Paradise Mislaid

[name][professor /instructor][course]April 21 , 2007Thoughts and Ideas from Jeffrey Russell s Heavenly MetaphorsJeffrey Russell s purpose in writing is to move the public gen timelly , and academia specifically , that heaven restrained exists The word `heaven is as overused as it is open to explanation . According to Russell , use of simile is the best way to take in and understand heavenHeaven is best understood in terms of means of reality by depth-metaphors , metaphors that intend to point toward ultimate verity . When metaphors aim at deeper understanding of the cosmos , and idol they are depth-metaphors . Metaphors are more profound as they indicate broader and deeper realities , less(prenominal) valid as they confuse or restrict means . Look how the floor of heaven is thick inlaid with patines of glittering gold gets us farther than the stars are dandruff on God s black T-shirt (15The use of metaphors is obviously a in truth common and simple method to learn . It invites a semblance of something known or familiar to something altogether different . We whitethorn pee never seen a certain person , hardly he s a real Adonis or he has a face only a mother could write out will give us a good drawing . Heaven , personally unknown to any of us , has historically and successfully been portrayed by symbol allegory , and metaphor . As Russell limits himself to heaven in the Christian sense , he believes the term heaven must be defined in terms of Christian metaphor . because Christian and artists traditionally and classically thought in terms of metaphor (16Legally HeavenRussell provides a florilegium of reasons for what he refers to as the decline of heaven in the 17th century (18 . The Catholic Church had been torn apart by the Protestant Reformation . Whereas Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox tradition granted authority to the ancient church fathers , the bishops , and the theologians as well as the Bible , the Protestant Reformers vehemently argued for the doctor authority of the Bible (23 .

The hierarchy of the Catholic Church was no longer the only source of authority . This radical spay in theology particularly in biblical depictions and interpretations , would have a tremendous effectThe dissipation of central apparitional authority weakened belief in the existing Christian worldview religious fragmentation was accompanied by political division the spread over religious wars of the 1500s and 1600s discredited all sides , while well-read debates promoted uncertainties that filtered take down to pulpits and congregations .The attack on Plato Aristotle , and medieval scholasticism by such(prenominal) as Michel de Montaigne , and the extension of the attack to religion as a whole by Francis Bacon , prepared Europe and the whole Christian World for changes in the idea of heaven (19Another aspect of the era was the chilling phenomena of witch-hunting which reach a point where even the stringy and influential were at risk . They of course then speed to stifle the activity . Once people who were terrified of a huge conspiracy they imagined was led by the Devil learned there was...If you want to get a full essay, society it on our website: Orderessay

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