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Topic 1 DQ1 After completing the topic readings, recall a time when you met someone with a different worldview than yours (e.g., pantheism, theism, atheism), and you had a difficult time relating. 1. What challenges did you have relating to that person? 2. How might an understanding of the other's worldview have helped you in that situation? Ronald Nash (1999) defined worldview as “a conceptual framework, patterns or arrangement of a person’s beliefs”. With this definition of worldview, it makes me think of the time when I told my Catholic by trait family, I am more connected to the Jewish faith than Catholic faith. I was the one with the difference of opinion in the family, I found challenges relating to them by questioning what they believed and questioning all that they said was right. Understanding more about the religion is what helped me in the situation. I went to both religions churches and masses to learn more before ultimately following a specific religion. This situation helped broaden my worldview as an individual. DQ2 After viewing one of the films listed in the "Topic 1 Discussion Question Film Resource" from the topic materials, answer the following two questions. Before you post, change the title of the post to include the title of the movie you are discussing. 1. What is one worldview depicted in the movie? 2. Which characters held that worldview (e.g., pantheism, theism, atheism)? Provide at least two quotes or scene descriptions from the movie to defend your point. The film that I am discussing is Avatar directed by James Cameron. A worldview depicted in this film is Human Nature. All the characters of the Avatar race held a pantheism belief which translates them believing their form of god has created and sustained all life. Within the film Neytiri states “Our great mother does not take sides, jake; she protects the balance of life.” Showing proof to the thoughts of pantheism with the great mother being the creator and sustain of life and all that is a part of it. Another scene is the ending scene when the sully is dying he is put to the burial site where his conscientious is transfer in the avatar body showing the spiritual pantheism of sustaining all that exist whether being plants of human or avatar life. I believe all the avatar characters held the idea of pantheism because it was the religion of their people and ideology of them. Avatar. Dir James Cameron. Perf. Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Sam Worthing. Twentieth Century Fox. 2009. Disney plus. Web 6 February 2021. Reply 1 I think it is amazing how you are able to witness and have stories to attest to Gods gifts and healing powers. I as well had conversations with atheist people on religion and they get really mad, its when I learned religion is a touchy subject for both sides. I always ask myself when speaking to others about religion what are my ethics and what is right from wrong meaning, I can’t judge other people without knowing their story or why they believe something or don’t believe something in their case, because I wouldn’t want my beliefs questioned and terrorized. I think if we both understood their beliefs a little better it would help us ultimately understand their worldview. My question to you to understand the situation a little better, were they atheist who didn’t believe in any form of higher power or believed in different higher power such as other religions in believing in nature gods or etc?

Reply 2 I think our worldview constantly changes and evolves as we age up. I know my worldview has changed since I have been a child. I use to think certain things were morally right until I aged up then realized they were morally wrong. my worldview was tested while I was in high school it was tested in a religious aspect. Growing up in a Catholic family I always was told Jesus Christ is the savior and ultimate messiah, I then began to question it a little more realizing my worldview religiously aligns more with the Jewish faith. This test of my worldview made me realize a lot of things about myself and how I view and believe things. I think worldview also has to do with the world you were grown up in, meaning because of where my world may be different than someone else’s causing a differential worldview due to geographical and economic plains. Reply 3 I believe understanding others worldview is a way we can keep friendships and other relationships with others, thank you for sharing your beliefs and your encounters. I do have a question if a person held the same worldview as you but theoretically still had the same view on abortion as the atheist friend did, how could you combat that experience. Usually we are use to disagreeing with those who hold different worldviews as us but what happens when it’s the same worldview how do we handle that. Personally I believe we can agree to disagree as you stated to find the common ground, and keep those relationships alive. That is why understanding their worldview like you stated would have created for a better more inadept understanding conversation. Reply 4 Thank you Dr. B for the correction, I was a little confused at first what is considered a worldview and what is consider not a worldview. Just for clarification the worldviews are; theism, pantheism, deism, and atheism correct? I do believe the film showed extreme pantheism showing that there is a belief that all is god and that everything in life is related to god. The ways further I saw in this film were when the avatar were concerned with the trees life force. They believed it held powers within the tree itself as if it were god theoretically. With Human Nature being a perspective in the worldview system, was it still prevalent in the movie? The reason I brought up Human Nature is due to the elements of the film relating the human body to the spiritual world especially when jake dies and had his life force put into the avatar showing elements of the spiritual world by involving the tree. Thank you once again for the clarification. Reply 5 In the video Dr. Sean McDowell goes over how people with the Christian worldview tend to live the way Jesus lived. That makes me think in life a lot of my Christian friends live by the saying “what would Jesus do?” that saying makes sense with their Christian worldview on living in the light of Jesus Christ. I think its interesting he compares the worldview as a story with an origin, problem and resolution. It makes me think of my worldview and what is part of my story. This video made me think of the different stories (worldviews) of the world ending the video with saying “which worldview is true” made me question my own worldview and how I think and if it was accurate. Is any of our worldview stories true if one has to be right? Or are all of our stories accurate but need to be meshed together to make the correct accurate story? Reply 6

I think from where you grow up and how you grow up can affect your worldview in a whole. The story of your life affects your overall worldview story. The example of this is what we see in the world changes the way we think about things. For example, if we see an advertisement it may make us want to buy that product whereas if we didn’t see that advertisement, we may not want to buy that product. Relating that to worldview if we weren’t exposed to that specific worldview of Christianity or Judaism would we believe that specific origin story because exposure to specific origin stories is how we know what our worldview is, we tend not to create our origin story but build off of current stories already in existance. Our beliefs about the big question of life affects how we view the world because we may follow a specific life path such as “what would Jesus do?”. Reply 7 Thank you for sharing this video, I think it was very inspirational. I believe there is nothing too difficult for god he embodies such love and grace and power. I think he ultimately will guide me through his course to achieve success in this course. I know sometimes I question god, as I’m sure many believers do at some time. For example, when I study for a big test and study super hard and receive a low grade I sometimes question god on why he let this happen why did I receive this grade and I think my biggest downfall I didn’t let god into my studying I didn’t make way for his supernatural powers to ultimately guide me through and to success. I think its really nice to hear this scripture and to know god wants our burdens a lot of time when I pray I sometimes will not bring up my burdens because I don’t want to cast my burdens to god because what makes me so special to give god my burdens, but what makes me special is I am one of gods children. Reply 8 I agree Avatar shows a pantheistic approach to worldviews. I think your explanation is super good, pantheism is usually defined as “all is god” with a strong beliefs of spiritualism. Throughout the film it is depicted multiple times using the natives of pandora as you stated. They range from the way they pray and the way they sacrifice themselves for their great mother. I think the sky people are the unenlightened they seem to be unenlightened throughout the film the only one who becomes enlightened is Jake Sully when he realizes what everything means to them and starts believing in the great mother. That is why at the end he is reborn into the native pandora body because he has become one of them. My question for you is, because of the rebirth scene hinting at Christianity does it only reference for Christianity? If the scene wasn’t there would that make the whole movie only a pantheism approach?...