The Passion of the Christ Essay Example for Free

The Passion of the Christ Essay On February 25th (Ash Wednesday) 2004, Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ film was released. The film is based on Jesus’ arrest, trial, and execution according to the four Gospels. Most of the film is historically accurate, although there are some fictional events too. The film became the highest grossing non-English language film of all time and it was named the most controversial film of all time. Critics claimed the film was historically inaccurate due to the way the film portrayed Pontius Pilate, along with the use of excessive violence, anti-Semitic content, and the use of additional material. One of the most important historical inaccuracies is the way the film portrays the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate. According to author B. A. Robinson, â€Å"Pontius Pilate is consistently portrayed as a weak-willed governor, frightened of the power of the Jewish priests, and lacking in confidence. † After viewing the film, one would feel that Pilate was essentially morally neutral in the events of Jesus’ execution after stating Jesus is innocent of any crime but due to the pressure of the mob demanding execution, Pilate yields to it (Oxtoby Amore 172). According to authors Oxtoby and Amore, the crime Jesus was being accused of perverting the people and claiming to be the king of the Jews (168). â€Å"In reality, Pilate was harsh and vicious in his treatment of Jews and had thousands of them crucified (Robinson). † Several critics were troubled by the film’s explicitly detailed violence and further criticized the film for focusing on the brutality of Jesus’ execution, instead of his religious teachings. A number of the scenes which do not appear in the Bible but which seem to be fictional creations added to â€Å"flesh† out the movie and extend the film to a feature length include: the scene when Jesus is repeatedly beaten by the Temple guard after his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane for no apparent reason, when Judas is emotionally distraught over his prior betrayal to Jesus and is tormented by Jewish children whose faces morph into demons, when the crucified thief who taunted Jesus has his eye pecked out by a crow, and the scene of Satan carrying a demonic baby during Jesus’ flogging (Robinson). Film critic Roger Ebert said in his review, The movie is 126 minutes long, and I would guess that at least 100 of those minutes, maybe more, are concerned specifically and graphically with the details of the torture and death of Jesus; further stating that this was the most violent film he had ever seen (Sanburn). Film critic A. O. Scott stated in his review, â€Å"The Passion of the Christ is so relentlessly focused on the savagery of Jesus’ final hours that this film seems to arise less from love than from wrath, and to succeed more in assaulting the spirit than in uplifting it. † Before the film was even released, there were prominent criticisms of perceived anti-Semitic content in the movie. After representatives of the Anti-Defamation League attended a private screening of a pre-release version of The Passion of the Christ, they released a statement calling it one of the most troublesome texts, relative to anti-Semitic potential, that any of us had seen in twenty-five years. It must be emphasized that the main storyline presented Jesus as having been relentlessly pursued by an evil cabal of Jews, headed by the high priest Caiaphas, who finally blackmailed a weak-kneed Pilate into putting Jesus to death. This is precisely the storyline that fueled centuries of anti-Semitism within Christian societies (Robinson). A key event in the Bible that is missing in the film is the canonical line from John’s gospel in which Caiaphas argues that it is better for one man to die for the people so that the nation be saved; had this line been included in the film, perhaps giving Caiaphas a measure of the inner conflict he gave to Pilate, it could have underscored the similarities between Caiaphas and Pilate and helped defuse the issue of anti-Semitism (Robinson). Although Mel Gibson claimed to have based the film entirely from the Biblical Gospels, there are many elements that came from the book called The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ by Anne Catherine Emmerich; The book contained her visions of the sufferings of Christ and are criticized for revealing more information about the Life of Jesus Christ besides what is read of Him in the Bible (Facing the Challenge). This poses a problem because it sets up another authority alongside the Bible. Ultimately, despite the questions over the historical accuracy of some aspects of the film, it did remain broadly faithful to the Bible’s narrative and it was clear in portraying the central realities of the Christian faith. The United Methodist Church stated that many of its members, like other Christians, felt that the movie was a good way to evangelize non-believers. As a result, many congregations set up tables at the theaters to provide answers and prayers to viewers.

Free Essays on The Stranger (The Outsider): Freedom and Death :: Camus Stranger Essays

Freedom and Death in The Stranger (The Outsider)  Ã‚      In The Stranger (The Outsider), as in all Camus’ works, Camus’ views on freedom and death – one dependent on the other – are major themes. For Camus, freedom arises in awareness of one’s life, the every-moment life, an intense glorious life that needs no redeeming, no regrets, no tears. Death is unjustifiable, absurd; it is but a reintegration into the cosmos for a â€Å"free† man. Until a person reaches this awareness, life, like death, is absurd, and indeed, generically, life remains absurd, though each individual’s life can be valuable and meaningful to him. In a sense, The Stranger is a parable of Camus’ philosophy, with emphasis on that which is required for freedom. Meursault, hero of The Stranger, is not a person one would be apt to meet in reality in this respect; Meursault does not achieve the awakening of consciousness, so essential to freedom and to living Camus’ philosophy until the very end of the book, yet h e has lived his entire life in according with the morality of Camus’ philosophy. His equivalent in the Christian philosophy would be an irreligious person whose homeland has never encountered Christianity who, upon having it explained by a missionary, realizes he has never sinned. What is the morality, the qualities necessary for freedom, which Meursault manifested? First, the ruling trait of his character is his passion for the absolute truth. While in Meursault this takes the form of a truth of being and feeling, it is still the truth necessary to the conquest of the self or of the world. This passion is so profound that it obtains even when denying it might save his life. Second, and not unrelated to the first, is Meursault’s acceptance of nature as what it is and nothing more, his rejection of the supernatural, including any god. Actually, â€Å"rejection† of God is not accurate until later when he is challenged to accept the concept; Meursault simply has ne ver considered God and religion worthwhile pursuing. The natural makes sense; the supernatural doesn’t. It follows that death to Meursault also is what it is naturally; the end of life, cessation, and that is all. Third, and logically following, Meursault lives entirely in the present. The past is past and dwelling upon it in any mood is simply a waste of the present. As to the future, the ultimate future is death; to sacrifice the present to the future is equivalent to sacrificing life to death.

Human resource management- Starbucks case study Essay

†¢Creates environment where each employee is encouraged to make the best possible contribution to the effective working of the organization. Starbucks staff are trained and motivated to create the ‘Starbucks experience’ for their customers by providing exceptional customer service †¢Promotes efficiency and increased productivity among workers through training, guidance and counseling. Starbucks offers a variety of rich training and development of their staff †¢Development of mutual respect, dignity and trust between management and workers through employee relation. †¢Enhance employee morale. †¢concerned with utilizing human resources optimally ORGANIZATIONAL †¢identify and recognize the role of HRM for overall organizational effectiveness †¢HRM should not be treated just as an end whereas; it is only a means to assist the company with its primary objectives. In short, HRM dept exists to serve the rest of the organization. The role of HRM should be more strategic in nature COMMUNITY †¢Needs of the community should be addressed in an ethical and socially responsible manner and care should be taken to minimize the negative impacts of any such demands upon the organization. Starbucks also has proclaimed their commitment to communities & environment through their mission statement, â€Å"Contribute positively to our communities and environment†. They achieve this by organizing community programs and events at least twice a year; these events facilitate donations of funds, contributions for noble causes, and also provide job opportunities. †¢As for their commitment to environment, they play an active role in instilling environmental responsibility among their employees. They also strive to use, buy and sell environmentally friendly products. Significance: Why has the disciple of HRM gained importance in recent times? This is because Organizations has realized the importance of contribution that people can make to an organization. It has in recent years been identified and recognized that human resource is the most valuable and powerful assets any organization can possess as its people are the most fundamental element in determining the scale of success of any organization to a great extent and also firms can gain competitive advantage. HRM helps to channel the needs and competencies to harness a lot of talent and capabilities and to make the best out of them. HRM should be aligned and integrated with the Business strategy to be successful. Impact of Human Resources on Organizational Performance Source: (Steven H. Bates, 2003) Starbucks has realized in their initial stage itself that People can contribute tremendously to the organization if HRM is administered wisely and strategically and also if they are well motivated and paid. The reasons why people management should be considered a vital element: †¢Service is delivered by people, HRM strategies ensures customer service is excellent, which in turn would lead to customer satisfaction †¢Less competent HRM leads to unsatisfactory customer service which will lead to poor performance and organizational efficiency †¢knowledge comes from the firm’s people and they should therefore be skilled and trained †¢well motivated staff is always more productive, enhancing the sales at Starbucks †¢Provides competitive advantage to firms. Services at Starbucks are known to stand out compared to other firms in the same field due to staff commitment to the brand. HRM can make a significant contribution to the competitive advantage of a firm if the firm is capable of tapping thier people’s exceptional skills and core Competencies. It is hence understood that by developing and maintaining competitive advantage, a company can be successful and remain profitable. HRM stakeholders: These are the groups affected by business practices †¢customers- expect exceptional service or/and better product †¢Employees- expect attractive job and sound compensation †¢shareholders- expect a return on money invested †¢Community- expects activities and projects that minimizes harmful effects to environment STARBUCKS – Company Profile Starbucks is the world’s largest coffeehouse company; Starbuck’s first store was opened in Seattle on March 30th 1971 by three partners. The firm believes in supplying and serving the best possible coffee. The name, ‘Starbucks’ was taken from the novel ‘Moby Dick’ (Starbucks, 2012). Major Achievements: †¢International Corporate Achievement Gold Medalist , 2005 †¢Great places to work’ Institute named Starbucks Top 10 Best Workplaces in the UK, 2007 †¢Awarded Most Ethical Company in Europe’ , 2009 †¢ Named twice as Mobile Marketer of the Year, 2010 & 2012 Leadership Style at Starbucks Adopted By Howard Schultz: â€Å"We are not in the coffee business, serving people; we are in the people business serving coffee.† –Howard Schultz, (former) CEO of Starbucks. * Transformational Leadership: This style is often considered to be one of the effective styles to adopt in business situations. This approach inspires, encourages and motivates people to perform their best and by leading as example. These leaders take initiatives to add value to the organization. * Schultz is also known to adopt ‘engaging employees’ approach. An engaged employee is completely involved, committed and enthusiastic about their work. Roles and Responsibilities 1. Strategic Partner: To align HRM strategies with business strategies. (Noe R. et al,2003) 2. Administrative Expert: To design and deliver efficient HRM practices and processes. 3. Employee Advocate: Involves commitment & contributions of the employees to be managed. Irrespective how skilled the workers may be, if they are detached or angry, they will not contribute their efforts to the firm’s success, nor will they stay long with the firm. 4. Change Agent: This requires HRM to help transform firms to meet the new competitive conditions. In today’s rapidly changing competitive world, constant change and capacity for change should be developed. (Noe R. et al, 2003) Shift of focus in HRM function: 1. Self-Service : Online access to information and transactions relating to HR for employees. 2. Outsourcing: The practice of outsourcing HR activities to specialist service providers. Reasons of the above two are: †¢to save money and efforts †¢to increase HR operations efficiency †¢spend more time on strategic functions and important business issues However, Outsourcing should be carefully considered as lack of understanding may arise regarding the capabilities of the outsourcing provider, Sometimes even failure in achieving goals and substandard delivery of services may occur. (T. Starner , 2005 .) Factors Affecting Starbucks HR practices HR practices are strongly affected by the Internal & External environment of Starbucks. Various Models of HRM: †¢Harvard Model †¢Michigan Model †¢Guest Model †¢Warwick Model There are various f HR models developed by scholars which fall either under the soft or hard perspective to HR. Below are two models that represent one hard and soft approach each 1. MICHIGAN/ MATCHING MODEL This model is the ‘hard’ approach to HRM where Human resources are matched with the jobs in the organization. This model suggests the HR should be treated just like any other resources by utilizing it to the maximum along with other resources to attain organizational goals. 2. HARVARD MODEL Harvard model emphasizes on the human element of HRM and employees are given importance just like any other resources and treated as assets rather than costs. This model is based on human relations and their outcomes are committed & motivated employee providing competitive advantage.

Othello, By William Shakespeare - 1890 Words

Evil, those who contain an evil heart always appear to have a talent or hunger for destroying anything beautiful that is about to bloom. Evil motives and intentions can be recognized in a wide range of people, some just obtain this as it is human nature while others hide it as an attribute of jealousy. In the play by Shakespeare evil is a perception constantly come upon in different ways and situations, In Shakespeare’s play true evil is strongly shown in the character Iago a numerous amount of times. Iago’s actions are based purely on his evil nature. This is apparent that Iago’s manipulative exploitation of the characters throughout the play and, when Iago uses people for his own selfish needs and when he gets a well honoured†¦show more content†¦He’ll be as full of quarrel and offence as my young mistress’ dog† (2.3.41- 44). Iago acts like a friend to Casio, sweet talks him into drinking, as if nothing will happen and that Iago will always be there for Cassio no matter what happens. Iago knows that once Cassio is drunk, he will be an uncontrollable dangerous man who can potentially create a big problem and that’s exactly what Iago is counting on. The real motive behind all this doing by Iago was to strip Cassio of his title of lieutenant because both Cassio and Iago tried to get this position but Othello thought Cassio was more worthy of carrying out the duties of that position so Iago was turned down and that created fire inside of him for Cassio and he planned this scheme to get what’s rightfully his. The last person in the eyes of Iago is a man named Roderigo. The clear and predictable weakness of his is that he is crazy for the love of Desdemona who is the wife of the general Othello. Iago uses that to his benefit and makes Roderigo a pawn, so Roderigo will do anything commanded by Iago because he repeatedly bribes him with promises that he will get Desdemona in return or that she will sleep with him after his service. Iago says â€Å"O no, he goes into Mauritania and takes away with him the fair Desdemona, unless his abode be lingered here by some accident; where in none can be so determinate as the removing of Cassio† (4.2.221-224). Iago bribes Roderigo by