The Great Grand Father Of George Washington - 1699 Words

George Washington was one of the most skilled, and maybe the best person that could have held the title of founder of the United States of American. He had the capabilities of representing his people on the Continental Congress, the intelligence to flip his misfortunes to his victories on many battles against the British and on his personal life, the generosity of believing in people that were ignored or discriminated by society and more remarkably, the bravery needed to act against the laws and even risk his own life on several occasions for the liberty of his people, among many other aspects that makes him one of the most studied historical characters and sources of inspiration. John Washington (who was the great-grand father of George Washington) came to Virginia in 1657 and obtained a land of almost 150 acres in Westmoreland County on the Potomac River and seven years, built Mount Vernon out of this land and another grant of 5,000 acres just 18 miles down present-day Washington, D.C. There’s not enough evidence to conclude anything for his son Lawrence, but his grandson Augustine left an immense record of businesses, mines, properties, and 2 marriages that left 5 descendants; between them George Washington. George was born as the eldest son of this father’s second marriage on February 22, 1732. And during his childhood, George moved with his family to another plantation on a place called Epsewasson, not very far from the Potomac. When he was only eleven years old hisShow MoreRelatedGeorge Washington, Washington D.C. and the Grand Canyon646 Words   |  3 Pagesfor the people who have lived there, such as George Washington, our first president, its splendid cities, such as Washington DC, and its world famous national parks such as the Grand Canyon. America is an amazing country in part because of its people and places. One of the country’s most famous leaders is George Washington. This important man was the first child of Augustine and Mary Washington, born on February 22nd, 1732. unfortunately, his father died when he was but eleven years old. By theRead MoreGeorge Washington And The Era Of The American Revolution1569 Words   |  7 PagesAccepted Masons or Ancient Free and Accepted Masons that has certain secret rituals†. George Washington was one of the American elites to join the Freemasonry society, their intentions weren t to better themselves but to mimic the â€Å"English gentill behavior†, even though the organization actually ending up contributed to the development of the American Revolution. Through the start of this organization George Washington and many of the American elites policies were influenced to what we know them to standRead MoreEssay george washington1077 Words   |  5 Pagesnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Born in Westmoreland County, Va., on Feb. 22, 1732 . George Washington of six children of Augustine Washington and his second wife, Mary Ball Washington. At the age of 16, he lived there and at other plantations along the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers, including the river later to be known as Mount Vernon. His education was simple, as surveying, mathematics, and quot;rules of civility.quot; After he lost his father in 1743 at the age of eleven. He was soon sent to live with his halfRead MoreHis Excellency- George Washington Book Review Essays1557 Words   |  7 PagesHis Excellency: George Washington Joseph Ellis sets out to make George Washington, the person we think of as an icon, into a real person. He wants to show us what makes him tick. He wants to turn the marble into the man. So many students today see George Washington as a memorial, a monument, a face on a dollar bill, and the man who could not lie when he cut down the cherry tree. He wants to show us the man George Washington was in his day. Ellis’s method was to divide George Washington’s lifeRead MoreEssay on The Great Masonic Nation, USA1884 Words   |  8 PagesThe Great Masonic Nation, USA Freemasonry The freemasonry defines itself as a discrete symbolic and nonreligious philosophical and philanthropic initiatory institution, founded on a sense of brotherhood. Its objective is the search for truth and promote the social and moral development of human beings, in addition to social progress. Masons are organized into structures called base lodges, which in turn can be grouped into a higher-level organization usually called Grand Lodge, Great EasternRead MoreThe Hamilton Grange National Memorial1530 Words   |  7 PagesThe historical site that I have decided to expand my research on is, the Hamilton Grange National Memorial located in Harlem, New York. This site was the home of Alexander Hamilton, one of the seven foreign-born Founding Fathers of the United States of America. He had a great influence on the foundation of the United States of America, the United States constitution and the Federalist Party. He was a Military officer, lawyer and member of the US constitutional con vention, an American politicalRead MoreThe Revolutionary War : A Successful Revolt Against The British Reign And Formed A Whole New Nation1615 Words   |  7 Pagesdiplomatic opportunities came and choices were made, such as the Olive Branch Petition and forming an alliance with France; moreover, this would have been possible with out the great leadership of our founding father, Benjamin Franklin, and the ideal image of leadership from the honorable George Washington, allowing a movement so great it consecrated a successful revolt against the British reign and formed a whole new nation. During the 1770s Britain oppressed the colonies in an attempt to dig their wayRead MoreEssay on James Madison1503 Words   |  7 Pagesinfluential to establish the United States. James Madison is considered Father of the Constitution of the United States. He became one of the leading theorist of the republican government. Madison attended the college of New Jersey, which is now Princeton. He urged greatly for independence and a stronger nation for the United States. He also became the fourth president of the United States. Madison, an American Statesmen had great knowledge of understanding government. In 1776, Madison was electedRead MoreHist 1012296 Words   |  10 Pages A Man of Honor George Washington was the first president of the United States and is known as â€Å"the Father of Our Country. He was a man with much conviction, humility, and integrity. George Washington trusted in God, was willing to sacrifice much, and he was selfless. All of these qualities were important to his success as a military leader and as the leader of the nation. It is apparent by how revered Washington is today that he was a man of honor. George Washington begin life in VirginiaRead MoreThe War Of The American Revolutionary War1104 Words   |  5 Pagesfreedom against the â€Å"Red Coats,† also known as, British Troops. Some of the important people started assembling together to be able to write a declaration of independence from Great Britain. The assembly, was claimed to be one of the greatest assemblies ever in American history. Before they could officially assemble for this grand meeting of congress, a series of events had to take place, which involved persuading others to come and be part in it. †¢ On June 7th, 1776, a Congress meeting in Philadelphia

James, A Non Medical Residential Board And Care For The...

This paper discusses James, a Caucasian male who was interviewed and observed at a non medical residential board and care for the elderly. Academic Journals and major theories were explored to discuss his stage of development that correspond with his age range. James physical development has declined as he reached late adulthood, which is typical in his age range. Even though his health condition limits his mobility, he makes it a point to walk daily. His cognitive development has decreased compared to when he was younger. He stays mentally active by working on his family newsletter and playing chess. James coping mechanism has helped him understand his emotions and development. His personality in staying positive keeps him effective. His support system composes of his social development with his wife and relationship with God. His faith has helped him stay strong mentally and physically. This paper examines the stages of James developmental psychology in late adulthood. A detailed discussion of James physical, cognitive, emotional, and social development was compared to the expected development in that age range. Keywords: Caucasian, Late Adulthood, Development Introduction James, who is in his late adulthood, 80 years old, United States Air Force veteran living in a non medical, residential board and care facility for the elderly with his wife. The interview and observation was conducted in their private room. He and his wife have resided at theShow MoreRelatedSafeguarding in Health and Social Care6436 Words   |  26 PagesUnit 10: Safeguarding in Health and Social Care Student Name: Student I.D: Submission date: 09/12/2015 CONTENTS PAGE Task | Page number | Task 1: Induction Pack on Abuse factors and contexts (1.1, 1.2, 1.3) | 4-12 | Task 2: Essay on the law in contexts (2.1, 2.2) | 12-19 | Task 3: Power point presentation on working practices and strategies (3.1, 3.2, 3.3) | 20-28 | References | 29-30Read MoreCase Study for Management Accounting36918 Words   |  148 Pagesnot-for-profit organization. University Bottom Line, by Enrico Uliana, discusses management control issues in a university. I thank these authors and all of the other authors who submitted cases to the conference. I also thank members of the editorial board for their help in reviewing cases: Tom Albright, Wayne Bremser, Paul Juras, Ken Merchant, Gary Sundem and, especially, Larry Carr and Jim Mackey. I am grateful to the other conference organizers, Steve Hansen, K. Sivaramakrishnan and Naomi SoderstromRead MoreCase Study for Management Accounting36912 Words   |  148 Pagesnot-for-profit organization. University Bottom Line, by Enrico Uliana, discusses management control issues in a university. I thank these authors and all of the other authors who submitted cases to the conference. I also thank members of the editorial board for their help in reviewing cases: Tom Albright, Wayne Bremser, Paul Juras, Ken Merchant, Gary Sundem and, especially, Larry Carr and Jim Mackey. I am grateful to the other conference organizers, Steve Hansen, K. Sivaramakrishnan and Naomi SoderstromRead MoreHealth and Social Care Essay14559 Words   |  59 PagesUnderstand Employment Responsibilities and Rights in Health, Social Care or Children and Young People’s Settings Workbook for Employment Rights and Responsibilities The Workbook Purpose – The purpose of the workbook is to support you the learner in gathering and recording evidence towards your LAO Level 2 Award in Employment Rights and Responsibilities in Health and Social Care or Children and Young People’s Settings. Content – This workbookRead MoreCountry Note Book of China17054 Words   |  69 Pagesthird largest country, after Russia and Canada. With an area of 9.6 million square kilometers and a coastline of 18,000 kilometers, its shape on the map is like a rooster. It reaches Mohe in Heilongjiang Province as its northern end, Zengmu Ansha (or James Shoal) to the south, Pamirs to the west, and expands to the eastern border at the conjunction of the Heilongjiang (Amur) River and the Wusuli (Ussuri) River, spanning about 50 degrees of latitude and 62 degrees of longitude. China is bordered by 14Read MoreExploring Corporate Strategy - Case164366 Words   |  658 Pagesstrategic choices and strategy in action covered later in the book, it will normally be a prerequisite that some type of analysis of the strategic position is undertaken, using the case material. When planning the use of these cases within programmes, care needs to be taken to balance the time taken on such strategic analy sis so as to allow the time required to analyse the main issues for which the case has been chosen. Where the text and cases are being used as the framework for a strategy programmeRead MoreHuman Resources Management150900 Words   |  604 Pages2006. It is interesting to note that in Figure 1—1 most of the fastest-growing occupations percentagewise are related to information technology or health care. The increase in the technology jobs is due to the rapid increase in the use of information technology, such as databases, system design and analysis, and desktop publishing. The health care jobs are growing as a result of the aging of the U.S. population and workforce, a factor discussed later. Chapter 1 Changing Nature of Human ResourceRead MoreEngineering Ethics in Practice: a Guide for Engineers18096 Words   |  73 Pagesthe potential to lead to serious structural damage to a local heritage site, and possible injury or death to visitors and residents. Given that STZ are misleading the public on such a serious matter, and probably acting illegally given their duty of care to the public, it is clear that the company, the team, and the Team Leader as an individual have a responsibility to counter their claims. Not to do so would be a particularly serious case of allowing â€Å"others to be misled about engineering matters†Read MoreAn Industry Study on the Intensive Pig Farming Industry15104 Words   |  61 Pagesbuilding materials utilized were affordable, making it relatively easy for a single family to fund and manage the enterprise. This system allows for a more efficient family as the less productive members of the family are held responsible for the care of the pigs, and eventually earn income for the family. These farms can only support a small number of pigs yet are able to price their hogs competitively by absorbing a large portion of the costs as part of their cost of living. Further developmentRead MoreStrategic Human Resource Management View.Pdf Uploaded Successfully133347 Words   |  534 Pagessuperior production facilities or a superior product are usually not enough to sustain an advantage over competitors. Physical facilities can be duplicated, cloned, or reverse-engineered and no longer provide a sustainable advantage.2 Strategists James Quinn, Thomas Doorley, and Penny Paquette have argued that â€Å"maintainable advantage usually derives from outstanding depth in selected human skills, logistics capabilities, knowledge bases, or other service strengths that competitors cannot reproduce

Diplmacy Free Essays

Aide Memoire Professor: Dr. Awalou Ouedraogo Diplomacy Brazil has become an emerging superpower in terms of its economic power as well as its participation in the international community. The consolidation of its strong economy has allowed Brazil to take part in conflict resolution around the world. We will write a custom essay sample on Diplmacy or any similar topic only for you Order Now Brazil intends to spread its own emblem of order and progress throughout the world, and is committed to establish peace and encourage human development. Brazil is the largest country in South America, covering approximately half of the total surface area of the subcontinent which places them in a very strategic and prominent place in the region. It shares borders with every other South American country except Chile and Ecuador. This has allowed Brazil to create important alliances and enjoy good relations with most of its neighbours. Brazil is also home of the Amazon forest which is considered to be the ‘lungs’ of the planet, as well as an important place where diversity of fauna and flora coexist (Note on the Political and Economic Situation of Brazil, 4). Brazil’s population also plays an important aspect in the international arena; it ranks fifth in the world in terms of its population with over 186 million people. Slavery was abolished in 1888, which over time a further blurred racial lines; Brazil is a mixture of races and ethnicities, resulting in rich diversity. Approximately 80% of its population is Roman Catholic. Despite the mixing of ethnicities; there is a class system in Brazil. Thus, there is a great disparity in wage differentials–and therefore lifestyle and social aspirations among the different classes (Brazilian Culture, Family, and Its Ethnic-Cultural Variety, 193). On the other hand, Brazil’s current economic situation is at its best. Today most of the world is consumed in debt and dealing with high levels of unemployment; Brazil instead is trying to see how to manage its economic boom. It was the last country to enter the great recession and the first to leave it. It is positioned to overtake France and Britain as the fifth global economy. According to the International Monetary Fund website, Brazil is the largest economy in Latin America the second largest on the continent, behind the United States, the sixth largest economy in the world by nominal GDP and the seventh largest in terms of purchasing power parity. With most of the world’s economies stagnant Brazil’s economy has grown by 7%, three times faster than America. It has the most sophisticated biofuels in the world, 80% of its electricity comes from hydro power. Brazil is also the biggest mining iron producer in the world and the world’s leading exporter of coffee, orange juice, tobacco, soy and beef. Most of these commodities are exported to China which has replaced the US as their leading trade partner (Reportagem da tv Americana). It is not the only commodities that Brazil makes; it also has developed its economic sectors and increases its exports in aircrafts, electronics and automobiles. Although, Brazil enjoys a modern economy that is very strong and competitive, it still has serious socio-economical problems in terms of poverty within its population. There is a huge gap between the rich and the poor. Brazil is a social state organized as a unitary republic, decentralized, with autonomous territorial entities, democratic, participatory and pluralistic society based on respect for human dignity, work and solidarity of the people who make up and the prevalence of general interest. The federal capital is Brasilia, while the most important cities are Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Brazil is made up of 26 states; the president is the head of the executive and is selected by direct universal suffrage for a term of fours years. It has the classical division of power which is the executive, legislative, and judicial that is officially established by the constitution (Note on the Political and Economic Situation of Brazil, 6). The Brazilian government is committed to protecting human rights; their principle human rights concern includes police violence and impunity. Also, the discrimination against indigenous and landless people, human trafficking, torture and working conditions with relative impunity for those involved (Foreign and Common Wealth website). The current president Dilma has made improvements in domestic human rights a priority of her leadership. Brazil’s foreign policy is to be as a key player on the world stage; its efforts for the integration of Latin America have been tremendous. Since the creation of Mercosur, Brazil has intended to be the driving force in South America consolidating free trade agreements in the region and coordinating negotiations for the emancipation of Latin America. Under both Presidents Lula and Dilma, Brazil has been particularly active in its engagement with other emerging powers, particularly India, South Africa, China and Russia. The combination of Brazil, India and South Africa have established a more formal grouping, called the G3 or IBSA, and co-ordinate activity across various areas. The three countries have come together in order to exert greater pressure at the WTO negotiations, a move which has upset the United States. Through its role as a leader within Latin America, Brazil has encouraged closer co-operation between the region and the Middle East (Foreign and Common Wealth website). Brazil supports reform of the United Nations, both the Security Council and more widely. Moreover, Brazil has put itself forward as a candidate for a permanent seat in an enlarged Security Council and has the stated support of a significant number of countries. Thus, in the case of Palestine in which Brazil has made important measures that would help the country to gain its recognition as state in the United Nations. Brazil has consistently spoken in favour of a ceasefire, and against mutual hostility between Israelis and Palestinians. Brazil has specifically related to advancing the path of national independence for the Palestinians and security for the Israelis. We can actually even go back to the Montevideo Rights and Duties of the State, and find how ‘the political existence of the state is independent of recognition by the other states. Even before recognition the state has the right to defend its integrity and independence, to provide for its conservation and prosperity, and consequently to organize itself as it sees fit, to legislate upon its interests, administer its services, and to define the jurisdiction and competence of its courts’ (Montevideo Convention on Rights and Duties). Article 3 clearly states the position the conference on American states would adopt. Paradoxically, some countries have not obeyed this approach taken by the majority of nations that bind this agreement. The Brazilian interest is to bring peace to this conflict and achieve concrete progress in building the Palestinian State. On the website of the Ministry of International Affairs, Brazil with the support of some other countries states how the Brazilian Palestinian National Interest Committee continues to promote Brazil as key for Palestinian-Israeli peace, and promote Brazil’s interests in the Middle East by urging its members to maintain contact with Members of Congress, to adopt resolutions to help in restoring the peace rocess and thus resolve the humanitarian situation in order to avoid future conflicts in the region, and to support important initiatives that would lead to the creation of a Palestinian State (Ministerio Das Relacoes Exteriores website). In it, Brazil also states the Mercosur-Palestine Free Trade Agreement signed on 20 December 2011 in Montevideo. The Mercosur-Palestine Free Trade Agreement contains the following chapters: trade in goods; rules of origin; b ilateral safeguards; technical regulations, standards and conformity assessment procedures;  as well as its agreement to open markets for goods. The launch trade negotiations with the Palestinians comes less than two weeks after Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay announced the recognition of a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders (Nanduti Noticias website). Finally, the resolutions made by the Brazilian Palestinian National Interest Committee made a list of the issues that must be resolved, 1. Israeli Government must cease military raids in the West Bank and Gaza. 2. Dismantling of all settlements in the West Bank. 3. Democratically elected officials are recognized. 4. Dismantling of the wall. 5. Providing Palestinians free unrestricted travel in their municipality. . Strengthening of Palestinian security forces and intelligence. 7. UNSC backing for Brazil to start leading efforts, working together with India, South Africa and the international community, to support Palestinian Government institutions in providing security for its nationals along with securing the borders with the State of Israel. 8. Allowing Palestinians to co ntrol their airspace, territorial waters, and land passages between the West Bank and Gaza. 9. Resolving the Palestinian refugee issue as part of any final status agreement (Ministerio Das Relacoes Exteriores website). References 1- Neves , Pedro. On the Political and Economic Situation of Brazil. † Directorate-General for External Policies of the Directorate B -Policy Department-. (2007): 397-081. lt;https://docs. google. com/viewer? a=vamp;q=cache:jcuqvwT_ZRsJ:www. europarl. europa. eu/meetdocs/2004_2009/documents/nt/692/692067/692067en. pdf economic, political and social situation of brazilamp;hl=enamp;gl=caamp;pid=blamp;srcid=ADGEESj5pBjjn Vkc0u7wIo1paZ9DdS6Kh4Ws0aaZV_ok__9hpcHWbdOzuRA2zWAHmTYDI32EQLomVU8OhHoSVJ6CEfZHBgXUAJyePf59cAFEEfvreX3PPSzp3s1tRH0cKaF7xDCYiexYamp;sig=AHIEtbRmo3aDE1xJY_1QBjZQLAIZwR9qUQgt;. 2- Torres, Claudio V. , and Maria Auxiliadora Dessen. Brazilian culture, Family and its Ethnic- Cultural Variety. † Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studie s. 12. (2008): 189-202. Web. 19 Jan. 2012. ;lt;http://www. jstor. org/stable/20641909? seq=5;amp;Search=yes;amp;searchText=political,;amp;searchText=social;amp;searchText=economical;amp;searchText=situation;amp;searchText=brasil;amp;list=hide;amp;searchUri=/action/doBasicResults? la=;amp;wc=on;amp;acc=on;amp;gw=jtx;amp;Query=brasil+political%2C+economical+and+social+situation;amp;sbq=brasil+political%2C+economical+and+social+situation;amp;prq=recognition+palestinian+state;amp;si=1;amp;jtxsi=1;amp;jcpsi=1;amp;artsi=1;amp;so=new;amp;Go. =6;amp;Go. y=20;amp;Go=Go;amp;hp=25;amp;prevSearch=;amp;item=6;amp;ttl=234;amp;returnArticleService=showFullText;amp;resultsServiceName=null;gt;. 3- 60 Minutes. 2011. Photograph. CBS, Brazil. Web. ;lt;http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=DMM7OJ_Kj9I;gt;. 4- . â€Å"Acordo de Livre Comercio Mercosul-Palestina – Montevideu, 20 de dezembro de 2011. † Ministerio Das Relacoes Exteriores. Ministerio Do Brasil, 20/12/2011. Web. 19 Jan 2012. ;lt;htt p://www. itamaraty. gov. br/;gt;. 5- Montevideo Convention on Rights and Duties of States, 1933. PDF document How to cite Diplmacy, Papers

Basic Ecclesial Community free essay sample

The same can be said of the various theologies of liberation. Although in one or another version they may not dovetail exactly with the theological frontiers of Puebla, liberation theologies are a meaningful and important way to approach and understand BECs. WHAT ARE THE BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES? For the sake of precision, let me make clear what BEC means in the context of this article. The currently so-called Basic Communities, Basic Christian Communities, Grassroots Christian Communities, or Basic Ecclesial Communities in different parts of the world share some common and fundamental features. However, at the present level of ecclesiological awareness as it is mirrored in the specialized theological literature, we can hardly talk about the current phenomenon of BECs in a general, univocal way. They are a diversified reality from which we can draw an analogical concept. They offer a certain unity in their diversity. Even within a more homogeneous scenario such as Latin America, there are significant differences between the BECs in Brazil, in Peru, in El Salvador, or Nicaragua, for instance, which prevent us from talking of them without further specification. To write on the BECs in a scholarly fashion, therefore, we need a concrete point of reference. Here this will be the BECs in the Roman Catholic Church in Brazil. From such a specific point of reference it is possible then to relate to other analogical cases. I do not pretend to give a clear-cut definition or even a description of the Brazilian BECs. This would deprive them of one of their fundamental traits, namely, flexibility, openness to change and to reverse patterns, something which is very much linked to real life. Let me make explicit some of their major characteristics. First, they are communities. They are trying to set a pattern of 601 602 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES Christian life which is deliberately in contrast with the individualistic, self-interested, and competitive approach to ordinary life so inherent in the Western, modern-contemporary culture. As a result of their own unfolding evolution in the last 25 years or so, BECs in Brazil have been aiming at living the two dimensions of communion and participation. By stressing communion, the BECs want to live faith not as a privatized but as a shared, real experience which is mutually nurtured and supported. Such a deep level in faith sharing is at the roots of an attempt to improve interpersonal relationships within the community. This then makes possible the dimension of participation especially in the decision-making process, in contrast with a rather passive attitude of the faithful or a too vertical orientation in exercising power or authority by the clergy or by the laity. Secondly, the BECs are ecclesial. The catalysts of this ecclesiality in the Brazilian BECs have been the unity in and of faith and the linkage to the institutional Church. Even when BECs are ecumenically oriented, experience has proven that the sharing of a specific, common faith was a crucial element for fostering the internal growth of the community. This is particularly important because of the paramount significance of the Word of God and biblical-prayer sharing in BECs life. By linking themselves to the institutional Church, BECs want to reverse the confrontational and/or hostile approach to the hierarchy that used to be a hallmark of Basic Communities in the sixties, especially in Italy and France or in the so-called underground church in the United States. This does not mean that the BECs must be started by a clerical initiative, although many have indeed been. It means, though, that however originated, the BECs look for recognition and support by the pastors or by the bishops, even when enjoying a fair amount of internal autonomy. Thirdly, BECs are basic (de base). Being predominantly a gathering of active lay people, they are said to be at the base of the Church, from an ecclesiastic point of view, as related to the hierarchical Church structure. Moreover, in Brazil and in many Third World countries, the BECs are at the base of society as well. In fact, most of the thousands and thousands of BEC members are poor. This is not an exclusive option but an understandable fact. The poor feel in a stronger way the need for community, for mutual support. They are less sophisticated in shaping their interpersonal relationships because they have less to lose. They are more open to participation because more pressed by common needs. Finally, they are more sensitive to the gift because they realize their personal and societal needs. Thus they hardly take things for granted or as if deserved. This opens their hearts to faith, which is part of the gifteconomy of salvation and liberation. Moreover, being at the base makes BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 603 it easier for BECs to link faith and real, everday life. On the grounds of the gospel demands, they realize the need for the transformation of a society whose organization is in itself unjust in many aspects and very much the source of their own poverty. Thus faith is not locked in the mind and even less within the private, individual horizon. Faith is a dynamic factor of personal conversion and societal transformation. In an earlier stage the BECs in Brazil were thought of as a way to improve the life of parishes. Progressively it became clear that such a model of communion and participation, such a quality of interpersonal relations, were not possible in a large-scale group or at a highly developed level of social organization. Without losing the linkage to the parishes, BECs multiplied within each parish, keeping their spontaneity and flexibility. Today there is no pretense of making of a parish a community in the terms of BECs. This would hardly be possible in sociological terms. The life of a parish, however, can be significantly improved by the presence of many BECs that gather between 20 and 50 people in general and can occasionally interact for common purposes within the parish. For historical and sociological reasons, Brazil has been a land chronically short of priests (a situation that is starting to loom elsewhere too). In previous times people would confine their active church life to the periodic and scarce presence of the ordained minister. With BECs the growing awareness of the diversity of vocations and of their respective responsibility in the Church led them to consider the priest as a part of the BEC and not above it. In his absence, however, the community goes on in its ordinary life, be it at the level of internal church affairs (prayer and biblical groups, preparation for the sacraments, attention to the sick, renewal and ongoing formation programs, and so on), be it in the field of concrete commitments to action in the social and political realm. Links to the parish or the diocese are kept, of course, and they remain the main source in the preparation of written material for several projects (biblical papers, liturgy of the word, etc. ). But life does not rest upon the initiative of the clergy and even less on the need for its constant involvement or required approval. This leads to a growing decentralization of church life which, however, fits within the parameters of a broad and all-embracing planning by the parishes, the dioceses, and even a very active and wellorganized Bishops Conference at a national level or in each one of its 15 regions in the country. The further elaboration of this article will provide the reader with more detailed information on what BECs mean in this precise context. It is important to bear in mind that taking Brazil as a case study for methodological reasons should not turn out to be an exclusive or narrowing focus. Having a specific point of reference helps us to have a context 604 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES for thinking, to be precise on what we are talking about, and to make possible a concrete comparative approach to our own ecclesial situation or perspective. BEC: A WAY OF BEING CHURCH The growing literature on BECs has accustomed us to think of them mainly, if not exclusively, in terms of Latin American ecclesiology; and one of the postulates of this ecclesiology is that the BECs are not simply a movement or association in the Church but rather a way of being Church. I start from this position, which I myself share, but in this article I would like to look at the issue from a different angle. It may help to broaden ecclesiological perception vis-a-vis our BECs, as well as their scope and significance for the Church as a whole. If indeed the BECs are a way of being Church, then they, like the Church, can be read and interpreted by distinct ecclesiologies. The reading will be more or less adequate in a given case, particularly when it has to do not so much with a more or less abstract concept of the Church but rather with its concrete embodiment in a given local area: the Brazilian Church, for example. I intend in this article to link up the BECs with several major ecclesiologies of European-American extraction in the last 30 years or so. Those ecclesiologies were not thought out in terms of BECs, so the linkup may serve two purposes. First, on the basis of premises that are not just Latin American, it will check out the proposition that BECs are truly a way of being Church. Second, it will show that such ecclesiologies can be enriched and opened to new horizons in the light of BECs. Let me mention two further points. First, we clearly have a wide and varied multiplicity of ecclesiological standpoints. Each one, taken individually, brings out the richness of the aspect it highlights, while at the same time leaving other possible dimensions in impoverished silence. The very plurality of ecclesiologies reveals the inability of any given one to exhaust the mystery of the Church. Understanding the Church, and BECs as a mode of embodying the Church, will always entail the meeting and linking up of various ecclesiological intuitions. It can never be a linkup with one exclusively. Indeed, in principle it should embrace them all, though of course with differing tones and stresses. My second point has to do with the present level of ecclesiological awareness, in which difference of focus is not due solely to difference in the aspect treated. It also depends on the historical frame of reference that serves as the backdrop for the reflection process. Theology carried on in the First World or inspired by it has been less explicit about that context, but it nevertheless bears the marks of it. For Third World theology in general, BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 605 and Latin American theology specifically, that frame of reference is inescapable, clearly putting its mark on theological method and its final product. This article may help us to see that these ways of doing theology are not mutually exclusive. By the same token, the Church, reflecting consciously on the mystery that it is, can derive benefit from this plurality. It can again take up the problem of its unity on the basis of presuppositions that do not rest upon uniformity in its process of theological reflection. The BECs may serve here as a focus and means for verifying this proposition. Among possible methodological options, I would like to single out three that are embodied in works of comparative ecclesiology. The first identifies the ecclesiological perspective, organizing the thought of each author around a dominant tendency in his works; this was the approach used by Batista Mondin. 1 The second defines a theoretical frame at the start and then uses it to compare distinct ecclesiologies, authors, or schools; such was the approach used by Alvaro Quiroz Magana in his thesis. 2 The third inductively works out ecclesiological models on the basis of various authors, suggesting the viability and even necessity of using different models to articulate an ecclesiology; that has been the approach of Avery Dulles in several works. Since it does not focus mainly on authors as Mondin does, or anticipate any theoretical grid as does Quiroz Magana, Dulles method lends itself best to my objective here. I want to verify whether and how BECs bear the chief marks of the Church that have been underscored in recent ecclesiologies outside Latin America, and how BECs can amplify and shed light on the content of those ecclesiologies in a different way. Taking my inspiration from Dulles method, then, I will try to expand the content of his analysis in ModeLÂ · of the Church by focusing specifically on BECs. In his later work, A Church To Believe in, Dulles really ends up proposing a sixth model (the Church as a community of disciples), but I shall not consider that model specifically here. Its syntheticintegrative character is less adequate to my analytic-comparative purpose here. In Models of the Church Dulles proposes the following ecclesiological 1 Batista Mondin, Le nuove ecclesiologie: Unimagine attuale della Chiesa (Rome: Paoline, 1980). 2 Alvaro Quiroz Magana, Eclesiologia en la teologia de la liberacion (Salamanca: Sigueme, 1983). Avery Dulles, Models of the Church: A Critical Assessment of the Church in All Its Aspects (Garden City, N. Y. : Doubleday, 1974); A Church To Believe in (New York: Crossroad, 1982). 606 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES models: Church as institution, communion, sacrament, herald, and servant. I shall briefly present the fundamentals of each model, reflecting on the relationship of BECs to the model in question. Church As Institution This is the model to which we ha ve been traditionally accustomed. It solidified over the centuries, and we were evangelized and theologically educated in it until the 1950s. Its main thrust lies in understanding the Church as a society, indeed as a perfect society. Its underlying Christology views Christ as prophet, priest, and king, with the threefold function of teaching, sanctifying, and ruling. That mission is carried out by virtue of the power which Christ received from God, and which he confers on those who in fact possess authority and jurisdictional power in the Church: the pope, bishops, and priests. Thus the ecclesiological accent is on the organization and dispensation of power, hence on the juridical dimension. This stress shows up on the three planes of doctrine, sacrament, and administration, which are explicitly linked up with their divine origin. The logical result is the excessive growth in the Church of the clerical and institutional dimension and the relative atrophy of the charismatic element as well as of the significance of the People of God, particularly the laity. Proper membership in the Church is defined as acceptance of the same doctrine, communion in the same sacraments, and obedient subjection to the same pastors—all that being visibly verified. Obviously the relationship of this paradigm to EECs is remote, by virtue of the characteristics of both the model and BECs. The predominantly vertical conception of power, the resultant structural organization, and the primacy and hegemony accorded to clerical initiative and activity represent something very different from what BECs are actually seeking andfleshingout in their way of being and living the reality of the Church. By the same token, however, BECs in Brazil, as I said, do contrast with basic communities that have arisen in the First World, particularly with those that arose in the 1960s. Brazilian BECs almost always arise through the initiative of the hierarchy and are sustained by their support. Working alongside lay pastoral agents, priests and religious also provide inspiration and motivation. Bishops and priests exercise jurisdictional power over Brazilian BECs, and the latter recognize and accept this because they consciously regard themselves as an integral part of the institutional life of the Church as a whole. Thus Brazilian BECs are not resistant to the Church as institution, they do not pose an alternative to it, nor do they absolutize their own way of being Church. Instead they see themselves as a vital part of the Church, without which they would have no meaning. BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 607 Taking all these factors into account, we can see that, from an analytical point of view, the Church-as-institution model hardly serves as the dominant ecclesiological inspiration or perspective in the rise of BECs and their actual working. Church As Sacrament The Church exists in Christ as a sacrament or sign and an instrument of intimate union with God and of the unity of the whole human race (Lumen gentium, no. 1). With these words Vatican II summarily echoes and ratifies a theme that was much in evidence in the Church Fathers (Cyprian and Augustine) and in the age of scholasticism (Thomas Aquinas). Its elaboration in terms of a more general ecclesiological perspective, however, is fairly recent. This newer perspective views the Church as a sacrament. One felicitous effort of this sort was by Otto Semmelroth, and his work inspired many others. 4 Henri de Lubac also made a significant contribution to this approach by using patristic and medieval sources. 5 He linked up two dimensions: the Christological—for us Christ is the sacrament of God; and the ecclesiological—for us the Church is the sacrament of Christ. All the sacraments are essentially sacraments of the Church. The sacraments derive their power of grace from the Church, and through them the Church becomes the sacrament it is. Here we have a linkage between the model of the Church as institution (which stresses the visible reality of the socio-ecclesiastical dimension) and the model of the Church as communion (which stresses the socio-ecc/esiai dimension rooted primordially in the inner union of faith, hope, and love). In the Church-as-sacrament model the whole congregation of the faith comes together in all its diverse vocations and functions. That explains the fecundity of this approach, which has been explored ecclesiologically by many theologians, particularly since World War II. A sacrament is a sign of something really present, the visible form of an invisible grace. It is an efficacious sign, producing or intensifying the reality it signifies. The sacraments, then, contain the grace they signify and confer the grace they contain. In tradition the sacraments have always been associated with the social dimension of the Church, not with the isolated individual, even though they are administered and rec eived by individuals. For the human being, then, the sacraments bring together Otto Semmelroth, Die Kirche als Ursakrament (Frankfurt/Main: Knecht, 1953). Henri de Lubac, Catholicisme (Paris: Aubier, 1948). See the following works by way of example: Leonardo Boff s doctoral dissertation, Die Kirche als Sakrament im Horizont der Welterfahrung: Versuch einer Legitimation und einer struktur-funktionalistischen Grundlegung der Kirche im Anschluss an das IL Vatikanische Konzil (Paderborn: Bonifatius, 1972); Yves Congar, LEglise, sacrement universel du salut, in Cette eglise que jaime (Paris: Cerf, 1968) 41-63; P. Smulders, LEglise, sacrement du salut, in G. Barauna, ed. , LEglise de Vatican II2 (Paris: Cerf, 1967) 331-38. 5 6 4 08 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES and link the visible and invisible orders as well as the individual and social planes. We can sum this up by saying that Christ is a sacrament and so is the Church. Christ is the sign and visible presence of the invisible God, the efficacious power of salvation for the individual and the whole People of God. As institution and communion, the Church is the sign and visible presence of Christ: ac cepted by faith and lived both really and mystically by the ecclesial community in the unity of the same faith. Indeed, the Church is even more sacrament than sign. Through its visible actions the Church not only signifies but dynamically produces and makes visible the reality of salvation that it represents and announces. The Church, then, is a grace-happening, and not just in the sense that it effects and administers the sacraments. It is a grace-happening as well because in the life of believers, who are the Church, we see operating and unfolding faith, hope, love, freedom, justice, peace, reconciliation, and everything else that establishes human intercommunion and humanitys communion with God. Now let us see how the BECs look in the light of this model, the Church as sacrament. 1. From our examination of the Church-as-institution model, there is no doubt that the BECs see themselves as Church, as part of the visible, institutional, sociological body of the Church, and that they are a specific way of living as such. We also find Church as sacrament in the BECs. They are it within the Church itself insofar as they better embody the ecclesial range and presence of lay people, or the poor, in the Church— two features less evident in the Churchs concrete structures and functions in recent centuries. Lay people and poor people share a core reality. They are both of the grass-roots level, of the base: lay people in the Church, poor people in the world. Consequently we get thereby a visible, ecclesial sign of Christs own kenosis, a fundamental Christological dimension (Phil 2:5-11), which had not found suitable expression in the Church-as-institution model as lived in the past few centuries. This Christological tie-in, which is lived intensely in BECs, serves as an instrument of grace for bishops, priests, and religious who accept, recognize, or even share the BEC way of being Church. . The BECs have emerged from within a traditional Catholicism. In Brazil that Catholicism was centered around sacramentalization; little effort was put into clear-cut evangelization and explanation of the faith. Both in pedagogical intent and in actual practice, BECs put less stress on the traditional approach of sacramentalization. This is obvious insofar as the older focus on administering and receiving the sacraments signified and reaffirmed the hegemony of ordained authority and power. This was characteristic of the earlier pastoral BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 09 approach or flowed naturally from it. In the cities it took the form of regular administration of the sacraments. In rural areas and the interior it took the form of rapid discharge of various sacramental obligations (baptism, confirmation, marriage, penance, and Eucharist) in a very short period, on those rare or sporadic occasions when ordained ministers of the sacraments were on hand (the Brazilian-coined word to say it is desobriga, literally discharge of obligation). In both ca ses the tenor was more individual than communitarian. Administration of the sacraments frequently took place without proper doctrinal preparation and without rightly establishing the inner dispositions required for meeting the ethical and ecclesial prerequisites for participation in the sacraments. Thus sacramentalization was not tied into a clear ecclesial awareness of the scope and significance of the sacraments. The forms of sacramental expression and preparation for them were associated mainly, indeed almost exclusively, with the ordained minister, who was and still is scarce and much overworked in Brazil. Through their functions and services, current BECs have been filling in for ordained authority insofar as they can. Church as sacrament, in the terms indicated by Lumen gentium, finds expression in many ways. The overwhelming growth of sacred authority and power (the first model) had led historically to exclusive attribution of all that to the clergy. Today lay people, in BECs and other ecclesial areas, are serving as ministers to the sick and Eucharistie ministers. They are preparing individuals and communities for baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist. And they are performing other functions for the immediate human and Christian well-being of individuals and communities. All these activities are clear signs of the Church as sacrament and its efficacious presence, which is not restricted to the seven sacraments alone. The fundamental change is the fact that this whole complex is seen in an ecclesial context. Without denying the vocational and ministerial role and importance of the clergy, BECs have ceased to be wholly dependent on them. The ordained minister takes his place once again within a community growing increasingly aware of its diverse vocations and functions, which are the presence of grace in the world, for the lowly in particular. 3. Insofar as the seven sacraments as such are concerned, BECs cannot fully realize the Church as sacrament in the anointing of the sick and two other basic points. They are promoters of reconciliation at the level of interpersonal relations between their members, but they cannot effect reconciliation as sacrament. Builders of communion as the only viable root of community, their members cannot realize the full significance of the mystery of the Eucharist. These sacraments, which are an indispensable part of Christian life, are bound up with the ordained minister. 610 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES Given the current discipline of the Church and the envisioned requisites of formation and life style, there is no way of providing BECs with such ministers. BECs are multiplying rapidly and sporadically in rural areas and urban peripheries. There are not enough priests for them either quantitatively or qualitatively. By qualitatively here, I am not so much referring to the ministerial qualifications of the priest or his fulfilment of the juridical requisites for exercising his pastoral ministry. I am referring to the suitable adaptation of the priestly type to the BEC way of being Church. For the BEC has its own proper form of communion and participation, integrating various vocations into a more decentralized overall pastoral design based on subsidiarity. This is the present situation, and in the foreseeable future there does not seem to be any thought on the part of the Church as institution to give BECs, or the rest of the Church for that matter, any alternative to the present form of the sacrament of holy orders or to the prerequisites for its reception and exercise. This is a very serious problem affecting churches that are heavily nurtured by the word of God and that consolidate the bonds of communion between their members by fostering ecclesial awareness. In traditional Catholicism and the desobriga paradigm, the Eucharistie question was relativized in one or another way: either the ecclesial significance of the sacrament of the Eucharist was not perceived, or the pertinent law of the Church was fulfilled, not very often but enough to be considered satisfactory. In the living Church embodied by BECs we see, first and foremost, a keen awareness of the structural significance of the Eucharist in the Church as sacrament. They are acutely aware of the necessity of the Eucharist, but also of the actual impossibility of their having the Eucharist with its full meaning and reality. This problem cannot be solved adequately by allowing for exceptions or by occasional casuistic interpretations. It will have to be faced by the Church as part and parcel of its overall pastoral responsibility. The latter must take into account the concrete, diversified reality of the ecclesial body in the world as well as the salvific function of the Church as sacrament, whose core is the Eucharist. Placed at the disposal of human beings, the Eucharist is meant to be the efficacious font of communion between believers, and of their communion with God in Jesus Christ. Church As Herald In this model the Church is seen primarily as the bearer of the word of God. Receiving that word, it is to pass it on to human beings. Its proclaiming is also a convoking, bringing together those who hear and accept the word in faith and who are maintained in faith and union by the strength of the word. Thus the word is constitutive of the Church. BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 611 The Church is the herald of the word, however, not its ultimate addressee. The Church receives the word to announce it. Thus the word emerges as the crucial axis of an ecclesiological perspective that is kerygmatic, prophetic, and missionary. The two preceding models sprouted on Catholic soil and are cultivated there. This model, on the other hand, was nurtured by Protestant reflection. In this century it has been cultivated by Karl Barth and Rudolf Bultmann in particular. Some of its intuitions share a common subsoil with more ancient Catholic tradition, however, and they emerged again in Vatican II to find theological expression in a Catholic and ecumenical way. In the work of Barth, the Church is the living community of the living Christ. 7 God calls it into being by His grace and gives it life by means of His Word and His Spirit, with a view to His kingdom. Thus the Church is not a permanent fact, an institution, much less an object of faith. It comes about by Gods action. It is an event constituted by the power of the word of God in Scripture, made real today and announced to human beings. This proclaimed word gives rise to faith, a gift from God that is outside human control. There is no authority in the Church except the word of God, which is to be left free to call into question the Church itself. Through Gods word the Church is renewed and, above all, urged on to its mission: constant proclamation of the salvific event, Jesus Christ, and of the advent of Gods kingdom. This is the core of Barths message. The word and its proclamation are not meant to reinforce confessional, institutional, social, or political positions, or to abet the expansion of the Church as a society. In the work of Bultmann8 two crucial points must be considered with regard to ecclesiology. First, there is his nonhistorical conception of the Church. The result is the absence of any solid sociological or institutional dimension for the Church, and indeed the absence of any intention in Christ himself to establish or build it. Hence the identification of the Church with a historical datum or phenomenon remains ever paradoxical. Second, for Bultmann the word of God remains central, along with its proclamation as call, appeal, and invitation. But his view here is not the same as Barths. Let us look at it a bit more closely. Bultmann, more exegete than systematic theologian, sees the Church 7 Karl Barth, Kirchliche Dogmatik 4/3 (Munich: Kaiser, 1935 and 1967). For a systematic presentation of Barths ecclesiology vis-a-vis Catholic ecclesiology, see the work of Colm OGrady published by G. Chapman in London: Vol. , The Church in the Theology of Karl Barth (1968); Vol. 2, The Church in Catholic Theology: Dialogue with Karl Barth (1969). 8 Rudolf Bultmann, Kirche und Lehre im Neuen Testament, in Glauben und Verstehen 1 (Tubingen: Mohr, 1966) 153-87; Theologie des Neuen Testaments (Tubingen: Mohr, 1948). Both works have been translated into English: Faith and Understanding; A Theology of the New Testament 612 THEO LOGICAL STUDIES as a Pauline creation. It is so on three levels. It is a community of worship, an eschatological community, and a community with a vocation. In the first, the word is proclaimed. In the second, God is made present in the acceptance of Jesus by human beings. In the third, the first becomes prophetic vocation, kerygma that calls for a decision. The ecclesial event emerges in this kerygmatic tension of summons and response that the word brings with it, always assuming someone with credentials who proclaims it and/or a community that hears it and takes on the commitment. The Church comes to be in this faith-happening, which frees the context from any institutional, normative, or legitimating instance. The Church is actuated whenever the kerygma unleashes the summons of God and the response of human beings. There are clear differences between Barth and Bultmann. But they also have a basic affinity with regard to the significance and active role of the word in constituting the Church as a happening. These two theologians assume the importance of the community to which the word is addressed. The word is the glue around which the community gathers. The response of faith given to the word by the community is what gives the latter its meaning and reason for being. Here we can see the clear difference between the Protestant and the Catholic perspective vis-a-vis this model. Vatican II stresses that the Word became human, became flesh. Christ lives on in history through the Church, manifesting in it his message and saving activity; but there he also shares his own being with humans. In the Catholic version the Church-as-institution model is also brought into relationship with the word. The Church as a whole—and some in it by specific function—has the responsibility of watching over the proclamation and interpretation of the word. The Churchs magisterium is not above the word, as Barth claimed. It is under the word, deriving from that word its starting oint, its norm, and its nourishment. In and for the community, the magisterium is the instance of Christs power and authority with regard to the fidelity and continuity of his message. The community that hears and accepts it is not just called to proclaim it and bear witness to it; it must also translate it into real-life action on both the individual and the social levels. The word of God is central in the ecclesiological outlook of BECs. For them it is the immediate point of reference, the source of inspiration, nourishment, and discernment. Quite often it is the primary catalyst of community. Unlike the sacraments, which are not always accessible, the word is always within their reach. But there are profound differences between the BEC focus on the word and that to be found in the ecclesiologies of Barth or Bultmann. BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 613 1. In BECs the word is received within the Church and as Church insofar as the BEC is a way of being Church, or insofar as it is located in the bosom of the Church as institution and united with it. This implies the permanent reality of the Church to which the word is addressed. It also implies acceptance of the magisterium, the function in the Church that watches over the interpretation of the word and our fidelity to it. 2. In BECs the word naturally is conveyed through Scripture, which is read, prayed, and reflected upon; but all this is done in direct relationship with life. One could put it the other way and say: in BECs the everyday life of the members, the Church, and the world are read, prayed over, and reflected upon in relation to the word of God. If it is true for BECs that the Bible is the word of God, it is no less true that God also speaks to us in the language of real life. Bible and life shed light on each other for those who look to them for meaning in faith. The faith and spirituality of BECs are grounded on this foundation. 3. In BECs the symbiosis of word and life is the key to the process of evangelization. In the earlier pastoral paradigm, and particularly in the quick discharge of sacramental obligation (desobriga), there was little space for the word. The faithful received the word in a largely passive way. Their faith was receptive, but it did not feel summoned to commitment and radiation. There was no urgency toward a lasting conversion, on both the individual and social level, as a radical consequence of hearing and assimilating the word. This sort of profound transformation (metanoia) and the proclamation of the word to others characterize the BECs insofar as they embody Church as herald, Church of the word of God. Unlike Barths view, however, this proclamation is not dissociated from the world and its problems; it is in solidarity with them. Nor is it turned in on the Church and the community of believers, who are exclusively focused on an eschatological kingdom of a future sort. In BECs the word is a summons to lives being lived in the Church and already preparing the kingdom. It summons them to call into question both the individual person and the world, in order to shape a just society that will turn the word into reality and embody the gospel project in a coherent way. 4. In BECs, then, the word is kerygmatic and prophetic, as it was for Bultmann. It is that insofar as it is the center of a community of frequent de facto non-Eucharistic worship, which lay people can celebrate without the ordained minister they lack. The word is also kerygmatic and prophetic insofar as it belongs to a community focused on the definitive kingdom. Contrary to Bultmanns position, however, this kingdom is tied to the historical Jesus, the Word made human being. Through his word and presence in the Church, this kingdom is already beginning to take 614 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES on shape in the course of history. In BECs the word is kerygmatic especially insofar as it calls for living commitment and a coherent response on both the individual and societal planes. Bultmann requires someone accredited to proclaim the kerygma. In BECs this accreditation is not primarily rooted in human wisdom or qualifications, though of course such factors are not ruled out. In BECs the crucial factor is the faith lived by the vast majority of the members in uprightness, simplicity, and poverty as they see their salvation and liberation in spirit and in truth. 5. All this is realized in BECs through the ongoing improving of interpersonal relationships, which give visibility to ecclesial community rooted in the prior communion in faith, justice, and love. In that sense community is not just the initiative of a God who summons and brings together. It is also the persevering laborious response of human beings journeying day by day through time and facing the problems and conflicts of life. The limits and benefits of BECs vis-a-vis the word have been well brought out by Carlos Mesters, to whom they are indebted for a notable service of the word. Officially and scholarly accredited as a minister to proclaim the kerygma, he knew how to listen well to the word that God continues to utter in the hearts of the lowly, opening their hearts and minds to an understanding of both God and the human being. Mesters warns us about the risk of subjectivistic interpretation, about the failure to do a judicious, historically situated reading of the text, about the danger of a selective, ideological approach that seeks only confirmation of ones own initial position. He stresses the importance of a solid exegesis that will help the common people to get beyond those problems and also respond to the questions they themselves raise. He insists on the viability of a reading that will take into account the physical and material reality of the biblical folk without reducing the biblical message to just that. Finally, he tries to make it possible for an urban, industrial world to get closer to the rural book that the Bible is. 9 Church As Servant The ecclesiological models considered above are markedly centripetal. They prefer to focus on the internal reality of the Church, affirming its vitality and self-sufficiency in relation to the world. The Church teaches, offers a salvific presence, issues ethical norms, and enunciates values. For the far from naive use of the Bible in BECs, see the article by Carlos Mesters in John Eagleson and Sergio Torres, eds. , The Challenge of Basic Christian Communities (Maryknoll, N. Y. : Orbis, 1981). For a sample of his own ability to relate biblical exegesis to real human problems, see Carlos Mesters, God, Where Are You? Meditations on the Old Testament (Maryknoll, N. Y. : Orbis, 1977). 9 BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 615 The advent of modernity and the growing autonomy exercised by the world drew it further and further away from dependence on the Church and acceptance of it. The Church, in turn, reacted by taking up a defensive, indeed often aggressive, position vis-a-vis the world. Church and world took up hard lines in opposing trenches. 10 Vatican ^1 reversed this tendency. It led the Church to see the modern world as an interlocutor with its own identity. This focus can be described as a belatedly optimistic view of the world. Nevertheless, the Church continues to cherish the hope that it will be able to continue its mission vis-a-vis the world. That mission to the world will be one of service primarily. The important thing for the Church is not to withdraw into itself and attract a small group that keeps its distance from this world. Instead, it must take its rightful place in the world and then open itself up as a place for dialogue, constructive action, and liberation. Paralleling the whole conciliar thrust in the Catholic Church, various theologies of secularization have taken shape in Protestant circles by stages. Their impact on the way to read world and Catholic theology was felt most keenly in the decade of the 1960s. The basically positive thrust of the process of secularization (taken as the human autonomy with regard to the explanation of the immanent reality) clearly took an increasingly immanentist turn, often enough degenerating into an undesirable secularism (which is the negation of any transcendent dimension or reality). Despite some unacceptable turns and developments, the Western Church has clearly taken an uncontestable step in reformulating its own reality vis-a-vis the world. The disposition of the whole Church is one of universal service to humanity as such, which is now seen as one big family or indeed as the People of God. Service (diakonia) becomes the central inspiration of ecclesiology. Â · Though very aware of its frailty and inconsistency, the Church will not retreat into itself. On the basis of its theological anthropology, it will offer the world answers that the world itself has not found, or that the world has missed and perverted in its dizzying drive toward immanentism and reductionism. This focus of the Church as servant is, however, still sharply confined. It was the theological perspective of the North and West immediately following Vatican II. Today, even in those hemispheres, it is being sharply contested, and its limitations are being recognized. It is from different angles that the BECs translate and embody the new diakonia of the Church vis-a-vis the world. In Brazil and the rest of 10 See Marcello Azevedo, Modernidade e Cristianismo (S. Paulo: Loyola, 1981); Inkulturation and the Challenges of Modernity (Rome: Gregorian Univ. , 1982); J. B. Libanio, A volta a grande disciplina (S. Paulo: Loyola, 1983). 616 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES Latin America, there can be no naively positive view of the modern world. The achievements of science and technology are admitted, and so is the heightened human awareness of such basic elements as human rights, individual freedom, participation in public life, recognition in principle of the equality of all human beings, and other features of modern contemporary culture. But it is impossible not to notice the gap between these theoretical ideals and their actual realization in history, not to mention the actual frustration and perversion of these ideals in many areas. Medellin and Puebla, as well as papal and episcopal postconciliar documents, underline the aberrations embodied in injustice, poverty, hunger, oppression, and structural stigmas that mar our reality. In such a context the poor are the ones who suffer most, along with those who are discriminated against and marginalized, crushed and destroyed beyond any hope of repair. These are the people who predominantly make up the BECs. Hence this is the concrete way that the Church as BEC manifests its status as servant. In itself it again takes on and lives Christ the Servant: in the mission of the suffering people and in the witness it bears in faith, even to the full embodiment of the message in martyrdom. New life is thus given to a Christological component that has long been forgotten or left buried in obscurity. Here we have a Church that serves and fulfils itself in service to the world. It does this through the diakonia of a faith, conscious of the gift given to us in Jesus Christ. This gift is not, however, the privilege of a chosen few; it is the responsibility of all. This responsibility is lived in the urge to denounce and call into question the sociostructural organization that has produced such an unjust society. It does this by identifying clear-cut forms of institutionalized violence in all their shapes. It does this by insisting on radical changes through relations of communion and participation among human beings. Moreover, in BECs the Church becomes a servant by serving the common people without replacing them in either the Church or the world in a paternalistic way. It recognizes that they too have the right to take the initiative in carrying through their own process of maturation and liberation, both religious and civil, after centuries of denial, tutelage, or marginalization. In this perspective of active ecclesial participation, BECs are a Church that eminently serves the other forms of being Church as well as the other vocations and charisms in the Church. 1 11 This model, which stresses the urgent necessity of service as a consequence of faith, spells out the specific nature of Christian faith in full consistency with the tradition of ancient Israel and with the Gospel message. Both stressed the necessity of fleshing out in reality what one believed. Faith, then, cannot be understood solely in terms of assent or conviction; it must be translated into real-life action. There is a strong echo of the Gospel message (Mt 25 and Lk 10:25-37) in the insistence on a theology of service as an underlying BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 17 Church As Communion/Community The model of Church as community founded on communion is the one that emanates most directly from the explicit ecclesiology of Vatican II. It stands in marked contrast to the hegemonic model (Church as institution) that was regarded as the primary interpretation of the mystery of the Church for ten centuries as least, and that was practically the dominant interpretation in the last five centuries. Nevertheless, the communitarian conoeption of the Church goes back to Scripture itself and was vigorously upheld in the patristic era. It threads through many phases of church history with regard to the ecclesial body as a whole and with regard to specific vocations within the Church, particularly in the evolution of the religious life. Thus in its ecclesiological perspective Vatican II taps roots grounded in tradition and the Bible and rediscovers one of the most fruitful facets of ecclesial inspiration throughout church history. 12 Here the Church is the community that is established in communion with God and between human beings. It embraces and pervades the part of an unmistakably Christian praxis. The term praxis is not synonymous with practice insofar as the latter term simply means action or behavior; nor is praxis the opposite of theory. Praxis is a concrete form of historical commitment and involvement, stemming from a twofold awareness: that history is made in time and that it is the result of human actions stemming from concrete choices. Praxis, then, is the conscious making of history, and Christian praxis is the concrete living out of the historical dimensions of the faith. Christian praxis is the daily, long-term embodiment and direction given to the service that faith demands. See F. Taborda, Fe crista e praxis historica, Revista Eclesiastica Brasileira 41 (1981) 250-78. This notion of praxis has been much discussed by various liberation theologians, including Gustavo Gutierrez, Juan Luis Segundo, Leonardo Boff, and Jon Sobrino. For a sophisticated and penetrating examination of the complexities of modern historical reality in the industrialized nations and Latin America, see chapters 1013 of Juan Luis Segundo, Faith and Ideologies (Maryknoll, N. Y. : Orbis, 1984) 249-340. 12 See Pier Cesare Bori, Koinonia: LIdea della comunione neUeclesiologia recente e nel Nuovo Testamento (Brescia: Paideia, 1972); id. , Chiesa primitiva: LImmagine della comunita delle origini—Atti 2:42-47; 4:32-37—nella storia della chiesa antica (Brescia: Paideia, 1974); Yves Congar, LEglise de saint Augustin a lepoque moderne (Paris: Cerf, 1970); Jerome Hamer, LEglise est une communion (Paris: Cerf, 1962); Emil Brunner, Das Missverstandnis der Kirche (Zurich: Zwingli, 1951); id. Dogmatik 3: Die christliche Lehre von der Kirche, vom Glauben, und von der Vollendung (Zurich: Zwingli, 1960). For Brunner, the Church is pure fraternal communion bearing witness to love. The antithesis between communion and institution is the core and guiding thread of his ecclesiology. In Dulles first model (Church as institution), the Church stands above the faithful, as it were; it is extrinsic to them in a certain sense. In Church-as-communion ecclesiologies, t he Church is the community of all the faithful living a life of communion. Bellarmine opposed institution to communion. Brunner opposes communion to institution. Hamer sees communion lived out only in the institution. BECs start from communion as experiential living in the light of faith to reflect consciously on their ecclesial participation in the Church as institution, which they would never imagine to be adequate without the living experience of communion. 618 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES People of God in the multiplicity of their gifts, vocations, services, and functions. It embraces the Church at every level, particularly in its appreciation of episcopal collegiality and local churches. It is no less open to other Christian denominations, non-Christian religions, and all human beings who sincerely search for love, truth, and justice. There have been frequent manifestations of this spirit, from the first encyclical of Paul VI (Ecclesiam suam) to the outlook underlying the basic structure of the new Code of Canon Law. It might be assumed that all this was inspired and dictated merely by sociological imperatives. That is not the case. The People of God, the image of the Church most esteemed by Vatican II, is a great community; but it is so under the action of the Holy Spirit. The members of this People, who are seen in terms of equality, dignity, and freedom, receive the very same Spirit and act under that Spirit: hearing and proclaiming the word of God in the unity of the same faith and mission. In this model of the Church as communion/community, both Medellin and Puebla will find their common basis and their great mediation for an evangelization that is humanizing, transforming, and liberating. The BEC is indicated as the primary and proper scenario for the concrete embodiment of this communion. Sociologically, it implements a new pattern of personal and social relationships. Ecclesiologically, it is a common center for reading and interpreting life and for hearing the word of God, for union among those who believe, and for service to all through the various ministries that arise out of the needs of the community and dovetail with ito varied vocations and charisms. The BEC amalgamates and integrates the conscious, subsidiary coresponsibility of all, under the action of one and the same Spirit, into the total body of one and the same Church. Here again we come across a central element that sheds light on the whole complex. These BECs have been in fact ecclesial communities of poor people, marked by a structural poverty stronger than the poor themselves. In a glaring way it bears witness to the absence of communion and solidarity between human beings in our current societies, to the prevailing power of injustice that destroys the human being and nullifies Gods plan for humanity. Thus the BECs are a call to conversion of heart and to the re-establishment of justice in love, which will make possible communion in faith and mission. As a community that unites hearts, the BECs are no less a force for the transformation of a world that divides and crushes. They are insofar as they try to extend to the world and the Church the reality of communion that they themselves are already trying to live as communities. The little patch of the People of God that is living in each BEC, an initial cell as Medellin puts it, is a sign and BASIC ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES 619 sacrament of the People of God that Vatican II sees as the Church, and that it would like to project over the world as a whole. In BECs, then, the ecclesiological model of Church as communion/ community ceases to be a theoretical variable of ecclesiological analysis. It becomes the existential witness to a reality of the Church, which is growing in communion and participation to become a community. In the BECs this model is a promising prototype of the necessary, ongoing process of historical becoming that is to culminate in the eschatological kingdom, where community is to be lived in full, definitive communion. THE SOTERIOLOGICAL COMPONENT In discussing these various ecclesiological models, I mentioned several times their underlying Christological component. I do not want to end this article without also alluding briefly to the importance of the soteriological conception these models may derive from their association with BECs as a way of being Church. The mystery of the Church is intimately bound up with the mystery of Jesus Christ, and no less with the understanding of his mission. This, in turn, is reflected in the conception of the ecclesial mission. Thus ecclesiology, Christology, and soteriology shed light on one another and help to explain one another. The salvation and redemption given to us by the Father in and through Jesus Christ (the meaning of his life and mission) is to be realized on at least three levels. They can be distinguished from one another analytically, but they are interwoven in reality. For the historical destiny of humanity must be oriented in line with its eschatological destiny, in the indissoluble unity of the proclamation and realization of the kingdom, which is to be initiated here but find its ultimate culmination only in the eschaton. The first level is the redeeming and saving liberation from sin that marks the human race as a whole and the individual human person. The second level has to do with sin in terms of its interpersonal and social projections, insofar as it expresses the perversion of Gods plan as manifested in the concrete human organization of social, economic, and political realities that have been created by human beings and that affect humanity. The third level has to do with liberation from sin as the latter is incorporated into the gestation of culture and history over centuries, which in turn is often the wellspring of sin on the two other levels and vice versa. These three levels of salvation, redemption, and liberation are a replica of Gods activity with the people of Israel, hence of the history of our salvation as designed by God. Salvation, redemption, or liberation cannot be understood solely from the divine side, i. e. , as our ransom from sin through Gods initiative and His new openness to a covenant of love with human beings in and 620 THEOLOGICAL STUDIES through Jesus Christ. Neither can it be understood solely in a directly anthropological sense that is not sufficiently existential, i. e. salvation as the fulness of human liberty and total opening up to the absolute, as a teleological orientation to the definitive, eschatological future of humanity. Salvation, redemption, and liberation must further be understood as the Pauline exigency that human beings also respond to, and ally themselves with, God and His project to liberate humanity with respect to the consequences of sin (Romans 2 and 7). Throughout history those consequences leave their mark not only on the life of the individual but also, and even more so, on the social context of the world. In the BECs we do find the soteriological key of the various ecclesiological models mentioned, a key that tends to stress the first level of redemption just noted. But everything I have been saying about the BECs with respect to the ecclesiological dimension of these models implies a twofold emphasis in the soteriological perspective, which is paramount in the ecclesial awareness of our day. The first says that human beings are, by the saving power of Jesus Christ, an active party in carrying on the process of salvation and liberation in history. Just as they were agents in the deformation of Gods plan through their human sin, so they express the new life given to them in Jesus Christ through their real-life embodiment of the love and justice that he has re-established. It is the realization of the Word, made Salvation: a biblical exigency throughout the two Testaments. A second emphasis is also affirmed in the BECs, communities of poor people. They see themselves as the primary subjects in setting in motion and actuating this process of realizing salvation through the transformation of sins consequences. In fact, they are the real-life victims of injustice-made sin in the world in which we live. Hence it is they who can best perceive the rupture between such injustice and Gods project. To be or become poor is to perceive this from the standpoint and condition of the poor whatever our social and economic condition might be. Here is picked up the primary inspiration of Jesus own life and mission (Lk 3:18-21), which must necessarily be reaffirmed in the life and mission of the Church. 3 13 In a forthcoming book, Basic Ecclesial Communities in Brazil, which is to be published in English by Georgetown University Press, I examine the origin and formation of Brazilian BECs, their evangelizing potential, and the rich novelty of their pastoral paradigm. I also explore them as a theological topic, and the challenges they may pose to the overall process of evangelization. A Portuguese version of the present article is being published by the Brazilian journal Perspectiva teologica (Sept. -Dec. 1 985).

Advantage of Reading free essay sample

We always think only one question, what is the advantage of reading? There are many reasons people should read. People should read because it helps them to improve in English. It helps them to be a better reader and it helps people get better jobs. For these reasons people should read books. First of all, Reading helps people to learn English and improve in English. For example, there are many words we don’t know so when we read a book, we learn these words. If we don’t know the meaning of the word we are going to write it and then look it up in the dictionary, which helps us to learn new word and meaning of the word. In addition, Reading helps people to get a better reader. For instance, in school you have to read better otherwise you can’t pass ESL or regents. Also reading is one way that helps you to write a better essay. We will write a custom essay sample on Advantage of Reading or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page For example, when you read a book, it helps you to get new ideas and when you get new ideas you can use all these ideas and write a better essay. Reading helps you get a good job. For instance, if want to get a good job you have to read better because if you get good job there are many things you have to read aloud in front of other people so if you can’t read they are not going to hire you because you don’t know how to read. If they hire you they have to lose lots of money because nobody come to their company all people that they hire they don’t how to read, they don’t understand people what they explain them. In conclusion, I think reading is very important. We have to read otherwise we can’t succeed in the future. Reading is very important. If we don’t read books we can’t learn better English, if we don’t learn English we can’t get better job. Many people think that reading is not so important. I think they should think more.

Hang, Hung, Hanged

Hang, Hung, Hanged Hang, Hung, Hanged Hang, Hung, Hanged By Sharon Hang derives from Old English and means to be attached from above without support below. This is one of the core meanings, as shown in the sentence: The picture hangs on the wall. However, there are several other related uses, for example: To let droop or fall – hang your head in shame. To fall in a certain way – this costume hangs well. To pay attention to – I hang on your every word. To hold on tightly – My daughter is hanging onto my skirt. A way of doing something – She couldnt get the hang of it. To be oppressive – a cloud of gloom hangs over him. The regular past tense of hang is hung, which would be used in all the examples listed above. However, there is one difference when it comes to hanging someone by the neck. In this case the past tense is hanged which means killed by hanging. Here are some quotations from the newspapers: before American forces chased him from his capital city and captured him in a filthy pit near his hometown, was hanged just before dawn Saturday during the morning call to prayer. (www.nytimes.com) Secrets,† he printed the pieces of personal data on sheets of paper using a special liquid solution. The sheets were hung in neat rows and columns on a wall. Museumgoers could only see the data under a special light source, and key (www.nytimes.com) Met Breuer in 2016-2017.After it was acquired for McCormick Square, the painting hung in the hallway of the convention center for years with very little protection, making it liable to theft or damage, (www.nytimes.com) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 English Grammar Rules You Should KnowBroadcast vs Broadcasted as Past FormSentence Adverbs

Trek Bicycles Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Trek Bicycles Paper - Essay Example We believe in a better world (TrekBikes, 2012). Trek Bicycles’ vision is to make the world a better place by using bicycles as a tool. Bicycles are the most efficient form of human transportation. Trek Bicycles’ vision is to contribute to making a world a better place as use of cycles will help to combat climate change, help people to be fitter, reduces traffic congestion, and has many more positive effects. SWOT analysis Swot analysis is an important tool that helps to carefully evaluate the opportunities and threats (external to the organization) of an organization along with its strengths and weaknesses (internal to the organization) (Griffin, 2011). Following is the Swot Analysis of Trek Bicycles Strengths Weakness Outside of China Trek Bicycles is the biggest bike company (Phillips, 2008). This is the company’s biggest strength. Trek’s main weakness is its poor understanding of customer demographics. It is unaware of who their core consumers are (John son, 2008). The company has established itself as one of the best bicycle manufacturers and suppliers with great innovative products, eco-friendly bicycle development, dynamic partnerships (Bikes Belong and Bikes Around the Community), efficient dealers and exceptional customer care (Johnson, 2008). Because of the great brand equity that the company has built, it has developed a very aggressive management style (Johnson, 2008). The brand image of the company is exceptional. Lance Armstrong has been instrumental in given the company a great brand image. By winning Tour De France 7 times he has contributed in demonstrating the quality of Trek Bicycles (Guffey & Loewy, 2010). The company also sponsors/funds other sportspersons and competitions. Human resources are also a major strength of the company. The employees of the company are driven and committed to working towards the company’s mission and vision. Trek Bicycles is mainly focused on the mountain bike segment. Unlike, its competitors it has not tried to dominate all segments of the bicycle market. This has helped trek Bicycles to specialise in a single key area. But Trek has diversified inside the segment to meet the requirements of different customers. It has also expanded into offering various biking accessories, clothes, training, road support, etc (Electric Bikee, 2011). Trek’s R&D has excellent capability. It manufacturers numerous products in broad product range that are affordable and it achieves this by effectively using its low cost manufacturers (Griffin, 2011). Trek’s green strategy is another important strength of the company that differentiates it from its competitors and gives a competitive edge. This green strategy not only

For the English Major Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

For the English Major - Essay Example Writer has shown a clear picture of slavery before 150 years by demonstrating the crazy process through which he has to go for learning to read & write. In this paragraph, he shows how his intense negative feeling about the slavery became his motivation for learning to read & write. Initially, the writer shows how reading has brought discomfort in his life because he started understanding his own situation and pointed his situation with negative words like wretched condition, beast, reptile, etc. The writer has successfully expressed his intensive hatred about the issue by using words of increasing power like abhor, detest, loathe, torment which have higher impact on the reader’s thinking about the issue. Reader completely enjoys the essay because of the live demonstration of intensive situation through rhythmic sentences like â€Å"I saw nothing without seeing it, I heard nothing without hearing it, and felt nothing without feeling it. It looked from every star, it smiled in every calm, breathed in every wind, and moved in every storm.† High quality essay is offered by showing firm transformation phase with the use of non-traditional English language like â€Å"Freedom now appeared, to disappear no more forever.† At the end of the essay, the writer has suggested the â€Å"Possibilities For Writing† which is also done very innovatively considering the significance of writer’s opinion about the core issue of slavery & education along with development of independent opinion of the reader in changed social & economic

Reflection on the The Political Morality of Race Work Essay - 1

Reflection on the The Political Morality of Race Work - Essay Example Having ‘racial label’ do shape the way people think of themselves. As stated with the same source, â€Å"what people can do depends on what concept they have available to them; and among the concepts that may shape one's action is the concept of a certain kind of person and the behavior appropriate to that kind†. Helping one person think he is inferior among others may add more insult to injury and this indeed will result in final self-breakdown. How devastating that would be! Culture and civilization also became an object in Kwame Anthony Appiah’s essay. These two has a function in further dividing individuals globally by racial differences. He defined culture as â€Å"the totality of socially transmitted behavior patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought†. There have been Orientals, Africans, and Chinese people that were to adopt a culture and civilization different from their traditional one such as th at of Americans but still there the differences are noticeable. It is said that every race has its own common culture. Like black Americans have their own common culture on â€Å"values and beliefs and practices that they share and they do not share with others†, as stated in the essay. It is true that each nation and race has its own culture. This may lead to some racial gaps in our global society. Yet, it is not simply a hindrance in having a good relationship with them. Unless they wouldn’t do something terrorist act, what is wrong with dealing with them? All of us are both humans. We do need respect and equality. What is the United Nations for but to supposedly bring peace and equality globally? Why can’t other people bridge the differences and go on living life to the full together in accord? Civilization may play a great role in stereotyping minority race. However, it is not always good for some nations that view their race inferior to others. Countries th at are well-developed economically were viewed by many as greater than anybody else. To mention some, the USA and Britain are viewed as masters of the land. They run the world market.     

Analysis of Indias Cosmetic Industry

Analysis of Indias Cosmetic Industry Cosmetics or Makeup are substances to enhance the beauty of the human body, apart from simple cleaning. Their use is widespread, especially among women in Western countries. Cosmetics, general term applied to all preparations used externally to condition and beautify the body, by cleaning, coloring, softening, or protecting the skin, hair, nails, lips, or eyes. Perfumery is usually excluded from the field of cosmetics. Although perfumes are commonly manufactured in coordination with cosmetics. The use of cosmetics is worldwide and dates from the remotest antiquity. Although it is generally believed that cosmetics as they are now known originated in the Far East, the study of simple cultures indicates that forms of cosmetic beautification have been practiced in every part of the world. The war paint of the Native American, the tattooing and scarification practiced by many peoples (the Maori of New Zealand and numerous African cultures), and the use of woad (a blue dye used by ancient Britons to paint their bodies) are all forms of cosmetic adornment. A large variety of cosmetics are generally available today. Cold cream is an emulsion of various oils and waxes and water; it is employed to cleanse and soften the skin. Face powder and dusting powder are based on talcum (powdered magnesium silicate) and zinc oxide and are used to dry and give a satiny texture to the skin. Lipsticks, either applied directly or brushed on the lips, are made of cocoa butter or lanolin and are manufactured in an endless variety of shades, as are rouges, mixtures of red pigments and starch or finely powdered clay. Bath salts and other bath preparations combine water-softening agents such as sodium carbonate or borax with perfume; bath oils are also a popular skin-softening and perfuming aid. Nail polishes are lacquers or plastics available in many colors. Hair lotions and hair sprays are used to condition the hair, keep it in place, or make it glossy. Shampoos are based on soap or synth etic detergents. Hair-coloring dyes, tints, and rinses, available in many shades and colors, are widely used cosmetic products. Henna is a vegetable dye, used for centuries to impart a red tint to the hair. Weak solutions of hydrogen peroxide are often employed as hair bleaches. For coloring the eyebrows and eyelashes, mascara is generally used. This is a compound of gum and black, green, or blue pigment. Sulfides of calcium and barium have the property of removing hair from the skin and are generally the active agents in cosmetic depilatories. Bronzes are creams that impart a color to the skin similar to that of suntan. Whereas perfumes are not classified as cosmetics, deodorants are. Deodorants may contain an astringent such as aluminum sulfate, which closes the openings of the sweat glands. An antibacterial ingredient, hexachlorophene, was banned from deodorants in 1972. Cosmetics and perfumery are by no means confined to use by women. Grooming aids frequently used by men include powders, colognes, and lotions, particularly alcohol-based after-shave lotions; bay rum, a mixture of alcohol, oil of bay, and oil of orange, originally made with rum; hair tonics, often with an alcohol or quinine base; and deodorants. Annual retail sales of men and women toiletries in the U.S. today make cosmetic manufacturing a multibillion-dollar industry. Cosmetics are designed for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness and altering appearance of skin. There are an ever-growing number of ingredients included in cosmetics that are purported to be beneficial for the skin, but often little information on these ingredients is available. COSMETICS INDUSTRY OVERVIEW The cosmetics industry is a $45-billion-a-year business with thousands of products embodied in 33 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classifications (13,18). Cosmetics are defined by the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act as articles intended to be applied to the human body for cleaning, beautifying, promoting attractiveness or altering the appearance without affecting the bodys structural function .The key words in this definition are intended and bodys structural function. Intended use of the cosmetic must be clearly labeled and if the safety of a cosmetic product is not adequately substantiated for that intended use, the product is considered misbranded and may be subject to regulatory action. The physiological, or functional, altering of the body differentiates drugs from cosmetics. The FDA regulates this difference by not requiring premarket approval of cosmetics. At the same time, however, the FDA does expect that the manufacturer of a cosmetic has conducted toxicological and other ap propriate tests to substantiate the safety of the product and can provide this data if challenged by the agency. While it has become fashionable for some manufacturers to apply the cruelty-free label to their products (indicating that animals were not used during safety testing), this claim can be misleading. In vitro tests and other nonanimal methods for safety evaluation have come a long way and are being used in industry as initial screening procedures. However, given a new cosmetic derivative or a cosmetic incorporating a drug component, a standardized in vivo test, such as the Draize Ocular Irritation Test, may be in order. This in vivo test is still considered valuable in predicting human eye irritants when the irritation is subtle or when the chronic recovery phase data may be equally as important as the initial acute exposure data. Industry, in cooperation with regulatory agencies, has established multiple refinements to obtain the required data while minimizing the potential for pain or distress. Evaluation of the agents pH and the use of the primary dermal irritation tests are routinely used to screen out agents likely to evoke a response beyond moderate irritation (17). Agents having passed the preliminary screening could conceivably go on to the classic test but with the follo wing refinements in place: use of three animals vs. the standard of six; use of smaller volumes of solution installed in the eye; use of one animal to evaluate an unknown and await a response before continuing or discontinuing with the remaining test animals; and use, when applicable, of anesthetics in the eye (10). In part, because of refinements to the Draize Ocular Irritation Test and use of available in vitro methods, the number of rabbits used in the cosmetic industry between 1980 and 1989 was reduced by 87 percent. COSMETICS MANUFACTURING In the fast-paced and ultracompetitive cosmetics industry, the right color, special effects and functionality can mean the difference between success and failure. Engelhard technologists and market specialists understand this dynamic and are dedicated to helping customers create new and innovative looks and textures for their products. For example, Engelhard effect-enhancing pigments enhance the appearance, performance and value of a wide variety of cosmetic products, including lipsticks, mascaras, nail polishes, eyeshadows and blushes. Specifically, these high-performance pigments impart a range of special effects from a soft satin luster to dramatic sparkle, and add subtle dimension and nuance to matte-type products. Our performance personal care materials impart a range of important benefits to cosmetics. These range from providing sun protection and anti-wrinkling power in skin products to providing antimicrobial protection in a wide range of cosmetics. Some product lines include Reflecksà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ pigments and colors, which add brilliant star-like glittter and shimmer: Flamenco ® pearlescent and iridescent pigments, which provide a range of effects, textures and opalescent colors; Duocrome ® iridescent colors for dual-color effects; Cloisonne ® colors, which give lustrous and rich color effects; Pearl-Glo ® bismuth oxychloride pigments; and many others. Engelhard Actysseà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ BG performance actives can impart a new breadth of benefits to cosmetics. And, our performance minerals also are used extensively in cosmetic manufacturing. Products such as Coslin ® specialty performance kaolins are used throughout the industry to enhance oil and moisture absorption, skin adhesion and compressability. Other performance minerals such as mica and treated mica provide other benefits to a wide range of formulations. With such a diverse and technically advanced product range, Engelhard is clearly well positioned to help customers stay ahead of the competition. Utilizing Engelhard technology, customers get products that feel better, look better and work better. And when customers want to create totally new and innovative products and bring them to market fast, Engelhard is the only partner they need. CURRENT PLAYERS IS INDIAN COSMETIC INDUSTRY Baby Products Listings Futura Poly Containers Manufacturers and exporters of baby care products like feeding bottles, nipples teats, sippers, training cups, non-spill cups, sports bottles, bottle brushes, infant toys, teethers and pacifiers. Johnson Johnson Ltd   Suppliers of baby care products such as hair oil, baby powder and also provides medicines for a range of conditions in the areas of gastroenterology, fungal infections, womens health, oncology, nephrology, mental health, neurology and pain relief. RPE Group Distributors of baby feeding teething products, baby feeding spoons forks, baby teething toys, shaving products, batteries, emergency lights and torches. Bonny Product Pvt. Ltd. Producing and supplying baby care products like baby feeding bottles, nipples, baby teats pacifier, infant non topple tumbler, brushes, bibbs and key rattle. Bonny Baby Care Pvt. Ltd. Supplying feeding bottles, nipples, nipple shield, pacifiers, soother, sipper and other baby products. Cosmetics Toiletries Listings Hygienic Research Institute Manufacturers and suppliers of skin care products, lotions, moisturizer, cosmetics, hair oils, hair dyes, shampoos, hair care soaps and depilatories. CavinKare Pvt. Ltd Exporters of cosmetic products, shampoos, creams, perfumes, hair oils and hair-dyes. Raheja International Exporters of beauty cream, face wash, shaving cream, toiletries, talcum powder, nail paint, analgesic, lotions, toothpaste, detergent powder cake, incense sticks and kitchen ware. Bagla Co. (Regd.) Suppliers of nail polish, kajal, eyeliner and nail polish remover. D. C. S. International Trading Company Dealing in supply and export of indian human hair including double single drawn, remy and non-remy for making wigs, hair pieces, toupees, dolls wigs, eye leashes and other human hair products. Shepherd India Eximp Pvt. Ltd. Engaged in the exporting of human hair and also provides hair replacement. Raj Impex (India) Exporters of raw human hair, processed human hair and bleached hair in different shades/colors. Indian Hair Industries (P) Ltd. Dealing in supply and export of beautiful healthy human hair all over the world. Kuria Mal Gopi Chand Exporters of natural henna powder and henna based hair dyes in various colors including black, brown, chestnut, burgundy, mahogany, blond, orange, red and purple. Cosmotech Industries Manufacturers and exporters of talcum powder, nail polishes, perfumes and incense sticks. Pretty Maam Herbal Cosmetics Manufacturers of skin care and hair care products such as tulsi, amla, henna shampoo, aroma hair oil and aroma bouquet fairness cream, etc. Clarion Cosmetics Pvt. Limited Manufacturers and exporters of talcum powder and other fashion beauty products. Vicco Laboratories Manufacturers of ayurvedic toothpaste, powder, skin care products, face wash, sugar free, etc. Chandrika Ayurvedic Soaps Manufacturer and exporter of ayurvedic soaps and shampoos. Lissome Cosmetics Pvt. Ltd. Manufacturer and supplier of cosmetic products including lip and nail colours, face make-up, etc. Cosmetic Product study Fair Lovely Fair Lovely, a skin whitening cream, marketed by Unilever in many countries in Asia and Africa, and, in particular, India. Fair Lovely is indeed doing well; it is a profitable and fast growing brand. First launched in India in 1975, Fair Lovely held a commanding 50-70% share of the skin whitening market in India in 2006, a market that is valued at over $200M and growing at 10-15% per annum (Marketing Practice, 2006). Fair Lovely was the second-fastest growing brand in HLLs portfolio of 63 brands, with a growth rate of 21.5% per year (HLL, 2002). Its two closest rival competitors, both produced by local Indian firms, CavinKares brand Fairever and Godrejs FairGlow, only have a combined market share of 16%. Claiming to possess a customer base of 27 million Indian customers who use its product regularly, Fair Lovely has successfully launched new product formulations from lotions to gels and soaps. Fair Lovely is marketed by Unilever in 40 countries in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, with India being the largest single market. Fair Lovely is certainly doing well financially. Created by HLLs research laboratories, Fair Lovely claims to offer dramatic whitening results in just six weeks. A package sold in Egypt displays one face six times, in an ever-whitening progression, and includes before and after photos of a woman who presumably used the product. On its website the company calls its product the miracle worker which is proven to deliver one to three shades of change (Leistokow, 2003). HLL claims that its special patented formulation safely and gently controls the dispersion of melanin in the skin without the use of harmful chemicals frequently found in other skin lightening products. (Higher concentrations of melanin lead to darker skin.) Emami Hairlife Instant Hair Pack Emami Limited, the Rs. 600 crore personal care and healthcare major,launched Emami HAIRLIFE Instant Hair Pack nationally. Emami Hairlife Instant Hair Pack is a premixed, crà ¨me herbal hair pack enhanced with vitamins and proteins to make hair beautiful and healthy from within. Emami has identified such a need and now makes it possible with the introduction of a breakthrough hair- care innovation Emami HAIRLIFE Instant Hair Pack, which makes hair shinier, easy to manage and look like a million bucks along with revitalising and making it strong from within and all of this in just 10 minutes. KERAHERB11à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢, an advanced herbal formula, ensures optimum action in just 10 minutes, which helps those women who are hard pressed for time and are constantly on the move, women who want to fashionably turn up at every occasion and are looking out for easy solutions to make life less-complicated. CAN INDIA BECOME MANUFACTURING HUB FOR COSMETICS? Pros Cons of current scenario With disposable incomes increasing in India, the country is poised to become a manufacturing hub for global cosmetics luxury brands over the next five years, a report to be released Monday by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) and Yes Bank said. The report referred to the core strengths in Indias manufacturing sector, and said manufacturing of luxury items could become a $500-million industry in this period. This optimism stems from the fact that global brands like Louis Vuitton and Frette are already looking at India as a manufacturing base for their products, while others are sourcing their requirements from India, the report said. Moreover, the study said, cost advantages, particularly in labour-intensive sectors like leather and accessories would goad manufacturing of foreign brands in the country. The study suggested that in order to promote the luxury cosmetics market, three initiatives were required organizing the sector, promoting standardization and branding organization, and partnerships with international fashion and luxury associations. Corporatization of the luxury cosmetics sector will bring along with it concepts of organized and innovative marketing, leading to large investments, employments and generating additional revenue streams, the report said. Moreover, it said, the luxury sector needed to be treated in isolation with other retail sectors as the dynamics governing it were significantly different in nature. To reach its potential, the Indian retail sector required significant capital, technology and best practices. One of the key steps towards facilitating the development of the retail sector and in accelerating its growth would be to further ease foreign direct investment in the sector. The constant back and forth on policy decision on retail at the centre also acts as a dampener for luxury brands. The Indian tariff structure also needs to be streamlined. India has one of the highest duties and taxes on imported luxury goods, which drive the grey market and duty free purchases, while the stringent regulatory environment impedes investment by foreign brands. The study called for transparency at all levels for duties and taxes, and a thorough revision of rules and regulations. Luxury skincare, cosmetics, hair care, fragrances have emerged as thriving sectors and so remarkably proved that often European or US educated brand conscious Indian women. The customers first encounter at any departmental store like Shoppers Stop, Lifestyle, Essence or mall like Crossroads, Ansals, Metropolitan, often is with fragrances and cosmetic brands thus proving that it is these brands that invite customers to stores. CONCLUSION Global cosmetic industry, a Rs.30000 crore industry, borders are expanding everyday and potential is limitless. The end-user industry of cosmetics and toiletries is amongst the most dynamic industries in world, consistently showing growth rates more than the average GDP growth rate of Europe and displaying an excellent ability to quickly identify and exploit growth areas. As multinational manufacturers seek to generate growth beyond mature core markets, opportunities are opening up in regions around the world. It is a fast-changing industry, with new product launches, new packaging for old products and price pressures that create a tendency towards economy of scale. Where famous brands remain unchanged, presentation becomes even more crucial. Naturally, fashion and beauty fads play a part, hence the so-called essential and natural products. The latest skin creams, facial scrubs, lotions and moisturizers reflect a more fashionable minimalist look for make-up throughout much of the developed world. Changing social attitudes and generally higher disposable incomes also reflect more self-indulgence between both sexes in the use of up-market fragrances and toiletries. With many players in the beauty care industry coming up with innovative products aimed at penetrating into largely untapped markets, the future looks bright. The cosmetic industry worldwide continues to grow. Many companies in beauty care industry are coming up seeking opportunities arising out of the changing environment specifically- socio-cultural and demographic environment, bringing innovative products aimed at merging niche markets and venturing at largely untapped markets. If we look around we find that what existed 20 or 30 years ago has totally changes and the change is transparent Despite of every above fact, this industry faces many challenges-including social, demographic as well as cultural ones. No doubt the changing environment do give opportunities, we have to count deep insight into the sector As a part of change in socio- cultural environment, it includes changes in education, tastes and preferences, urbanization, women empowerment, attitude of people, increased media influence etc. Changes in demographic environment with worldwide population growth, geographical shifts in population, sex composition, household patterns are a must study areas which have potential that can be tapped for expansion and for search of better areas or untapped markets.