List of Questions, Essay Example

Islam, Christianity and Judaism share similar beliefs.  Each religion believes in one God and that there are angels and demons that help do the work of God and the Devil.  Each believes that Jesus did exist and that he was crucified, although they disagree on the importance of this act or the importance of Jesus himself.  Finally, each believes in a form of heaven as an eternal destination for members of the religion that have experienced salvation.

The term infidel means any person that does not believe in religion or a person that adheres to a religion other than their own.  Devout Muslims completely believe in their religion and make it a part of their everyday lives.  With this being the case, labeling them as infidels is completely inaccurate.

After the fall of Rome, many Europeans traveled to Arab nations to experience “The House of Wisdom” that included the vast advancements that their culture was making in science, math, and astronomy.  They helped share this knowledge and their philosophical thinking with Europeans who would travel back to their home countries.  Many of these thoughts and concepts gave way to the Renaissance and transformed how Western Civilization thought and evolved.

Muslim influence is shown in southern Spain from the existence of many crops and fabrics that have major economic and industrial importance in the country.  The development of the silk industry in Spain as well as the advanced irrigation and watering systems for agriculture was a major influence by the Muslims that still exists to this day.  Furthermore, much of Spain’s knowledge of the wool and sheep farming industries also comes from the knowledge shared by the former Muslim inhabitants

Charlemagne received the Frankish empire in 768 AD when his father died.  He greatly increased the size of the empire through conquering much of France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, Belgium, and parts of northern Italy and Spain.  Charlemagne provided support to the Popes that no longer received support from the Romans and was named Holy Roman Emperor for his efforts.  Furthermore, he organized a system of governors or counts throughout the kingdom that would rule over various parts of the kingdom while reporting back to him.

The Gregorian Chant is a group of chants that are similar to hymns that have been sung for thousands of years.  Many scholars believe that these chants have existed for over 2,000 years and may have even been sung by Jesus Christ himself.  They have been used as sources for some of the most commonly used hymns in churches even to this day.  Some of the most famous Gregorian Chants are Ave Maria, Te Deum and Dies Irae.

The monastery became an outlet for people of all backgrounds to enter into a lifelong service to the work of God.  The medieval society saw as many as 418 monasteries in England alone during the twelfth century.  These quiet societies enabled common people to escape from a world of violence and chaos and give their lives to the servitude of God.  Members of royalty and rich aristocrats considered the monks the highest models of virtue, essential to the salvation of society, and they gave lands and privileges to support the monastic communities.

Illuminated manuscripts were the works on monks living in monasteries that were based on their love of knowledge and devotion to God.  By creating these illuminated manuscripts, the monks were attempting to share their knowledge gained from their own lifestyles with other people outside of the monasteries.  They were also sometimes viewed as a tribute to God.

The early universities in medieval Europe and even before that has many contributions to current academics in the West.  As the world began to change through the Renaissance, periods of Enlightenment and revolution, these universities also evolved how they thought, learned, and taught much of their knowledge and philosophies.  Much of what came from the Middle East was used in Europe to advance the knowledge and research of the times.  Many of the same evolutionary trends that existed have helped shape the way we view scholarship and academia in the world today.

Many of the great Gothic cathedrals that were built during the Middle Ages are still in existence today.  They are viewed as great works of art in our culture because of the uniqueness of the architecture as well as the way in which they were built, using multiple materials in the construction of the buildings.  The architects used limestone, sandstone, and even marble.  Most the cathedrals show the importance of vertical construction as well as maintaining multiple windows to produce natural light throughout most of the building.

Dante’s great works have influenced modern religious thought for a very long time.  Much of the influence comes from his ideas of purgatory and hell, not booming with hellfire and brimstone, but rather an eternal resting place where people live out the consequences of their choices.  It has also intrigued much conversation and philosophical thought on the existence of the soul and what truly happens in life after death.  Much of this is the basis for modern religious thought as Christians and other religious individuals debate what truly happens after death.

Question 4: Identify three 21st-century social factors that explain why few church buildings similar to the Gothic cathedrals are not undertaken today.  (I cannot find the answers to this question at all.  I have looked at a number of sources and have been unable to find any plausible answers)

Western culture was affected by the many controversies within the Church in Europe during the 14^th Century.  These controversies mainly came from the problems associated with what many considered the greed of church officials to earn a profit from the church itself.  Many people spoke out about this, and even Martin Luther called for dissention within the church for poor ethical practices.  Western culture experienced similar changes and used the events of the 14^th century as a catalyst for eliminating the relationship of church and state in hopes to retract church officials from using religion as a source of person benefit.

There were many consequences from a century of almost continuous military conflict in the region.  Most of the countries were completely torn apart and were re-inhabited by invading countries and were consequently forced to undertake many of their own customs.  This formulated a merging of cultures and greatly changed the way many people lived.  Furthermore, new governments were constantly being established within conquered lands and philosophical thought tended to be reduced in lieu of military conflict.

Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales” were basically a collection of stories that criticized much of the medieval lifestyle that existed.  Problems relating to marriage, sex, and even the conflicts within the church were discussed and openly criticized through literary form.  Many of the problems were depicted in a way that makes the reader understand the harsh reality of medieval life and many of the problems associated with their lifestyle during the Middle Ages.

The number one problem that would have faced the Renaissance if Europe had not experienced the Black Death would have been the existence of a Renaissance at all.  Through the death of over 1/3 of the European population, people began to truly see the negative impact that the government had on the people and this helped translate into modern political and philosophical thought that shaped the Renaissance.  The economic state of the region would also not have been negatively impacted, so it is difficult to believe that such an outcry for a revolution or Renaissance would have occurred without the Black Death.

Catherine de’ Medici’s patronage of the arts made a significant contribution to the French Renaissance and ultimately to the rest of the world.  She employed many of the top artists to produce prolific and advanced works of art in the form of sculptures, paintings, and other works.  Throughout this time period, the world has grown to appreciate her work as a government figure that supported the arts more than almost anyone else in the history of the field.

In Florence, the design and decoration of Donatello’s Cantoria, or more commonly known as the Singing Gallery, has a celebrated combination of architecture, sculpture, and polychromic mosaics the all added together to create a highly expressive work of art.  The extent of the details associated with the figures’ hair, drapery, and the creases in the skin are very special and hold a very special place in the heart of the world as a very important work of art.

If music was not present in a typical church service in the 21^st century, the congregation would likely lose much of its appreciation for the services at all.  Much of the entertainment and expression of love and religious truths are provided through the outlet of music.  Hymnals and new age musicians produce.  This would put a great deal of pressure on the priests and church officials to provide other forms of entertainment as our culture has evolved into a pleasure-first society.

Silence, entrance procession and greetings were all present in a church service that I recently attended.  In Catholic mass, the silence before the service is an opportunity for people to reflect on things happening in their lives and the impact, or lack thereof, of religion.  The entrance procession is also an important part of the Catholic mass where the entrance hymn is played and a number of songs are sung by the congregation. There was no cross or lighting of candles during this entrance procession as in the Catholic mass, but the opening of the service I attended included many songs and was performed in likely the same manner.  Finally, after the hymns were sung, a member of the church told brief introductions of the reverend and also told current events and highlighted major activities in the church calendar.  Again, this is slightly different than a Catholic mass, but it is very similar in that it is a more advanced form of a greeting in the service I attended.