Humanity Origin - Essay Example

Humanities essay exam The world consists of people of diverse backgrounds who exhibit varied cultural and social norms. Since humanity has the same origin, the differences or variations that exist among people and their cultural practices tend not to differ greatly. It is common to find that tribes or communities in a country that, however, practice slightly different cultures have some common issues that ensure their existence. Human nature is also flexible and subject to change with variations in the surrounding environment. A person’s view of the world and life may change suddenly or slowly depending on the surrounding environmental factors that earmark variations. A Christian’s view of personal fulfillment and relationship to the community may differ or be similar to the view of a Germanic warrior or the King of the Franks. Christianity A Christian is any believer of Jesus Christ who goes to church and committed to live the life of Christianity as taught by Jesus and his apostles. A Christian perceived personal fulfillment as living a holy life that bases on teachings of the Bible. To live a holy life, a Christian needed to obey God’s commands alongside following the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, the teachings by Jesus that encircle the fundamentals of Gospel define the actual foundation of Christianity. As a Christian, one needed to refrain from murderous acts or any related thoughts. Murder or hatred in Christianity were tantamount to sin that were punishable by God. Believing in Jesus and following His teaching assured a Christian about his/her protection. The power of Jesus was above all powers on Heaven and Earth. Jesus was able to fight and triumph over enemies who pursued life of a devoted Christian. Holy life pursued by a Christian as the basis of personal fulfillment also promised great privileges. Living holy life promised a Christian about great knowledge and wisdom that came from God. Being holy harmonized the relationship be God and a Christian, making God illuminate His desirable light in an individual Christian. With the light of God, a Christian was able to see secrete things in spirit and predict situations before they could happen. This ability to prophesy was a rare gift from God that every Christian struggled to achieve. A holy life to a Christian meant living free from sin. Sin was everywhere in the world considering the attribution of Satan with evil and his abundance presence in the world. Sin diminished peace and attracted chaos and discord to individual’s life. With holiness, a Christian was able to conquer all the yokes of sin and rise above slavery. To a Christian, slavery was a product of sin, and caused much suffrage. However, calm, faith and humility were important attributes of Christianity that could help one overcome the pains of slavery. A Christian believed that he/she could only achieve personal fulfillments in the presence of good relationship with others. All that existed in the world including human beings were creatures of God. One of the main obligations of a Christian was to live in peace with other creatures and respect life of others. A Christian believed that to live a holy life, one required peace and respect from others. Peace only came when a Christian insisted on a harmonious and God-guided relationship with the surrounding community. A Christian also understood that the surrounding community was the source of temptations and evil that might compromise efforts to satisfy personal fulfillments. A Germanic warrior was an individual especially male who participated in war on behalf of his German community (Tacitus 2). A Germanic warrior view of personal fulfillment was significantly different a Christian’s view of the same. While a Christian viewed holiness and holy life as the basic personal fulfillment, a Germanic warrior considered triumph in war as the fundamental personal achievement. To succeed in war, a Germanic warrior needed to pray and seek protection from the Hercules god. Singing heroic songs to Hercules brought courage and motivation to proceed to the battlefield with hopes of triumph. To succeed in war, A Germanic warrior preferred to be naked, but could lightly clad using a little cloak. Being light ensured agility and swiftness in the battlefield (Tacitus 3). A Germanic warrior also considered personal fulfillment as being pure without mixing with other races that could introduce unwanted races. Returning from war with a shield in hand was another personal fulfillment to a Germanic warrior. Leaving one’s shied in the battlefield was tantamount to serious crime war that was punishable by the laws of war. A Germanic warrior who lost his shield in the war field lost his chance of joining councils or attending sacred rites performed by the German community (Tacitus 3). It was part of responsibilities for a Germanic warrior to carry fellow warriors injured in the battlefield. Doing that demonstrated high levels of care and concern over others’ life. The act also demonstrated unity and courage considering a Germanic warrior had to risk his life when rescuing a colleague rather than guarding oneself from the weapons of the enemies. To a Germanic warrior, much of personal fulfillments meant to benefit the whole community. Going to war was a dangerous decision and meant immeasurable courage, confidence and determination to defend the lives of weak in the community. Returning with shield from the battlefield assured the community of continued protection from the enemies. A Germanic warrior also believed that rescuing a colleague injured during war would work to improve and enhance relationship and intactness within the community. The King of the Franks considered personal fulfillments as comprised of providing impeccable defense to his subjects. The King of the Franks could ensure continued protection of his people by subduing and killing kings of other rival neighborhoods, conquering the defeated territory. Mostly, the King of the Franks consulted with the naïve gods of the Franks to provide protection when involving in war. The king involved in war with neighbors and despite defeating the opposing armies, the king just ordered for safe captivation of those who surrendered without doing them any harm (Gregory of Tours 6). The power of the king of the Franks saw him achieve defeat against Siagrius, and attain respect from Alaric. The King of the Franks also gained respect from the kingdoms of Burgundy and that of Goth. Another aspect of personal fulfillment of the King of the Franks was to give birth to his own child. A child borne of one’s blood and not adopted would ensure continuity of the monarchy. It was due to great desire for a boy child that the king of the Franks sent for a wife from a neighboring kingdom. When the first child died out the sicknesses, the king of the Franks felt much pain and demanded that the wife share in the worship of the otherwise naïve gods. The King of the Franks believed that his personal achievements had direct impact on the life of his subjects. He understood that defeating and conquering his rivals would guarantee peace and tranquility to his people (Gregory of Tours 7). His failure to achieve his self-fulfillments would endanger and expose his subjects to attacks from the enemies. The king also understood that having a boy child would ensure continuity of monarchy, which would ensure smooth transfer of power. Having a boy child who is an automatic successor would help prevent war among the subjects. Capturing and protecting defeated armies would supply his kingdom with abundant labor that would work in firm to produce enough food to feed the kingdom. In conclusion, despite of having the same origin, humanity has slight differences, which express in terms of culture, religion and other social organizations. View of personal fulfillment also tends to vary from one society to another. Different individuals from different cultural backgrounds also depicted varied understanding that their personal fulfillments would have on their communities. For instance, a Christian view personal fulfillment as living a holy life that was free from sin. This view would help also ensure peaceful coexistence of an individual Christian with his/her community. The notion between this view of personal fulfillment and the larger community was valid as it was difficult for one to attain holiness in a chaotic setting. A Germanic warrior on the other hand viewed personal fulfillment in term of triumph in war and ensuring purity of the German race. This personal fulfillment would ensure that the larger community lived in peace, closeness and in tranquility. The notion between the view of the personal fulfillment and the community was genuine because one’s community can only appreciate and recognize one for his efforts in ensuring comfort of the entire people. The King of the Franks viewed personal fulfillment as fighting hard to protect his people from the aggression of his enemies. Having a boy child and protecting his people would ensure that peace and continued security prevail within the kingdom. The notion held by the king was valid and genuine considering that he was the leader of the people, and that failing to have boy child would cause power struggle and even internal war in his kingdom. Works cited Christianity Selections From, The Greek Scriptures, And Augustine’s City Of God. < http://www.academia-research.com/filecache/instr/g/r/1045080_greek_scripture_and_augustine.pdf>. Gregory of Tours. History of the Franks. < http://www.academia-research.com/filecache/instr/g/r/1045080_gregory_of_tours_history_of_the_franks.pdf>. Tacitus, Cornelius. Tacitus: Germania. < http://www.academia-research.com/filecache/instr/t/a/1045080_tacitus_germania_1_.pdf>. Read More