9. The ethical and cultural heritage of the bible: christian virtues sa described in the bible and their eternal value.

To become a real Christian you must obtain certain qualities of mind and heart, which are called Christian virtues. The main virtues are: love, hope, faith, humility, patience, meekness, self-control.

Love is surely the most important of all Christian qualities. Firstly a man must love God with all his heart, soul, mind and strength. Secondly, a man should love his neighbour as himself, for he who doesn’t love, doesn’t know God. Thirdly, a man should also love his enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you and pray for those who spitefully use you.

Faith is the source of wisdom, strength and all virtues. Unbelief is a perversion of human nature, the source of all evil things. A truly spiritual person lives by faith in the Son of God, who loves him and gave himself for him.

Hope is inseparable from faith. It’s inspired by things unseen and we hope for what we don’t see, we wait for it with perseverance. We are saved in hope. Despondency (loss of hope) is a deadly sin, because it actually means lack of faith in God.

Humility is the mother of all virtues. It is said in the Bible whoever exalts himself will be humbled and who humbles himself will be exalted. Humility isn’t weakness, but a godlike quality. God wants us to obey the authorities, the existing laws, our parents. It’s really hard to become humbled, because we’re always tempted in our pride. But one should always bear in mind. Christ’s commandment «Judge not and shall not be judged, condemn not and shall not be condemned, forgive and you’ll be forgiven».

Patience: « by your patience possess your souls»,- apostle Luke writes. A man should never complain, for with the temptation. God will give him strength to bear the trial.

Meekness is a spiritual quality which shouldn’t be mixed up with cowardice. A man should never try to take his revenge on those who offend him. «Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good».

Self-control is a spiritual power over one’s flesh. One cannot rely on oneself in obtaining self-control, but one must ask God for it in one’s player. If one loses his self-control, he becomes an obedient slave of your passions. Blessed is the man who endure temptation.

11. Talk about the main ideas and characters of the book you’ve read and discussed in class.

Oscar Wilde was an Irish playwright, poet and author of numerous stories and one novel. Known for his biting wit, he became one of the most successful playwrights of the late Victorian era in London, and one of the greatest celebrities of his day. Wilde suffered a dramatic downfall and was imprisoned for two years; after Wilde was released from prison he set sail for Dieppe by the night ferry. He never returned to Ireland or Britain. His main works: The Picture of Dorian Grey and two volumes of fairy tales – The Happy Prince and Other Tales and The House of Pomegranates, which are renown all over the world.

We have read and discussed Oscar Wilde’s fairy tales in class. All the stories are very real and dramatic. In the characters of his fairy tales we can see the reflection of all human positive and negative features. Oscar Wild showed us human’s selfishness, pride, self-love, fury, envy, but also clear relationships, true love, faith and friendship.

In the end of all the stories justice triumph over evil and harm and everyone gets his comeuppance (получать по заслугам).

For example The Devoted Friends:

Hans is gardener, the devoted friend of a rich miller. On the basis of this friendship, the miller helps himself to flowers from Hans’ garden, and promises to give Hans an old broken wheelbarrow, to replace one that Hans was forced to sell so that could buy food. Against this promise, the miller compels Hans to run a series of arduous errands from him; one stormy night, the miller asks Hans to fetch a doctor for his sick son. Returning from the doctor, Hans was lost on the moors in the storm, and drowned in a pool of water. After Hans’ funeral, the miller’s only emotion was regret, as he had been unable to dispose of the wheelbarrow.

The story is told by a linnet to an intellectual water-rat, who fancies himself a literary critic; the water-rat is sympathetic to the miller rather than Hans and being informed that the story has a moral.

This story is an example that sometimes even death can’t change the situation and can’t make someone think over his behavior.