Sunday, December 19, 2010

What does it mean to truly be "Green?"

1. "Have you figured out yet that I'm going as a cadaver, an anatomical gift?"


2. The intent of this essay by Semrau is to convince more people to sign up as anatomical gifts to be used for medical research and education.  This intent of Semrau is helped when he keeps information from the reader, which is accomplished through his writing strategy.  This strategy was basically to keep the reader interested long enough in order to make his point.  Once Semrau made his point about 3/4 through the essay, he continued to leave out some details in order to keep the reader curious.  As a whole, this strategy was successful, mostly because it kept my interest long enough to hear his point.  Also Semrau's writing strategy helps the intent because it helps to persuade the reader into agreeing with his point of donating your body to science.  It was also an interesting tactic for Waldemar to compare anatomical donations to being "green."  With so many people trying to be completely "green" nowadays, Waldemar knew he could appeal to a majority of the society's interests, and therefore be more persuasive.  Overall, through this strategy of writing, Semrau was successful in both persuading the reader and keeping the reader's interest.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Our Unbound Savior of the Nations, Come

Throughout “Savior of the Nations, Come,” Luther’s message primarily focuses on Jesus’s entrance into the sinful world He came to save.  Luther discusses how Jesus was born of a “Virgin undefiled,” which shows that it was the Holy Spirit who conceived Him, and therefore made Him both true God and man.  Another prevalent theme throughout this hymn is Jesus’s defeat over sin and the devil and the everlasting Kingdom of God, as described in stanzas five and six of the hymn.  In describing these themes, Luther uses a culmination of two literary devices, description and diction, to help the reader better understand truly how our God is unbound and unlimited.  When Luther describes how “glorious is its light divine,” and goes on to say “Let not sin o’ercloud this light,” he is using this word choice to describe the unlimited power of God, even in the form of a baby in a manger.  Jesus himself states that He is powerful enough to defeat all evil in Matthew 16:18, when He says that “on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”  This statement validates the description and diction used in “Savior of the Nations, Come,” where with the literary devices help the reader to better understand the truth behind our omnipotent God.   

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Rev. Borghardt's Sermon Review

1. Jesus was mentioned 32 times.

2. The verbs with Jesus as the subject: makes holy, took on sin, died, died for us, was slain, rose and reigns, makes alive, can't stand to be without us, calling us, lives, reigns on His throne

3. Borghardt’s and Edward’s sermons had many differences content-wise, but the themes were almost completely opposite.  The main theme throughout Edward’s sermon was that condemnation was inevitable without accepting the Messiah.  Edward’s sermon used God’s wrath and condemnation as an overriding theme to provoke the fear of God in his audience, and therefore his theme was of death and damnation.  However, in stark contrast to this theme is that of Reverend Borghardt’s sermon, which emphasized the absolute perfection of heaven, and how Jesus’s actions in the Gospel are the only way us, as sinners, can live in this eternal paradise.