.

Purpose:

• To inform the receiver about a topic, aiming for comprehensive understanding.
• To inform non-specialized receivers, where the texts have an informative and expository character.

The purpose of expository texts is to explain a topic, transmit knowledge, and inform, not to convince or persuade.

Examples of expository texts include class explanations, conferences, specialized articles, exams, and manuals. Expository texts often blend with argumentative ones.

1.2. Characteristics of Expository Texts:

Objectivity, clarity, and order.

• Objectivity: Presented from an impartial point of view. Uses third-

Introduction to Notre Dame de Paris

Notre Dame de Paris is, without doubt, one of the most enduring symbols of the city. While not the largest cathedral in France, it stands as one of the most remarkable examples of Gothic art. Situated in the eastern part of the Île de la Cité, its facade faces west and overlooks the Place Notre Dame, home to the point zéro (zero point) from which all distances in France are measured. Its dimensions are impressive: 130 meters long, 48 meters wide, and 69 meters high.

Architectural Marvels of the Facade

The facade features three magnificent portals:

• The central and most significant is the Portal of the Last Judgment. It displays intricate sculptures representing the resurrection of the dead, an angel with a

Juan de la Cruz (1542-1591): Erotic Poetry to the Divine

San Juan de la Cruz is an enigmatic and extraordinary figure. A mystic and a technician, his poetry explores a unique theme: union with God. Let's consider one of his most famous poems, Dark Night.

This poem can have a double meaning: the carnal encounter of two lovers and the soul's union with God. Given the second interpretation, we find certain symbolism in the poem:

• Beloved: God
• Amada: Soul
• Night: Denial of the senses and the sensible
• House: Body

The night, which signifies the negation of the senses, blurs the lines of things and brings us closer to the divine presence. It can be considered the spiritual vacuum necessary for the encounter with God, through the so-called unitive.

This denial...

Infinity and the Aleph

The Aleph represents the focal point of all infinite things in the universe. For humans, infinity acts as a dead end that induces profound anxiety, a theme notably depicted in The Immortal.

Chaos and Cosmos

The universe is a chaotic entity that humanity cannot fully encompass, explain, or understand. Life is a chaotic activity governed by chance, disorder, and nightmare, which contrasts sharply with the divine realm. This disparity highlights the inability of men to control the divine.

The Labyrinth as a Symbol

The labyrinth symbolizes the chaotic nature of the universe, characterized by an atmosphere of horror and fantasy. Man wanders through this chaotic world—traversing passageways, doors, staircases, and halls—unable...