Does an act of martyrdom bring a newfound sense of life to those that remain living? Do we view the martyrs with envy, since they have chosen to give their lives for others? Do they inspire us to become better people because of their sacrifice? Or do these acts haunt the living for continuing to live, believing deep in their hearts that their sacrifice was in vain and that it truly didn't achieve the outcome that they wished it had had.
In Marshall Bennett Connelly's "Requiem Guatemala- we read the story of 5 young men who are essentially martyrs in the struggle between government forces in Guatemala and it's own indigenous people. These men are executed by the orders of an Army Captain who feels that they belong to a communist subversive movement. The death of these men is where we truly start to see the struggle between a people who are trying to find their way in dark times, while still holding on to their beliefs and understanding the view of another, more powerful group that is trying to exert it's ways on groups of people who are resistance to change.
Our first example of this struggle comes when Rolando Semitosa asks, "Have you forgotten what the militaries did in Cuarto Pueblo?" This statement shows that the military has taken actions like this before with villages that failed to act upon their orders. .
Jos e Vállez demonstrated another example of the army's ways when he says "Can you not remember the massacre of Puente Alto." This fear that they express seems to not come from their own souls, but from the souls of the individuals of those who have suffered from the hands of these individuals.
Even the young men who have been chosen for this horrible demise seem to be under the illusion that their own deaths will save the villagers from the fate that they are about to suffer or the fate that was suffered by other villages. .
It's at this point that we truly begin to wonder about the sacrifice of these boys.
Martyrdom is basically self-sacrifice with no better options. The difference between martyrdom and persecution is the choice to suffer. ... This quote portrays martyrdom as callow, which is a negative depiction. ... This comment depicts martyrdom as dignified, which is a positive description. ... This is martyrdom. ...
Yet, in the modern sense, the concept of martyrdom has been applied to individuals and ideas completely outside the context of religion. ... However, the "glorious martyrdom- (Endo 91) the church speaks of does not come for him. ... From a Protestant perspective, however, in what respect does Rodrigues fall short of martyrdom? ... Would that be martyrdom? ... We shall now address the question of ideological suicide as a moral issue, and whether or not it can be labeled as martyrdom. ...
For its view on martyrdom murder in the cathedral was well received because in those times martyrdom was respected and on the whole society was very religious. It was also well liked because Eliot provided two views of martyrdom. ... In present context this view of martyrdom is seen as wrong, especially with war and death so prevalent in today's society. ... Hence, this view of martyrdom is seen as justly in the present context. ... You, my lord, in being with us, would fight a good stroke ending the tyrannous jurisdiction" And the fourth of course offers him martyrdom. ...
More Christians have suffered martyrdom during this past century than any other time in history. ... Christians, like Muslims, have strong religion asserts, they have considered martyrdom a prime opportunity for holiness, and indeed, a direct ticket to heaven. This grossly distorts the difference between the Christian and the Islamic concepts of martyrdom. Within Islam, martyrdom is what happens when a person dies in jihad. ... Although Muslim "martyrs" may indeed enter paradise immediately, martyrdom within Christianity has nothing to do with entrance into heaven. ...
The play does not only recall the martyrdom of Thomas Becket. ... The final Tempter, who may be the Devil himself, offers Beckett the chance to take over the King's power, but Beckett resists this temptation just as he had the others, but then the fourth Tempter tempts him with his own dream, the desire for martyrdom. Here Thomas Beckett realizes the danger of his own soul: If he selfishly seeks martyrdom out of a personal desire for immortality, rather than selflessly accepting the risk of death while defending what he believes is right, then he will commit treason against the very Lord ...
If the first half of the second century was relatively calm (note however the martyrdom of St Ignatius under Trajan), the second half, on the contrary, under Marcus Aurelius and Commodus was bloody enough. There were martyrdoms in Rome (St Justin), in Asia Minor (St Polycarp), in Gaul (the group at Lyons) and in North Africa (the Sicilian group). ...
The conditions were congenial to Eliot.He had a Christian subject and a Christian audience to be gathered at one of Europe's most famous Christian shrines.He had a director withwhom he could work, and he had the chance to further the cause of poetic drama.The topic martyrdom attracted Eliot ,as did the nature of the events and its significance for a modern audience. That significance was brought out through the choruses, and the emotional structure of the play is based on them rather than on Thomas's exercise in self-analysis.For that was the point of the Festival;the ordinary human...
Becket is a spiritually mature man facing martyrdom who must still overcome temptation. ... These are temptations to compromise his standards and thus avoid martyrdom. The fourth and greatest temptation is to accept martyrdom but in '"'the wrong spirit, "'"to do the right deed for the wrong reason"'"'"' (Jones 59). ... This statement demonstrates that he is aware of the temptations and is prepared for his own martyrdom. ... A close look into the characters of Murder in the Cathedral reveals that, '"'Murder in the Cathedral is not just a dramatization o...
While her gender may limit her actions, martyrdom is all-powerful and she becomes infatuated with it. Her keenness to martyrdom my even have been a motivation for her actions, although she is also clearly motivated by divine law and love for Polynices. ...