Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Religion

Pilgrimage

Pilgrimage is a ritual involving a trip to a holy place to give thanks or apologize for one's faith.

Catharism

Catharism, a Christian confession, emerged in the eleventh century in southern France, leading to a sectarian movement. It defended Christian dualism and advocated for poverty.

Scholasticism

Scholasticism was a philosophical and theological movement based on research to reconcile arguments of revelation or faith with arguments of reason.

Theocentrism

Theocentrism is a school of thought where God and reason were the center of everything that existed.

East-West Schism

East-West Schism (Source): The division of the Roman Empire into the Western and Byzantine empires created tension between the churches of Rome and Constantinople.

1054... Continue reading "Religious Movements and Historical Events" »

Mutual Influence Between Social and Moral Development

There is a mutual influence between social and moral development. Moral development is serene if there is concordance between patterns of adult behavior, teachers, and friends.

God Representations and Anthropomorphisms

• 6-7 years: Children often have anthropomorphic representations of God, such as an old, bearded, strong man.
• 7-10 years: The image of God is refined. He is seen as an omnipotent legislator and a loving God. Catholic children initially perceive God as a strong and wise man, then as a very large and powerful giant. Finally, He is understood less anthropomorphically, moving towards the concept of an invisible spirit.

Children 3-4 Years - Moral Aspect

Children begin to have a rough idea... Continue reading "Social and Moral Development in Children: Ages 3 to 8" »

Germanic Peoples and the Roman Empire

Germanic peoples: The Romans called barbarians those who lived outside the borders of the empire, to the north of the rivers Danube and Rhine. These were the Germans in various groups such as Saxons, Swabians, Franks, Visigoths, Ostrogoths, etc., originating from Denmark and Scandinavia. They entered the empire from the 3rd century AD, sometimes peacefully, other times through conflict. In the 5th century AD, after the Huns (who came to Europe from the Asian steppe led by Attila) attacked, the Germans invaded the Roman Empire in turn. The Germanic chieftain Odoacer of the Heruli people deposed the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire. The Eastern Roman Empire withstood invasions and endured.

The Germans

Historical Context: The Religious Monarchies

After the defeat of the Roman Empire, the Church was the only institution that maintained a stable structure of monarchies. By the 12th century, it achieved a unified network of existing fiefdoms, becoming the new point of reference.

The Western Schism and the Universities

The Western Schism occurred in 1378 with the election of two popes. In 1394, Cardinal Benedict XIII of Aragon was elected Pope. The Council of Constance resolved the conflict, deposing two popes and appointing one of concord, but Benedict XIII retired to the castle of Peniscola and did not accept this solution. The Church had become the main center of cultural promotion.

The Role of the Writer

Throughout the Middle Ages, the writer... Continue reading "Medieval Religious Monarchies and Catalan Literature" »

Grammatical Analysis of Sentence Structures

Analysis: "I say these cravings..."

This sentence is grammatically complex, containing a main clause and a subordinate clause. It implies a subordinating conjunction, often referred to as a complementizer.

Sentence Structure Overview

• It is a complex sentence because it contains a main clause and a subordinate clause, each with its own verb.
• The main verbs are say and have been.
• There is an implied subordinating conjunction (complementizer) that, which introduces a substantive clause.
• Therefore, there are two propositions related by this complementary link.

Main Clause: "I say these cravings"

• Subject (SN): "I"
• Predicate (SV): "say these cravings"
• Nucleus of Predicate: "say"
• Direct Object (SN): "these cravings"

Ballads

Ballads are eight-syllable verses, with assonance in pairs and odd verses loose. Stylistic preferences include action over description, a structure of dialogue, a beginning in medias res, a truncated end, archaisms, replacement of verb forms, use of repetition, and use of questions.

Mester de Clerecía

The Mester de Clerecía uses cuaderna vía, four-line verses of 14 syllables, with caesura divided into hemistiches of seven syllables and consonant rhyme. These works were recited in Latin. Anonymous works include:

• Libro de Alexandre: The legend of Alexander the Great.
• Libro de Apolonio: An adventure story in the Byzantine manner, telling the story of King Apollonius.
• Poema de Fernán González: Tells the story of Fernán González (arranged

The Four Noble Truths

1. Life inevitably involves pain and suffering.
2. The origin of suffering is desire, clinging to things and people, causing the suffering of loss or the pain of not having them.
3. Suffering and pain can be extinguished at their root by eliminating desire, the extinction of the self.
4. The **Eightfold Noble Path** leads to the cessation of suffering:

• Right Understanding (of the Four Noble Truths)
• Right Thought (willingness to reject hate and violence)
• Right Speech (to live without lying and without unnecessary words)
• Right Action (moral behavior)
• Right Livelihood (that your work does not hurt others)
• Right Effort (taking all the inner strength to take action and overcome negative instincts)
• Right Mindfulness (taking special care of things

Language Functions

Functions of language are not incompatible if mixed; talk of secondary functions.

1. Predominant and Representative Functions: Context focuses on the objective to convey information. Extralinguistics focuses on reality; its main feature is objectivity.
2. Expressive Function: Issuer-oriented, emphasizes feelings and attitude of the speaker. The message is above the transmission of the facts; the characteristic function is colloquial registration.
3. Appellative Function: Receiver-oriented, the intent is to influence the behavior of the receiver (call someone, ask questions, request, order, prohibit, counsel).
4. Phatic Function: Acts on the channel; the aim is to establish a communication channel or close it.
5. Metalinguistic Function: Focus

Verdaguer's Impact on Catalan Culture

What does it mean from a linguistic point of view? The value of the motherland lies in its dignity and refined poetic language, which affirms Catalan's potential as a cultural language during a time when this was questioned. It's important to remember that the Catalan language had endured centuries of restricted and inconsistent use.

Joaquin Rubio and Catalan Language Activism

What is the work undertaken by Joaquin Rubio and Ors? Ors is an activist for the Catalan language, poetry, and is a proactive figure in favor of what he calls independence.

Verdaguer: Priest and Poet

To what extent do the activities of priest and poet complement each other in Verdaguer? From the perspective of the Catholic sector in the... Continue reading "Verdaguer: Catalan Poetry, Religion, and Renaissance" »

Celestina: A Dramatic Analysis

Celestina: A dialogical work (without voice-over), dramatic in character, though probably not intended to be represented, but read out in 25 acts. It is also known as El alta. It is divided first by the other anonymous author, then written by Fernando de Rojas, a Toledan convert.

Structure

Approach: Act 1

Argument: Calisto loves Melibea and is rejected by her. He expresses despair to Sempronius, his servant, who suggests using an old bawd whose name was Celestina. Sempronius and Celestina, who is later joined by Parmeno—another servant of Callisto—are associated for the economic benefit of the young man.

Development: Acts II-XVIII

Argument: Celestina, through a spell and her ability to persuade, awakens love in... Continue reading "Celestina: A Dramatic Analysis of Characters and Structure" »