Creative Empowerment
Belief as a Construction of Society
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Phillip Pierce
The “Thomas Theorem” in sociology states: “Things believed to be true, are true in their consequences”. This research explores the consequences of that theorem in people’s personal lives, where “reality” is, for all intents and purposes” intertwined with what it is believed to be. Reality of any situation is not exactly the same for any other person than the one experiencing it. The same is true for all collectively held beliefs in groups. Emile Durkheim argues, If a group’s solidarity is mechanically oriented, everyone would have the same beliefs based, mostly, on what they have been taught. It may be related to culture, race, power and influence, or religion. Solidarity may become “organic” when it is necessary to approach many people and groups outside one’s established one, in order to obtain products and services they desire and cannot receive from their group. This forces an acknowledgement of other people’s ways of life and belief. Tension develops between the associated groups as they attempt to maintain a no-longer relevant insular reality of existence. This is an examination of the beliefs and the realities they construct; and vice versa.
Imagination - the Spiritual Key to Self-actualization: The Dynamics of Thought in the Heart of Humankind; the Potential Exponential View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Coralee Prutzman
As the human fingerprint is unique to all, the images created in one’s mind have the power to bring forth one’s full potential. In this paper, the objectives are to understand the dynamics and possibilities of imagination through the spiritual lens in the life of humankind. In a world that is quickly spiraling out of control – with suicide at an all-time high, voices from without bombarding the mind and heart - parents, educators, leaders, and most importantly individuals, must take hold of this God-given key and unlock the door to their divine purpose. This paper is directed to those who have an ear to hear what the Bible has written in regards to man becoming his best version for the glory of his Creator. The methods used to collate this material are from literature reviews, textual analysis, and critical reappraisal. The work undertaken is from artifact analysis and theoretical reconceptualization. From this paper, it is understood that as a person thinketh so they are, and therefore, the possibility of self-actualization is just an image away in becoming reality. In conclusion, finding ones full potential begins in the heart through the power of imagination.
Photis Kontoglou, Writer and Painter: Reflections of His Lifetime Experiences and Deep Religiousness in Texts and Artworks View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Ioanna Stoufi-Poulimenou, Panagiota Katopodi, Michail Asfentagakis
Photis Kontoglou was one of the greatest personalities of the 20th century in Greece. When he left his hometown, Aivali, after the Smyrna Catastrophe (1922), he moved to Athens, where he was distinguished as a painter and also a writer. Through this paper, we present artworks and texts of his and show how three important historical events, World War I & II (1914-1918, 1939-1945) and Asia Minor Catastrophe, impacted his way of thinking and his beliefs; and empowered his religious sentiment.
