Elizabeth Ann Seton
Nature
Seton was of the belief that nature is God given (Bronski, 2011). As such, man should live by respecting God’s will. In addition, the lady felt that man should care for God’s creation, including fellow men. For this reason, she felt responsible for young girls who are from poor Catholic families. To demonstrate her beliefs, she gave these girls education for free. She also believed man cannot live alone and has to associate well with others.
Such associations are the only way through which one can achieve happiness. She was particularly bothered by the fact that people alienated her for joining the Catholic faith. She was also deeply affected when her husband and two daughters died (Bronski, 2011).
Supernatural
Seton was a woman of faith. She was among the first Americans to be converted to Christianity in Maryland. She believed in God as the Supreme Being. In light of this, she had a great conviction to serve the supernatural being. As a result of her new faith, she abandoned the comfort and company of her late husband, her friends, and business partners in Italy. She decides to go back to the United States of America, where she is a native. She regarded God as the provider. It is one of the reasons why she offered education to poor girls for free.
In spite of the various challenges she went through, she managed to continue running the schools (Gardini, 2005). She also considered God to be holy. To serve this righteous being, she helped in the establishment of various convents across the country, especially in New York.
Universe
Seton held Christian values in high regard. She believed that the universe belongs to God and not to any other being or deity. She did not value material wealth, a virtue that is evident in her selfless disposition (Howard & Emery, 2003). It is a fact that Seton came from a relatively wealthy family. However, in spite of such an upbringing, she associated herself with the poor and the weak in the society. She believed that man had the ability to change the universe by positively impacting on others. Her efforts to spread the gospel and offer free education to young Catholic girls are seen as indications of her attempts to change the world for the better (Howard & Emery, 2003).
Time
Many righteous beings dedicate their life to humanity. The case is no different for Seton. She believed in serving others. As such, she spent most of her time tending to the religious and educational needs of the members of the society. She considered time to be a God given gift, which must be used to empower others (Bronski, 2011). She also believed that life is an important commodity that must not be wasted in meaningless activities. That was perhaps the reason why she looked down upon the comforts provided by earthly wealth.
Upon the death of her husband in Italy, she came back to the United States to spread the gospel. Due to her upbringing and marriage, she was regarded as a lady of high social standing in the community. If she wanted to, she would have comfortably settled down in Italy. It was in this country that most of her late husband’s partners lived.
Humanity
Seton viewed humanity as a form of love meant to empower others. The type of love advocated for by her was characterised by kindness. She devoted her time to caring for the less fortunate members of the society. She empowered others by educating children, especially those from poor American families. Her beneficiaries were those individuals who could not afford the cost of education at St. Joseph’s Academy. Seton did not charge anything for these services. As already indicated in this paper, her charitable activities were mainly aimed at helping girls (Gardini, 2005). The school mainly assisted children from Catholic families. She also founded the ‘Congregation of Religious Sisters’ in her efforts to spread the gospel in the country. She sought to spread Christianity by increasing the access that people had to the ‘good’ word.
Fate
Religion remains a strong force in the society today. Seton can be described as one of the most dedicated Christians in American history. She believed that all happenings were the will of God. Her life was marked by many tribulations. For example, she had to go through the death of her husband, her two daughters, and some of her close friends. In spite of all this, Seton continued to engage in charity work (Howard & Emery, 2003). It appears that she had a calling to change the lives of other people around her by introducing Christianity in Maryland, especially to young girls from poor families. In her view, nothing would happen without God’s knowledge. All happenings are also for the best. As such, she was of the opinion that people should not question God’s deeds.
Law
Despite being a religious lady, Seton was also social. She can be said to have been enlightened lady especially owing to her social standing in the society. Although she believed in God’s law, she also acknowledged the fact that human laws were also of importance in restoring law and order in the world population (Bronski, 2011). For example, she comes up with rules to determine how her schools would be run. Vacancies present in schools were only reserved for catholic girls. According to God’s law, only he should judge people. Discrimination against others according to their religion has also been addressed.
Benjamin Banneker
Nature
Banneker, a Black American, was a scientist, surveyor, farmer, and almanac writer. He believed that nature came to be as a result of occurrences that could only be explained scientifically. He also carried out a number of scientific studies as an almanac writer. Most of these studies touched on nature. He felt that nature was as a result of the action of natural forces (Howard & Emery, 2003). Among the topics investigated by Banneker include astronomy, the solar system, and the calendar. His almanac was able to correspond to a number of events, especially those of the Christian calendar. However, he is to some extent a Christian, although not much committed to the faith.
Supernatural
Banneker exhibited some form of alienation between faith and science. To some extent, he acknowledgement the existence of a supernatural being ‘God’. He being a Christian, he believed that God was the Supreme Being and the creator of each and everything thing in the world (Bronski, 2011). However, his knowledge in science contradicted with his faith.
He attempted to use knowledge he had gathered from different scientific fields to explain occurrences such solar eclipse and weather changes. It is clear that he does not entirely believe in the occurrence of a supernatural being
Universe
Banneker did not give an explanation of how the universe came to be. However, he conducted a number of researches aimed at explaining the forces that bring about it functioning (Howard & Emery, 2003). He went ahead to write a number of literatures following his studies. One of the greatest successes in his life was the calculation that of the duration within which the solar eclipse would occur. His estimation turned out to be correct. He also came up with measurements that would describe the universe in terms of units. He and his father successfully conduct a state border survey between the states of Virginia and Maryland.
Time
Banneker believed that things occur in an orderly manner (Howard & Emery, 2003). His believe can be seen in his efforts to create a clock that is a replica of the borrowed pocket watch. He also maintained a strict diary. Keeping records shows some form of orderliness since occurrences are written down in the chronological order. Banneker is also said to have maintained a note book where most of his works were recorded.
Banneker also pays attention to occurrences and their expected time in his studies. His almanacs were accurate a situation that shows his level of time cautiousness.
Humanity
The character was of black origin. During this era, the black population was undergoing a lot of discrimination (Howard & Emery, 2003). Banneker was son to former slaves. As such, he was opposed to the discrimination of people of colour by the Europeans and Native Americans. He was of the opinion that all men are equal (Divine, Breen, Williams, Gross & Brands, 2012). He was united with his family whom he lived with during his lifetime. He was also concerned about the impact that war would have on humanity. He helps states redefine their borders through the surveys.
Fate
Banneker did not believe in fate. He rather was of the opinion that events occur in a pre-programmed manner. He wrote almanacs that showed when major events in the universe were likely to occur. He had arrived at these timelines using complex formulas and comprehensive researches (Howard & Emery, 2003). Scientific justification of occurrences by the character showed that he did not consider anything to have occurred by fate.
Law
The character believed in social law (Gardini, 2005). He was of the opinion that justice should be given to all. He was unhappy about the discriminatory treatment of the Black American people. He also helped in the solving of disputes between people concerning borders by employing his survey skills.
Peter Spencer
Nature
Spencer was of the view that nature was God’s gift to mankind (Bronski, 2011). It was part of God’s creation. Man was put in charge of nature. Man was supposed to care for it. As such, we are supposed to take care of it and make improvements where possible. He was also supposed to reproduce and fill nature with his offspring. According to Spencer, man had power over nature. Nature could be commanded by man through faith.
Supernatural
Spencer considered God to be the Supreme Being. He created the world and everything in it. Having converted to Christianity, he had the desire to worship God through bringing more souls into the faith. He achieved this by building churches across the United States. In fact, he was the first one to build an African church in America (Howard & Emery, 2003). In his lifetime, he was in a position to build a total of 31 churches despite protests from European settlers and the Native Americans. He was also of the view that God was indiscriminating against race or culture. Prior to his activities, men of colour were not considered equal by others before God.
Universe
Spencer was also of the opinion that Universe was created by God (Bronski, 2011). Being a Christian, he had the belief that the world and everything in it was created by God. He was also of the opinion that the universe would be changed through the spread of the gospel. According to him, man was also a special creation (Divine et al., 2012). As such, he is supposed to change the universe in accordance to the will of its creator.
Time
The world was created in an orderly manner. God, the supreme thing acknowledged the importance of paying attention to time. According to Spencer, there is time for everything. His convictions about time have been informed by the Bible in the creation story (Gardini, 2005). God was an orderly being and created the universe and everything in it in six days. It is believed that he rested on the seventh day which in the Christian faith is considered to be holy. Attention should therefore be given to time to respect the will of God.
Humanity
Spencer believes in caring for the needs of others. He proves this by acts selflessly in his bid to gather funds to buy lands where African Churches were to be constructed across the United States. He also believes that all men are equals. As such, no one should discriminate against others, he emphasises on the virtue of brotherhood in the churches. Great emphasis was also put on the love for neighbours in his teachings as is commanded in the Bible (Bronski, 2011). He also believed that men should empower each other. As a result, he built schools in areas where he had established churches.
Fate
Spencer was one of the first black men to convert to Christianity in America in the late 18th century. As such, he believed in the teachings of the bible (Howard & Emery, 2003). In his view, all things happened according to the will of God. He also believed that God knew what his future held for him (Divine et al., 2012). To him, nothing happened by chance. All things are programmed by the Supreme Being to occur as they should at the intended time and place.
Law
Spencer believed in following the law of God. According to him, God’s teachings were contained in a set of ten rules that are referred to as commandments (Divine et al., 2012). Love was the greatest commandment of all. With love, people are less likely to engage in deeds that will hurt others. The ten rules were to be strictly followed. A judgment exists at the end of the life where all those who were found guilty of breaking the commandments would be punished in an everlasting fire. In addition, the law of God insists on self responsibility.
References
Bronski, M. (2011). A queer history of the United States. Boston: Beacon Press.
Divine, R., Breen, T., Williams, H., Gross, J., & Brands, W. (2012). America: Past and present, package (10th ed.). London, U.K: Pearson.
Gardini, G. (2005). Critical investigations on integration in South America: Hidden past, uncertain present and controversial future introduction. Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 18(3), 403-404.
Howard Z., & Emery, K. (2003). A people’s history of the United States, Volume I: American beginnings to reconstruction. Florida: New Press.