The Life of Martin Luther - 1037 Words

Martin Luther was a man who impacted the world’s society and history. He marked the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, which changed the course of Christianity forever. He was a powerful man of God, who reformed the corrupt Catholic Church, rediscovered the Living Word of God, and restored many authentic Christian doctrines. Luther was a man who changed the world. Martin Luther was born in Eisleben, Germany on November 10, 1483 to a middle-class family. During his childhood, two of his brothers died by a plague. Soon after his birth, his family moved to Mansfield because of his father’s work as a miner. His father, wanting more security for his promising young son, decided to do whatever was necessary to see that Luther could be a†¦show more content†¦Luther married Katharina von Bora in 1525. Katharina was an ex-nun who, after hearing about the reformation movement led by Martin Luther, escaped her convent with 11 other nuns. She ended up in Wittenburg, and it was there that she met Martin Luther. By that time, both Luther, who was a monk, and Katharina denounced their vows of a monk/nun. The two married in 1525, when she was 26 and Luther was 42 (Erickson). By all accounts, Luther and Katharina had a warm, happy, loving marriage. Luther admired Katharina’s intellect and ability to run the household, something Luther wa s never able to do. While Luther devoted himself to books and scholarship, Katharina kept the household afloat. Together, they had six children, and raised them diligently. They disciplined their children, but in love. Their home was noted for their liveliness and happiness (Erickson). Luther’s house was always a full one. Luther’s household included him, his wife, six children, six of Luther’s sister’s children, and one of Katharina’s relatives. In order to help the family’s financial situation, Luther housed students and guests in his home. There were as many as 30 students and visitors in his house. The house was full of life as children roamed around the house. Students could be found in Luther’s backyard, debating amongst one another, playing chess, gardening, or sharing ideas (Erickson). Luther was one of the mostShow MoreRelatedMartin Luther: A Life, by Martin Marty2696 Words   |  11 PagesMartin Luther was a man of great th ought and constantly went against the feelings and views of other people of his time. Martin Luther was born on November 10th in 1483, in the Saxon town of Eisleben located in Germany. Martin was born of mother Margrethe, who many of his enemies thought of as being a whore and a bath attendant, yet Martin recalled her later on in life as someone who was hardworking and very able and willing to punish him if he had done wrong. Martin Luther grew up in the middle-classRead MoreThe Life And Work Of Martin Luther1529 Words   |  7 PagesMartin Luther experienced true faith and a true mystical experience for the first time when he got stuck in a thunderstorm. Fearing for his life he begged St. Anne that if she took care of him he would become a monk. Luther’s journey began towards the life of God. The path he took, led him through moments of realization and confusion. Martin Luther questioned the church and re-evaluated baptism; yet, he re-enforced the importance of the Euchari st, kept his faith in God and believed every child ofRead MoreThe Life Of Martin Luther King1319 Words   |  6 PagesMornings with Melvyn Bragg on BBC Radio 4. The time is 8:06. We in the studio have decided that following his death yesterday at 9:04pm, we have decided to change our schedule today and instead of â€Å"The Life Of Martin Luther King†, we are going to run a special edition for the series depicting the life of the truly delusional and dangerous character, the mass kidnapper and murderer of several innocent art scholarship students, Frederick Beech. The following programme may upset families of theRead MoreMartin Luther s Life Changing Life1604 Words   |  7 PagesMartin Luther Kjerstine Martin HIST 101-04F May 1, 2016 Thu-ba-lump. A single horse’s hooves hit against the dirt as he runs down the road. Thu-ba-lump. Thunder claps overhead. Thu-ba-lump. Lightning pierces the ground, startling the horse and throwing the rider from it. On his knees, frightened for his life, he calls out into the storm, â€Å"Help me, St. Anne! I will become a monk! (Christian History Magazine Staff, 2000)† While no one knows exactly what happened on this day, it was quiteRead MoreMartin Luther s Life And Accomplishments1595 Words   |  7 PagesHeidi Mouton December 1, 2015 English 3 AP Period 2 Martin Luther Research Paper Martin Luther was born in Eisleben, Germany on November 10, 1483. Lutheran father, Hans Luther was of peasant decent. Though he did have minors successes in mining and ore smelting. Hans wanted his son to have a better life by being a lawyer. At the age of seven Martin started school in Mansfield. At the age of 14 he went north to Magdeburg, where he continued his studies. Then again in 1498, he movedRead MoreThe Life and Influence of Martin Luther Essay1339 Words   |  6 PagesThe Life and Influence of Martin Luther Thesis: Martin Luther was by far one of the most influential people in Church history. His doctrine on faith and works was instrumental in the success of the reformation and has since become a cornerstone of the church we know today. Martin Luther was born on November 10th 1483. His father, Hans Luther, had made something out of himself and came to own a copper mine. Desiring to see his own son go even further he pushed him in school. By the time he wasRead MoreMartin Luther King Jr Life1015 Words   |  5 PagesMartin Luther King, Jr. Chronology   1929 | Born on at noon on January 15, 1929.   Parents: The Reverend and Mrs. Martin Luther King, Sr.   Home: 501 Auburn Avenue, N.E., Atlanta, Georgia.   | 1944 | Graduated from Booker T. Washington High School and was admitted to  Morehouse College  at age 15.   | 1948 | Graduates from  Morehouse College  and enters Crozer Theological Seminary.   Ordained to the Baptist ministry, February 25, 1948, at age 19.   | 1951 | Enters  Boston University  forRead MoreThe Heroic Life of Martin Luther King600 Words   |  3 PagesThe Heroic Life of Martin Luther King Jr. Based on the information in Britannica School Encyclopedia Martin Luther King Jr. was a historical figure in African American history. He held many things to end segregation. Martin Luther King was a hero in the civil rights movement. Martin Luther King Jr. born January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia, was a Civil Rights activist during the 1950’s until his death on April 4, 1968. He held many non-violent protests against segregation. He gave famous speechesRead MoreThe Life and Work of Martin Luther Essay1531 Words   |  7 Pages Arguably one of the most recognizable names in Church history, Martin Luther rattled the cages of the legalistic, heretical Roman Catholic authorities, and enabled the masses to encounter God in a more direct way from that point on. The New Westminster Dictionary of Spirituality describes him as, â€Å"â€Å"An Augustinian Eremite friar and theology professor at Wittenberg, who emerged as the principal guide and spokesman of the Protestant Reformation, giving his name to the strongest wing of that movement†¦Read MoreI Stand : A Life Of Martin Luther901 Words   |  4 PagesStand: A Life of Martin Luther, Nashville: Abingdon, TN. Penguin Group (USA) inc., 1995. Bainton, was a minister, theologian, And Titus Street Professor of Ecclesiastical History at Yale Divinity School. He specialized in Reformation history and has written many works on the time period. A few of them were: The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century, Women of the Reformation in Germany and Italy, Women of the Reformation in France and England, and Erasmus of Christendom. Here I stand: A Life of Martin

Film Reveiew †American Beauty Free Essays

I chose this film due to its difference to conventional filmmaking, as instead of glorifying the main characters, the area and plot, it shows fault and illustrates the main characters as sad and unhappy. I chose to do this review on the opening minutes of the film describing in detail the camera shots and plot, as it would seem to the viewer watching for the first time. The opening scene is a medium shot of the main character’s daughter lying on a bed talking. We will write a custom essay sample on Film Reveiew – American Beauty or any similar topic only for you Order Now The screen is fuzzy, to give the impression of looking through a video camera. The daughter is talking to someone behind the camera, giving the impression of talking to the viewer or audience. She is talking about how much she dislikes and hates her father (Lester, the main character). This gives the impression of watching a personal film and the viewer is involved, as it appears at first that the character is talking to the audience until the hidden person filming speaks. The scene ends when the character behind the camera offers to kill the girl’s father. The screen goes blank and the film title appears in medium red print on a black background, central to the screen. This sudden change from shot is to represent the plot to end a life, as the transition to a blank black screen. The next shot after the title is a top shot of a typical suburban American street on a slow zoom in towards the road. There is a narrative, male voice over of the main character Lester, describing his death. This would appear to fit with the previous scene of the daughter talking about murdering her father This creates a feeling of curiosity and suspense throughout the film, for the viewer, who is waiting to see what could have created such a gap between father and daughter. This effect of giving away the ending in the first scene is very effective in creating constant suspense throughout the film up to the dramatic climax. It has been used in many films and plays including William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. Gradually when the camera zooms in the shot switches to a bird’s eye view of the main character lying in his bed, alone. This first shot of him shows him as lonely or incomplete even though he has a family. The camera then changes to a close up of his face, which appears sad and disorientated, further showing his dislike for his current lifestyle. There is then a jump cut to a pair of slippers on the floor next to the bed, being filmed from under the bed. This shot represents an ordered and scheduled lifestyle as the slippers must have been placed neatly next to the bed the previous night. The next frame switches to a medium long shot of the main character (Lester) masturbating in the shower. The effect of this is to shock the audience yet at the same time inspire pity at his frustrated and dull life as he continues to narrate over the film about himself, showing little embarrassment. The next scene is a close up of a Rose flower, which is then cut from the plant by a pair of pruning sheers. The Rose is constantly seen throughout the film, as well as rose petals, however rarely alive. They are usually in vases or on show. The roses, I feel, represent the lifestyle of the family. The rose looks perfect and appears very beautiful however it is dead. The family are similar, as they appear to have everything most people want, their health, nice house, money yet they are not happy. The roses are a constant theme throughout the film, I feel to remind us of the families unhappiness. The next frame sees the camera switch to a medium long shot of Carolyn (the main character’s wife) holding the freshly cut rose in her hand. This shot represents that she too was once alive but is now dying inside like the rose. All in all I found this film extremely interesting and thought provoking, I would recommend it to anybody who enjoys twisting plots, amazing acting and some of the most brilliant (and strange) characters in modern day cinema. The slow unravelling of the plot keeps you guessing until the very end of the film, as well as challenging modern day society and depicting modern day family life and the hypocrisy of Suburban America. How to cite Film Reveiew – American Beauty, Papers

Evaluate the Business Strategy of Xero Company in New Zealand

Question: Discuss about the Evaluate the Business Strategy of Xero Company in New Zealand. Answer: Introduction: The current report aims to evaluate the business strategy of Xero Company in New Zealand. Xero is a software firm based in New Zealand, which is involved in developing cloud-based accounting software for medium-sized and small-sized businesses. It has offices in New Zealand, UK, Australia, Singapore and USA(Hatten, 2015). The products of the organisation are developed as software as a service (SaaS) model and they are sold through subscriptions. Even though the organisation has been relatively young, the joint experience of Drury and Edwards has helped it in accomplishing the targets of the shareholders in the beginning year(Wild, 2014). Therefore, the report sheds light on evaluating the readiness for the global market with the help of EFAS and SFAS framework in the context of Xero. Internal Factor Analysis Summary (IFAS) framework: The IFAS framework is a strategic tool that is used to assess the internal environment of an organisation along with revealing its strengths and weaknesses. The IFAS framework provides clear depiction of the input factors, which both the external and internal parties could be able to understand. In addition, this framework does not need sufficient expertise like involving many personnel or time consumption. Furthermore, this strategic tool helps in identifying only the key factors influencing the activity or strategy of an organisation. Thus, with the help of this tool, the management of Xero Company would be able to develop SWOT analysis, McKinsey matrix or it could use the same for benchmarking to improve its overall organisational performance. The executives of Xero have undertaken two key decisions at the time of developing the SaaS business. In the initial stage, the target market has been chosen strategically to offer various kinds of services. According to the observation of t he Chief Executive of Xero, the large software firms have underserved the small business market; thus, framing a chance for the provider of the right solution. This has resulted in initiation of SaaS for the small-sized businesses and the companies serving them. In addition, with the help of SaaS model, the small organisations could minimise the up-front costs, maintenance needs and estimated monthly expenditure. As a result, it has become popular in the global market. Another decision that the executives of Xero have made was to assure that the firm accumulates necessary funding from the market. In this context, (Hill, 2013)stated that the success of a firm largely depends on the confidence and satisfaction levels of the customers. With the help of adequate funding, Xero has managed to assure the required infrastructure availability for the support of the customers in order to represent stability to the potential clients. Hence, with the help of the above-mentioned strategies, Xero has succeeded in expanding into the global market. The role of the internal factors of Xero could be evaluated with the help of IFAS framework, which is briefly demonstrated as follows: Particulars Weight Rating Weighted Score Comments Strengths: Customer-oriented 0.14 4 0.56 Well-positioned Advanced technologies 0.12 4 0.48 Needs to be improved Adequate funding 0.11 3 0.33 Could opt for raising additional funds through equity funding Positive brand image 0.09 4 0.36 Well-positioned Reduction in operational costs 0.10 3 0.30 Increase in customer rates Effective customer support 0.08 4 0.32 Additional personnel could be recruited Weaknesses: Absence of research and development facility 0.06 1 0.06 Questionable Dominance of the top management 0.07 2 0.14 Questionable Undifferentiated products and services 0.09 2 0.18 Needs to focus on adding new product lines Security issue related to customer data 0.10 3 0.30 Requires implementation of a new security system Absence of time-based contracts 0.04 3 0.12 Extremely ineffective Total 1.00 3.15 Moderately satisfying The overall weighted score varies from 1 to 4, in which 1 is considered as low, 4 is high and the average is considered as 2.5 irrespective of the total number of internal factors used in evaluation. In case, if the overall weighted score is below 2.5, it denotes poor internal position of the organisation. On the contrary, a score exceeding 2.5 depicts effective internal position(Wild, 2014). In the case of Xero, the overall weighted score obtained is 3.15, which denotes that Xero has strong internal position. However, there are certain aspects like time-based contracts, product offerings, technologies and security, which could be improved to strengthen its internal position further. External Factor Analysis Summary (EFAS) framework: The readiness of Xero for the global market could be evaluated with the help of EFAS framework, which is briefly described as follows: External factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Comments External strengths: Growing customer base 0.20 4 0.80 Diversion of financial resources for educating the customers Targeting the small-sized businesses 0.15 4 0.60 Xero has been strong in this channel Service improvement 0.10 3 0.30 Despite constant feedbacks from the customers, there is scope for further improvement Increased efficiency 0.05 4 0.20 Reduced time on manual accounting and ease of access Effective collaboration 0.05 3 0.15 Collaboration in real-life financial data for effective group effort External weaknesses: Providing education to the customers 0.15 3 0.45 Well-positioned Rising competition 0.7 4 0.28 Questionable Development of ecosystem 0.7 3 0.21 Developing stage Unscheduled downtime 0.8 3 0.24 Capable in maintaining 99.99% availability Dependence on internet 0.8 4 0.32 Questionable due to poor connection or user overload Total 1 3.55 Highly effective The overall weighted score varies from 1 to 4, in which 1 is considered as low, 4 is high and the average is considered as 2.5 irrespective of the total number of internal factors used in evaluation. In case, if the overall weighted score is below 2.5, it denotes poor external position of the organisation. On the contrary, a score exceeding 2.5 depicts effective external position. In the case of Xero, the overall weighted score obtained is 3.15, which denotes that Xero has strong external position. Strategic Factor Analysis Framework (SFAS) External factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Comments External opportunities Solid ongoing Customer Relationships (Hatten, 2015) 0.35 4 0.60 Engaging in interacting with the customers to gain knowledge about what they desire and scopes of improvementsy(Ismail, 2014) Solid Communication System (Cassar, 2015). 0.10 4 0.30 Good bonding between the internal and the external stakeholders of Xero Well-designed and successful marketing strategies 0.22 3 0.80 The strategies have been constructed by analyzing the feedback of the consumers and gaining knowledge about the changing market needs Proper leveraging of Strengths (Drexler, 2014). 0.06 4 0.25 Increasing the efficiency of the operational activites Effective employees for handling the sales 0.04 3 0.40 Porper training and knowledge to the employees External threats: Missed deadlines (Bove, 2015). 0.6 3 0.35 Very less Unable to maintain pending work 0.5 4 0.38 Questionable Infrequent cash flow 0.7 3 0.23 Very infrequent High fixed cost 0.5 3 0.40 On the process of improvement Total 1 3.71 Highly effective The overall weighted score moves from 1 to 4, in which 1 is considered as low, 4 is high and the average is taken as 2.5 without even looking at the total number of the external factors used in the analysis. In this case, if the overall weighted score is under 2.5, it reveals an improper external position of the organisation. On the other hand, a score more than 2.5 reveals efficient external position. In the case of Xero, the overall weighted score obtained is 3.71, which denotes that XERO is positioned strongly in the external market (Seethamraju, 2015). Therefore, it can be said that Xero can be implemented successfully in the market. The operational plan for the allocation of the resources to the constructed strategies involves updating the budget and the cash flows for undertaking future forecasting that will be useful for proper resource allocation. It is essential that Xero is ready for the next tax year so that they can construct their financial budget and safeguard the firm from giving out additional tax. The review of the business plan is ideal so that they can introduce changes according to the transformations in the market. Xero even needs to identify the gaps that are available in their operations so that business operations can be secured. Therefore, strategies to allocate the resources are essential. Conclusion The paper that has been prepared concentrates on the accounting software service provided by Xero, who is a partner of Microsoft. The company has been established by looking at the market opportunity that is present in the global market with respect to the small organizations. The company tries to discover the accurate path that will help them enter the global market and outlines the intrinsic factors of the firm with the help summarizing the Internal Factor Analysis. The paper even evaluates the prospect of Xero to enter the international market and operate successfully. This is done by analysis of the external factors that enhance the service of the company. It is vital to understand the external factors as the company has to make necessary actions with respect to them so that they function properly. It is vital for every organization to gain success in the market where they operate and therefore the firm tries undertakes Strategic Factor Analysis Summary so that effective strategi es that can uplift the business of Xero can be identified. The analysis of these strategies will recognize the success of the company and the evaluation of their operational plan helps to deliver the best services to their customers and to remain the market leader. The company maintains the ethical business standard codes while operating in the market thereby gaining the trust of the stakeholders. Recommendation The analysis of the paper reveals that there are room for improvement within the firm, as the demand in the market is continuously changing. It is vital for Xero to maintain a good relationship with its customers and to receive their feedback so that they have an idea of what changes can be made to make their service better and satisfy the customers with ease. Xero requires distributing their financial resources effectively so that every aspect of their operations receive the desired amount and no department is neglected. Proper training and educating the customers are even necessary so that the customers know the importance of SaaS and they can invest accordingly in the software. The implementation of these factors can develop the business of Xero. References: Bove, C. L. ( 2015). Business in action. Pearson. Cassar, G. I. ( 2015). Alternative information sources and information asymmetry reduction: Evidence from small business debt. Journal of Accounting and Economics, , 59(2), 242-263. Drexler, A. F. (2014). Keeping it simple: Financial literacy and rules of thumb. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, , 6(2), 1-31. Hatten, T. S. (2015). Small business management: Entrepreneurship and beyond. Nelson Education. Hill, C. W. (2013). Global business today. McGraw-Hill Education (Australia). Ismail, N. A. ( 2014). Factors influencing the alignment of accounting information systems in small and medium sized Malaysian manufacturing firms. . Journal of Information Systems and Small Business, , 1(1-2), 1-20. Seethamraju, R. ( 2015). Adoption of software as a service (SaaS) enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems in small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Information systems frontiers , 17(3), 475-492. Wild, J. W. ( 2014). International business. Pearson Education Limited. International business. Pearson Education Limited.