Roman and Early Christian Architecture

Explain the techniques used by roman architects and describe the types of buildings they created. Use examples to support your essay. The building techniques the Roman architects used were the arches and domes. They were very skilled at building with bricks and stones. These materials helped them develop new roof forms. To create arches they used wedge-shaped stones or bricks called vigorous. They placed the narrow ends on the inside of the arch and the wide ends on the outside. The Romans typically used round or pointed arches to p openings n walls or to support heavy roofs.

One of the arch buildings they created was the Arch of Constantine. It is the latest triumphal arch in Rome. It was also the largest setup in Rome since the end of the Severna dynasty. Much of the decorations provided were from earlier monuments of Trojan, Hadrian, and Marcus Tutorials. They included the heads of the earlier emperors. The Pantheon was the dome creation. This was the Temple of all Gods. The dome of the Pantheon is 142 feet high. It provides light entering through a central opening to the sky.

Pantheon’s dome is still the world’s largest unrecorded concrete dome to this date. Sanitaria, G. M. (2011, September). Roman architecture. Retrieved from http:// www. Marilynn. Com/ancient Rome/roman architecture. HTML 2. What features did Early Christian architects take from Roman builders, and what new techniques did they develop? Discuss specific features from three buildings. The features that the Early Christian architects took from Roman builders were the arches and domes. But with new techniques they developed such as the flying turrets.

For example the Old Saint Peter church resembled Roman basilicas. It had a wide central nave with side aisles and an apse at the end. Unlike Roman basilicas, instead of doorways on one long side opening onto an aisle, they had an obvious long axis opening. When the worshipers arrived in Saint Peters nave, they were able to view the altar in the apse, framed by the chancel arch dividing the nave from the transept. Santa Sabina is another basilicas church. It is famed for its 5th-century wooden doors that have biblical scenes carved in them.

It also has 24 columns of marble completely coordinated with Corinthian columns and bases. The pdrels of the arches have decorative marble designs in green and purple to represent the Eucharist. The Santa Stanza Church design was along the favorite of the Western Christian world. One of the most important historical aspects of Santa Stanza were the use of Apses and Central Dome which give prime examples of early Christian art and architecture. Klein, F. S. Gardener’s Art Through the Ages; The Western Perspective. Fourth teen Edition.

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Why Christians Should Watch the Big Bang Theory

Sarah Blair 10/11/12 Final Draft Lipscomb Seminar Why Christians Should Watch “The Big Bang Theory” The Big Bang Theory is a show about adult nerds who happen to be prodigies at science. In every episode something enviably goes wrong, or a conflict arises. Five main characters makeup the core cast in the Big Bang Theory. These characters are Sheldon Cooper, Leonard Hofstadter, Howard Wolowitz, Rajesh Koothrappali, and Penny. The dynamics and interactions between these characters are what helped this show win an Emmy, GoldenGlobe, and consistently attract 16 million weekly viewers.

The first season aired in 2007 and has been signed to keep producing seasons through 2014. Because of the Big Bang Theory’s large following, Christians should watch the show because it will help them understand specific social groups through humor and grow a greater understanding of how Christians are perceived in the secular world. For a Christian it is important to see how outcasts are treated. Sheldon, with all of his quirkiness, tends to be socially awkward. People within Sheldon’s group of friends are usually accepting, but the rest of the world does not seem to know how to handle him.

Sheldon and his friends fit within the mold of nerds and often time’s people find it hard to relate with them because they are different from the rest of the world. This show brings to life the reality that certain groups of people might not always get along. But that no matter what social affiliation a person may belong to, Christians should seek out a relationship because Jesus called them to be all things to all people. If Christians are only interacting with people who it is easy to talk with, then they are avoiding what God has called them to do.

In 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 Paul writes, “Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law, so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law, so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.

I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. ”(Bible). Here Paul talks about being all things to all people. A Christian should read this and use it as an example of how they should live their life. That is why the Big Bang Theory is a good show for Christians to watch. The Big Bang Theory helps Christians understand nerdy people and how to connect with them, so that when they come across someone who exhibits those personality traits they will know how to be “all things” to them. In the beginning of each episode evolution is mentioned.

No matter what, the show always has a prevailing message of evolution and a disbelief in God. The way evolution is mentioned is through the discussions on science and Big Bang Theory’s theme song. Here are the lyrics to the song called The Big Bang Theory by the Barenaked Ladies, “Our whole universe was in a hot dense state, then nearly fourteen billion years ago expansion started. Wait…? The Earth began to cool, the autotrophs began to drool,? Neanderthals developed tools,? We built a wall (we built the pyramids),? Math, science, history, unraveling the mysteries,?

That all started with the big bang! ” (Lyrics To Barenaked Ladies). A Christian can see the evident message of evolution and the theory of the big bang in how the producers chose the theme song. Another obvious scientific significance that the show is conveying is the name of the show, the Big Bang Theory. The name of the show serves to attract interest and to focus in on the main themes. For the show, the Big Bang Theory, the title attracts interest because believing in the theory of the big bang has become one of the most popular views of creation.

The Big Bang Theory’s title focuses on the how the shows emphasizes the theory of the big bang and the disbelief in God through any and all means of scientific methods. Christians usually do not believe in evolution, to be more specific, macroevolution. An example of Macroevolution would be a fish evolving into a land animal. Many Christians do not believe that this can happen, but do believe in microevolution. Microevolution can be seen through how there are many types of dog breeds. Dogs vary in size and traits, but at the same time their all still considered dogs.

This is the type of evolution used to describe varying trait differences in dog breeds. Even Christians, who do believe in the theory of the big bang, see God as the source of life behind everything. As a whole, Christians tend not believe in the most commonly thought of term “evolution” which often times is referring to macroevolution. This whole view of evolution is what the show and its creators are forcing on their viewers. Another reason why Christians should not watch this show is because God is the one who made everything and the show does not support this form of creation.

In Genesis 1:1 the Bible says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”(Bible). Here the Bible says that God made everything and not evolution. If Christians believe in God then they should also believe that He created the world. Star Trek, Star Wars, World of Warcraft, comic books, religion, relationships, jobs etc. are just a few of the many topics that this show derives humor from. In one episode Sheldon lets Amy Farrah Fowler, the girl he has been seeing, go on a date with another man. After a short while Sheldon becomes paranoid by what he just allow to happen.

Sheldon then decides to crash Amy’s date to the movies. Awkwardly, Sheldon sits himself in between the couple and proceeds to tell Amy that he wants their relationship to become an official, exclusive thing. Amy agrees and her relationship with Sheldon then becomes official and exclusive (CBS). Humor like this is what the Big Bang Theory is built on. Often times, people go looking for a laugh in the wrong places. In the world today people’s actions have a direct correlation with their own motives. People tend to get a laugh at another persons expense.

But for Christians, it is not right to shame another person like this. However, God does have a sense of humor and He wants everyone to also be filled with joy and laughter. He simply wants the source of laughter to be wholesome. In Psalm 126:2 David wrote “then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them. ’”(Bible). Here David mentions laughter and joy when referring to a change in people. God wants everyone to experience humor and that is why Christians should watch the Big Bang Theory.

The Big Bang Theory is a good source of laughter that is light hearted and lifts ones spirits. Christians should not watch the Big Bang Theory for its evolution standpoint, but also for how it condones excessive drinking. In many episodes of the Big Bang Theory, characters drink in excess, which lead them to becoming drunk. The character Raj is a man who has a hard time talking in front of women. However, when he is intoxicated he can actually hold a conversation with women. But being drunk is not a good way to glorify God. To be specific, Christians are called to not become drunk.

The Bible says in Ephesians 5:18 “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit,” (Bible). Through this scripture, a Christian can see how God does not want His children to become drunk. A person can argue that any form of alcohol is a sin, but the Bible only states that drunkenness is what is wrong. As a whole, if Christians are not strong enough to stop drinking before they become drunk, they should abstain from alcohol. Christians who do not approve of drunkenness should also not approve of this show.

The Big Bang Theory is filled with many things that are not glorifying God and none of them should be taken lightly. The last reason why Christians should watch the Big Bang Theory is because it paints an interesting light on Christianity. Christians are viewed many ways, and this show tends to showcase them in a negative manner. However, the Big Bang Theory does show truth in their view of Christianity. The Big Bang Theory sees Christians as uptight, close-minded, condemning, self-righteous, and hypocritical. A website called www. hetvcritic. org also views Christians very negatively, but they do feel as if the Big Bang Theory treated Christianity “inappropriately… (and that it) implied a level of pushiness and insensitivity”(TheTvCritic). The sad thing is that hypocrisy and other negative traits like this can be found in Christians. That is why it is important for Christians to understand how secular people view them. So that they can be how Christ wanted them to be. God never said that the world would love Christians and that life would be easy.

He did call Christians to stand up for what is right, but He did not call Christians to be so pervasive. God called everyone to love each other. In an episode Sheldon’s mother comes to visit and she takes everyone on a church tour with her. Sheldon’s mother is a so-called “devout” Christian(CBS). However, she bad mouths everyone and puts herself on a holier than thou pedestal. Many Christians who watched this episode were greatly offended, but Christians should rather use this secular view of Christianity as a learning tool and source of personal growth of how to not act in their own lives.

Christians need to remember Matthew 7:5 “You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. ”(Bible). This verse is something all Christians need to remember, to keep them humble, loving, filled with grace, and gentleness. That is why watching shows like the Big Bang Theory are not always easy, or make Christians feel good, but are necessary in order to keep a realistic view of the world. Sexual immorality happens to be another common occurrence that the show is complacent on.

In many Big Bang Theory episodes, sexual topics are talked about or immoral intercourse happens. Many times this sexual act is referred to as coitus. Throughout the six seasons, two characters Leonard and Penny have had an interesting relationship where they have sex. Christians should not be in favor of this type of sexual interaction since Leonard and Penny are not married. In 1 Corinthians 6:18 the Bible says, “Flee from sexual immorality and all other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body,” (Bible).

Here a Christian can read that this type of behavior is not moral or uplifting to God. This is why Christians should not watch the Big Bang Theory because if they were to do so, they would be supporting such actions. These are all reasons why Christians should watch The Big Bang Theory. The choice of characters in their socially awkward nerdy lifestyles will cause Christians to think outside of themselves and grow in order to find ways to reach the outcasts. The humor will lighten their day and have them enjoy the simple things God has created. But most of all, Christians will be aware of how the world views them.

That if they are going to make a bigger impact in the world they need to truly love people for who they are and where they are at. Christians should give this show a chance; they might be surprised with what new thought they come away with.

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A Model of Christian Charity & Letter to Philip Sidney

Winthrop, as mentioned before Is a dedicated Puritan, which are English colleens who believed that the Church of England was corrupt and needed to be “purified,” During this time period many Puritans and those of other religions were ridiculed and discriminated because of their faith. Many restrictions were placed on them, and additional taxes were added tot their Income. Winthrop believed the only way to purify the church was to leave England now and begin a new way of life. In his essay describes his perfect society as the inhabitants begin one with God and each other.

He implies that a move now is the best way to begin purification. Hastily, and English writer and geographer saw many benefits form the colonization of the New World. With his background in geography he knew that North America would be filled with various types of raw materials and wild life. His letter gave examples of this variety mentioning the different types of wood such as cedar, oak, walnut and sundry. He explained how these resources would not only benefit the colonies but also benefit England.

He believed the resources available loud be able to be divided equally among the colonies and England. He also saw the financial benefits that they could come from colonization. Money was the most important reason for his proportions to colonize. Money was big factor in his argument. In these essays both Winthrop and Hastily emphasized that the best way to receive their desired outcome was to go now. To Hastily going now would be the best way to receive the maximum benefits from the North American raw materials.

Winthrop believed leaving now was the only way to purify the church, saying that thing could be done for the church in England. Also stating the by leaving now would make the purification process to go faster. They also shared the ground on which they settled which was Massachusetts. They each believed a colony near the coast would help the more economically. A Model of Christian Charity & Letter to Philip Sidney By larders published an essay to inform his followers of his solution to the problem if the corrupt Church of England.

This solution in fact was moving to the New World. Richard Hastily, in 1582, sent a letter to Philip Sidney to inform of the great believed the solution to their issues was to go and colonized North America. Winthrop, as mentioned before is a dedicated Puritan, which are English citizens who believed that the Church of England was corrupt and needed to be “purified. ” During this time period many Puritans and those of other religions were ridiculed additional taxes were added tot their income. Winthrop believed the only way to coast would help the more economically.

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Evaluation of Maintenance Culture of Christian Cathedral Church Buildings

Table of contents

The study focused on maintenance culture of cathedral church buildings in Lagos Mainland Area of Lagos State Nigeria. It also assessed the operational state of these church buildings within the study area. In achieving these objectives, opinions of maintenance officers and users of selected cathedral church buildings were sampled through structured questionnaires. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, upon which 100 respondent were surveyed.

The analysis revealed that the operational state of some of these church buildings as been average. Maintenance officers and users of the buildings both ranked insufficiency of fund for maintenance programme as second most significant factor among other factors responsible for poor maintenance management of these church buildings. Other factors found to be highly significant by the maintenance officers are; cost of maintenance by the operatives. The study recommended proactive measures to reduce the occurrence of defects in the buildings elements and services. The church board of trustee is to provide adequate funding for the implementation of their maintenance programme. Building elements should be regularly inspected to ensure their functionality.

Introduction of Christianity in Nigeria metamorphosed through different phases since the early missionaries stepped feet on the Nigerian soil in the 16th century (Ajayi, 2005), and this has given rise into Christian religious institutional buildings as the Christians need a place called church as a building to worship. Hence, old religious institutional buildings are considered symbolically and emotionally significant by community members (Cohen and Jaeger, 2008 & Vangelova, 2005), and public perception endows our environments with cultural values and in turn the perception is dictated by these values. Numerous researchers and critics in architectural theory and historic preservation looked at these shared values, that humans’ “psychological necessity” to maintain their memory creates the desire for historic preservation Woodcock (2002).

Likewise, the researchers argue that the on-going course of history that contains each generation’s culture should be preserved as the public is concerned with the preservation of their memory that has been fashioned in the relationship with their environments (Brand, 2005 and Downing, 2000). Geva (2002) demonstrates that various building types religious, national, residential are a function of the interaction of cultural, regional climate conditions and architectural forms. Geva analyzed the degree of architectural modifications of single family houses and community churches.

From research carried out by Geva (2002), people spent more money in maintaining their personal residential building than religious institutional buildings (church). Thus, churches as a building type are significant to the public as they serve primarily as cultural symbols (Cantacuzino, 2009 & Jaeger, 2005). Church Buildings play an important role in the City by providing venues for a range of activities and services aimed at encouraging community interaction and participation.

Church Buildings are important assets which contribute to the physical, social and moral wellbeing of the community, society at large and the subsequent development of social capital and community strength Robert (2001). The provision of church buildings promote a sense of community identity and “sense of place”. At the same time, there are significant cost factors associated with the upkeep (maintaining) and ongoing maintenance of these building assets. Maintenance involves fixing any sort of mechanical, plumbing or electrical device etc should it become out of order or broken (known as repair, unscheduled or casualty maintenance).

It also includes performing routine actions which keep the building in a working order (known as scheduled maintenance) or prevents trouble from arising (preventive maintenance). Maintenance may be defined as, “All actions which have the objective of retaining or restoring an item in or to a state in which it can perform its required function. The actions include the combination of all technical and corresponding administrative, managerial, and supervision actions. ” The former of these represents a closed loop supply chain and usually has the scope of maintenance, repair or overhaul of the building.

The latter of the categorizations is an open loop supply chain and is typified by refurbishment and remanufacture. The main characteristic of the closed loop system is that the demand for a product is matched with the supply of a used product. Neglecting asset write-offs and exceptional activities the total population of the product between the customer and the service provider remains constant. Generally speaking, there are three types of maintenance in use: Preventive maintenance, where equipment is maintained before break down occurs.

This type of maintenance has many different variations and is subject of various researches to determine best and most efficient way to maintain equipment buildings inclusive. Recent studies have shown that Preventive maintenance is effective in preventing age related failures of the equipment. For random failure patterns which amount to 80% of the failure patterns, condition monitoring proves to be effective. Corrective maintenance, where equipment is maintained after break down.

This maintenance is often most expensive because worn equipment can damage other parts and cause multiple damage. Reliability centered maintenance, often known as RCM, is a process to ensure that assets continue to do what their users require in their present operating context. All these shall be looked into in detailed the literature review In addition, the management and community at large has a significant duty of care to ensure that these buildings are kept and maintained appropriately to ensure the safety of all users and compliance with all legislative requirements and standards.

While the requirements for good practice in maintenance management of buildings have been established over a considerable period, the achievement of good practice is by no means universal (Turrell, 2007). Furthermore, the maintenance of these religious institutional buildings has a significant impact on the environment and on the whole nation at large. Additionally, the conditions of the surroundings in which we live and learn, is a reflection of the nation’s well being (Lee, 2007).

Most existing religious institutional buildings in Lagos State lack adequate maintenance attention and as result of this, these buildings are in very poor and deplorable conditions of structural and decorative disrepair Ogunlana (1999),. While considerable research have been carried out on factors responsible for the poor maintenance of these religious institutional buildings in Lagos State but only scant attention has been given to the key parameters affecting the implementation of maintenance programmes for these religious institutional buildings.

There is therefore a need to establish and evaluate the factor affecting maintenance of these religious institutional buildings.  The aim of this study is to evaluate the maintenance culture of Christian institutional buildings in Lagos State. To achieve this aim, the following objectives are adopted. To identify the maintenance problem of religious institutional buildings and provide solutions to the problem. To examine the physical conditions of these religious institutional buildings so as to ascertain the level of their maintenance. To examine the maintenance principle in use for Christian religious institutional buildings in Lagos state.  To evaluate the effect of maintenance on the performance of religious institutional buildings in Lagos State.  The study will state how significant the maintenance of our religious institutional buildings is in social economic development of our country at large and the research finding will contribute to solving problems regarding maintenance culture of these institutional buildings.

The findings of this study will contribute to the improvement of poor maintenance culture of these buildings and lukewarm attitude of maintenance managers in charge of these buildings. The result of the study will determine the quantity of maintainable items supplied to this building. The study will further educate maintenance manager of the building to broaden their horizon in planning day to day maintenance. Furthermore, the outcome of the study will create awareness in maintenance culture in relation to the basic demands of the different subject or maintenance areas.

In order to achieve the objectives of this study, the following questions have to be answered.  What are the maintenance problems facing these religious institutional buildings? Are these religious institutional buildings in good physical condition? What are the maintenance principles implore by the maintenance managers in maintaining these institutional buildings? What are the effects of maintenance on the performance of these religious institutional buildings?

Scope and Limitation of the Study

There is no doubt about the significance Christian Institutional buildings in Lagos State as they also serve as social and moral heritage and they must be maintained properly. Hence the scope of this study shall be limited to Cathederal Churches in Lagos Mainland of Lagos State. Preamble Geva (2002) demonstrates that various building types religious, national, residential are a function of the interaction of cultural, regional climate conditions and architectural forms.

Geva analyzed the degree of architectural modifications of single family houses and community churches. From research carried out by Geva (2002) that the people spent more money in maintaining their personal residential building than religious institutional buildings (church). Thus, churches as a building type are significant to the public as they serve primarily as cultural symbols (Cantacuzino, 2009 & Jaeger, 2005). What is Maintenance? History is about the preservation of the past, so that a good use may be made of the future.

Fifty years ago, the challenge was to get people to identify and care about institutional religious buildings while twenty-five years ago, the challenge was to avert development. Today, the challenge is to stop the unnecessary loss of historic religious institutional buildings through neglect, Onifade (2000). There are a substantial number of people who do not know the meaning of maintenance. At least the way they practice it would indicate this. In practice, prevalent interpretation of maintenance is to “fix” it when “it breaks”. This is a good definition for repair, but not true maintenance. This style of maintenance is reactive.

Maintenance, according to Smith (2003) means to keep in its existing state, preserve, continue in good operating condition. Maintenance is defined as work undertaken in order to keep, restore or improve every facility, to an acceptable standard and to sustain the utility and value of the facility. This is a proactive maintenance. Historically in both the public sector and the private sector, maintenance was seen by many as an avoidable task which was perceived as adding little to the quality of the working environment, and expending scarce resources which could be better placed, Smiths (2008).

To some maintenance is war. The enemies are the triumvirate of breakdown, deterioration, and all the types of unplanned events. The soldiers are the maintenance departments, in our organization and as many civilians as we can recruit. Military historians study battles with an eye towards identifying the pattern of conditions that dominated the outcome. As maintenance leaders, we have many strategies and weapons at our disposal, some new, some old, some complex and some simple, some defective as one theater of operations and some better in another.

Each strategy to consider works only with the support of the correct weapons and the logistics. Institutional buildings, which form an integral part of the environment, are severely exposed to agencies such as moisture, intense solar radiation and prevailing winds, which directly change their physical attributes (Ikpo, 2006). The prime effects of these environmental agencies include discoloration, abrasion, cracks, stains and fungal growth. Therefore, regular or periodic maintenance is required to preserve the physical form of severely exposed religious institutional buildings, and landforms among others.

Apart from exposure to weather, biochemical agencies also accelerate decay of institutional buildings. It has become factual that these physical and social changes have affected sites of cultural and historical importance. In the process, potential tourist sites of local and national interest comprising historical and peculiar architectural buildings, archaeological excavations, palaces, groves, monuments, open spaces and town squares are lost while some are wasting away. The issue is not that of causation of deterioration but of poor response to maintenance demands.

Maintenance of Institutional Buildings

Religious Institutional buildings today are confronted by unique challenges that threaten their very existence (Stolzenberg, 2004). The characteristics and the structure of these institutional buildings, by their nature lack the capacity to compete with the changing whether again. According to Shohet (2003), the performance of religious institutional buildings and their components depends to a large degree on continuous and planned periodical maintenance. The Built environment expresses in physical form the complex, social and economic factors, which give structure and life to a community (Lee, 2005).

According to Banful (2004) the financial consequences of neglecting maintenance is often not only seen in terms of reduced asset life and premature replacement but also in increased operating cost and waste of related and natural and financial resources. Maintenance is related to the background of any project, unfortunately development plans and approved recurrent and capital estimates in religious institutional buildings in Lagos state have revealed that thought have not be given to maintenance work (Onifade, 2003).

Maintenance Problems of Religious Institutional Buildings

There are so many problems being faced by attempts to maintain institutional buildings. Aradeon (2006) listed some of these problems to include inadequate professionals and the closeness of these sites to urban centres thereby making the land occupied by them to attract high value for alternative investment. The major problems confronting the maintenance of institutional buildings revealed by the study are related to finance basically. Repair cost of Religious institutional buildings is usually higher than a modern home.

Some common maintenance needs seen in home are problems such as peeling paints and foundation cracks; minor structural problems such as crack plaster to small movement in the foundation; drainage and grading problems due to the installation of new roof gutter; insufficient electrical system; poorly installed plumbing; older leaking roof; older heating and cooling system; poor ventilation: excessive moisture from un-vented bathrooms and cooking areas causing damaged plaster and deteriorated windows; and excessive air leakage, Onifade (2006).

Those who participate in the maintenance of religious institutional buildings like the church management committee need to know their likely financial commitment before work commences. This early-stage cost advice can establish realistic budget for decision making (Smith, 2005). The cost of maintenance of a religious institutional building could be high or lower depending on the structure at the beginning and invariably, it is usually high because of the materials that were used in the first place which may not meet current standard. It is therefore difficult for these properties to be maintaining properly (Mandal, 2004).

The increasing abandonment of these properties by those who were originally responsible for them informed the need for government, NGOs and religious bodies’ participation in their maintenance. Finance is the major factor that inhibits the conservation of religious institutional buildings. The maintenance of institutional buildings requires a lot of money that cannot be provided by a single body. Other maintenance problems are; according to Adenuga (1999), various problems of varying magnitudes and origins are encountered in the process of maintenance.

Design Problems

Some fundamental maintenance problems originate from the design of the building. These types of problems are usually hard to solve as it may involve complete reconstruction of the entire building or large section of it. It may be avoided or, at least, drastically reduced by involving at the design stages professional experts, including highly competent and experienced Maintenance Managers.

 Managers and their crew of craftsmen and technicians lack the desired skills (which include experience, technical know-how, etc) required on the job.  There is lack of adequate funds and interest in this direction. In fact, research and development directed towards building maintenance is non-existent or at best, very minimal.  Another characteristic common to most homes of poorer groups is crowded, cramped conditions. Many health problems affecting poorer groups are associated with overcrowding, including household accidents, acute respiratory infections (of which pneumonia is perhaps the most serious), tuberculosis and other airborne infections.

In the predominantly low-income residential areas in Third World cities, there is often an average of four or more persons per room and in many instances less than one square metre of floorspace per person. Diseases such as tuberculosis, influenza and meningitis are easily transmitted from one person to another. Their spread is often aided by low resistance among inhabitants due to malnutrition and by frequent contact between infected and susceptible people. Acute bacterial and viral respiratory infections and lots of others are diseases caused by overcrowding Horner (2007).

Where open fires or relatively inefficient stoves are used indoors for cooking and/or heating, smoke or fumes from coal, wood or other biomass fuels can cause or contribute to serious respiratory problems. Chronic effects include inflammation of the respiratory tract which in turn reduces resistance to acute respiratory infections, while these infections in turn enhance susceptibility to the inflammatory effects of smoke and fumes. Exposure to carcinogens in emissions from biomass fuel combustion has been confirmed in studies in which exposed subjects wore personal monitoring equipment.

Women who may spend 2-4 hours a day at the stove must be at risk. Infants and children may be heavily exposed because they remain with their mothers; the added exposure to pollutants combined with malnutrition may retard growth, leading to smaller lungs and greater prevalence of chronic bronchitis Harvey (2009)  A large range of vectors live, breed or feed within or around houses and settlements. The diseases they cause or carry include some of the major causes of ill health and premature death in many cities – especially malaria (anopheles mosquitoes) and diarrhea diseases (cockroaches, blowflies and houseflies).

But there are also many other diseases caused or carried by insects, spiders or mites including bancroftian filariasis (culex mosquitoes), Chagas disease (triatomine bugs), dengue fever (Ardes mosquitoes), hepatitis A (houseflies, cockroaches), leishmaniasis (sand-fly), plague (certain fleas), relapsing fever (body lice and soft ticks), scabies (scabies mites), trachoma (face flies), typhus (body lice and fleas), yaws (face flies), and yellow fever (Aegypti mosquitoes). Urban expansion may also change the local ecology in ways which favour the emergence or multiplication of particular disease vectors.

For instance, Aedes aegypti, the mosquito vector for dengue fever and yellow fever is often found to breed in polluted water sources such as soak-away pits and septic tanks. Anopheline mosquitoes generally shun polluted water but certain species have adapted to the urban environment and now breed in swamps and ditches in or close to urban areas Horner (2007).The selection of maintenance system to be operated in the building should take into consideration in terms of the life cycle of the building materials, services installation provided space function or activities to be carried out in that particular building.

In some cases, when the material has reached the ‘wear and tear’ condition, the maintenance work is then required to rectify those defects. Therefore, it is very important to ensure that the design team understands materials performance in order to reduce the running cost during building operation. Using so called ‘heavy duty’ materials and yet producing high quality building fabric, Aradeon (2006). By knowing the physical and detail life p of the materials will allow the maintenance team to forecast the budget allocated for replacement work and planned the maintenance work as per schedule.

With a detail record of the previous maintenance work, it will act as a benchmark to the future maintenance activities where decision be made through this. It shows that, the maintenance work should not only rectify and making good all defects at the affected area but also at the same time should be properly recorded. It is a way to closely monitor the severity of the defects occurring in the building; Arazi (2009). Referring to the previous record will assist the maintenance team to overcome and provide an effective remedial works.

In spite of planned maintenance, emergency maintenance will involve urgent and immediate work prior to the problem. It is to avoid the resultant consequences to other activities which may cause severe failures; Oloyede (1991). By considering those planned and unplanned maintenance, the management should provide a realistic budget and come out with some emergency plans in dealing with uncertainties cases. Therefore, the implementation of an effective maintenance practice must inculcate some indicators to improvise the traditional maintenance management system to reach the needs and nature of the work.

Maintenance Needs and Nature

It is highly desirable but hardly feasible to produce buildings that are maintenance-free, although much can be done at the design stage to reduce the amount of subsequent maintenance work. All elements of buildings deteriorate at a greater or lesser rate depending on material and methods of construction, environmental conditions and the use of the building. A prime aim of maintenance is to preserve a building in its initial stage, as far as practicable, so that it effectively serves its purpose. The main purposes of maintaining buildings are

  • Retaining value of investment.
  • Maintaining the building in a condition in which it continues to fulfill its function.
  • Presenting a good appearance.

Maintenance work has also been categorized as “predictable” and “avoidable. Predictable maintenance is regularly periodic work that may be necessary to retain the performance characteristic of a product, as well as that required to replace or repair the product after it has achieved a useful life p. Avoidable maintenance is the work required to rectify failures caused by poor design, incorrect installation or the use of faulty materials.

The function of maintenance can be divided into three groups;  Cleaning and servicing,  Rectification and repair and *Replacement. Timely expenditure on the first two can postpone the need to replace materials or components, a very expensive business. Cleaning and servicing should be carried out regularly and may be combined with a system of reporting faults when become apparent, thereby avoiding the need for more expensive repairs or even replacement at a later stage.

Type of Maintenance

According to Avedesian (2006) maintenance can be divided into the following categories:- Breakdown maintenance: It means that people waits until equipment fails and repairs it. Such a thing could be used when the equipment failure does not significantly affect the operation or production or generate any significant loss other than repair cost. Planned maintenance: This is maintenance organized and carried out with forethought, control and the use of records to a predetermined plan, Unplanned maintenance Ad hoc maintenance carried out to no predetermined plan. Preventive maintenance

Maintenance carried out at predetermined intervals, or corresponding to prescribed criteria, and intended to reduce the probability of failure, or the performance degradation of an item. Preventive maintenance initiated as a result of knowledge of the condition of an item from routine or continuous monitoring. It is a daily maintenance (cleaning, inspection, oiling and re-tightening), design to retain the healthy condition of equipment and prevent failure through the prevention of deterioration, periodic inspection or equipment condition diagnosis, to measure deterioration.

It is further divided into periodic maintenance and predictive maintenance. Just like human life is extended by preventive medicine, the equipment service life can be prolonged by doing preventive maintenance. | Preventive maintenance as scheduled overhaul or scheduled replacement provides two of the three proactive failure management policies available to the maintenance manager. Common methods of determining what Preventive (or other) failure management policies should be applied are; OEM ecommendations, requirements of codes and legislation within a jurisdiction, what an “expert” thinks ought to be done, or the maintenance that’s already done to similar equipment, and most important measured values and performance indications. To make it simple:  Preventive maintenance is conducted to keep equipment working and/or extend the life of the equipment.  Corrective maintenance, sometimes called “repair,” is conducted to get equipment working again.

Successful maintenance programs should achieve these goals: . Help buildings function as they were intended and operate at peak efficiency, including minimizing energy consumption. Because maintenance keeps equipment functioning as designed, it reduces inefficiencies in operations and energy usage.  Failures of building systems that would interrupt occupants’ activities and the delivery of public services. Buildings that operate trouble-free allow public employees to do their jobs and serve the public.

Because maintenance includes regular inspections and replacement of equipment crucial to operating a building, maintenance staff reduces the problems that might otherwise lead to a breakdown in operations.  Sustain a safe and healthful environment by keeping buildings and their components in good repair and structurally sound. Protecting the physical integrity of building components through preventive maintenance preserves a safe environment for employees and the public. Provide maintenance in ways that are cost-effective.

Preventive maintenance can prevent minor problems from escalating into major system and equipment failures that result in costly repairs. In avoiding costs of major repairs, preventive maintenance creates efficiencies. Increasing preventive maintenance can reduce time spent reacting to crises, which is a more cost-effective way to operate buildings. Deferring preventive maintenance can generate higher costs over the long term.

Building Performance

This is a comprehensive whole house approach to identifying and fixing comfort and energy efficiently. Building performance or home performance is a comprehensive whole-house approach to identifying and fixing comfort and energy efficiency problems in a home. Energy audits are performed by energy auditors, also known as building analysts or consultants, which, in the United States, are usually certified by the Building Performance Institute (BPI). The United States Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy started a national program “Home Performance with ENERGY STAR” to offer a comprehensive, whole-house approach to improving energy efficiency and comfort at home, while helping to protect the environment.

The Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program has 40 programs, to date, across the country which are administered by various utilities and state energy offices. Home performance applies building science to address the following issues: Efficient energy use, Durability, Indoor Air Quality, Thermal Comfort, Indoor Moisture sources and solutions Diagnostic equipment includes: Blower door, Duct blaster, Thermographic camera Combustion analyzer.

A home performance energy audit results in home energy retrofit recommendations to improve the comfort and efficiency of the home, the most common of which include: Sealing air holes and gaps in the building envelope and subsequently adding insulation. Sealing ducts. Upgrading heating and cooling systems, appliances and lighting by replacing them with energy efficient equipment such as ENERGY STAR appliances or devices, compact fluorescent lamps, or LED lamps. Adding heat recovery ventilation or other means to control and upgrade fresh air ventilation, Retrieved from Google (2012).

This chapter housed the method used in gathering the necessary information and source of data used on the research project. The study examines the techniques used in analyzing the data. This research is based on the evaluation of maintenance culture of Christian religious institutional buildings in Lagos State, Nigeria, and the following were looked into, research design, population, sampling technique, instrument for data collection, administration of instrument and technique of data analysis. Technique of Data Analysis The data collected was analyzed with simple percentage for respondents’ bio-data, Arithmetic mean for research.

Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations

Summary Maintenance is regarded to be the most pragmatic and philosophically appropriate conservation method (Forsyth, 2007). Regular maintenance is critical to the survival of any building, be it cultural, heritage or non-heritage and church buildings.

This recognition was made as early as 1877 by William Morris the founder of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), an organization entrusted with caring and preserving United Kingdom’s heritage buildings. He considered regular maintenance as “the most practical and economic form of conserving heritage buildings”. Kerr (2000) also emphasized that “of all the processes of conserving ancient church buildings, maintenance is the single most important process”. To date, regular maintenance is still considered as the most sustainable way of preserving church buildings (Dan and Cantell, 2007).

However, a large number of heritage buildings are decaying due to age, neglect, high maintenance cost and lack of comprehensive guidelines and understanding of heritage buildings’ maintenance management practices 5. 2Conclusion The study has revealed that the operational state (physical-functional condition) of church buildings in Lagos State as carried out by the maintenance department was found to be good, The analysis discloses that the Cathedral church buildings in Lagos State are in a good state of existence in terms of the physical and functional conditions of the building elements and services that constitute these buildings.

But for better performance, a proactive rather than reactive approach should be adopted for effective maintenance practices as some Cathedral church buildings out of the surveyed ones are not properly maintained. This study has raised awareness on the practice and cost of neglect of maintenance of our Cathedral Church buildings. It is not intended to frighten the church owner or user, it is to sound the alarm for the need of imbibing the culture of maintenance of our church buildings as opposed to the culture of lawlessness and arbitrariness that have characterized past management of our building stock.

The research work is wake-up to arresting the menace and embarrassment of the Sick Building Syndrome. 5. 3Recommendations Cathedral church buildings are places of worship as such more has to be done by both the maintenance management staff and the users to improve the operational state (physical-functional condition) more in maintaining those which are not properly maintained as they are place which give moral lessons to the people. Recommendations for these churches cannot be over emphasized.

Hence upon this the following recommendations are made to preserve these church buildings under survey. Maintenance managers and their team should adopt more proactive approach to reduce the occurrence of defects, which will consequently bring about better physical and functional Cathedral church buildings elements and services. The governing councils of these churches should always set aside adequate fund for the running of these Cathedral church buildings as the study shows that there are no long time budgets for these buildings.

Maintenance managers should equally give the narrow managerial p of control a trial in use as this may likely bring about a more effective organizational structure leading to better maintenance management of public hospital buildings. It is also important that maintenance management work together with top administration management so as to secure sufficient funds for maintenance works as well as ensure that such funds is judiciously utilized. Maintenance manager should use authentic materials and skills in repairing and retrofitting these church buildings.

Older buildings require constant maintenance. Current funding programs cover the initial conversion costs, but not longer-term maintenance. Perhaps additional funds for maintenance could be made available when conserving built heritage is part of a housing project’s objectives. Building managers should also

  • coordinate preventive maintenance with other maintenance projects,
  • prepare a checklist of preventive maintenance tasks,
  • schedule a timeline for the tasks,
  • prepare procedures for managing the program, and include preventive maintenance among activities for controlling the quality of air inside buildings

As building managers determine what maintenance projects are needed, they should use an objective process for setting priorities among them. For cost effectiveness, building managers should calculate total costs over the expected lifetime of building and facilities. As a prelude to preventive maintenance, building managers should oversee periodic inspections of buildings’ conditions and create an inventory of buildings’ components and equipment.

References

  1. Adenuga, O. A. (1999): Building maintenance in Nigeria: Structural Deterioration, Recognition Diagnosis of Causes and Remedies. (01), 5-25).
  2. Ajayi, L. A. (1987): Concern for collapse of building in Nigeria. Journal of the Nigerian Institute of Structural Engineers, 1(2).
  3. Akinsola, O. E. , Adenuga O. A. , and Iyagba R. O. (2004): Strategic maintenance practices: Effective loots for improved productivity and efficiency of plants and equipments in construction industry. Journal of Building Quarterly, 3(1), 10-15.
  4. Allen, D (2003), Facilities management, Bradford, Vol. 11, Iss 3, pg. 7. Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) International, School Facilities Maintenance and Operations Manual (Reston, VA: ASBO International, 2008).
  5. Avedesian, (2006) How to Design and Manage Your Preventive Maintenance Program. APWA and Building Research Board of the National Research Council, Committing to the Cost of Ownership: Maintenance and Repair of Public Buildings (Chicago: APWA, 2001).
  6. Alexander, B. Atkin, J. Brochner, T. Haugen (2004), Facilities Management, Innovation and Performance. Barret, P. (2005), Facilities Management: Towards Best Practice, Oxford:Blackwell Science.
  7. British Standard Institution (1998): BS 79813: The principle of the Construction of Historic Buildings. BSI, London.
  8. Chanter, P. , Swallow B, (2000), Building Maintenance Management, Blackwell Science, Ltd.
  9. David G. Cotts, (2009). The Facility Management Handbook, 2d ed. (New York: American Management Association.

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Christianity

Describe the impact of Christian ecumenical movements in Australia: The National Council of Churches NSW Ecumenical Council Ecumenism refers to the cooperation between different denominations of Christianity to create unity. There are many benefits of ecumenism such as , building trust, reduces duplication, promotes unity, allows for pooling of resources, and so much more. Two Councils which maintain and promote these values are The National Council of Churches and the NSW Ecumenical Council.

Through the projects and events these two councils undertake, they impact on the society around them by providing aid to the many communities that receive their service. The National Council of Churches (later renamed The National Council of Churches Australia or NCCA) is a national organisation established in 1946, after the devastation of World War II. It has fifteen member churches, including: Anglicans, Lutherans, Greek Orthodox, Salvation Army and the Uniting Church, just to name some.

Through the unity of so various churches and state ecumenical councils, the NCCA works collaboratively for causes such as Indigenous rights, overseas aid, refugees, environmental issues, social justice and more. The impact of the NCCA is effective and enormous, for example it helped to resettle hundreds of refugee families and also helped protect thousands of refugees from Kosovo and East Timor, through their National Program on Refugees and Displaced People (NPRDP).

Not only this, however, through the sponsorship of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Ecumenical Commission (NATSIEC), NCCA supports important indigenous issues such as, Reconciliation, education and facilitating the development of Indigenous spirituality. The NSW Ecumenical Council is a denomination of the NCCA, as it is a state organisation rather than a national one. The NSW Ecumenical Council has an additional four churches to the NCCA’s already fifteen members.

They include: St Thomas’ Indian Orthodox Church, The Syrian Orthodox Church, The Mar Thoma Church, and the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo Church. The causes affiliated by the NSW Ecumenical Council include the Christmas Bowl, refugees, the House of Welcome (organisation providing help for refugees), theological reflection and social justice. As the NSW Ecumenical Council is a state division of the NCCA, it furthers positive impact to the Ecumenical movement, most prominently through the NSW Ecumenical Council’s Social Justice Program.

This program seeks to address issues for all people. One particular focus is on the rights of Indigenous Australians, which supports and aids with Indigenous issues. Another key project is the Ministry with Refugees project. This project provides a large number of activities, provisions, education, visits to detainees and support and funding for the House of Welcome (a centre which facilitates the integration of newly released immigrants to the wider community). Evaluate the importance of interfaith multifaith Australia. With all the talk of clashes of civilisations and religious differences, it is time we get together and understand each other” This is the description of interfaith dialogue given by Dr Ameer Ali, president of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils. Though, interfaith dialogue refers to the co-operation between people of different religious traditions, and it plays a major role in keeping harmony among the Australian society. The significance of the role of interfaith dialogue is echoed through the many affiliations and events that occur in the name of interfaith co-operation.

A prime example of this can be seen through the multifaith vigil which was held in Strathfield Plaza, on 15th September 2001, after the terrorist attack on USA. Many religious groups attended this vigil including, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Catholics, Anglicans, Korean Christian and Pentecostals, among many others. Through this interfaith co-operation, the harmony and companionship of multifaith Australia can be seen. Another example can be seen through the ANZAC Day service of 2001 was held both by Buddhist monks and Christian ministers. This, again, shows that the harmony of the multicultural, and multifaith Australian society.

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Pagan and Christian Symbols in Beowulf

At the time that Beowulf was written, the culture that produced the poem, the Anglo-Saxons, were a pagan culture. The Catholic Church was trying to spread its beliefs to other parts of the world. The Anglo-Saxons were a definite target. Many of the texts that we have out of that time period were written by Catholic monks. In Beowulf there are many references to pagan and Christian beliefs. These beliefs neither contradict, nor outshine each other. Rather, the monks writing the work interjected some Christian ideas in order to try and sell Christianity to the people that were familiar with the tale.

The pagan and Christian ideas are perfectly laced together to introduce some of the ideas of Christianity to a pagan people. In this poem there are often references to pagan and Christian beliefs very close in the piece of poetry. This would tie a familiar belief to something exotic to the Anglo-Saxons. In lines 1261-1268, the story of Cain and Abel are briefly explained, but not far from this Christian reference is the idea of revenge, in line 1278, which is frowned upon in Christianity, but it was a popular belief among the Anglo-Saxon culture at that time.

By binding these two elements together, the monk was trying to make Christianity seem less foreign and more like something familiar to the people. At the end of the attack on Grendel’s mother, in lines 1553-1556, the outcome of the fight was said to have been decided by God. Beowulf even credits God and thanks him for guiding him through the battle at many different points of the story. Yet, at the very end of the poem the greatest thing for Beowulf is fame. He wants to be remembered forever for his actions.

At this point there is no mention of God or God’s help. Beowulf boasts; I risked my life Often when I was young. Now I am old, But as king of this people I shall pursue this fight For the glory of winning, if the evil one will only Abandon his earth-fort and face me in the open. (lines 2511-2515) This gives to credit to God for his actions, but it does tie God into fame. Earlier in the poem God had helped Beowulf on his quest, which gained him eternal fame. This, again, ties a popular belief among the Anglo-Saxons to a Christian belief.

Making it easier to understand and, in a way, makes Christianity seem like a desirable belief system if it will gain one fame. The monks who wrote down the oral tradition of Beowulf intertwined Christian and pagan beliefs, hoping it would make Christianity more familiar to the Anglo-Saxons of that time. The monks had also used examples of Christianity that made it seem desirable for the people to convert. The purpose of adding Christian elements to Beowulf was not to outshine the pagan beliefs but to make Christianity something the Anglo-Saxons would understand.

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A Buddhist and Christian Look at Life After Death

A Buddhist and Christian look at Life after Death: The XIV Dalai Lama and Heschel views on the stages of death. In each religion every one dies a different way. I wanted to write about life after death because everyone has their own interpretation to where we go when we die. No one really knows the true answer until we die and then what? The question that is raised today is which religious concepts of life after death should we follow? In my paper I will talk about how His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama and rabbi Abraham J. Heschel address the concept of life after death from their faiths.

In Buddhism, Buddhist does not believe that during their lives they do not live and die once, instead they are a part of a continuous cycle which is known as samsara. Samsara can bring many births, deaths, and rebirths all according to how karma is played out in their lifetime. A person’s karma can play a very important role in a person’s life as to what their next life will become. The only way that Buddhist can become free from the cycle of samsara is by reaching a state of nirvana. When I hear of heaven or paradise, I often understand it as a place where a person goes to after they have died.

However, Buddhists believe it is possible to dwell in nirvana or state of bliss, when still alive. My interpretation of this is that our experience in life when reaching nirvana can be a heavenly experience. In order to reach the state of nirvana which is a state of enlightenment one has to have removed all the desires which promote selfish attitudes, like, greed, hatred and etc. and the idea that all things in life do not change. By doing these things Buddhist has to come to the realization of The Four Noble Truth and practice The Eight Fold Path (48).

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