Pope Pius XIIs Neutrality Essay -- Catholic Church, Holocaust, Hitler

Is it possible for a Pope to be infallible? When one looks at events, such as the Holocaust, the answer of this question becomes twofold. Were Pope Pius XII’s actions an attempt to save the Catholic Church from persecutions or a lack of understanding of Hitler’s ethnic cleansing? Nearly six million Jews were slaughtered during the Holocaust. When the world became aware of the mass murders that were taking place in Europe, World War II became a moral obligation rather than a fight for power. The Allied powers invaded Germany to save Jews and force the Nazis out of power in Germany. Many Nazi resistance groups, including Catholic groups, aided in the hiding of Jews in Europe. Surprisingly, the Vatican did not assist these resistance groups. Pope Pius XII neglected to help Jewish Holocaust victims and cowardly ignored the moral issue in order to remain neutral, avoid conflict in the war, and evade the persecution of more Catholics. **NEED A WAY TO INTRODUCE THIS PARAGRAPH In 1930, Pope Pius XI appointed Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli, later Pope Pius XII, as Secretary of State of the Holy See. Pacelli assisted Pius XI in writing encyclicals, dealing with diplomatic matters and handling international affairs (Sanchez 16). In fact, Pius XI selected Cardinal Pacelli to agree to the Reich Concordat of 1933 on his behalf. The Reich Concordat of 1933 was an agreement signed by Cardinal Pacelli and Herr Franz von Papen, the Vice-Chancellor of the German Reich. This agreement allowed the Pope to impose laws on the German clergy and ensure the freedom of German Catholic dioceses, schools, religious Orders, congregations and parishes (Concordat). The German Reich agreed to these terms so long as the papacy encouraged the demolition of t... ...iation against Catholics in the occupied countries. Pope Pius XII’s distrust and fear of the Jews also played role in his silence (Cornwell 296). He believed that adversity followed the Jews and as such, he wanted to distance himself from them. When war began Pope Pius XII did not believe all the reports he was hearing about Nazi Germany. Often times, he considered such reports war propaganda by the allies (Cornwell 296). The silence of the Pope was deafening. If Pope Pius XII had readily shared his knowledge regarding the deportations of Jews and death camps with the rest of the world immediately upon learning this information, it is extremely possible that many lives would have been saved. This silent reaction of the papacy began the controversy of the moral obligations of Pope Pius XII and the omissions of any reactions to the atrocities taking place.

A Brief Introduction for Chinese Culture Essay

China, as one of the four homes of the world’s earliest civilization, has a recorded history of nearly 4,000 years. Through centuries of migration, merging and development, it has formed a distinctive system of language, writing, philosophy, art and political organization, which came to be recognized as Chinese culture. It originated from Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasty, which was known as slave culture period. Xia culture represented the early Chinese culture and Zhou culture contributed to the form of more than 2000 years of feudalism culture in China. The May 4th Movement of 1919 was also an important date because it symbolized that it entered into a new culture period. In the spring and autumn and warring-states period, slave society gradually turned into feudalism society and a lot of thinkers sprang up with their immortal work. Among those, Confucianism was the most successful, which helped to build up the norms and values of Chinese people in the following centuries and also was used as a method for emperors to rule the country. However, after the fall of Qing dynasty, the last feudalism dynasty, Confucianism, which was seen as the product of feudalism society lose its dominant position. But its influence still lasts until now. Besides Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism also once played an important role in ancient Chinese. Nevertheless, nowadays most of Chinese are atheists. Buddhism is the biggest religion in China with a history of about 2,000 years. Then Muslim comes the second. It is popular within minority nationalities such as Hui and Uygur. See more: how to start an essay Christianism and Catholicism are also believed in by some people. However, Taoism as indigenous religion has the fewest followers. Moreover, China is a multi-national country with quiet different 56 groups, in which Han has the largest population. Every group has its own language, customs, festivals and some fixed residence. In order to solve the problems of communication between groups and facilitates management, the government standardized language through popularizing mandarin, which is mostly based on Beijing dialect. Cultural values. The development of Chinese values can be divided into two phrases:the former is the traditional cultural values; the latter is modern cultural values, which is affected by the western culture since the 20th century. Confucianism is the core element in traditional values. Deeply influenced by Confucianism , Chinese people tightly adhere to the Doctrine of Mean and try to avoid conflicts. Afterwards, with time going by, Confucianism experienced improvements by combining with Taoism and Buddhism. In this period, Confucianism focused on human, for example, the relationship between human and human, human and nature and so on. Under the influence of the above factors, Chinese traditional values can be concluded into the following aspects: -believe in self struggle ‘Man’s determination can conquer the nature’ is an old Chinese saying. Chinese people believe that through their efforts they can change their life. -emphasis on the art of tolerance Tolerance is another characteristic for Chinese nation. Chinese people won’t be easily infuriated by others. They are used to avoid conflicts and keep peace. It seems to be a little cowardly . But the truth is that many great men succeed because of temporary tolerance . -follow the majority. This is still a serious problem in today’s society. Conformist mentality has proved to have negative effect on building up one’s confidence and independence. People are not willing to express its own opinion to keep conformity with the majority and become passive. -respect the old Respect for the old is a Chinese traditional virtue. Not like western individual consciousness, Chinese parents think it’s their duty to look after their children and do all that they can do for them. So when children grow up, they tend to be grateful for their parents’ contribution. As a result, the old enjoy a high position in the family. Moreover, since the old experience much more than the young, young people are willing to listen to their opinions when making decision. -collectivism This means that Chinese, in general, is a collective society that strives for harmony and group belonging, whether to family, friends, work, or country. The Chinese are more willing to suppress their own feelings and needs for the good of the group. This value has been passed down the Chinese culture from folklores where martyrs sacrificed their lives for their community or country ever since the dynastical eras 5,000 years ago. The arrival of western cultural value stroke Chinese traditional culture values and helped to discard some backward or bad parts of traditional values. Moreover, it also brought something new such as freedom, charity, democracy and etc. Cultural norms -saving face and losing face ‘Fcae’ stands for one’s position in a certain social group. It’s related to honor, good reputation or respect. Consequently, loss of face is not simply a form of embarrassment. Saving face is another concept. Chinese people respect a person who is friendly and who carefully avoids hurting the feelings of others. Loud, untactful or boisterous behavior is usually regarded as very poor taste. – greeting When meeting for the first time, a handshake is the most common greeting. In order to express some special esteem, to those elderly people or government officials, a slight bow might be given. -gift When visiting a family it is appropriate to bring a small gift, such as fruits, to the host, especially around New Year’s time. Gifts should be given and received with both hands. It is also a Chinese custom when receiving a gift to thank you for it and then place it to the side without opening it.-eating.  ·Chopsticks and a soup spoon are common eating utensils. Food is not passed around the table, but remains in the center. The host usually chooses the food for his guests and serves it to them from the central dishes on the table.  ·Refusing to drink is sometimes thought as dishonor to the people who toast to you. -relationship (guan-xi) Guan xi is a Chinese word which means relationship. One’s guan-xi, is an important factor in the individual’s social status. It is also an important Chinese business element. Having a right guan xi helps companies to minimize the risks, frustrations, and disappointments. Guan-xi relationship, like face behavior, is obligation between individuals for the purpose of maintenance of group integrity. -parents dominant Parents are accustomed to interfering children’s decision and sometimes just determine for them regardless of their own wishes. -look down on girls In some remote areas, the natives still prefer boys to girls. If a family has two children and they can’t afford the education fees for both of them, the boy will have more chance to go to school. Ways of communication -nonverbal communication Chinese is a high context country. Nonverbal communication is as common as verbal communication. Nonverbal communication includes facial expression, tones of voice , gestures, and eye contact. They’re quiet important in Chinese daily life and sometimes it is even more powerful than the verbal interaction. Different gestures have different meanings. Due to different cultural background, even the same gesture has different meaning for people in certain context. -avoid speaking directly Speaking directly is often considered rudeness. Try to be â€Å"diplomatic† and tactful where possible, as the Chinese may be offended by directness in some situations. For example, it is a terrible thing to be criticized in public due to the fact that harmony is highly valued in Chinese society. -conversation tips Find some common areas to talk about such as family, sports and etc. Don’t verbally attack China and be careful about criticizing things there, as many Chinese will feel personally attacked by this. Avoid political arguments, as many Chinese feel reluctant to speak or explore their true opinion about the current government. – saying â€Å"Thank you† â€Å"Thank you† is said a lot less than in the West. In a lot of instances, for example when someone opens a door for you or passes the soy sauce, saying â€Å"thank you† is seen as being over polite and without meaning, and is often met with requests for you not to be so polite (over-polite). -saying â€Å"Excuse me† â€Å"Excuse me† is not used as often in China. People are expected to give way naturally to one another on the street or when walking around, without anything being said. Interrupting somebody talking or doing something else to ask a question, make a request, etc. also happens regularly without any warning or apology. -compliments Be careful when complimenting someone’s possessions or somebody because they may think it’s a kind of flattering rather than appreciation. In conclusion, Chinese culture is based on the wisdom of Confucius and quiet different from western culture in many aspects. But nowadays because of the process of globalization, Chinese people are striving to learn from mainstream culture and improve and develop their own culture.

History of Biligual Education Essay

My project was to go and find out about bilingual education’s history, process, and the experts in the field of bilingual education. Bilingualism is the ability to speak two languages fluently. Bilingualists study Bilingualism and bilingual education, which is teaching all subjects in school through two different languages. Bilingual Education was first adopted in Ohio in 1839, due to the increase of German-Americans (Rethinking). By the end of the 19th century, many states had adopted bilingual education laws to meet the demands of new immigrants due to industrialization. When World War I came many Americans changed their views of bilingual education, due to the fear of German-Americans and the government’s new Americanization policies, including English-only instruction. It wasn’t until the Civil Rights Movement Era and the Bilingual Education Act of 1968, when bilingual education was reintroduced into the United States. â€Å"The court’s decision in th e landmark Lau v. Nichols case required schools to take â€Å"affirmative steps† to overcome language barriers impeding children’s access to the curriculum. Congress immediately endorsed this principle in the Equal Educational Opportunity Act of 1974.†(Rethinking). In California, bilingual education was banned until 1967. In 1967, Governor Ronald Reagan signed legislation (SB 53) that authorized bilingual education, before the Bilingual Education Act of 1968. A blow for bilingual education came in 2002, when President George Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act got rid of the Bilingual Education Act of 1968, changing the way people look at bilingual education. In 1998 California, under Ron Unz’s Proposition 227, reverted Ronald Reagan’s SB 53. This Proposition later confirms Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act and the country’s renewed interest in English only instruction, due to the Iraq War. Many critics of bilingual education believe that bilingual education is failed, but proponents of bilingual education feel bilingual education is a better option than English-only instruction. Critics of bilingual education believe that children who receive bilingual education will not be able to help students learn English as well as English-only students. One of the critics of bilingual education, Rosalie Pedalino Porter of the Institute for Research in English Acquisition and Development (READ), believes that â€Å"the expectations for bilingual schooling were threefold: better and more rapid learning of English; better mastery of school subjects; and higher self-esteem among students, which could lead to higher academic achievement and fewer school dropouts. Unfortunately, none of these goals was achieved†¦The goal [of English immersion] is threefold: early literacy development in English, subject matter instruction in English with a special curriculum, and early inclusion of LEP students in mainstream classrooms for maximum exposure to native speakers of English and for greater integration of diverse student populations†(Porter). However, â€Å"controlled studies consistently show that children in such properly organized bilingual classes acquire at least as much English as those in all-English classes and usually acquire more†(Krasen). Another proponent of bilingual education, Jay Greene provided research that â€Å"the use of the native language in instructing limited English proficient children has â€Å"moder ate beneficial effects† and that â€Å"efforts to eliminate the use of the native language in instruction †¦ harm children by denying them access to beneficial approaches†(Greene). In addition to the belief that children who receive bilingual education will not be able to help students learn English as well as English-only students, critics of bilingual education believe that the passage of Proposition 227, caused test scores to increase. Proponents of 227 from the READ Institute argue that, the test scores from 1998-2000, show that minority English language learning students in California have done better on the SAT 9 test than those in bilingual education had done before (Mora). Kenji Hakuta, shows in his article, Points on SAT-9 Performance and Proposition 227, â€Å"test scores rose in districts in California that kept bilingual education, as well as in districts that never had bilingual education† (Hakuta). In addition, â€Å" Scores increase about 1.5 to 2 points per year after a new test is introduced. Thus, test score inflation accounts for about half of the increase in grades two and three in the SAT9 reading test since 1998, and all of the inc rease in grades four through seven SAT9 reading scores in California have actually declined slightly in grades eight through eleven†(Linn et. al). Research done by these bilingualists show that Proposition 227 has not increased the minority English language-learning students in California’s English skills. Critics of bilingual education believe that poorly trained teachers and complicated bilingual education structures cause more confusion than English-only programs. Susan Headden, writing in U.S. News & World Report, comments, â€Å"Poorly trained teachers further complicate the picture. . . . The paucity of qualified candidates has forced desperate superintendents to waive some credentialing requirements and recruit instructors from abroad. The result is teachers who themselves struggle with English† Advocates cite that just because bilingual education needs improvement doesn’t mean it should be eliminated. Critics of bilingual education look at the success of Canada’s French immersion policy in schools. In kindergarten and first grade native-English speakers are taught entirely in French. Then gradually, English is introduced and by the end of elementary school, most students become fluent in French and English. However, more impressive is the bilingual education of European countries. Since there are eleven different official languages of the European Union, students are taught multiple languages .The study of first foreign language begins in first year of primary school, then an additional language is added in the second year of secondary school and the fourth year of secondary school. By the time students exit college with a Baccalaureate degree, they will know at least four languages. From, my research I was able to find proponents and critics of bilingual education. I noticed that there were many more proponents of bilingual education, among them are Kenji Hakuta of Stanfor d University, Colin Baker of the University of Wales, Stephen Krashen of the University of Southern California, Wayne P. Thomas and Virginia Collier at George Mason University, and Jim Cummins of the University of Toronto. Critics of bilingual education include politicians, George Bush, Susan Headden, and Rosalie Pedalino Porter. Perhaps we should be looking to other nations to solve our educational issues, as neither English-only nor bilingual education seems to work. References *Based on an Analysis by National Association of Bilingual Education. (2002, Winter). History of Bilingual Education. Rethinking Schools. Retrieved May 10, 2007, from http://www.rethinkingschools.org/special_reports/bilingual/langhst.shtml * Greene, J. (1997). A meta-analysis of the Rossell and Baker review of bilingual education research. Bilingual Research Journal , 21(3), 103-122. *Hakuta, K. (2000). Points on SAT-9 Performance and Proposition 227. Lecture presented at Stanford University , Cubberley Hall 228, 485 Lasuen Mall Stanford, California. *Headden, S. (1995, September 25). One Nation, One Language? U.S. News & World Report, 38+. Retrieved May 10, 2007, from http://faculty.ed.umuc.edu/~jmatthew/articles/onenation.html *Krasen, S. (1996). Under Attack: The Case Against Bilingual Education. Culver City, CA: Language Education Associates. *Linn, R., Graue, E., & Sanders, N. (1990). Comparing state and district test results to national norms: The validity of claims that ‘everyone is above average. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice , (9), 5-13. *Mora, J. K. (n.d.). What Do the SAT-9 Scores for Language Minority Students Real ly Mean? Retrieved May 10, 2007, from San Diego State University Web site: http://coe.sdsu.edu/people/jmora/SAT9analysis.htm *Porter, R. P. (1999, December). The Benefits of English Immersion. Educational Leadership, 1(57), 52-56.