.... born in modern day North America. Primarily, it must be recognized that rather than being born into the Hindu religion (which in itself is mystical), Siddartha would have most likely been born into a Christian family. This in itself presents the first obstacle, that being that Christianity is a strictly monotheistic and non-mystical faith. Hence from the outset, although in the traditional story Siddartha faced a conflict with his father (Ludwig 137), in the North American scenario the conflict would have been heightened by the fact that his search for enlightenment was not even closely s .....

.... is regarded as a substance or non-substance. One context in which a Taoist knows the word Tao is in the sense of a method and a course of conduct. Taoist writings are wise and mystical. They are written in a poetic form. The Taoist bible is 1,120 volumes long. The Chuang Tzu is a compilation of Taoist writings from the time period around 300B.C. Some think it is the finest writing of Taoist thought. It is a very interesting book filled with Taoist ideas and beliefs. The Chuang Tzu says “While the Tao always seems to be in flux, the balance of its forces is forever the same, so that .....

.... by "converting the multitudes." I think Paul understood human nature better than the other apostles preaching circumcision to the gentiles. Perhaps he thought that gentiles would accept Christianity more easily if it was natural to their lifestyle --I'm sure that the thought of circumcision, and strict dietary laws scared gentiles from Christianity! It seems that the "Judaziers" preached a God that was hard to please. Paul's major problem confronted in his letter to the Galatians is the preachings of the Judaziers. Apparently, men who preach circumcision and the Law had been trying .....

.... different punishments, because of the woman. The serpent would have to crawl on his belly, be enemies with mankind, and always have to fight with humans. The woman would have to bear children in pain, and man will dominate women. The man would have to work for a living and be no longer immortal. There were also people who did live up to ; they were usually rewarded and lived happily. Noah, Abraham, and Daniel are three examples of them. Noah was the only good person in the world, so God did not kill him, his wife, and two of every animal, male and female, but killed everything else in t .....

.... to protect him in spreading his ideas. The Protestant League gave them a form of political power against the rest of Europe also. Until , Catholicism was a uniting force in Europe. Since all people there, other than Jews, were members of the Church, there was a sense of solidarity, which would never exist again in Europe after the Reformation. The power of the Church, then, was both religious and secular. However, after the Reformation, countries began to choose sides religiously, and to attempt to keep their own states almost entirely one or the other. This helped to change the al .....

.... from orthodox Christians was the mysticism of their beliefs. It began with their views of God and creation. They viewed the One which they called the true God as having a feminine part which was the Spirit. In accord, they also held that Jesus came from God and the Spirit to form the Trinity. In the Gnostic version of creation of the world the Spirit of God is referred to as the Wisdom of God or Sophia who is also a feminine creative force. It seems she wished to give birth to a creature like herself. She did so without the permission of her partner. She was able to do this by the power with .....

.... fifty years. Now, for almost fifty years, the Supreme Court , and the United States population in general, has used the phrase “separation of church and state” when referring to the religion clause of the 1st Amendment. The 1st amendment's actual wording is “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” (Barton, America: To… p.15) But, because of the Supreme Court's continuous citing of a “ wall of separation” and “separation of church and state”, the public's idea of the 1st amendment's religion clause has .....

.... worships nature. A Shintoist believes that kami , deities that reside in all natural objects, are forces of nature and are to be worshipped in Shinto shrines, where worshippers ask for blessings. Today in modern Japan, no one really believes in Shintoism, but the effects are present. Love of nature is present everywhere in Japanese culture. Architecture, art, landscaping, and poetry all express nature themes. Buddhism originated in India and was spread into Japan by the Chinese in the sixth century AD It focuses on honoring family ancestors and it promises the possibility of an afterlif .....

.... It was a period in which much of the civilized world lived under a feudalistic government. In such a system priests, bishops, and most of all, dukes, had power over the people (Rosenthal). In this time, many Christian authorities blamed Jews for killing Jesus and took the opportunity to use that allegation to gather money for their crusades. The Duke of Lorraine wanted to go on such a crusade, and to collect money he spread the rumor that he would kill the Jews to avenge the death of Christ. The Jews of the Rhineland paid him 500 pieces of silver as ransom, but some refused, and crusade .....

.... create unnecessary divisions among children by making them unduly aware of their religious differences. Public schools are for everyone, whether they are Buddhist, Catholic, Muslim, or Taoist. The practice of organized prayer in schools invades the student's right to an education free of the discrimination which organized prayer would encourage. Many people mistake the religious indifference of public schools for hostility. Public schools must to be very careful to neither discriminate for nor against any single religion, and people often incorrectly perceive the schools' attitudes to .....