Psychology

Daniel Kevins

0 comments

Read and summarize literature review. Give 25 important talking facts to help at pschology conference based of of this paper. PLease use your own words when giving the talking points.

Literature Review

People make decisions every day to give up something that is important to them for the greater good of another person. They don’t always do it because they expect something in return, they do it to make the other person happy. For example, the things parents give up for their children are innumerable but they still do it so that their children might have a better life. They give up time, money, relationships, desires, and freedom to make a better life for their children. Mensah (2015) writes that an offering has a purpose in the contexts of the mission, dream, or goal. However, there are obstacles as people must forfeit emotional or physical comfort in the service of something better. The Bible shows instances where people had to make offerings to God. The burnt offerings in the book of Leviticus expressed dedication to God. The Koran calls for personal offerings and submission as a symbol of dying before death. The element of offerings has been incorporated into different religions around the world (Yerkes, 2010). Offerings are a major component of many religions according to their beliefs. In Greek Literature, offerings have had a great influence socially and morally. The offering of animals was the most common among the Greeks in the ancient times. Animals that are associated with religions were killed and offered. The most emphasized offering, however, is when God gave up His son Jesus Christ to die for the sins of humanity. This is the most cherished offering for the Christian community.

All the above are just examples of sacrifice. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2016) sacrifice is defined as an act of offering to a deity something precious. The greater the vision, the greater the sacrifice one must make. Slone (2016) writes that sacrifices are all about protecting others for their sake, not yours. One must think selflessly when relinquishing something of importance. However, sacrifices are one of the hardest things to do. This is because of the challenges that people go through when making one (Slone, 2016) The ancient Hebrews had different kinds of sacrifices such as wine, grain, fruit, incense, and animals. During those times, the giver believed he is going back to God. It is also a form of communion that was meant to be a substitutionary and expiation (Wolf, 2013). However, its purpose is not to appease God, rather change the person’s offering. According to Kurtz (2015), sacrifice is not altruistic. This is when an individual puts more value on others than himself. The law of sacrifice says that one cannot do something without giving up something else. The author argues that one must give up something of lesser value to find something that is worthy. The offer of sacrifices is a divine institution that did not originate from man. It has its roots in the Bible where God provides it as a mode of accepted worship for the guilty individual. Sacrifices were offered during the antediluvian age. The practice has continued to the present age where people must make sacrifices (Kurtz, 2015). However, the definition of sacrifice differs in the religious and the secular beliefs.

Philosophers have assessed the relationship between the sacrifices, the love behind offering the sacrifices and other factors that contribute to the same. Sacrifices in religion are said to be ritual activities as well as sources and means of violence. This is because some sacrifices involve murder. In a religious context, for example, sacrifices are said to be socially hierarchical especially in the modern-day society. Religious leaders have explained that the sacrifices are morally and ethically important. Additionally, in the political realm, the sacrifices are meant for selflessness to serve the interest of the people. The purposes of sacrifices depend on the aspect of that sacrifice. Various religious leaders and philosophers view sacrifice offering differently. According to Baker (1983), a catholic priest; sacrilege, superstition, idolatry, and anything that portrays dishonor to God are forbidden. Father Baker quotes Ignatius Loyola that valid sacrifices are not in words but in deeds. A valid sacrifice should be valuable and desirable. This is a sign of total dependence on God as well as full subjection. Readiness to give something for the love of the highest is sacrificing (Baker, 1983). Mahatma Gandhi came up with a philosophy of devastating social sins like wealth without work, commerce without morality, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, politics without principle, and science without humanity. Gandhi emboldens a practice of sacrificial killing (Datta, 1953). Sacks, a Jewish rabbi, points out that the sacrificial rules in Leviticus (Torah) are quite hard to fully adhere to.

“Speak to the children of Israel and say to them: when one of you offers a sacrifice to the Lord, the sacrifice must be taken from the cattle, sheep or goats.” (Lev. 1:2)

Sacks bring out the two souls that people have as portrayed by Jewish mystic Shneor Zalman; the Godly soul and the human soul (nefresh ha-behamit). The sacrifices should be domesticated animals because God does not prefer savagery instincts of predators in the wild (Sacks, 2015).

Mensah (2015) argues that people in India are deeply engaged in making sacrifices. This is witnessed on the Vedic and Hindu religion. There are necessary sacrifices that should be done annually accompanied with the wishes of a person. Buddhism emphasized noble sacrifices that involved self-sacrifices, self-discipline, and devotional offerings. Sacrifices in religions in China have existed in many levels (Mensah, 2015). Unlike in India, they offer their sacrifices to the emperor himself on earth and heaven. The common people had lesser gods to which they had to make sacrifices. They also made sacrifices to the dead and were renewed regularly. Jackson (2015) argues that the blending of Buddhism and Daoism diversified sacrificial ritual in China. Elsewhere in Japan, sacrifices were an important part of their religion. Originally, they did their sacrificial rituals individually, but later it became collective. The sacrifices the Japanese people offer range from human sacrifices, food, and clothing to weapons and tools of entertainment (Sjödin & Jackson, 2015). This is practiced more in the Confucianism religion in the country.

The religious context has greatly emphasized the need for self-sacrifice. The people are advised not to involve themselves in the evils of the world for them to qualify to go to heaven. Many people follow God’s orders with regrets just to avoid going to hell in the life after death. However, there is a relatively large percentage of people that believe in God wholeheartedly and have high hopes in life after death. These people believe in the existence of heaven and do everything they can to maintain their future position in heaven.

God is frequently mentioned in the American life, and there is no shortage of instances where people acknowledge the divine. The appearance of the phrase “In God We Trust” as well as the phrase “One nation under God” demonstrate this. According to Sherkat (2008), the vast majority of the American population believe in God. In this regard, 89 percent stated that they believe in God or a divine spirit. This figure is a three percent decline from the previous study in 2007. According to the author, however, there are strong indications that many people are now less certain about their belief compared to the past years. When it comes to the certainty of belief, 63 percent of Americans say they are certain about their belief in God, down from 71 percent in 2007.

The changes have been significantly sharp among the rising number of people who do not identify with any religious denomination. 33 percent of Americans said they do not believe in God (Lynn, Harvey & Nyborg, 2009). The driving factor behind the overall belief in a divine being is generational. However, most people believe in heaven and hell. In the U.S., 72 percent of the people believe in the heaven, while 58 percent believe in hell. In the global landscape, 51 percent of people believe in God. According to Bainbridge (2005), those who do not believe account for 18 percent, while the remaining 17 percent are undecided. Moreover, 51 percent of the global population believe in heaven and hell, and 23 percent feel there will be no afterlife.

The purpose of this study is to know that if God asked people to give up their earthly beauty for heavenly rewards would they make that sacrifice? Wolf (2013) claims that people want physical attractiveness to impress everyone around them. It helps in boosting self-esteem and self-confidence. Saint Cecilia gave up her beauty because she had a calling to go and serve Catholicism. She believed that the heavenly beauty is much more important than the physical beauty. People say beauty is in the eyes of the beholder (Wolf, 2013). However, every culture has its definition of beauty. For example, in the African-American culture skin-bleaching has become very common. Treva B. Lindsey conducted a study, “Black No More: Skin Bleaching and the Emergence of New Negro Womanhood Beauty Culture”, which examined the usage of skin bleaching products and processes among some African-American women in the early 20th century. The authors believed that African American women were bleaching their skin to shed vestiges of enslavement and to configure “urbane” and “modern” identities. This skin-bleaching trend is still popular in today’s culture. In 2013, a study by the University of Cape Town found that more than 1/3 of women in South Africa (35%) bleach their skin because they want to have “white skin.” Nigerians are the biggest users of bleaching agents, with 77% of women using the products on a regular basis. While the practice may seem harmless, dermatologists are seeing growing numbers of skin and blood cancers as well as an increase in burns, skin damage, and ochronosis (Leondis, 2015). The idea is colorism came from the early days of slavery when the spectrum of skin tones among slaves and others who were legally black, grew wider. Slave owners often granted more privileges to the lighter skinned slaves, saw them as smarter and more capable because of their white ancestry, allowed them some form of education or training, and occasionally granted them their freedom. Even after slavery ended, similar advantages were given to blacks whose appearance was closer to white, such as first consideration for certain schools and jobs.

Beauty standards vary in different cultures. For example, Korean people like their lips and eyelids and they concentrate more on making sure these parts are attractive. In China, the practice of foot-binding was practiced for years by very young girls. In practice, the girl’s feet were broken, this was done to prevent them from growing bigger, and this was taken as a sign of rare beauty (Jay, 1992). In India, their culture defines beauty by the length of hair (Argyle & Beit-Hallahmi, 2014). Women with longer hair are deemed more attractive than women with shorter hair.

Beauty is a valued asset of any human and women value beauty to the greatest extent. Complexion, the size of the neck, the body shape and eye shapes are different aspects of beauty among different people. Some will look at beauty in terms of hair texture, color, and length. Women travel and spend a lot of money to maintain their beauty. However, beauty is valued differently in different contexts; it is a source of confidence and self-esteem. According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic surgery (2014) Americans have spent $12.9 billion on cosmetic procedures and females made up 92% of all cosmetic procedures. Studies have shown that women have sacrificed so many things in their lives to live up to beauty standards. According to The Huffington Post (2011), women will put beauty over even the most life-threatening of health issues: A survey conducted last year found that women are more likely to buy products that ward off ‘age spots’ than skin cancer. And a recent report shows that women spend way more on beauty products than health care: $540 a month on hair products, make-up, and fake tanners, compared to $360 on their physical well-being. Beauty standards are set so high that people would do anything. According to the New York Times (2012), a bride from Surfside, FL., paid $1,500 to have a feeding tube inserted for 10 days to look just right for her wedding pictures. The diet, also known as enteral protein nutrition, is commonly used to treat patients who are extremely overweight. The bride was not extremely overweight but just wanted to shed a few pounds before her wedding. Instead of exercising, which is less expensive, she chose to spend money that could have went to her wedding on an unnecessary procedure. People would sacrifice so much to be deemed beautiful but would they sacrifice their earthly beauty for heavenly rewards?

If God asked people to sacrifice their beauty for heavenly rewards, some people would not have much difficulty in making the decision. Beauty is an import aspect of people based on research studies. It would be a dilemma for certain individuals. Those who ignore the reward would argue that heaven is just a promise but they are sure of their beauty on earth. They cannot, therefore, lose their sure possession for the future promises. However, the people who are strongly rooted in Christianity beliefs may risk offering their beauty to God for the exchange of the kingdom of heaven.

References

Atran, S., & Ginges, J. (2012). Religious And Sacred Imperatives In Human Conflict. Science, 336(6083), 855-857.

Bainbridge, W. S. (2005). Atheism. Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion, 1.

Baker, K. (1983). The Need for Sacrifice. Retrieved December 14, 2016, from http://www.catholiceducation.org/en/culture/catholic-contributions/the-need-for-sacrifice.html

Besom, T. (2010). Of Summits and Sacrifice: An Ethnohistoric Study Of Inka Religious Practices. University Of Texas Press.

Datta, M. (1953). The philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press.

Davies, R. B. (2010). Reading Ezekiel’s Exagoge: Tragedy, Sacrificial Ritual, And The Midrashic Tradition. Greek, Roman, And Byzantine Studies, 48(4), 393-415.

Jay, N. (1992). Throughout Your Generations Forever: Sacrifice, Religion, and Paternity. University of Chicago Press.

Kearns, E. (2012). ‘Remembering The Ancient Way Of Life’: Primitivism In Greek Sacrificial Ritual. Greek Notions Of The Past In The Archaic And Classical Eras: History Without Historians. Edinburgh, 301-16.

Kurtz, L. R. (2015). Gods In The Global Village: The World’s Religions In Sociological Perspective. Sage Publications.

Lee, L. (2012, April 13). Bridal Hunger Games. Retrieved December 14, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/15/fashion/weddings/Losing-Weight-in-Time-for-the-Wedding.html

Leondis, C. (2015, January 22). The Business Behind Skin Bleaching. Retrieved December 05, 2016, from http://www.blackenterprise.com/news/5-facts-busine…

Lindsey, T. B. (2011). Black No More: Skin Bleaching and the Emergence of New Negro Womanhood Beauty Culture. Journal Of Pan African Studies, 4(4), 97-116.

Lynn, R., Harvey, J., & Nyborg, H. (2009). Average intelligence predicts atheism rates across

137 nations. Intelligence, 37(1), 11-15.

Mensah, O. A. (2015). Mythology Of Rituals And Sacrifices In African-Derived Diaspora Religions. In Contemporary Perspectives On Religions In Africa And The African Diaspora (Pp. 179-197). Palgrave Macmillan US.

Plastic Surgery 2014 Statistics Report. (2016). 1st ed. [ebook] ASPS Public Relations, p.6. Available at: http://garramone.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/pl… [Accessed 14 Dec. 2016].

Sacks, R. (2015). Why do we Sacrifice? (Vayikra 5775). Retrieved from http://www.rabbisacks.org/why-do-we-sacrifice-vayikra-5775/

Sherkat, D. E. (2008). Beyond belief: Atheism, agnosticism, and theistic certainty in the

United States. Sociological Spectrum, 28(5), 438-459.

Sjödin, A. P., & Jackson, P. (2015). Philosophy And The End Of Sacrifice: Disengaging Ritual In Ancient India, Greece And Beyond.

Slone, D. J., Van Slyke, J. A., Wiebe, D., & Mccorkle, W. W. (Eds.). (2015). The Attraction Of Religion: A New Evolutionary Psychology Of Religion. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Swann Jr, W. B., Buhrmester, M. D., Gómez, A., Jetten, J., Bastian, B., Vázquez, A., … & Finchilescu, G. (2014). What Makes A Group Worth Dying For? Identity Fusion Fosters Perception Of Familial Ties, Promoting Self-Sacrifice. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 106(6), 912.

Wolf, N. (2013). The Beauty Myth: How Images Of Beauty Are Used Against Women. Random House.

Yerkes, R. K. (2010). Sacrifice In Greek And Roman Religions And Early Judaism. Wipf And Stock Publishers.

Zalman, S. (1984). Likkutei Torah. Brooklyn, N.Y., Vayikra 2aff