Ethical, Religious, and Psychological Aspects of Euthanasia： Qualitative Study of Japanese Roman Catholics

The main aim of this qualitative work is to explore the scope, nature of existing doubts, concerns, and objections, which arose in the mentality of selected groups of Japanese Roman Catholics, and to provide the typology of these findings. The method used in this research was based on specially devised questionnaires. This method aimed to collect qualitative data. The results obtained from questionnaires delivered in selected groups of Japanese Roman Catholics （Hokkaido prefecture） inform that there is a very deep gap between understanding of the concept of euthanasia and its acceptance/rejection. This investigation also reveals the hierarchy of values in the mentioned context. In conclusion, the concept of euthanasia is very often confused with so called ＂death with dignity＂ （Songenshi） and because of this fact it is not clear, what action is consistent with the religious doctrine and what is against. This confusion might be a crucial factor which determines the attitude towards rejection/acceptance/withdrawal from the decision concerning euthanasia in the group of Japanese Roman Catholics.

Beijing Catholics Get New Bishop

The Beijing Catholic diocese ordained young and energetic Joseph Li Shan as its new bishop on

Liberal and Conservative Voices for Justice： John LaFarge, SJ, James Gillis, CSP, and the Northeast Clergy Conference for Negro Welfare, 1933-1944

For a period of some 10 years, two Roman Catholic priests, James Gillis, CSP and John LaFarge, SJ, became unlikely collaborators and colleagues in their common effort to bring greater justice to Black Catholics in the United States. Gillis, a strong political and theological conservative and LaFarge, a much more liberal thinker, were two prominent members of the Northeast Clergy Conference for Negro Welfare, a group that arose on the early 1930s and for the next decade produced documents, programs, and initiated various initiatives to better the life of Black Catholics, initially in the Northeast part of the country and then broadening out its reach in a more general way. The ability for two apparent opposites to collaborate in a common effort to assist an oppressed group tells an interesting story of cooperation between apparent political and religious opposites.

Employment Satisfaction and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Expansion Theory by the Pastoral Care Department

The author decided to explore Maslow’s theory of needs within a Catholic hospital in which 80%of the medical and service staff are non-Christians.The requirements to be focused on include a vision of medical care and service in accordance with the values and mission of Catholicism,and in the context of the highest level of attachment of employees to Cardinal Tien Hospital.The author also wondered whether there was evidence of a shift in employee needs for a sense of meaning in the workplace.If so,how should,or could,the organization and its leaders respond to it?

Araby and the use of religious images

Araby is one of the short stories in James Joyce's collection,Dubliners.In the novel Araby,James Joyce used several religious images,such as the priest's books,the chalice,the wild garden and the name of bazaar,Araby.This paper is an attempt to analyze these religious images within the context,finding the idea that the Catholic belief's decline and people's confusion of the traditional faith which the writer intended to convey.

A Review of Clay

Clay tells the story the protagonist Maria.She was a Catholic.However,the Catholic has slaved Maria’s spirit to a great extent.This paper analyzes on one hand,Maria’s personalities and psychological characteristics from a series of details in Maria’s all life-time;on the other hand,what the clay really symbolizes.

Uptake of in-vitro fertilization among couples attending fertility clinic in a tertiary health institution

Objective:To identify factors that determine the uptake of in-vitro fertilization(IVF),and to determine the predicting effect of the identified factors on the uptake of IVF among couples attending fertility clinic at a tertiary health institution in Benin City,Nigeria.Methods:This study adopted a cross-sectional descriptive design.A self-structured questionnaire tested was validated and administered to 250 couples who attended fertility clinic.Data were collected from March 2021 to June 2021 and were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science(SPSS)version 21.Data were presented and interpreted using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics such as Chi-square,univariate statistics and multivariate logistic regression analysis.Results:Among 250 couples,154(61.6%)were willing to adopt IVF.The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that catholic religion[odds ratio(OR)0.21,95%confident interval(CI)0.54-0.73],family income(OR 1.50,95%CI 1.10-2.00)and age(OR 1.04,95%CI 1.01-1.10)were the major factors that determined the uptake of IVF,with P-value of<0.001,0.018 and 0.031,respectively.Conclusions:The uptake of IVF could be sustained or improved on,if the government should improve on the cost of living for families,and religious leaders need to be encouraged to pass on the information about IVF to their members to be well guided about the possibilities of IVF.

Rawls and Catholicism: Towards Reconciliation?

This paper takes up an ambivalence in Rawls’thought concerning the propriety of religious reason in public discourse.After a general introduction,the second paragraph gives a basic description of the two sides of this ambivalence.In the third paragraph,Joseph Ratzinger is introduced as a potential dialogue partner with Rawls,in as much as one side of Rawls’thought can be interpreted to be congenial to religious reasons that occur with his requirement for public reason.The aim of this paper is,eventually,to open the path towards a possible reconciliation between Rawls’positions and those of the Catholic tradition,as suggested by Joseph Ratzinger.Although some dialectical tensions remain,engaging the Ratzingerian idea of a“mutual correction”might result into a fruitful encounter of different views.

Adichie＇s Purple Hibiscus and the Issue of Feminism in African Novel

Adichie＇s Purple Hibiscus is a feminist work that challenges the dehumanizing tendencies of the menfolk as evident in the character of Mama （Beatrice Achike） who eventually exposed the African conception of an ideal woman who keeps dumb even in the face of humiliation, victimization, and brutality so as to be perceived as a good woman. We will make a resounding case to portray that Achike belongs to the category of liberal feminism. However, as events unfolds, she was forced by situations beyond her control to respond and go radical in order to crush anything that stands in her way to happiness. Efforts will be made to show how African women are rated based on the real and good women as represented by Ifeoma and Beatrice Achike respectively. This essay in exploring the different tenets of feminism will acknowledge that radical feminism is an off shoot of violence. We shall argue that radical feminism is a radical reaction to dehumanization, humiliation, and violence. This study seeks to address the issue of feminism and how characters subject to series of humiliation that leads to a radical approach to gain their freedom.

Organizational Health Among Catholic Religious Congregations

Diversity among organizations may promote a better organizational performance, and diversity management can be used as a competent strategic management conceptual framework in the governance of religious congregations, just as for other organizational forms. Catholic religious congregations are currently undergoing profound changes： They are more and more multicultural; The younger generations have a different understanding of their consecrated in comparison with the previous generations; In addition, they deal with a growing role of lay people in the Church. The study investigated the specific challenges faced by governance of religious congregations, as particular organizational form, in terms of organizational health. A semi-structured interview was administered to a sample of catholic consecrated people （n = 40）. Differences emerged among participants coming from different cultures as well as between younger and older members on their representation and perception of normative organizational control, and differences emerged also on the role and the tasks expected from leaders and followers.

Protestant Pretence in John Donne＇s Poetry

Known as a representative of the English metaphysical poets, John Donne＇s poems are under Protestant pretence. Scepticism, cynicism, anxiety and penitence as well as the employment of numerous religious images construct the unique and profound characteristics of John Donne＇s poetry. The paper focuses on the Protestant pretence in Donne＇s poetry. In order to avoid religious persecution and to realize his ambition, Donne deserted Catholicism and converted into a Protestant. Inner conflicts and struggle are revealed in many of his poems. Scepticism and penitence are also embodiments of Donne＇s Protestant pretence in poetry.

Tenure of Urban Land： Structure, Form and Transformation in Ribeirao Preto, Brazil

The purpose of this study is to explore the urban morphological aspects of cities governed by the juridical regime of emphyteusis, a recurrent situation in the northeastern part of the state of Silo Paulo, Brazil, with special attention to the city of Ribeirao Preto. The concession of lands to the Catholic Church was a recurring practice in Brazil during the colonial and imperial periods, when the cities were being established. As these lands were intended for the formation of patrimonial goods to show the devotion of the residents to a Catholic saint, the lands were not allowed to be commercialized. The tenure reveals a relation in which there is an owner--the landlord--who has direct control of the urban land. This owner allows another--the leaseholder--the useful domain of the land, thus giving the latter the right to use the land, the obligation to pay an annual tax and the responsibility to give the owner a percentage of the sales generated from the land. In 1845, farmers donated a tract of land to be used to glorify Silo Sebastiao. This land is now the city of Ribeirao Preto, and it is this conjuncture that defined the structure and the transformation of the original urban form of the current city.

An Analysis on the Consequences of the Ideological and Cultural Revolution

The paper analyses a special moment-a so-called ＂revolutionar＂ campaign that was undertaken in all fields： social, cultural and religious ones in the contemporary history of Albania. And exactly, it analyses the dramatic turn undertaken by the dictatorial communist regime during the years of 1966-1969. As a result, in period of few years, Albanian was transformed into the only atheist country in the world, because since November 13, 1967, the religious activities were banned and this situation lasted until 1976 from the constitutional point of view.

The Catholic Church in Beijing

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1724—1949年山西天主教徒信仰的本土化

基督教在中国的传播,不仅是传教士宣教中国人接受教义的过程,而且是中国人按自己的思维模式理解其教义、用当地风俗改变其礼仪的过程。一些传教士采取适应中国文化、环境的传教策略,主动或被动地接受了不少中国文化、习俗。

清代前中期东吴文人与西学(下)

三东吴文人诗文所见西方器物晚明至清前中期,与传教士一并进人中土的不仅是天主神学和自然科学,同时还有各种器物,它们在晚明给予传教士的裨益,超过了任何其他东西。三棱镜、玻璃珠、西洋画、计时器、地球仪、

清代前中期东吴文人与西学(上)

东吴的历史空间蕴涵,其大可指江浙皖三省疆域,其小则可单指苏州。本文所云"东吴",特指明清时期吴文化的中心地带,即苏州、松江、常州三府所辖之地,具体而言,即吴县、长洲、常熟、吴江、昆山、嘉定及太仓州(清雍正二年起,曾兼辖崇明、嘉定、宝山、镇洋四县);华亭(松江府治所在)、上海、青浦、奉贤、金山、南汇、川沙;武进、无锡、宜兴、江阴、阳湖、溧阳等州县。

Covert and Overt Activism： Christianity in 1950s Coastal China

The phenomenal growth of Catholic and Protestant churches--both officially-registered Three-Self patriotic churches and unofficial house churches--in China has drawn attention to the underlying dynamics of Chinese Christianity. This article draws on archival research and ethnographic findings to investigate the interactions between the officials and Christians in the coastal regions of Shantou （Guangdong province） and Wenzhou （Zhejiang province） during the 1950s and 1960s. The Chaozhou-speaking Catholics, Baptists and Presbyterians in Shantou succeeded in transcending sectarian boundaries and helped each other to cope with political pressure. The Seventh-day Adventists in Wenzhou did likewise by organizing clandestine house gatherings with other Protestants. They held onto their faith, continued their worship activities on Saturday, and maintained a distinct, though not independent, identity under the broad spectrum of Protestantism. These local stories show that as a collective force, Chinese Christians not only employed a variety of tactics to help each other but also reinvented congregational, kinship and cross-regional networks as conduits for pursuing religious goals. Their covert and overt activism highlight the need to combine archival research and fieldwork to assess the revival of Christianity in present-day China.

1924年的全国主教会议与公教对华夏文化的评价

众所周知,基督宗教的历史发展在很大程度上是由一些concilia(主教会议)引导和推动的。早期教会依赖于325年的Nikaia(尼西亚)会议在教义方面达成共识并澄清正经的信仰[1]。

从“圣三”神学的视野看“梵二”会议之后的天主教社会训导

尽管《圣经》传统和早期教会思想中一直对社会正义问题,尤其是经济和社会秩序颇为关注,①教会兴办学校、医院、慈善机构也早已有之,但教会对社会问题公开发表自己的分析和看法,则是19世纪末以来的事.1891年教宗列奥十三世发表的《新事》通谕(Rerum Novarum)标志着天主教社会训导(Catholic Social Teaching)的开端.天主教社会训导可有广义和狭义之分.严格意义上,它是指自《新事》通谕以来教会发布的一系列训导文件,共有十三份.从广义上讲,社会训导还包括教宗或教会当局发布的其它训导文件,包括演讲、讲道、牧函等,亦可包括区域性主教会议或主教团根据当地的实际情况发表的牧函.②当然,最宽泛意义的天主教社会训导还可以包括《圣经》和教会传统中关于社会事务的观点.本文所论,仅限于严格意义上的天主教社会训导.