My Baptism Essay

The Sacrament of Baptism is often called â€Å"The door of the Church,† because it is the first of the seven sacraments not only in time (since most Catholics receive it as infants) but in priority, since the reception of the other sacraments depends on it. It is the first of the three Sacraments of Initiation, the other two being the Sacrament of Confirmation and the Sacrament of Holy Communion. Once baptized, a person becomes a member of the Church. Traditionally, the rite (or ceremony) of baptism was held outside the doors of the main part of the church, to signify this fact. The Necessity of Baptism: Christ Himself ordered His disciples to preach the Gospel to all nations and to baptize those who accept the message of the Gospel. In His encounter with Nicodemus (John 3:1-21), Christ made it clear that baptism was necessary for salvation: â€Å"Amen, amen I say to thee, unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. † For Catholics, the sacrament is not a mere formality; it is the very mark of a Christian, because it brings us into new life in Christ. Baptism of Desire: That doesn’t mean that only those who have been formally baptized can be saved. From very early on, the Church recognized that there are two other types of baptism besides the baptism of water. The baptism of desire applies both to those who, while wishing to be baptized, die before receiving the sacrament and â€Å"Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do His will as they know it through the dictates of conscience† (Constitution on the Church, Second Vatican Council). Baptism of Blood: The baptism of blood is similar to the baptism of desire. It refers to the martyrdom of those believers who were killed for the faith before they had a chance to be baptized. This was a common occurrence in the early centuries of the Church, but also in later times in missionary lands. The baptism of blood has the same effects as the baptism of water. The Form of the Sacrament of Baptism: While the Church has an extended rite of Baptism which is normally celebrated, which includes roles for both parents and godparents, the essentials of that rite are two: the pouring of water over the head of the person to be baptized (or the immersion of the person in water); and the words â€Å"I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. † The Minister of the Sacrament of Baptism: Since the form of baptism requires just the water and the words, the sacrament, like the Sacrament of Marriage, does not require a priest; any baptized person can baptize another. In fact, when the life of a person is in danger, even a non-baptized person—including someone who does not himself believe in Christ—can baptize, provided that the person performing the baptism follows the form of baptism and intends, by the baptism, to do what the Church does—in other words, to bring the person being baptized into the fullness of the Church. Infant Baptism: In the Catholic Church today, baptism is most commonly administered to infants. While some other Christians strenuously object to infant baptism, believing that baptism requires assent on the part of the person being baptized, the Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, Lutherans, and other mainline Protestants also practice infant baptism, and there is evidence that it was practiced from the earliest days of the Church. Since baptism removes both the guilt and the punishment due to Original Sin, delaying baptism until a child can understand the sacrament may put the child’s salvation in danger, should he die un-baptized. Adult Baptism: Adult converts to Catholicism also receive the sacrament, unless they have already received a Christian baptism. (If there is any doubt about whether an adult has already been baptized, the priest will perform a conditional baptism. ) A person can only be baptized once as a Christian—if, say, he was baptized as a Lutheran, he cannot be rebaptized when he converts to Catholicism. While an adult can be baptized after proper instruction in the Faith, adult baptism normally occurs today as part of the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) and is immediately followed by Confirmation and Communion. The Effects of the Sacrament of Baptism: Baptism has six primary effects, which are all supernatural graces: 1. The removal of the guilt of both Original Sin (the sin imparted to all mankind by the Fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden) and personal sin (the sins that we have committed ourselves). 2. The remission of all punishment that we owe because of sin, both temporal (in this world and in Purgatory) and eternal (the punishment that we would suffer in hell). 3. The infusion of grace in the form of sanctifying grace (the life of God within us); the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit; and the three theological virtues. 4. Becoming a part of Christ. 5. Becoming a part of the Church, which is the Mystical Body of Christ on earth. 6. Enabling participation in the sacraments, the priesthood of all believers, and the growth in grace. Question: What is Baptism? Christian denominations differ widely on their teachings about baptism. Some believe baptism accomplishes the washing away of sin. Others consider baptism a form of exorcism from evil spirits. Still others teach that baptism is an important step of obedience in the believer’s life, yet only an acknowledgment of the salvation experience already accomplished – baptism itself has no power to cleanse or save from sin. The following takes a look at the latter perspective called â€Å"Believer’s Baptism:† Answer: A general definition for the word baptism is â€Å"a rite of washing with water as a sign of religious purification and consecration. † This rite was practiced frequently in the Old Testament. It signified purity or cleansing from sin and devotion to God. Since baptism was first instituted in the Old Testament many have practiced it as a tradition yet have not fully understood its significance and meaning. In the New Testament, the significance of baptism is seen more clearly. John the Baptist was sent by God to spread the news of the coming Messiah—Jesus Christ. John was directed by God (John 1:33) to baptize those who accepted his message. John’s baptizing is called â€Å"a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. † Mark 1:4 (NIV). Those baptized by John acknowledged their sins and professed their faith that through the coming Messiah they would be forgiven. Baptism then is significant in that it represents the forgiveness and cleansing from sin that comes through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Purpose of Baptism: Water Baptism identifies the believer with the Godhead – Father, Son & Holy Spirit. â€Å"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. † Matthew 28:19 (NIV) †¢Water Baptism identifies the believer with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. â€Å"When you came to Christ, you were â€Å"circumcised,â €  but not by a physical procedure. It was a spiritual procedure–the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to a new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. † Colossians 2:11-12 (NLT) â€Å"We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. † Romans 6:4 (NIV) †¢Water Baptism is an act of obedience for the believer. It should be preceded by repentance, which simply means â€Å"change. † It is turning from our sin and selfishness to serve the Lord. It means placing our pride, our past and all of our possessions before the Lord. It is giving the control of our lives over to Him. â€Å"Peter replied, ‘Each of you must turn from your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ‘ Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church–about three thousand in all. † Acts 2:38, 41 (NLT) †¢Water Baptism is a public testimony – the outward confession of an inward experience. In baptism, we stand before witnesses confessing our identification with the Lord. †¢Water Baptism is a picture representing profound spiritual truth: Death – â€Å"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. † Galatians 2:20 (NIV) Resurrection – â€Å"We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with Him like this in His death, we will certainly also be united with Him in His resurrection. † Romans 6:4-5 (NIV) â€Å"He died once to defeat sin, and now he lives for the glory of God. So you should consider yourselves dead to sin and able to live for the glory of God through Christ Jesus. Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to its lustful desires. Do not let any part of your body become a tool of wickedness, to be used for sinning. Instead, give yourselves completely to God since you have been given new life. And use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God. † Romans 6:10-13 (NLT) Cleansing – â€Å"And this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also – not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. † I Peter 3:21 (NIV) â€Å"But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. † I Corinthians 6:11 (NIV) Questions On Baptism Friday, October 10, 2003 Home Greetings! Initiation of a non-Christian into the Roman Catholic Church is celebrated in a Rite called â€Å"baptism†. In this rite, a person is either immersed in water, or sprinkled with water by another Christian who says, â€Å"I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. What makes a baptism valid? Baptism is valid so long as water was used with the Trinitarian formula (See Mt 28:19 for the Trinitarian formula, and John 3:5 for the necessity of water). In an emergency, even tears or saliva could be used where running water is not present. Catholics believe that all people who have received water baptism in the Trinitarian formula are mysteriousl y united to the Church, and indwelt with the grace of Jesus Christ. What is grace? Grace is God’s favor, and more than this, it is the very life of God within a person through the Holy Spirit. With grace, three dispositions, or virtues are infused in the soul: faith, hope and love. God cannot co-exist with sin, and when we turn away from God, we can sin so badly as to cut off this flow of divine life within us. Catholics call this â€Å"mortal sin†, referring to the notion of deadly sin we find in 1 John 5:17. Yet, even when we sin mortally, the Council of Trent states that faith lingers in the soul to draw us back to Christ. Only blasphemy of the Holy Spirit – an ongoing and deliberate rejection of the free gift of grace – can damn us. We can trust teh one who started the work of salvation in us through baptism to bring it to completion. Is Baptism necessary for salvation? The Second Vatican Council affirms that the grace of baptism is necessary for salvation. Yet, the Council speaks of salvation outside, but not apart from the Church. Catholics believe that the grace of baptism is given through the rite itself, but is also provided to those who, through no fault of their own, have either never heard the Gospel, or heard the Gospel in a distorted manner so that they were unable to accept it. Many theologians (myself included) argue that anyone who has not actively rejected the Gospel as properly understood may be under the saving grace of baptismal grace. The Church has always maintained that the Old Testament prophets are counted among the saints in heaven. The Council of Trent affirmed that even prior to baptism, a grace called prevenient grace draws a person to baptism. Furthermore, the Church always taught that there is such a thing as baptism by desire. Traditionally, baptism of desire was used to refer to martyrs who were murdered while preparing for the rite of baptism. These various doctrines have lead theologians to the conclusion that there is saving grace available without strictly receiving water baptism. Yet, for a believer in Jesus Christ, it would make no sense to reject water baptism, since Christ himself was baptized and taught his disciples to baptize. In the early church, baptism was a public witness to becoming a Christian, and often a person was placing their life on the line by receiving the sacrament. To reject water baptism and claim to believe in Jesus is a contradiction, and in this sense, baptism is necessary for all believers. However, knowing that prevenient grace draws the sinner to the sacrament, many theologians today argue that there are two types of saving faith, and one depends on the other. Primordial faith is a trust in a vague and fuzzy awareness of divine holy mystery and openess to transcendant experience that goes beyond language. This faith is what begins the salvation process in us, and it is this grace that is spoken of when we say the grace of baptism is necessary for salvation. Many theologians since Karl Rahner argue that we are all born with the gift of such grace, even as we are all effected by original sin. If we respond to this grace, we seek language to describe the experience, and primordial faith is then translated into fiducial faith, which is the belief in a particular creed, doctrine, and set of religious practices. For the Catholic Christian, fiducial faith expresses itself and becomes actualized in cooperation with Christ through the sacraments. However, the non-Catholic may very well be saved by fiducial faith expressing primordial faith in a different cultural context. Who performs a baptism? Typically, a baptism is performed by a priests, but in an emergency, any Christian who has already received baptism can perform the rite. Catholics recognize the baptisms of other Christian demonimations as valid, so long as water was used, and the Trinitarian formula was followed. Catholics consider the rite of baptism to be a sacrament. Sacraments are outward signs of internal grace instituted by Christ and preserved in the Apostolic tradition. Catholics believe that Christ, himself, acts in each sacrament, so that even if a sacramental rite is performed by the worst sinner, the sacrament is valid. How often can baptism be received? Because it is the first step of initiation, baptism is only received one time in life, and Catholics do not believe anyone who has received a valid baptism needs to repeat it, even if the rite was performed before a person was fully mature, or the rite was by an imperfect person, or in a manner that was hasty or sloppy. Indeed, Catholics see it as a lack of faith to repeat baptism. At the same time, Catholics do bless themselves with holy water as they enter a church as a constant reminder of baptism. What are the effects of baptism? Perhaps the effects of baptism are best understood by looking at the symbolic meaning of the rite. Water is a natural symbol of birth, life, and cleanliness. It symbolizes birth as a mother’s water is broken. It symbolizes life as we need it for nourishment. It symbolizes cleanliness as we bathe daily with water. Water also symbolizes death, as we can drown in water. In Judaism, ritual baths and purifications symbolized that we were making ourselves presentable to God, the most high and most holy and pure being of all. According to the New Testament, the baptism of John, who preceded Jesus was a baptism of repentance. The word for repentance in Greek means conversion, and is rooted in the notion of turning a stiff neck. John seemed to use water baptism as a symbolic action to convey the notion of the hope to one day be immersed in the Spirit to be cleansed from sin to live a new life. John’s preaching was eschatological and forward looking, and painted a picture of cosmic conflict between good and evil. John’s baptism looked for the day when the Spirit would be poured forth like a river on the people to produce a change of heart. Jesus received the baptism of John, and many Bible scholars point to this incidence as evidence of a historical person named Jesus. According to the criteria of embarrassment, the early church would have no reason to invent this encounter, since the action implies John is greater than Jesus and that Jesus needed to repent. Many believers in Christianity are raised to believe that Jesus was baptized by John in order to provide us an example. However, this oversimplifies the issue, and implies that Jesus was play acting. Even a perfect person can and would have turning points in life if that person is fully human. A conversion experience does not always involve turning from sin to virtue. Rather, like a moth becoming a butterfly, a conversion experience can be growth from one stage of human development to another. The New Testament is clear that Jesus grew as a human person (See Luke 2:40). By receiving the baptism of John, Jesus reveals that he has fully entered the human condition. Like us, in his humanity, he longed to be immersed in the Holy Spirit and to grow and change. John preached that there would be one who come after him who would baptize with fire and Spirit. Having received the baptism of John, the growth or conversion that Jesus displayed was to begin to live as though the fullness of God’s reign was breaking into our world here and now, already present, but not fully present yet! There is some evidence in the New Testament that Jesus continued the ministry of baptism after John, and may have even rivaled John for a period (See John 4:1). However, where John was an ascetic preaching hell-fire and brimstone, Jesus preached that the reign of God was breaking in through mercy upon the marignalized. It is not that Jesus made no mention of hell. However, when he does mention hell, it is always in the context of the rigidly unforgiving, or those who commit heinous sins that hurt other people. For Jesus, it appears that baptism was transformed from a symbolic act that looked forward to a day of immersion in the Spirit, to a symbolic rite that made the Spirit present. In Jesus and his disciples, baptism truly became a rite of initiation for those who choose in the here and now to live in the reign of god breaking into our reality. By accepting the baptism of Jesus, one was chosing to live here and now as though God is your only king, and to trive for perfection. After the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, baptism took on new meaning. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Saint Paul called baptism an immersion in the death and resurrection of the Lord (See Romans 6:4 and Colossians 2:12). The author of 1 Peter refers to baptism as a cleansing. With Saint Augustine int he fourth century, the emphasis on the notion of bap tism as cleansing became critical in his debates with a monk named Pelegius. Pelegius believed that Christ saved us by offerring an example of perfection that we chose to follow by our own inherent goodness. Those who rejected Christ and refuse to imitate him are simply evil. Pelegius taught a crass works righteousness. Augustine, profoundly aware of his own sinfulness, countered that he could not even want to follow Christ if God had not given him the gift to desire Christ. Augustine, relying on Saint Paul, believed that we are saved by grace, and that grace enables us to imitate Christ. Augustine developed the concept of original sin to explain what he felt Paul was saying when Paul says all people are sinners due to Adam’s sin (see Romans 5:12). Augustine argued that grace is a completely free gift given to us while we are sinners, and through the gift, we are made righteous, with baptism symbolizing cleanliness and new birth. As a demonstration that he was interpreting the Scriptures correctly, Augustine wrote to Pelegius appealing to common tradition asking if what he was saying were not true, why does the Church baptize infants? So, the effect of baptism is that we die to our sinful selves to rise with him. Grace, the very life of Christ, is infused in the soul by the one who lives today! This new life is experienced as rebirth in water and Spirit. We are immersed int eh Holy Spirit so that live as sons of daughters of the great King of the universe, whose reign of peace and justice is breaking into the world through Christ acting in us. Why do Catholics baptize infants? Acts 10 speaks of the entire family of Cornelius, and the whole household, including his servants, receiving Peter and the Apostles to eventually become baptized. Catholics believe that the episode indicates the possibility that children were baptized within the New Testament period, since it is likely that Cornelius had children. Yet, there is no direct and unquestionable proof that infants were baptized in the New Testament. Many Protestant Christians argue that the symbolism of conversion and change is lost by performing baptism on infants, and that such batisms should be considered invalid. Catholics believe that in the early church, adult baptism was the norm as the Church reached out to new members. However, we saw above that Saint Augustine argued against the works righteousness of Pelegius by appealing to the already wide-spread and ancient tradition of infant baptism. Infant baptism may or may not not perfectly allow the recipient to experience grace as conversion. Yet, Catholics accept in faith that conversion is occurring even in the infant. For many Catholics, infant baptism is a response of gratitude to God for a child, and a celebration of birth. Parents naturally want to share their faith and culture with their children. As a rite of intitiation, baptism knits a person into that web of relationships that forms the Church – the Body of Christ. What Christian parent would not seek to have their child knit into this web of relationships? On a deeper theological level, Catholics speak of a real transformation taking place in the infant where all guilt of original sin is removed, and grace is infused in the soul conforming the child to Christ. Through baptism, a person is born again, and the effects of the sacraments last eternally! By offering the rite to an infant, we are emphasizing that grace is an absolutely free gift, not even earned by our desire for conversion or our intellectual undertsanding of what we receive. This may confuse many Protestants, who believe that Catholics teach works righteousness. The Catholic Church holds as infallible, according to Scripture, the local council of Orange, and the Ecumenical Council of Trent that salvation is by grace alone. However, Catholics believe that with new birth comes growth, and that with baptism, Christ’s life life is infused inthe soul to produce faith and works. Faith without works cannot save, and works without faith cannot save. Yet, the whole process of salvation is initiated as a free gift of Christ. See my essay Justification: Protestant or Catholic for more detail on this subject. In the New Testament, Paul speaks of laying hands on people after baptism, and James speaks of annointing people. The word â€Å"Christ† literally means â€Å"annointed†. Catholics generally believe that in the sacrament of confirmation (laying on of hands and annointing), a person is confirmed in the faith. This second sacrament completes initiation in the Catholic Church and is closely connected theologically to baptism, though separated by years in time for many Catholics. Adult converts receive the two sacraments together. This is usually done in young adulthood, and provides an opportunity for a similar experience to Protestant young adult conversion at baptism. Why do Catholics use the Trinitarian formula, and not the name of Jesus Personally, I am not sure that God considers the name of Jesus alone as an invalid baptism. However, there are denominations and churches separated from Rome who baptize in the name of Jesus only because they reject the doctrine of the Trinity. We saw above that the Trinitarian formula for baptism is Scriptural in Matthew 28:19. We know from early Church writings that the Trinitarian formula was used from most ancient times, and the doctrine was accepted as the correct interpretation of scripture by the world-wide Church at several Ecumneical Councils. Thus, Catholics believe that the Trinitarian formula is revealed through Scripture and Sacred Tradition to be a if not the correct way to do baptism. Since the issue arose late historically, and was clear attempt to break the unity of the Church, Catholics do require a new baptism for those who join s from a community that did not use the Trinitarian formula. Why do Catholics sprinkle instead of immersing? Immersion is the proper way to do baptism to convey the full symbolism of the sacrament. Sprinkling in the early church was only used for emergencies, such as impending death. As the Church expanded into Northern Europe, it is highly probable that cold weather caused Christians to turn more often to sprinkling. Irish missionaries may have carried the practic e back southward. The Church defends that baptism by sprinkling is valid. At teh same time, Vatican II called for a renewal and retrieval of the meaning of sacramental gestures so that the fullness of what was conveyed in the New Testament is mediated in the signs. I have seen more and more Catholic churches building baptismal fonts large enought to immerse an adult. In the future, I expect immersion to once again become the norm. One final point When John began baptizing, he warned his Jewish siblings that God could make children of Abraham from the stones. Receiving his baptism of repentence was useless if one was not changed by it. God always respects our freedom, and we are always free to reject and act against the grace that is given us. We do this when we sin. Catholics believe that God initiates the salvation as an absolutely free and unmerited gift that can start in an infant. Catholics believe that Christ acts in the sacrament, so that we can never say that baptism does not have an effect. Christ promised to act in every valid baptism. Even Adolf Hitler (who was baptized Catholic) was changed by the sacrament. (Think how much worse he may have been if his life were never touched by grace! Yet, knowing that every baptism has an effect on the recipient, and trusting individually that the One who died for me and began a work for me in baptism wants to bring it to completion, I must respond to him! John’s warning to the children of Abraham is still true for Christians. We must, by God’s continued outpouring of grace, receive the Lordship of Christ and allow his will to shape our lives and contin ually change us. While baptism always has an effect, not everyone who has been bapized is absolutely assured slavation.

Al Capone Revision

Al Capone: Revision 0730 HIST 2020-010 4-23-07 Many gangsters have made it in the history books the past 100 years: Billy the Kid, and John Gotti just to name a few. But none matched the notoriety that Al Capone had. Al Capone, short for Alphonsus Capone his birth name, was born on January 17, 1899 in Brooklyn, New York. # Capone grew up with a troubled childhood. After dropping at of school in the sixth grade, Capone got in several gangs of ruffians around town, but nothing too serious. Capone got sick of it and then became a member of the Five Points gang, led by Frankie Yale. After his stint with Yale’s gang, he was sent to Johnny Torrio‘s gang, called the James Street Gang. From 1925 to 1931, Capone and his gangs ruled the streets of Chicago with their vicious gangster ways. # Growing up in the early 1900‘s, you could say Capone had a rough time with it. Torrio soon noticed the talent this young ruffian had and convinced him to with to Chicago to work with his uncle who was one of the cities main concerns with his prostitutes and gambling rings. Al Capone was soon to be Chicago’s, better yet America’s, most notorious gangster and greatest symbol of illegal activities which prevented the city’s growth because it was known as the lawless city. Capone’s soon to be mega-network came through Torrio’s business. They were the pioneers in the selling of illegal alcohol. Capone had power and wealth because he sold illegal alcohol, moonshine, throughout Chicago. After Torrio was shot and badly wounded by a rival gang, this left the rising star, Capone, to take over the thriving business that they had started. Now, Capone was on top the of world at the tender age of only 26. Although vicious, Capone did have somewhat of a good heart when he helped homeless people in Chicago with the first soup kitchen in 1929 after the stock market crash. # Although Capone did help starving people in Chicago, he was a nuisance that needed to be stopped. This, to an extent, as was why the FBI and many other law enforcement agencies were formed. Several law enforcement agencies were built around the area because of crime, and we benefit from it today because if it weren’t for a big time mobster like Capone, we might not have had the law enforcement agencies that we have today. Capone‘s image was seen not only through the eyes of Americans but through the eyes of the world and. People all over the globe thought he was just another thug gangster involved in organized crime. Capone had never done any major time for the crimes he did. Capone walked on water in Chicago, he was so powerful. That’s probably why he decided to open the soup kitchens to get people to like him more. Although this was a good act of respect from Capone, the respect sure enough came tumbling down after his St. Valentines Day Massacre. On Feb. 14, 1929, the St. Valentines Day Massacre made a major impact on the U. S. because it was the most vicious violence they had ever witnessed. # Capone had an alibi for the murder, which he always did. The St. Valentines Day Massacre started when Capon’s gang tricked the Moran gang into thinking it was a police raid when really it was Capone’s gang dressed like police. # As the men were staring at the wall scared of being arrested, the gang broke out with a lead shower of bullets into the backs of the seven members. Obviously, Capone had set this up to take down the rival gangs to strengthen his regime. Although Capone took out an essential part of the gang, Bugs, the leader escaped after seeing the police uniforms, thinking he was getting busted. After the Massacre, Capone and his wife Mary and their children moved to Florida because of the endangerment that Capone had put on them for not killing Bugs. After the Massacre, Capone soon came known as the gangster of the 20’s. After the events of the St. Valentines Day massacre, Capone’s gang received more publicity than any other gang had received before this time. After getting out publicly in Chicago, it was soon on a national spotlight. Capone was now a target of writers all across America. In 1929 While Capone was called before a grand jury in Chicago, little did he know about the powerful people that were teaming up to try to take down this criminal. Capone thought that is was about all of the murders he had committed and so forth. Capone left a mark from this massacre that will be remembered by the United States forever and will sketch his name in as one the most ruthless gangster’s of all time. Capone’s impact of the nation at this time was monumental and glamorized by certain people in his society. Capone’s actions and organizations were getting out of control and soon had to be reckoned with. His way affected people in the Chicago area because of his bad gangster activity as well with his soup kitchens which was one of the slim positive influences he had. In 1930, Capone’s empire slowly but surely flourished after many people working long and hard found a flaw with him, tax evasion. Al Capone was tried on October 17, 1931, when he was finally imprisoned for five of 22 counts of tax evasion from 1925-1929. # Everyone thought that you didn’t pay taxes if you earned the money illegally until Capone made an example for everybody. In May, 1932, Capone was sent to Atlanta to serve his 11-year sentence. As well as those charges, he also didn’t file tax returns for 1928 and 1929. Capone had to pay $50,000 in fines for the counts of tax evasion, a misdemeanor for not filing tax returns, as well as violating prohibition laws. He also had $7,692 in court cost. # Capone had no other choice but to throw in the flag. His life as a gangster was over. In May 1932, Capone started his 11-year sentence in Atlanta which was one of the roughest prisons in America at the time. While in prison, Capone managed to smuggle in a couple thousand dollars and paid the guards off while furnishing his cell with a mirrors, typewriter, rugs, and a set of the Encyclopedia Britannica. # Capone was still in control because of the street credit that he obviously still had. Capone was soon taken to Alcatraz where he would be monitored frequently. Alcatraz wasn’t any walk in the park. It was highly monitored where Capone was nothing else but another inmate. Capone was helpless now. Although helpless, Capone did cash in on good behavior and was granted some time off his sentence for good behavior. Capone, again, gave up on the rebellious life and started acting the way the he was meant to from the start. Capone got along so well with everyone that he actually had time cut off for bad behavior. Although Capone was calm himself, he did get into several fights with other inmates but none proved to be instigated by him. While working down in the prison basement, Capone got stabbed by another inmate while standing in line to get a haircut. He was sent to the penitentiary hospital were he stayed for several days soon to be released with a minor wound. Capone was finally released from Alcatraz on January 6, 1939. He then headed to the Federal Correctional Institution at Terminal Island in California where he stayed until November 16 of that year to serve his one-year misdemeanor charge. # Capone returned to his mansion in Palm Island, Florida, after his release. The big, bad mobster from the 20’s and 30’s was slowly deteriorating. His overall body strength, weight, and mindset were all dropping at a rapid pace. Capone had gotten syphilis when he was younger and never did anything about it which led to dementia. On January 21, 1947, Capone had a apoplectic stroke and was out for several days. Finally regaining consciousness, Capone the suffered from pneumonia three days later and went into a cardiac arrest which was probably all linked to his syphilis. Capone was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Chicago between his parents but then was moved to Mount Carmel Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois. # Capone was the pioneer of crime in America. We have our Jesse James and such but this wa s a different criminal. He was smart. Smart enough to get away from murder trials but unlucky enough and rich enough to become a victim of his own success. â€Å"Scarface† will always be remembered as the greatest mobster in the history of America. Bibliography â€Å"Al Capone. † Chicago Historical Society. http://www. chicagohs. org/history/capone. html [assessed April 14, 2007]. â€Å"Al â€Å"Scarface† Capone. † Alcatraz History. http://www. alcatrazhistory. com/cap1. htm [assessed April 14, 2007]. â€Å"Al Capone. † Wikipedia. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Al_Capone [assessed April 14, 2007]. â€Å"Al Capone. Made in America. † Crime Library. http://www. crimelibrary. com/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/index_1. htm [assessed April 14, 2007]. â€Å"Famous Cases. † FBI History. http://www. fbi. gov/libref/historic/famcases/capone/capone. htm [assessed April 14, 2007].

Limits of the UN's Human Rights Agenda Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Limits of the UN's Human Rights Agenda - Essay Example However, League of Nations failed to achieve its objectives, which is evident from the occurrence of a Second World War. The formation of United Nations helped a lot in settling human rights issues and global political, cultural and economic issues. According to Kennedy (2007), â€Å"Without the actions and the existence of UN, human kind would be a lot worse off than it is today† (Kennedy, 2007, p.285). However, there are plenty of people who argue that United Nations failed to fulfil its objectives as far as the human right protection of the global community is concerned. â€Å"The first International Conference on Human Rights, held in Tehran in April and May 1968† (Burke, 2008, p.275). Since then plenty of global incidents happened in which human right violation occurred in one way or another. UN interfered in some international crisis successfully whereas it failed miserably on many such occasions. â€Å"The story of UN peace keeping operation in the 1990s - some success and some failures - to agree that the record is a mixed one†(Kennedy, 2007, p.285). This is because of the fact that UN failed to act neutrally on global issues. Some people argue that UN is working as a toy in the hands of America and its allies. In their opinion, UN fails to interfere properly in human rights violation incidents in which America and its allies are the culprits. They cite incidents from Palestine, Afghanistan, Iraq etc to substantiate their arguments. This paper analyses the limits of the UN’s human rights agenda. Limitations of UN’s Human right protection efforts The United Nations secretary general, Kofi Annan, declared explicitly for the first time on September 15, 2004 that the US-led war on Iraq was illegal. Mr Annan said that the invasion was not sanctioned by the UN Security Council or in accordance with the UN's founding charter (MacAskill & Borger, 2004). Even though Anan showed the4 courage to openly criticize America’s interventions in Iraq, UN failed to take any effective measures to stop America’s war with Iraq. It should be noted that thousands of Iraqi people suffered a lot because of America’s effort to seize Saddam and weapons of mass destruction from Iraqi soil. Even after years of battle and the execution of Saddam, America failed to establish peace in Iraq or seize any biological, chemical or nuclear weapons from Iraq. In other words, Iraq war was definitely the violation of international laws related to sovereignty and human rights. America vetoes any UN efforts which may go against their interests as well as the interests of their allies like Israel. Middle East is a region in which human right violations are going on for the last few decades. UN is acting as silent witness amidst all human right violations happening in Middle East. It failed to ensure safety and security to the lives and properties of the innocent Palestinian people from the hands of Israel. The right for having an independent state is a human right for Palestinians. However, Israel in company with America blocking Palestine’s every effort to become a sovereign state. Israelis have settled in to lands that Palestinians call home and these Israelis believe that they have the right to live there and call it home themselves. Palestinians want the Israeli "occupiers" to leave, and they desperately want a homeland of their own, a country of their own (The Palestinian-Israeli Conflict, n. d). Israel’s ability to stop the functioning of a sovereign Palestine is definitely a failure to United

The use, abuse and misuse of performance enhancing drugs including Research Paper

The use, abuse and misuse of performance enhancing drugs including painkillers in sports - Research Paper Example This normally involves a series of workouts and hard training programs, which may make some of these athletes to turn to performance enhancing drugs (Barr, n.d). Traditional training methods involved by any sports athletes includes keeping on a strict diet of healthy foods and drinks that trainers prescribes, daily and routing work outs on their skills and training sessions to help keep their bodies fit. Some of these athletes turn to performance enhancing drugs to help them improve their performance in the field, or to get faster results in sports without lots of training. In addition, these drugs may be prescribed for medicinal use to athletes, but contain some chemicals that enhance the performance of the athlete unknowingly. The athlete acquires others for the sole purpose of enhancing their performance in the field (Orchard et al., 2006). The need to use drugs by athletes has been researched by Coleman and in an article by Prince (2007), whereby he states that an athlete’ s choice to use drugs is based on some of the following factors. First the athlete may use performance enhancing drugs due to cultural, social policy or attitudes and policing. This implies that the athlete’s cultures and norms may prompt him/her to use the drugs in order to fulfill gain acceptance in their culture. Secondly, environmental factors that includes conditioning, learning and life events, in which the athlete grows in and tries to emulate in sports. Thirdly, athlete’s interpersonal relationship with peers and family members may influence their use of performance enhancing drugs. Therefore, being from a family of athletes or working under the shadow of high performing athletes in the family or society may make them use these drugs to enhance their own performance. Another factor is at an intrapersonal, where the athlete develops cognitively feeling inferior, hence may use performance enhancing drugs to achieve high levels of performance. In addition, with al l these factors in place, the choice of use, abuse or misuse of performance enhancing drugs by any athlete comes to a matter of choice. Athletes use performance-enhancing drugs because in many cases they seek an easy way to achieve maximum performance, with minimum effort. Moreover, they feel that if they use these drugs they shall get a winning edge over their competition. As Coleman relates drive in profit, gaining techniques is the main driving force for any athlete to use performance-enhancing drugs. He clarifies that the athlete has a choice to choose between hard training and work or use performance enhancing drugs. Since benefits of using the drugs outweigh the bad, they turn to these drugs for an extra edge. In addition, athletes have the urge to get socially recognized and approved, and are mainly driven by the rational choice and force to succeed and break records in the fields influence their use of these drugs (Prince, 2007). Increase of use and misuse of performance enh ancing drugs has led to the formation of the World Anti- Doping Agency (WADA) to combat this in sports world wide. This agency later gave the criteria in which a drug is considered as illegal for use in any sports (Gerrard, 2005). The first criteria is that any drugs that performance enhancing to any athletes or gives them extra help over the other violates this rule. Secondly, it is stated that any drug that is deemed to cause health

Benthams utilitarian principle Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Benthams utilitarian principle - Essay Example Based on these theories, societies, along with its member, behaves according to what they thought is applicable and appropriate. Happiness and pleasure against sorrow and pain controls every individual, thus behave according to the amount these opposing nature with the risk of the consequences that their action entails. This utilitarianism principle is what is thought to have governed the world as proposed by Jeremy Bentham. At present, Bentham’s (1781) utilitarian principle is considered as the most appropriate and the most modern among other ethical principles in the society. He regards pain and pleasure as the â€Å"sovereign masters† that control the world. Everyone’s action follows the principle of utility as each person may or may not identify one’s act as one that conforms to the society or not. Experiencing pain and pleasure allows humans to identify the things that they ought to do as well as what they shall do. Being able to identify the actions that are appropriate in the society allows individuals to identify what is right or moral. Furthermore, such actions that are seen to be good and beneficial to a large number of people in the community are then considered to be morally acceptable. On the other hand, when an action is seen to inflict pain and is not pleasing to a majority, it is therefore disapproved and regarded as an immoral act. This idea applies to actions that are considered to be â€Å"for the greater good.† ... Any conduct that that affects a greater number of people in the society should not be implemented and considered unjust. In a given circumstance though, where the conduct affects a small number of people negatively, the community should assume the responsibility of its adverse effects. (role of the government) Right is then associated by the feelings of pleasure, while wrong is associated with pain. These two sensations that every member of the society feels can be quantified, therefore, pleasure in its great amount is deemed best for humanity. Greater pain, on the other hand, is unacceptable in the society, and thus regarded as a violation of the laws set by man and the system that is implementing them. On the other hand, motives play an important role in identifying what is thought to be right and wrong for the community. The principle that is adverse of utility introduces the ideas of asceticism, and sympathy and apathy. Such instances when even an action that offers the least amo unt of happiness or pleasure may be approved by the community. This inverse utilitarian principle recognizes the value of the action even when it does not provide a greater amount of happiness on the condition that it is advantageous for a greater number of people. As Bentham (1781) pointed out, the difference in motives between hope and fear draws down to the same principle that is associated to asceticism. While hope may elicit anticipation for something that is good in the future, fear inhibits a person to do something immoral in order to avoid punishment in the future. Both feelings fall down to preventing the members of the society, no matter which group they belong to,

Public Relations Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Public Relations Assignment - Essay Example Thus, the standing of Regent’s College needs to be made in a grand manner in fron to fthe media as well as the press so that the honor and goodwill of the college is raised in the eyes of the public, and this very address is able to attract a large number of students towards seeking admission in the college. The aim is to thus be able to figure out a way to be present on the maximum number of news channels as well as newspapers and print media in order to put in a short word as per the contribution of Regent’s College towards helping the President come and give his address. This is how the college will be able to provide itself as a significant figure in the entire world of institutionalization and this is what sets it apart from the rest. Keys to Success: The keys to success are: As the target people are the youth, the main aim is to not lose focus on gaining the attention of the same. It is very imperative that the plan takes steps in trying to gain the attention of t he youth through the address. Thinking beyond the box. Diversifying our tactics in order to evaluate some innovative ways for the achievement of our goals Professionalism. A professional outlook of things helps in getting a proper and practical over view of performance Various results need to be achieved because the main aim is to achieve results in the form of widespread public and media attention. Only when a large number of students revert back to the college, will the job be done. STRATEGIES: Strategies are some of the best ways of trying to achieve goals. The main aim of a PR group is to try and formulate strategies that are unique to it because otherwise, every other institution or company will be able to grab the attention of the target group. Thus, a... This paper approves that crises are not at all times essentially awful and terrible. An urgent situation or disagreement may give us the chance to reach outsized groups of people with our College’s point of view. Good quality or appalling, a small number of things are needed in the management of crises. According to the essay fundamentally, such processes can be completed effectively if the project manager and other staff associates keep a cautious check on projected media and uphold extracts from the clippings. This process will be under taken under our public relation plan so that we can keep a hard watch on those who can exploit our advertisement strategies and massive campaign. The position at which the endeavors will be considered complete will be prà ©cised in terms of either a time constituent or the accomplishment of a confirmed intention. That is our attempts will be considered complete when we will generate good will strengthen up the population of Regent’s college as per our goal. This paper talks that putting into practice a good public relations plan will help increase and extend the word about Regent’s College, at comparatively diminutive or no charge. It goes without aphorism that, whatever your current state is, the additional people who know about our college the more chance we have of attracting students. The above mentioned evaluation techniques guarantee the successful and fluid running of our plan and these techniques also ensures that the plan will be productive enough for the exploitation of this mega event to the fullest.

Is Death Penalty Justifiable Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Is Death Penalty Justifiable - Essay Example This matter entails unresolved issues on its justification as a rightful punishment for convicted criminals. Death penalty advocates stress mainly that this system will deter crime and moreover give justice or retribution to the crime victims and their families. On the other hand, death penalty abolitionists believe that death penalty does not deter crime but rather promote it. Moreover, it violates the human rights of the convicted criminals, some are may be wrongfully convicted and there is an apparent issue of unequal treatment or discrimination of would-be convicted criminals because of being poor or a member of a minority group. One of the main purposes of having death penalty in the judicial systems was to advocate fear of committing a crime and stopping criminals in doing so now that they are immobilized or put out of action. But does death penalty on convicted criminals honestly discourage other from doing crime I personally don't believe so. An acted violence punished by another form of violence results to a cycle of violence. Fear from punishment of a crime won't stop criminals from committing crimes. These proceedings will not only promote its existence as a system but also its normality. Normality leads to acceptance and is a ticket to apathy as supposed to fear. Advocates s Advocates say that death penalty brings justice or retribution to the victims and their families. I sadly do not agree with this. I do not believe in the basic essence of the word justice in this case. Should there be such a word Death penalty ends the life of someone who took or damaged the victim's life. But does that bring back the supposed life of the victim and their families No, it does not. This does not mean justice, its retribution and more like vengeance. "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth", isn't it about time to stop this kind of thinking It is barbaric and inhuman. Given that some of these convicted criminals were the author of such horrendous crimes, ending there lives I believe will not bring justice to the bereaved. A life imprisonment without parole is a more likely option with the possibility of reformation on the life of the convicted criminal. Issues on unfair application of death penalty appeals on an accused that belongs to a minority race also are abundant and apparent especially on the United States of America. Procedures on death penalty appeals in the case of the accused or the victim is influenced by his/her race or financial capabilities; that is, inadequate defence of the accused or inadequate support for the conviction of an accused in support to the victim. This also strengthens the notions of death penalty abolitionists that possible death penalty candidates may be convicted wrongly. In a more practical note, anti death penalty groups say that a session of capital execution or death penalty is expensive and costs more than to imprison the convicted criminals for as long as they live. On this note, death penalty advocates answer that death penalty costs can be minimized by limiting the appeals for death penalty. If you come to think of it, this notion will only result to more injustices. Let's just say, what I have just said was a bit indifferent to the pain of the victims and their families who are left to endure more pain. I do not disregard the fact that every victim has a story