Saint Valentine (; ) was a 3rd-century Roman saint, commemorated in Western Christianity on February 14 and in Eastern Orthodoxy on July 6. From the High Middle Ages, his Saints' Day has been associated with a tradition of courtly love. He is also a patron saint of Terni, epilepsy and beekeepers.
Saint Valentine was a clergymaneither a priest or a bishopin the Roman Empire who ministered to persecuted Christians. He was martyred and his body buried on the Via Flaminia on February 14, which has been observed as the Feast of Saint Valentine (Saint Valentine's Day) since at least the eighth century.

Relics of him were kept in the Church and Catacombs of San Valentino in Rome, which "remained an important pilgrim site throughout the Middle Ages until the relics of St. Valentine were transferred to the church of Santa Prassede during the pontificate of Nicholas IV". His skull, crowned with flowers, is exhibited in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome. Other relics of him are in Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church, Dublin, Ireland, a popular place of pilgrimage, especially on Saint Valentine's Day, for those seeking love. At least two different Saint Valentines are mentioned in the early martyrologies. For Saint Valentine of Rome, along with Saint Valentine of Terni, "abstracts of the acts of the two saints were in nearly every church and monastery of Europe", according to Professor Jack B. Oruch of the University of Kansas.

Saint Valentine is commemorated in the Anglican Communion and the Lutheran Churches on February 14. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, he is recognised on July 6; in addition, the Eastern Orthodox Church observes the feast of Hieromartyr Valentine, Bishop of Interamna, on July 30. In 1969, the Catholic Church removed his name from the General Roman Calendar, leaving his liturgical celebration to local calendars, though use of the pre-1970 liturgical calendar is also authorised under the conditions indicated in the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum of 2007. The Catholic Church continues to recognise him as a saint, listing him as such in the February 14 entry in the Roman Martyrology, and authorising liturgical veneration of him on February 14 in any place where that day is not devoted to some other obligatory celebration, in accordance with the rule that on such a day the Mass may be that of any saint listed in the Martyrology for that day.

Identification
Saint Valentine does not occur in the earliest list of Roman martyrs, the Chronography of 354, although the patron of the Chronography's compilation was a wealthy Roman Christian named Valentinus. However, it is found in the Martyrologium Hieronymianum, which was compiled between 460 and 544 from earlier local sources. The feast of St. Valentine of February 14 was first established in 496 by Pope Gelasius I, who included Valentine among all those "... whose names are justly reverenced among men, but whose acts are known only to God."

The Catholic Encyclopedia and other hagiographical sources speak of three Saints Valentine that appear in connection with February 14. One was a Roman priest, another the bishop of Interamna (modern Terni, Italy) both buried along the Via Flaminia outside Rome, at different distances from the city. The third was said to be a saint who suffered on the same day with a number of companions in the Roman province of Africa, of whom nothing else is known.

Though the extant accounts of the martyrdoms of the first two listed saints are of a late date and contain legendary elements, "a common nucleus of fact" may underlie the two accounts and they may refer to "a single person". According to the official biography of the Diocese of Terni, Bishop Valentine was born and lived in Interamna and while on a temporary stay in Rome he was imprisoned, tortured, and martyred there on February 14, 269. His body was hastily buried at a nearby cemetery and a few nights later his disciples retrieved his body and returned him home.

The Roman Martyrology, the Catholic Church's official list of recognised saints, for February 14 gives only one Saint Valentine: a martyr who died on the Via Flaminia.

The name "Valentine" derived from valens (worthy, strong, powerful), was popular in Late Antiquity. About eleven other saints with the name Valentine are commemorated in the Catholic Church. Some Eastern Churches of the Western rite may provide still other different lists of Saint Valentines. The Roman martyrology lists only seven who  died on days other than February 14: a priest from Viterbo (November 3); Valentine of Passau, papal missionary bishop to Raetia, among first patrons of Passau, and later hermit in Zenoburg, near Mais, South Tyrol, Italy, where he died in 475 (January 7); a 5th-century priest and hermit (July 4); a Spanish hermit who died in about 715 (October 25); Valentine Berrio Ochoa, martyred in 1861 (November 24); and Valentine Jaunzarás Gómez, martyred in 1936 (September 18). It also lists a virgin, Saint Valentina, who was martyred in 308 (July 25) in Caesarea, Palestine.

Hagiography and testimony

The inconsistency in the identification of the saint is replicated in the various vitae that are ascribed to him.

A common hagiography describes Saint Valentine as a priest of Rome or as the former Bishop of Terni, an important town of Umbria, in central Italy. While under house arrest of Judge Asterius, and discussing his faith with him, Valentinus (the Latin version of his name) was discussing the validity of Jesus. The judge put Valentinus to the test and brought to him the judge's adopted blind daughter. If Valentinus succeeded in restoring the girl's sight, Asterius would do whatever he asked. Valentinus, praying to God, laid his hands on her eyes and the child's vision was restored.

Immediately humbled, the judge asked Valentinus what he should do. Valentinus replied that all of the idols around the judge's house should be broken, and that the judge should fast for three days and then undergo the Christian sacrament of baptism. The judge obeyed and, as a result of his fasting and prayer, freed all the Christian inmates under his authority. The judge, his family, and his forty-four member household of adult family members and servants were baptised.

Valentinus was later arrested again for continuing to evangelise. He was sent to the prefect of Rome, to the emperor Claudius Gothicus (Claudius II) himself. Claudius took a liking to him until Valentinus tried to convince Claudius to embrace Christianity. Claudius refused and condemned Valentinus to death, commanding that Valentinus either renounce his faith or he would be beaten with clubs and beheaded. Valentinus refused and was executed outside the Flaminian Gate on February 14, 269.

An embellishment to this account states that before his execution, Saint Valentine wrote a note to Asterius's daughter signed "from your Valentine", which is said to have "inspired today's romantic missives".

The Legenda Aurea of Jacobus de Voragine, compiled in about 1260 and one of the most-read books of the High Middle Ages, gives sufficient details of the saints for each day of the liturgical year to inspire a homily on each occasion. The very brief vita of St Valentine states that he was executed for refusing to deny Christ by the order of the "Emperor Claudius" in the year 269. Before his head was cut off, this Valentine restored sight and hearing to the daughter of his jailer. Jacobus makes a play with the etymology of "Valentine", "as containing valor".

A popularly ascribed hagiographical identity appears in the Nuremberg Chronicle (1493). Alongside a woodcut portrait of Valentine, the text states that he was a Roman priest of exceptional learning who converted the daughter of Asterius and forty-nine others to Christianity before being martyred during the reign of Claudius Gothicus.

There are many other legends behind Saint Valentine. One is that in the 3rd century AD it is said that Valentine, who was a priest, defied the order of the emperor Claudius and secretly performed Christian weddings for couples, allowing the husbands involved to escape conscription into the pagan army. This legend claims that soldiers were sparse at this time so this was a big inconvenience to the emperor. The account mentions that in order "to remind these men of their vows and God's love, Saint Valentine is said to have cut hearts from parchment", giving them to these persecuted Christians, a possible origin of the widespread use of hearts on St. Valentine's Day.

Churches named after Saint Valentine

There are many churches dedicated to Saint Valentine in countries such as Italy. Saint Valentine was venerated no more than other Christian martyrs and saints.

A 5th- or 6th-century work called Passio Marii et Marthae made up a legend about Saint Valentine's Basilica being dedicated to Saint Valentine in Rome. A later Passio repeated the legend and added the adornment that Pope Julius I (357–352) had built the ancient basilica S. Valentini extra Portam on top of his sepulchre, in the Via Flaminia. This church was really named after a 4th-century tribune called Valentino, who donated the land on which it is built. It hosted the martyr's relics until the 13th century, when they were transferred to Santa Prassede, and the ancient basilica decayed.

Saint Valentine's Church in Rome, built in 1960 for the needs of the Olympic Village, continues as a modern, well-visited parish church.

Saint Valentine's Day

Saint Valentine of Rome was martyred on February 14 in AD 269. The Feast of Saint Valentine, also known as Saint Valentine's Day, was established by Pope Gelasius I in AD 496 to be celebrated on February 14 in honour of the Christian martyr.

February 14 is Saint Valentine's Day in the Lutheran calendar of saints. Valentine is remembered in the Church of England with a commemoration on February 14. The Church of England had him in its pre-Reformation calendars, and restored his mention as bishop and martyr in its 1661–62 Book of Common Prayer, and most provinces of the Anglican Communion celebrate his feast. The Catholic Church includes him in its official list of saints, the Roman Martyrology.

Saint Valentine was also in the General Roman Calendar for celebration as a simple feast until 1955, when Pope Pius XII reduced all such feasts to just a commemoration within another celebration. The 1969 revision of the General Roman Calendar removed this mention, leaving it for inclusion only in local calendars such as that of Balzan, Malta. His commemoration was still in the 1962 Roman Missal and is thus observed also by those who, in the circumstances indicated in Pope Benedict XVI's 2007 motu proprio Summorum Pontificum, use that edition.

July 6 is the date on which the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates the Roman presbyter Valentine; on July 30 it observes the feast of the Hieromartyr Valentine, Bishop of Interamna. Members of the Greek Orthodox Church named Valentinos (male) or Valentina (female) may observe their name day on the Western ecclesiastical calendar date of February 14.

English 18th-century antiquarians Alban Butler and Francis Douce, noting the obscurity of Saint Valentine's identity, suggested that Saint Valentine's Day was created as an attempt to supersede the pagan holiday of Lupercalia (mid-February in Rome). This idea has lately been dismissed by academics and researchers, such as Jack B. Oruch of the University of Kansas, Henry Ansgar Kelly of the University of California, Los Angeles and Michael Matthew Kaylor of Masaryk University. Many of the current legends that characterize Saint Valentine were invented in the 14th century in England, notably by Geoffrey Chaucer and his circle, when the feast day of February 14 first became associated with romantic love.

Oruch charges that the traditions associated with "Valentine's Day", documented in Geoffrey Chaucer's Parlement of Foules and set in the fictional context of an old tradition, did not exist before Chaucer. He argues that the speculative explanation of sentimental customs, posing as historical fact, had their origins among 18th-century antiquaries, notably Alban Butler, the author of Butler's Lives of Saints, and have been perpetuated even by respectable modern scholars. In the French 14th-century manuscript illumination from a Vies des Saints (illustration above), Saint Valentine, bishop of Terni, oversees the construction of his basilica at Terni; there is no suggestion here that the bishop was a patron of lovers.

During the Middle Ages, it was believed that birds paired in mid-February. This was then associated with the romance of Valentine. Although these legends differ, Valentine's Day is widely recognised as a day for romance and devotion.

Associated Christian relics

The flower-crowned alleged skull of St. Valentine is exhibited in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome.

St. Valentine's remains are deposited in St Anton's Church, Madrid, where they have lain since the late 1700s. They were a present from the Pope to King Carlos IV, who entrusted them to the Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools (Piarists). The relics have been displayed publicly since 1984, in a foundation open to the public at all times in order to help people in need.

Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church, Dublin, also houses some relics of St Valentine. On 27 December 1835 the Very Reverend Father John Spratt, Master of Sacred Theology to the Carmelite order in Dublin, was sent the partial remains of St Valentine by Cardinal Carlo Odescalchi, under the auspices of Pope Gregory XVI. The relics and the accompanying letter from Cardinal Odescalchi have remained in the church ever since. The remains, which include "a small vessel tinged with his blood", were sent as a token of esteem following an eloquent sermon Fr Spratt had delivered in Rome.

On Saint Valentine's Day in Ireland, many individuals who seek true love make a Christian pilgrimage to the Shrine of St. Valentine in Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, which is said to house relics of Saint Valentine of Rome; they pray at the shrine in hope of finding romance. There lies a book in which foreigners and locals have written their prayer requests for love.

Another relic was found in 2003 in Prague in the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul at Vyšehrad.

Saint Valentine's relics can also be found in Slovakia in two cities. The first is Šaštín, where the relic is placed in the Immaculate Conception (placed in 1720). The second is Nováky, which they had in the church of St. Nicholas and the rare statue of Saint Valentine, which was stolen in the 90s (according to one saved original part of the statue - the head, a new copy was created, which was ceremoniously placed in the church in 2000.

A silver reliquary containing a fragment of St. Valentine's skull is found in the parish church of St. Mary's Assumption in Chełmno, Poland.

Relics can also be found in Mytilene on the Greek island of Lesbos.

Another set of relics can also be found in Savona, in the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta.

Alleged relics of St. Valentine also lie at the reliquary of Roquemaure, Gard, France, in the St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna, in Balzan in Malta and also in Blessed John Duns Scotus Church in the Gorbals area of Glasgow, Scotland. There is also a gold reliquary bearing the words "Corpus St. Valentin, M" (Body of St. Valentine, Martyr) at Birmingham Oratory, UK, in one of the side altars in the main church.

See also

 La Fête du Baiser
 Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire
 Saint Fructus, 8th-century Spanish martyr
 Saint Valentine, patron saint archive
 Saint Valentine's Key

Notes

Bibliography
 Johannes Baptista de Rossi et Ludovicus Duchesne, ed., (1894). Martyrologium Hieronymianum: ad fidem codicum adiectis prolegomenis. Ex Actibus Sanctorum Novembris, Tomi II, pars prior. Bruxellis. lxxxii, 195 p. S. Valentinus, p. 20.
 De Voragine, Jacobus. The Life of Saint Valentine. In Legenda Aurea, compiled around 1275

 Hülsen, Christian (1927). Le chiese di Roma nel medio evo: cataloghi ed appunti. Florence. CXV, 640 p. (On-line text).
 Thurston, Herbert (1933). St. Valentine, Martyr. In Alban Butler's Lives of the Saints, Vol. II, pp. 214–217. New York. 409 pp.
 Aigrain, René (1953). Hagiographie: Ses sources, ses méthodes, son histoire. Paris.
 Amore, Agostino. S. Valentino di Roma o di Terni?, Antonianum 41 (1966), pp. 260–277.
 Kellogg, Alfred (1972). "Chaucer's St. Valentine: A Conjecture." In Kellogg, Chaucer, Langland, Arthur. 1972, pp. 108–145.
 Amore, Agostino (1975). I martiri di Roma. Roma, Antonianum. 322 p.
 Kelly, Henry Ansgar (1986). Chaucer and the cult of Saint Valentine. Leiden, the Netherlands. 185 p.
 Martyrologium Romanum. Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2001, p. 141 (February 14). 773 p.
 In Search of St. Valentine. Scotsman.com blog, 14 February 2005.
 Oruch, Jack B. "St. Valentine, Chaucer, and Spring in February", Speculum 56 (July 1981), pp. 534–565.
 Schoepflin, Maurizio and Seren, Linda (2000). San Valentino di Terni : storia, tradizione, devozione. Morena (Roma). 111 p.
 Paglia, Vincenzo. "Saint Valentine's Message". Washington Post, February 15, 2007.
 Saint Valentine: Biography. Diocese of Terni. 2009.
 Thurston, Herbert (2015). St. Valentine. The Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 15.
 St Valentine of Terni – English translation of his "Passio" (BHL 8460)
 St Valentine of Rome – English translation of his "Passio" (BHL 8465) – actually an extract from the Acts of Marius, Martha, Audifax and Habbakuk (BHL 5543).

Year of birth unknown
269 deaths
People from Terni
Saints from Roman Italy
Holiday characters
3rd-century Christian martyrs
3rd-century Romans
Medieval legends
Valentine's Day
Burials in Italy
Anglican saints

Saint Valentine


The Kanda University of International Studies is a private university in Makuhari, Chiba, Japan.

History
Kanda Institute of Foreign Language (KIFL) was built in 1963 before Kanda University of International Studies (KUIS). After then, it was established in 1973 as fraternity school.
Crosscultural Communication Institute was also transferred to KUIS at the same time.
Language Teaching Institute was established in KUIS at one time.

Japanese Language Institute was set up in 1992.
KUIS was chosen as Center of Excellence from Ministry of Education, Outline, Sports, Science and Technology in 1996.

Department of overseas student and Millennium House were established in 2000.

Department of International Communication was set up in 2001.
In addition, Department of International Language and Culture was also established in the same time.

SACLA (Self-Access, Communication, Learner Autonomy) was built in 2002.

Buildings
Kanda University of International Studies has six buildings: Millennium House, cafeteria, and gym.

Building 6 (SACLA)
Building 6 is called SACLA. "SACLA" means "Self-Access, Communication, Learner Autonomy" and SACLA is divided into two departments. It has electronic devices like computers and printers that are used by the students.

Second floor is SALC. "SALC" means "Self-Access Leaning Center" and SALC has various materials. In TV and DVD Area, students can watch movies which they borrowed from SALC counter. There are also listening stations and speaking booths to help students to improve their listening and speaking skills. Speaking booths have recorders so students can record their speaking and check it by themselves. Listening stations offers students CDs that they can listen to improve their listening.
There are some convenient rooms called Multi-Purpose Rooms. In these room, students can use computer and enjoy watching and listening CD's and DVD's.

English Language Institute Lounge (ELI Lounge) is available for use freely. It is a place where people can talk in English.

Building 7 (Library, MULC)
Building 7 has three stories and contains the library,"MULC", and cafe.
The first floor is the library which contains over 160,000 books, including books written in English and other languages. It also deals in more than 400 academic journals, magazines,and newspapers from all over the world.
Students can research books and materials easily by using computers.
Those computers have search function and give users detailed information about where the book is in library, what genre the book is, and whether or not it may be borrowed.
There are sofas and desks so students can study by themselves or read books.
In the library, students can also use audio-cassettes and video-cassettes for classes and personal studies.
Computer rooms are available for use computers and printer if the rooms has any vacancies.

The second floor is called "MULC". It stands for "Multilingual Communication Center".
MULC has eight different booths: China, Spain, Korea, Brazil, Portugal, Vietnam, Indonesia, and International Area.
Each booth is decorated with each countries' colors and these booths have some books and traditional clothes that is connected to the country's culture.
Students can learn about the country by touching those things.

The third floor is cafe. Students can eat foods, and some dessert.
Cafe has over 200 seats and those seats are composed of indoor and outdoor.
When it's fine day, students can enjoy having foods with landscape on outdoor seat.

Millennium House
Millennium House is a multipurpose hall made in 2000. This hall offers students opportunities to take various workshops, for example,a lecture to learn how to act Japanese Drama, a lecture to learn how to play the shamisen: three-stringed Japanese instrument.
This building is used by students to take place some concert. Jazz club and dance club sometimes do their event.

Department
Kanda University of International Studies has six departments.
English department is the largest. The other departments are Chinese, Spanish, Korean, Language and Culture, and International Communication.
All students in the department of English have to study other languages besides English. They chose at least one language as elective subject within twelve languages: Chinese, Spanish, Korean, French, German, Russia, Italy, Arabic, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Thai.

Department of English set up "Interpretation and Translation course" in 2009. This course was made for students who aim to become a translator or an interpreter.

Events
There are many events in a year at KUIS. In May, the international friendship soccer tournament is held. Many foreign soccer teams come to KUIS to play soccer. In July, wafuku day is held at SALC. ELI teachers and students wear yukata. In October, the English conversation for children is held. Many children come to KUIS to learn English. Moreover, Halloween party is held. ELI teachers and students disguise. The contest of disguise is also held. There are many food like pizza, snacks and so on. In November, Hamakaze festival is held. There are many stalls outside. KUIS has many international departments, so there are national foods, national music lives, shows of national clothes and so on. In December, a Christmas party is held at SALC. A smorgasbord of food is served. ELI teachers and students enjoy playing games.

Other websites
 Kanda University of International Studies: English website
 Kanda University of International Studies: Japanese website
 Kanda Gaigo Group website
 British Hills website

References

Colleges and universities in Japan
1987 establishments in Japan
Organizations based in Chiba Prefecture


In the United States, Super Tuesday commonly refers to the Tuesday in early February or March of a presidential election year when the greatest number of states hold primary elections to select delegates to national conventions. Each party's presidential candidates are officially nominated.

More delegates can be won on Super Tuesday than on any other single day of the primary calendar, and accordingly, candidates seeking the presidency traditionally must do well on this day to secure their party's nomination.

In 2008, Super Tuesday was February 5; 24 states held primaries or caucuses on this date, with 52 percent of all pledged Democratic Party delegates and 41 percent of the total Republican Party delegates at stake.

Events in the United States
United States presidential campaigns

Super Tuesday


A canoe is a small boat, that is often driven by manpower or womanpower, but also commonly sailed. Canoes are pointed at both ends and usually open on top, but can be covered. Canoes are known as "Paddle boats" in some small towns in the south of Australia. The use of a paddle or "salvatore" is used to propel the vehicle. The most famous of rowers include the Szwedo of Luke in which he was the first man to complete 4 laps the woodend river in less than 3 days, beating the record of 4 laps in 4 days.

The canoe is propelled by the use of paddles, with the number of paddlers depending on the size of the canoe (most commonly 2). Paddlers face in the direction of travel, either seated or kneeling. In this way paddling a canoe can be contrasted with rowing, where the rowers face away from the direction of travel. Paddles may be single-bladed or double-bladed.

Gallery

Related pages
Canoe racing

Other websites
 International Canoe Federation Homepage
 Canadian Canoe Museum
 Wooden Canoe Heritage Association
 Canoe

Boats

Canoe


Summer is one of the four seasons. It is the hottest season of the year. In some places, summer is the wettest season (with the most rain), and in other places, it is a dry season. Four seasons are found in areas which are not too hot or too cold. Summer happens to the north and south sides of the Earth at opposite times of the year. In the north part of the world, summer takes place between the months of June and September, and in the south part of the world, it takes place between December and March. This is because when the north part of the Earth points towards the Sun, the south part points away.

Many people in rich countries travel in summer, to seaside resorts, beaches, camps or picnics. In some countries, they celebrate things in the summer as well as enjoying cool drinks. Other countries get snow in the summer just like winter.

Seasons

Summer


Emanuel David Ginóbili (born 28 July 1977) is an Argentine retired professional basketball player. Over a 23-season professional career, he became one of only two players to have won a EuroLeague title, an NBA championship, and an Olympic gold medal. A four-time NBA champion, Ginóbili was a member of the San Antonio Spurs for his entire NBA career. Along with Spurs teammates Tim Duncan and Tony Parker, he was known as one of the "Big Three".

Ginóbili comes from a family of professional basketball players. He spent the early part of his career in Argentina and Italy, where he holds dual citizenship, and won several individual and team honors. His stint with Italian club Kinder Bologna was particularly successful; he won two Italian League MVP awards, the EuroLeague Finals MVP and the 2001 EuroLeague championship and Triple Crown. Selected as the 57th overall pick in the 1999 NBA draft, Ginóbili joined the Spurs in 2002, and soon became a key player for the team. In addition to his four NBA championships, Ginóbili was named an All-Star in 2005 and 2011, and has been selected twice for the All-NBA Team. In 2007–08, he was named the NBA Sixth Man of the Year. Ginóbili announced his retirement on 27 August 2018.

1977 births
Argentine sportspeople
Competitors at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Competitors at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Living people
Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Argentine Olympic bronze medalists
Argentine Olympic gold medalists
San Antonio Spurs players
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
People from Bahía Blanca

Manu Ginóbili


Microform is a name given to special photographic films. Microforms contain reduced images of documents. Usually, documents stored on microform are reduced about 25 times. Microform is mainly used for archival purposes.

There are three common formats:
Microfilm, which comes in reels of film.
Aperture card, This contains additional digital data (as a punch card).
Microfiche, a flat sheet with many pages.

Properly stored (room temperature, 50% humidity), microform should be able to last up to 500 years.

Images

Photography
Storage devices

Microform


On 4 December 2005, tens of thousands of people in Hong Kong protested for democracy and called on the Government to allow universal and equal suffrage. The protesters demanded the right to directly elect the Chief Executive and all the seats of the Legislative Council. They also urged the government to abolish the appointed seats of the district councils, in response to the limitations of the government's reform proposal.

Organised by the Civil Human Rights Front and pro-democracy lawmakers, the protest began at the football pitches in the Victoria Park. The march, from the park towards the Central Government Offices in Central, started at 3 p.m.

There were several estimates of the crowd turnout ranging from 63,000 to over 250,000 (see the section Controversy over turnout below).

Background

The protest was organised by the Civil Human Rights Front and pro-democracy lawmakers of the territory, to oppose the electoral reform as proposed by Chief Executive Donald Tsang, and to demand the implementation of universal and equal suffrage in Hong Kong. The theme colour for the march was black.

Under the current system, the Chief Executive is selected by an 800-member Election Committee, consisting of members (electors) as elected from respective sectors, mainly representing business and professional interests. Only half of the sixty members of the Legislative Council are directly elected by the public, with the rest representing different sectors of the community, mainly business and professionals.

In his reform package, revealed in the Constitutional Development Task Force Report No.5 that was widely considered to be backed by Beijing, Tsang proposed to double the number of electors to the Chief Executive election of 2007 to 1600 members and add ten seats to the Legislative Council (to seventy seats).  The former would enable all members of district councils, including appointed ones, to be member of the Election Committee and the latter would increase the number of seats elected through geographical and functional constituencies by five each. However, the proposal did not include a clear timetable for universal and equal suffrage, and many doubt it helps to make any meaningful progress in democracy.

See also:
Democratisation in Hong Kong
2004 Hong Kong legislative election

Remarks on the march
Most of the participants in the march comprised ordinary Hong Kong residents with mainstream social and political views. Notable remarks by individuals from the business, social or political elite of Hong Kong included the following.

Gordon Wu, chairman of property developers Hopewell Holdings Ltd, criticised marchers by stating that deciding reform proposals through demonstrations reflect mobocracy rather than the rule of law.
Stanley Ho, gambling magnate in Macau, estimated four days prior to the demonstration that the number of participants would be no more than 50,000. According to Ho, Hong Kong is "not ready" for democracy as most Hongkongers "do not know much about politics". By way of support of this view Ho indicated that he had not himself received political education in Hong Kong between kindergarten and university.
Anson Chan, the former Chief Secretary participated in the march and criticised both the Hong Kong government and Beijing for the lack of real democratic reform.

Controversy over turnout
As in the annual vigil in memory of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, the 1 July marches, and other public marches and assemblies, the turnout figure is a matter of controversy, since it is difficult to accurately estimate.  With different methods of estimation, the organisers estimated there were at least 250,000 participants, and the police projected 63,000. A study team from the University of Hong Kong estimated 80,000 to 100,000 people. A University of Hong Kong actuary lecturer and his team estimated 60,000 to 80,000.  The different methods used by the organisers and the study teams contributed to discrepancies. The police declined to disclose the method they had adopted, saying that their figure is for internal reference and arrangement.

Aftermath

Rumour of Beijing offer for suffrage in 2017

Pro-democracy lawmaker Ronny Tong said he was contacted by a middleman and that he would not agree to the 2017 date, because too many leaders will have changed in Hong Kong and Beijing before then. Democratic Party chairman Lee Wing Tat responded to the rumours by saying that 2017 was too late, and 2012 was the latest date he would accept. James To, also of the Democratic Party, said he was contacted by someone in the PRC government asking for his reaction if Beijing proposed "letting Hong Kong have democracy as early as 2012 if conditions are mature, and not later than 2017." It is unknown what To's response was.

However, according to Xinhua News Agency, the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong responded by saying these reports "are groundless".

The Vote
Report No.5 was voted on by LegCo on 21 December. This legislation needed 40 votes in the 60 seat LegCo to pass. The 25 pro-democracy legislators were expected to vote against it, although there were continuing rumours that some might switch their position and supported it. The report needed 6 pro-democracy legislators supporting it to pass. The radio program The Tipping Point ran a survey on which legislators are most likely to vote for it.

Eventually, with the opposition of 24 pro-democracy legislators (except for Lau Chin Shek who abstained), both the election reform proposals for Chief Executive and LegCo were turned down.

See also
 2005 Hong Kong electoral reform
 Tell me (advertisement)
 Chris Patten
 Hong Kong Front
 Elections in Hong Kong
 Pro-democracy camp
 2010 Hong Kong Democracy Protests

References

External links

Website of Civil Human Rights Front
Press release of the government
CE speaks to the media after the public rally
Details of the Fifth Report of the Constitutional Development Task Force:

Media coverage
RTÉ
BBC
AP
IHT
Reuters
AFP
OhmyNews International

History of Hong Kong
2005 in Hong Kong
Protest marches in Hong Kong
2005 protests
Protests in China
December 2005 events in China
 Hong Kong

December 2005 protest for democracy in Hong Kong


St. Gallen is a city in the eastern part of Switzerland. It is near Lake Constance. St. Gallen is the capital of the canton of St. Gallen. The city was founded as a monastery by the Irish monk Gallus in the 7th century. In the Middle Ages a city grew around the monastery. The role of the monastery (and the city) was very important in the Middle Ages. One of the three remaining manuscripts of the Nibelungenlied are from the monastery of St.Gallen. Today, the monastery, with its library, and parts of the old town are classed as an UNESCO World Heritage site.

The city is about 675 meters above sea level and is in a part of Switzerland with many hills. As of 2004, about 70,000 people lived in the city. The urban area has about 100,000 to 120,000 people.

In the 18th and 19th century the city became known for its embroideries, which are still very well-known. Every four years, there is the St.Galler Kinderfest (Children's festival). This is a large representation of the primary (and some secondary) schools in the city. It's usually in early summer.

The city also has an university, which is known for its courses in economics, and (to a lesser extent), law.

In Switzerland, the city is also known for St.Galler Bratwurst, and a fair centered around agriculture, held once a year, in autumn. That fair is called OLMA (Ostschweizerische Land- und Milchwirtschaftsausstellung, roughly translates to Exhibition of agriculture and milk economics of eastern Switzerland).

In early summer there is also an open-air rock festival. Its called Open-Air St.Gallen, and held in a valley, near the river. Since the weather is not always as good, in many years it's a battle with the mud.

Other websites

 Official website of the city of St.Gallen

Imperial free cities

St. Gallen


Wimbledon usually refers to:

 Wimbledon, Lunnon, a destrict o soothwast Lunnon
 The Championships, Wimbledon, a lawn tennis tournament, ane o the fower Grand Slam championships

It mey an aa refer tae:

Places
Wimbledon, Lunnon
 Municipal Borough o Wimbledon, an umwhile borough
 Wimbledon (ecclesiastical pairish)
 Wimbledon (UK Pairlament constituency) based thare
 Wimbledon station, a major railway station, a tube station an a Tramlink stap in the suburb
 Wimbledon Chase railway station, a railway station in the aurie
 South Wimbledon tube station, a Lunnon Unnergrund station in the aurie
 Wimbledon Park tube station, a Lunnon Unnergrund station in the aurie
 Wimbledon College, Roman Catholic seicontar schuil
Ither
 Wimbledon, North Dakota, a smaa toun in the Unitit States
 Wimbledon, New Zealand, a locality in the Tararua Destrict o New Zealand

Sport
 The Championships, Wimbledon, a lawn coort tennis toornament, ane o the fower Grand Slam championships
 The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, venue for the toornament
 Wimbledon (film), a feectional film set aroond the championships
 Wimbledon Effect, nickname for the success o foreign financial firms in Lunnon, analogous tae the success o foreign players in the championships
Radio Wimbledon, the offeecial radio station for the Wimbledon Tennis Championships
 Wimbledon RFC, ane o a nummer o rugby clubs based in Wimbledon
 AFC Wimbledon, a professional fitbaa club set up bi umwhile fans o Wimbledon F.C.
 AFC Wimbledon Ladies, a ladies fitbaa club, with affiliation tae AFC Wimbledon
 Wimbledon F.C., a umwhile fitbaa club (1899-2004), nou relocatit ensewhaur
 Wimbledon Dons, umwhile speedway team
 Wimbledon Stadium, a dog racin track locatit in Earlsfield in soothwast Lunnon, Ingland
 Wimbledon Cup (disambiguation) – ony o several competeetions an thair trophies

Ither
 Edward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon (1572–1638)
 SS Wimbledon, a Breetish ship, an a legal case named for it, adjudicatit bi the Permanent Coort o Internaitional Juistice in 1923
 Wimbledon, Mimi's cat frae What About Mimi?

Wimbledon


Ivo Tijardović (; 18 September 1895 – 19 March 1976) was a Croatian composer, writer and painter. A member of the Unitary National Liberation Front, he served as the 47th Mayor of Split, during the city's World War II occupation by Fascist Italy, as head of its underground resistance government set up by the Yugoslav Partisans of Josip Broz Tito.

Tijardović was born in the city of Split (then part of the Kingdom of Dalmatia in Austria-Hungary) and studied music in Split and in Vienna, where he also studied architecture. He graduated from the Zagreb drama school in 1922. He then worked as conductor and stage designer at the Split Municipal Theatre (1922–29) before joining the music department of the Edison Bell Penkala recording company in Zagreb (1929–33). Returning to Split, he became director of the Croatian National Theatre, stage director of the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, and director of the State Symphony Orchestra (later, the Zagreb Philharmonic).  As a composer, he relied on folklore and a national musical expression, especially of his native region of Dalmatia. He composed eight operettas, the best known of which are Mala Floramye ("Little Floramye") and Splitski Akvarel ("The Split Aquarelle"), which conjure the magic of Split between the two world wars. His operas dealt with historical themes. He also painted and worked as an illustrator.

During World War II, when Split was annexed and occupied by Fascist Italy, Ivo Tijardović joined the Unitary National Liberation Front (Jedinstveni narodnooslobodilački front, JNOF), the umbrella organization and political coalition behind the Yugoslav Partisans resistance movement. He soon became active in the city's interim resistance government set-up by the Partisans, the National Liberation Committee (Narodnooslobodilački odbor, NOO), and on 15 May 1942 he became its president (mayor), a post which he held until September 1943. The same year he left the city and joined the Partisans in the countryside. During the remainder of the war, he served as a member of the Croatian parliament, the ZAVNOH, and as President of the Regional National Liberation Committee for Dalmatia. During this period, he reworked the old Split patriotic song "Marjane, Marjane", which soon became the city's anthem in the form he published. He returned to the city after its final liberation in 1944, and revitalized its theatrical scene.

He died in Zagreb, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia.

Works
 Operettas
 Pierrot Ilo, 1922 Split
 Mala Floramye (Little Floramye), 1926 Split
 Splitski Akvarel, 1928 Split
 Zapovijed maršala Marmonta (Marshal Marmont's Order), 1929 Split
 Jurek i Štefek, 1931 Zagreb
 Musicals
 Katarina Velika (Katherine the Great, 1929 Zagreb
 Operas
 Dimnjaci uz Jadran (Smokestacks on the Adriatic), 1951 Zagreb
 Marko Polo, 1960 Zagreb
 Dioklecijan (Diocletian), 1963 Zagreb

Sources
Koraljka Kos. The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, edited by Stanley Sadie (1992).  and

1895 births
1976 deaths
Croatian opera composers
Croatian classical composers
Musicians from Split, Croatia
People from the Kingdom of Dalmatia
Vladimir Nazor Award winners
Burials at Mirogoj Cemetery
20th-century classical composers
Male classical composers
Male opera composers
20th-century male musicians

Ivo Tijardović


Jon Brion (born December 11, 1963) is an American rock and pop multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer. He was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. His mother was a jazz singer, his father a band director at Yale, his brother is an arranger and sister a violinist.

The Bats
Brion and Bill Murphy began writing together in New Haven, Connecticut. They recorded some demo tracks in makeshift apartment studios, and worked out their arrangements at Yale University Campus. They enlisted the talents of bassist Don "Riff" Fertman to form The Bats (unlike the New Zealand band of the same name). In 1982, the trio created a imaginative set of pop songs in a small studio in Connecticut. A single called "Popgun" followed by an LP entitled How Pop Can You Get? were released on the independent label Gustav. The album failed to chart, and the group was disbanded.

Discography

Studio albums
How Pop Can You Get? (with The Bats, 1982)
Ro Sham Bo (with The Grays, 1994)
Meaningless (solo, 2001)

Film scores
 Hard Eight (with Michael Penn) (1996)
 Magnolia (1999)
 Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2003)
 I ♥ Huckabees (2004)
 The Break-Up (2006)

As producer
 Aimee Mann, Whatever, (1993)
 Aimee Mann, I'm with Stupid, (1995)
 Rufus Wainwright, Rufus Wainwright, (1998)
 Eleni Mandell, Wishbone, (1998)
 Robyn Hitchcock, Jewels for Sophia, (1998)
 Robyn Hitchcock, A Star for Bram, (1999)
 Fiona Apple, When the Pawn..., (1999)
 The Crystal Method - "Bad Stone" (1997), "Over the Line" (2001), "Realizer" (2004)
 Elliott Smith, From a Basement on a Hill, (unreleased version, recorded 2001)
 Brad Mehldau, Largo, (2002)
 Rhett Miller, The Instigator, (2002)
 Evan Dando, Baby I'm Bored, (2003)
 Fiona Apple, Extraordinary Machine, (unreleased version, recorded 2002-2003)
 Kanye West, Late Registration (as co-executive producer and co-producer on several tracks), (2005)
 Marjorie Fair, Self Help Serenade (as co-executive producer), (2005)
 Kanye West, Graduation (as co-producer), (2007)
 Spoon (band), "The Underdog," ''Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, (2007)

Other websites
 Jon Brion Unofficial site
 Jon Brion's Official Website

1963 births
Living people
Musicians from New Jersey
Singers from New Jersey

Jon Brion


Field Marshal  Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig KT GCB OM GCVO KCIE ADC (born in Edinburgh, Scotland on 19 June 1861, died in London on 29 January 1928) was a British Army general in World War I.

He was the senior commander of the British forces in France from 1915 until the end of the war. Most notably, he led them during the Battle of the Somme, the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele), the Spring Offensive and the final Hundred Days Offensive.

Historians have often argued over whether Haig was a good general. In the years after the war, he was popular. After his death, some historians and politicians wrote books criticising Haig. They argued he made mistakes that led to a lot of casualties among British troops, especially at the Somme and Passchendaele; he has been nicknamed 'Butcher Haig' or 'the Butcher of the Somme'. David Lloyd George, the Prime Minister during the later years of the war, also did not agree with Haig. One of the best known books criticising Haig was Alan Clark's book The Donkeys (1961). This is known as the 'lions led by donkeys' view: the idea that Britain had great soldiers but bad generals.

All the same, some veterans, and academic historians have argued that Haig was a great general. For example, John Bourne notes that Haig helped the army use new weapons and technology. John Terraine argues that while the British Army lost a lot of men, this is not surprising given the size of the fighting, and other countries lost far more. Likewise, Gordon Corrigan argues that as a percentage of the population, Britain lost half as many people in the war as France and Germany.

References

1861 births
1928 deaths

British Army generals
People from Edinburgh
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Knights of the Thistle
Order of Merit
Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order
Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire

Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig


In geometry, a digon  is a polygon with two sides (edges) and two vertices. Its construction is degenerate in a Euclidean plane because either the two sides would coincide or one or both would have to be curved; however, it can be easily visualised in elliptic space.

A regular digon has both angles equal and both sides equal and is represented by Schläfli symbol {2}. It may be constructed on a sphere as a pair of 180 degree arcs connecting antipodal points, when it forms a lune.

The digon is the simplest abstract polytope of rank 2.

A truncated digon, t{2} is a square, {4}. An alternated digon, h{2} is a monogon, {1}.

Shapes
2

Digon


The municipalities of Sweden () are the local government units of Sweden. There are 290 municipalities in Sweden. The municipalities are responsible for many social issues, like schools, kindergartens and the care for older and disabled people.

Since 1971, all of Sweden is divided into the same kind of local government units, municipalities. The old town concept was abolished, even if the word town is still in use in everyday language.

Other websites

Municipalities of Sweden


Today, about 10 million girls around the world are in an organization called Girl Guides. It started over 100 years ago. Around 1907 in England, Robert Baden-Powell started an organization called Boy Scouts. He taught boys how to camp and live outdoors. In 1909, Baden-Powell held a big event for Boy Scouts. Many girls said they wanted to join, too. Baden-Powell wanted to have boys and girls in different groups, so he started Girl Guides that year. In 1910, his younger sister Agnes became the leader. The girls learned how to camp, and they also learned how to take care of children. By 1912, there were Girl Guides in many other countries such as Australia, Denmark, and the United States. All Girl Guides learn a lot about life and things that are not taught at school. They have special rules about the way to live. They have to try and do something nice for someone else every day. When something bad happens, they must be strong. They must be ready for anything, so their slogan is "Be Prepared." In 1926, leaders of the Girl Guides from around the world met in a town in New York. At the meeting, they decided to make a special day for Girl Guides in all countries. They chose February 22 because it was the birthday of Robert Baden-Powell. It is called World Thinking Day. Now, on this day every year, Girl Guides around the world celebrate with special events and study about other countries and cultures.

Related pages
Scouting

References

Youth organizations
Scouting

Girl Guides


A mononymous person is a person who is known and addressed by a single name. Such names are called mononyms. In some cases, the person was known by a composed name (polynym) before, and selected a single name. Today, this is often the case with artists, who select a stage name.

In many cultures, people only had one name. This is the case of Ancient Greece. Composed names were only used to avoid confusion. Both Zeno of Elea and Zeno of Citium were called Zeno, but the origin was added to avoid confusing the two. In Ancient Rome, people had a composed name which included a clan name and a family name, which did not change. While we refer to Cicero as Cicero, his real name was Marcus Tullius Cicero. Sometimes he is called Tully in English. Other people called Tullius include Manius Tullius Longus, a Roman consul, about 500 BC, and Quintus Tullius Cicero, one of Caesars generals. Nero was known as Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus.

After the Romans, composed names started to be more commonplace in the Middle Ages. In the Americas, mononyms survived until the early 20th century. Examples include Pocahontas (1595-1617) and Geronimo (1829-1909). Pocahontas married and English settler, and took the name Rebecca Rolfe after her marriage.

Royals usually adopt a single name. Sometimes, a numeral is added. That way, Elizabeth I (1533-1603) and Elizabeth II (born 1926) both have a surname, but it is not used.

Similarly, popes select a single name, when they are elected. The current pope is called Jorge Mario Bergoglio, but since his becoming pope, everyone has called him Pope Francis.

Names

Mononymous person


Ramana also spelled Ramany, Romana (), is an urban-type settlement and municipality in Azerbaijan, within the Sabunchu raion of Baku. Population (2005): 8,800.

The settlement was possibly founded by the Roman troops of Lucius Julius Maximus from Legio XII Fulminata in c. 84-96 AD,  and may derive its name from the Latin Romana.
Among the facts that strengthen this hypothesis are the military-topographical map of Caucasus published in 1903 by the Russian administration which spells name of town as "Romana"; various Roman artefacts found in Absheron region, and also old inhabitants' referring to the town as Romani.

Famous Azerbaijani jazz musician Vagif Mustafazadeh had Ramanian roots. Ramana is mentioned several times in the novels The Nodes and The Moustached Aga by the Azeri writer Suleyman Veliyev who is himself from Ramana. The second work describes another feature of the settlement, a big reservoir, which is called "the settlement's beacon" due to its height (18 m). The reservoir supplied water to the oil fields in Zagulba, Zabrat and Balakhany. In the Balakhany-Sabunchi-Ramana oil field a new technology for identification of oil thin layers was originally tested. A route connects Ramana with the Heydar Aliyev International Airport.

Local landmarks include the four-storeyed castle of the mid-14th century and the mosque of 1323. The castle has a 1.5 m thick walls and a rectangular tower (9x7.5 m, height: 13 m).

In May 2007, a new district opened within Ramana for the housing of more than 50 families and 400 other internally displaced persons from other regions of Azerbaijan.  The resettlement area includes a new school for 360 pupils and other administrative buildings as well as a music school.

Gallery

External links
  "Бакинские Деревни" - Гобустан, Мардакян, Рамана
  Great Soviet Encyclopedia entry

References

Villages in Azerbaijan
Populated places in Baku

Ramana, Azerbaijan


French Style is Dean Martin's first LP for Reprise Records. Recorded during February 1962, it features French-themed popular songs and chansons arranged by Neal Hefti. Among them "C'est si bon," which frequently appears on Dean Martin compilation albums; a rendition of Edith Piaf's classic "La Vie en rose"; the title song from the MGM classic Gigi; and two classic Cole Porter tunes. Originally released as Reprise LP R(S)-6021 ('S' distinguishing the stereo pressing), the album's tracks made their CD debut as part of the chronologically sequenced Bear Family box set Everybody Loves Somebody (BCD 16343). A subsequent two-on-one CD (together with Martin's succeeding album Dino Latino) by Collectors' Choice restored the original running order.

Track listing

References

Dean Martin albums
1962 albums
Reprise Records albums
French-language albums
Concept albums
Albums arranged by Neal Hefti
Albums conducted by Neal Hefti

French Style


Arthropods (Greek language for "joint-legged") are a large group of invertebrate animals. Insects, spiders, crabs, shrimp, millipedes, and centipedes are all arthropods. In the scientific classification, all arthropods are members of the phylum Arthropoda. Arthropods have segmented body, an exoskeleton and legs with joints. Most arthropods live on land, but some live in water. Arthropods have by far the greatest number of species of any animal group. Arthropods are a source of food for many animals, including humans.

Diversity
Scientists know of more than 1 million species of arthropods. 80% of all known animal species are arthropods. Many more species have not yet been described.

Most arthropod species are insects. "Insects are the most diverse organisms in the history of life".

Most arthropods live on land. The phylum Arthropoda is the only phylum of invertebrates that mostly live on land. But crustaceans (crabs, shrimp and their relatives) mostly live in water.

Arthropods are also the first phylum to develop genuine flight.

Description
Arthropods have a hard exoskeleton. The exoskeleton reduces the loss of water (dessication). This helps them to live on land without drying out.

Classification
Arthropods are made up of four groups of living animals and one group of extinct animals:
 Chelicerates include horseshoe crabs, spiders, mites, and scorpions.
 Myriapods include millipedes and centipedes.
 Crustaceans include lobsters, crabs, barnacles, crayfish and shrimp. Most crustaceans live in water.
 Hexapods include insects and a few other organisms. Hexapods have six legs.
 Trilobites are a group of extinct arthropods. Trilobites all lived in oceans. Trilobites disappeared in the Permian–Triassic extinction event, about 252 million years ago. The trilobites are the second most famous type of fossils, after the dinosaurs.

Images

References

Arthropod


The Land Rover G4 Challenge is a global adventure competition, and as the successor to the Camel Trophy it has off-road driving at its core. As of the cancelled 2008/2009 event, the G4 Challenge was to be run in support of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Land Rover announced the cancellation of the G4 Challenge on 18 December 2008 due to the current global financial situation.

Selection
The 18-month programme began with National Selections held within each participating nation, followed by an International Selections event at Eastnor Castle in the UK. Each stage of the Challenge included athletic activities such as mountain biking, kayaking, rock-climbing, abseiling, trail running and rope work as well as off-road driving and mental aptitude challenges.

2003 G4 Challenge and launch
In 2003, the first Land Rover G4 Challenge launched with 16 participating nations and traversed the USA, South Africa, and Australia over the course of 28 days. The 2003 Challenge was won by Belgian fighter pilot Rudi Thoelen. Rudi declined the prize of a brand new Range Rover, opting instead for two new Defenders.
The Team Spirit Award was won by Tim Pickering from the UK, this award was given by the other competitors for the person who in their view contributed most to the race.

2006 G4 Challenge
18 nations participated in the 2006 G4 Challenge which was staged across Thailand, Laos, Brazil and Bolivia. Land Rover delivered a more vehicle-focused event in 2006 after some criticism that the 2003 event focused too strongly on the adventure-sports element. South African adventure racer Martin Dreyer was the eventual winner of the 2006 event. Dreyer recalled:
"The Land Rover G4 Challenge was the best experience of my life. I mean, nothing has come close to it in terms of the enormity of it. The experience was out of this world."
The Team Spirit Award was again won by the UK competitor Brian Reynolds, who said:
"I'm a little surprised to have won that, I think it's because I had a lot of bad luck but was able to keep a positive attitude throughout."

Commitment to the Red Cross
In 2007, the Land Rover G4 Challenge announced a partnership with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, which would have seen the programme aim to generate more than £1 million over the course of the next two Challenges.

2008/9 G4 Challenge and cancellation of the G4 Challenge
The 2008/9 Challenge was intended to be staged in Mongolia with selections events in 2008 and 2009 and the main event later in 2009.  the event was billed as: "a thrilling three-week off-road driving and multi sport adventure in the wilds of Asia". 18 countries would have competed. However Land Rover announced the cancellation of the event on 18 December 2008 due to the current global financial situation. It is currently unclear if there will be future events.

"Given the severity of the global economic downturn and trading conditions, we need to make some tough decisions and that means prioritising our budgets on new product launches. We are disappointed for the competitors who have shown so much commitment and put tremendous effort into succeeding as representatives of their nation. We have and will continue to take swift and decisive actions for the benefit of the business; unfortunately that means the Land Rover G4 Challenge has to come to an early close."
Phil Popham, Land Rover Managing Director

The 2008/9 G4 Challenge event intended to focus in particular on strengthening Land Rover's links with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The next two G4 Challenge Events aimed to raise over £1 million for the charity. Despite the cancellation of the G4 Challenge both Land Rover and the Red Cross intend to continue their partnership:

"This relationship is something Land Rover highly values and we are proud that it helps to save lives. We will continue to build on the incredibly successful partnership we have with the International Federation and the funds generated to date prove this success"
Phil Popham, Land Rover Managing Director

"The International Federation's partnership with the Land Rover G4 Challenge has already had a substantial impact on the lives of vulnerable people in many countries and we are well ahead of the targets we set. We highly value the support we have received and look forward to strengthening relationships between Land Rover and national Red Cross Red Crescent Societies around the world."
Paul Jenkins, on behalf of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

The 2009 G4 Challenge would have seen the introduction of several revisions to the previous Challenge composition. Land Rover announced a slight change to the team dynamics for the 2008/9 Challenge, there would be one male and one female competitor from each country competing as a team with their own team Land Rover against other participating countries. In the previous Challenges there had been one competitor per country, male or female and countries were not allocated their own Land Rover. Instead the entire range of Land Rovers - Range Rover, Freelander, Discovery and Defender were driven by each competitor over the course of the event in individual vehicle based challenges which supplemented the adventure sports element.

The 2009 event was also highly anticipated by Land Rover enthusiasts because it intended to return to a more vehicle based event, with a stronger focus on the competitive off-road driving element in the vein of the Camel Trophy, rather than the multiple adventure sports which the previous Challenges had emphasized.

At the point the 2008/9 Challenge was cancelled selectors had narrowed the UK qualifiers down to a final four: Sarah Davies, Bruce Duncan, Maria Leijerstam and Andy Grieve. They would have represented the UK in the February 2009 International qualifier competing against the top four qualifiers from the other 17 competing nations. The four representatives from each country would have been reduced to two after the International qualifier, judged on their performance this final selection. The final two representatives from each country (one male and one female) would have gone on to represent their country in the Challenge proper in Mongolia, in June 2009.

"I don't know any other event where you are doing all these sorts of things. You get so many different
great fun things to do. That's why I loved the Challenge so much. It was the perfect competition."
Alina McMaster, Australian competitor 2006.

Prize

In the 2003 and 2006 the prize for the winning competitor was a brand new Range Rover. However, this was intended to be altered for the 2009 event, the prize for the winning team would have been the donation of a Land Rover to their nation's Red Cross or Red Crescent Society.

Vehicles used

In 2003:

In 2006:

In 2009:

Although the 2009 Challenge was cancelled, a few vehicles were prepared and used as pre-event recce vehicles. The 2009 vehicles were decked out similarly to previously Challenge vehicles with the distinctive Tangiers Orange paintwork, but with new body decals emphasizing the G4 Challenge's new association with the Red Cross. At least two Defenders, two Discovery 3s (LR3s), two Freelander 2s (LR2), and one Range Rover were produced for the Recce in Mongolia in 2008 before the main 2009 event; For the actual G4 Challenge in 2009, the following were vehicles were prepared: six (6) Defender 110's, five (5) Defender 130's, Sixty Eight (68) Discovery 3s (LR3s), seven (7) Freelander 2s (LR2), and two (2) Range Rovers, eight (8) Range Rover Sports were produced. Visitors to the Solihull factory in the autumn of 2008 spotted a number of Tangiers Orange vehicles in the production stores.

See also

Camel Trophy
Land Rover

Notes

External links
 Official Website
 G4 Owners Club
 Mantec Website - suppliers of the off-road equipment fitted to the G4 Challenge vehicles

Rally racing series
Off-road racing
G4
Recurring sporting events established in 2003

Land Rover G4 Challenge


The Proclamation of Połaniec (also known as the Połaniec Manifesto; ), issued on 7 May 1794 by Tadeusz Kościuszko near the town of Połaniec, was one of the most notable events of Poland's Kościuszko Uprising, and the most famous legal act of the Uprising. It partially abolished serfdom in Poland, granting substantial civil liberties to all the peasants. The motives behind the Połaniec Proclamation were twofold: first, Kosciuszko, a liberal and reformer, believed that serfdom was an unfair system and should be ended; second, the uprising was in desperate need of recruits, and freeing the peasants would prompt many to enlist.

The proclamation provided the peasants with the personal freedom, right for assistance from the state against the abuses of the Polish nobility (szlachta) and gave them specific property rights to the land they cultivated. Although this new law never fully came into being and was boycotted by much of the szlachta, it also attracted many peasants to the ranks of the revolutionists, resulting in the formation of the famous kosynierzy peasant infantry, the most famous of whom, Bartosz Głowacki, became one of the heroes of the Uprising. It was the first time in Polish history when the peasants were officially regarded as part of the nation, the word being previously equal to szlachta.

This was the second legal act issued by the reformed Polish state (the first being the Constitution of May 3, considered the second oldest constitution in the world, and was the expansion of the 4th act of that constitution. It was also the last legal act of the Commonwealth, and just like the constitution that made it possible, it had a short lifespan and negligible impact on most of Commonwealth citizens. In many places where revolutionary forces could not enforce it, the local szlachta simply ignored the proclamation. However the news of the proclamation spread among the peasantry and was kept alive by the revolutionary and patriotic minded Poles. Over the next several decades, after the partitions of Poland ended the existence of Poland as a separate state, it became one of the symbols of Polish history.

The proclamation specifically granted to peasants:
 limited personal freedom
 reduction of serfdom during the current crisis and promise of further reduction after the end of hostilities
 freeing from serfdom of all peasants conscripted to the military
 the right not to be removed from their land
 limited right to appeal to the state's courts
 introduction of the dozorca office, the first government official representing the peasant will to the government. Dozorca represented about 1000 families, and he was supposed to enforce the proclamation

See also
 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, a similar act

References

Further reading
 James S. Pula, Thaddeus Kosciuszko: The Purest Son of Liberty, Hippocrene Books, 1998,  - contains the translation of the proclamation

Quote
Announce to the people that, according to law, they are under the protection of the nation's government; that the person subject to any lord, is liberated.

Kościuszko Uprising
Legal history of Poland
National human rights instruments
Serfdom
1794 in law
1794 in Poland
Proclamations
1794 documents
Polish Enlightenment

Proclamation of Połaniec


The Catholic Church historically observes the disciplines of fasting and abstinence at various times each year. For Catholics, fasting is the reduction of one's intake of food, while abstinence refers to refraining from something that is good, and not inherently sinful, such as meat. The Catholic Church teaches that all people are obliged by God to perform some penance for their sins, and that these acts of penance are both personal and corporeal. Bodily fasting is meaningless unless it is joined with a spiritual avoidance of sin. Basil of Caesarea gives the following exhortation regarding fasting:

Canon law in force

Latin Church
Contemporary canonical legislation for Catholics of the Latin Church sui juris (who comprise most Catholics) is rooted in the 1966 Apostolic Constitution of Pope Paul VI, Paenitemini, and codified in the 1983 Code of Canon Law (in Canons 1249–1253). According to Paenitemini, the 1983 Code of Canon Law and the Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium, on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and where possible, throughout Holy Saturday, both abstinence and fasting are required of Catholics who are not exempted for various reasons. The law of fasting binds those who have attained their majority until the beginning of the sixtieth. At that age, a person is automatically excused from the requirement to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, but, if health permits, may participate in the fast should he choose to do so. According to canon 1252 of the Code of Canon Law, all Latin Church Catholics are required to observe the laws of abstinence starting at the age of 14, and according to that, "even those who by reason of their age are not bound by the law of fasting and abstinence, are taught the true meaning of penance".

Furthermore, all Fridays of the year, except when a Solemnity falls upon the Friday, are bound by the law of abstinence.

Both Paenitemini and the 1983 Code of Canon Law permitted the Episcopal Conferences to propose adjustments of the laws on fasting and abstinence for their home territories. In some countries, the Bishops' Conferences have obtained from Rome the substitution of pious or charitable acts for abstinence from meat on Fridays except Good Friday. Others abstain from eating meat on Lenten Fridays.

The Personal Ordinariates for former Anglicans reconciled to the Catholic Church follow the discipline of the Latin Church (of which they are a part) including the norms established by the Council of Catholic Bishops in whose territories they are erected and of which their Ordinaries are members. Thus, for example, in England, the norm is abstinence on all Fridays of the year. The bishop in the United States has emphasized the statements in the USCCB norms "Friday itself remains a special day of penitential observance throughout the year", and "we give first place to abstinence from flesh meat." The Ember Days have been re-established in the Calendar of the Ordinariates, and as long as a Solemnity does not take precedence, the Ember Fridays in September and Advent are days of obligatory abstinence. Obligatory abstinence on Ember Friday in Lent is included in the universal Lenten discipline, and abstinence on Ember Friday on Whitsuntide is not required, as all days of the Octave of Pentecost are Solemnities.

Eastern Catholic Churches

Members of the autonomous Eastern Catholic Churches are obliged to follow the discipline of their own particular church. While some Eastern Catholics try to follow the stricter rules of their Orthodox counterparts, the actual canonical obligations of Eastern Catholics to fast and abstain are usually much more lenient than those of the Orthodox.

Eastern Christians view fasting as one part of repentance and supporting a spiritual change of heart. Eastern Christians observe two major times of fasting, the "Great Fast" before Easter, and "Phillip's Fast" before the Nativity. The fast period before Christmas is called Philip's Fast because it begins after the feast day of St. Philip. Specific practices vary, but on some days during the week meat, dairy products and (in some countries) oil are avoided, while on other days there is no restriction. During approximately the last week before the Nativity, typically meat, dairy, eggs and oil are avoided on all days, meals are moderate in quantity, and no food is taken between meals.

Western practice

History
Rules relating to fasting pertain to the quantity of food allowed on days of fasting, while those regulating abstinence refer to the quality or type of food. The Christian tradition of fasts and abstinence developed from Old Testament practices, and were an integral part of the early church community. Louis Duchesne observed that Monday and Thursday were days of fasting among pious Jews. Early Christians practiced regular weekly fasts on Wednesdays (in remembrance of the betrayal of Christ) and on Fridays (in memory of the crucifixion of Jesus). The early Christian form is known as the Black Fast: "eating only once a day, toward evening; nothing else except a little water was taken all day". This was the normative way of Christian fasting prior to the 8th century A.D. and is still kept by some of the faithful to this day, especially during Lent.

There has always been a close connection between fasting and almsgiving; the money saved on food should be given to the poor.

Lent

The habit of fasting before Easter developed gradually, and with considerable diversity of practice regarding duration. As late as the latter part of the second century there were differing opinions not only regarding the manner of the paschal fast, but also the proper time for keeping Easter. In 331, St. Athanasius enjoined upon his flock a period of forty days of fasting preliminary to, but not inclusive of, the stricter fast of Holy Week, and in 339, after having traveled to Rome and over the greater part of Europe, wrote in the strongest terms to urge this observance upon the people of Alexandria as one that was universally practiced, "to the end that while all the world is fasting, we who are in Egypt should not become a laughing-stock as the only people who do not fast but take our pleasure in those days".

In the time of Gregory the Great (590–604), there were apparently at Rome six weeks of six days each, making thirty-six fast days in all, which St. Gregory, who is followed therein by many medieval writers, describes as the spiritual tithing of the year, thirty-six days being approximately the tenth part of three hundred and sixty-five. At a later date the wish to realize the exact number of forty days led to the practice of beginning Lent on Ash Wednesday.

Early fasting practices were varied, but by the time of Gregory the Great, the ordinary rule on all fasting days was to take only one meal a day and that only in the evening (after sunset); and to abstain from meat of all sorts, white meats (that is, milk, butter, and cheese, called lacticinia in Latin sources), eggs, and, in the early centuries, wine and oil. Consumption of fish and shellfish was usually, but not universally, allowed. Such a strict fast is sometimes called a Black Fast.

While early sources place the meal after sunset, by the 10th century or earlier, the custom prevailed of taking the only meal of the day at the ninth hour (Latin nona hora, about 3 p.m.). By the 14th century, the one meal of the day had become a midday meal; and the liturgical observance of the nona hora had become tied to the daily Mass and other morning services, always said before noon. In tandem with those developments, the practice of having an evening collation (a small snack) became common. A morning collation was introduced in the early 19th century. Throughout these same centuries, there was wide disagreement over the appropriateness of white meats on fasting days, often resulting in various indulgences allowing the consumption of milk, butter, and cheese and, less commonly, eggs.

In the early 20th century, Church law prescribed fasting throughout Lent, with abstinence only on Friday and Saturday. Some countries received dispensations: Rome in 1918 allowed the bishops of Ireland to transfer the Saturday obligation to Wednesday; in the United States, abstinence was not required on Saturday. The other weekdays were simply days of "fasting without abstinence." A similar practice (common in the United States) was called "partial abstinence", which allowed meat only once during the day at the main meal. (There is nothing in current Catholic Canon Law which corresponds to "partial abstinence".) The countries of the former Spanish empire also had their own extensive dispensations from the rules of fasting and abstinence, based on the "Crusader privileges" of the Spanish dominions as codified in the Bull of the Crusade. In some European colonies, the obligation to fast and abstain differed by race, with indigenous persons often having more lenient rules than European colonists and their descendents or mestizos.

While the rules of abstinence generally only allow seafood, there are a few exceptions. In parts of South America, especially in Venezuela, capybara meat is popular during Lent and Holy Week; in response to a question posed by French settlers in Quebec in the 17th century, beaver was classified as an exception; and the Archbishop of New Orleans said that "alligator is considered in the fish family" in 2010. The legal basis for the classification of beaver as fish probably rests with the Summa Theologica of Thomas Aquinas, which bases animal classification as much on habit as anatomy.

Besides Lent, there are other penitential times customarily accompanied by fasting or abstinence. These include Advent, the Ember Days, the Rogation Days, Fridays throughout the year, and vigils of some of the important feast days.

Advent is considered a time of special self-examination, humility, and spiritual preparation in anticipation of the birth of Christ. Fridays and Saturdays in Advent were days of abstinence, and until early in the 20th century, the Fridays of Advent were also days of fasting.

The vigils observed included the Saturday before Pentecost, October 31 (the vigil of All Saints), December 24 (Christmas Eve), December 7 (the vigil of the Immaculate Conception) and August 14 (the vigil of the Assumption). These vigils all required fasting; some also required abstinence. If any of these fell on a Sunday, the vigil, but not the obligation of fasting, was moved to the Saturday before. (Some other liturgical days were also known as vigils but neither fasting nor abstinence was required, particularly the vigils of feasts of the Apostles and the Vigil of the Epiphany.) By 1959 in the United States, the fast for the vigil of Christmas was moved to December 23.

Ember days occurred four times a year. The Wednesday, Friday and Saturday of the ember week were days of fast and abstinence, though the Wednesday and Saturday were often only days of partial abstinence. In addition, Catholics were required to abstain from meat (but not fast) on all other Fridays, unless the Friday coincided with a holy day of obligation.

The former regulations on abstinence obliged Catholics starting as young as age seven, but there were many exceptions. Large classes of people were considered exempt from fasting and abstinence, not only the sick and those with physically demanding jobs, but also people traveling and students. The regulations were adapted to each nation, and so in most dioceses in America abstinence from meat was not required on the Friday after Thanksgiving, to accommodate any meat left over from that US national holiday.

On the eve of Vatican II, fasting and abstinence requirements in numerous Catholic countries were already greatly relaxed compared to the beginning of the 20th century, with fasting often reduced to just four days of the year (Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, the vigil of Christmas or the day before, and the vigil either of the Immaculate Conception or of the Assumption).

Contemporary application
Contemporary legislation is rooted in the 1966 Apostolic Constitution of Pope Paul VI, Paenitemini. He recommended that fasting be appropriate to the local economic situation and that all Catholics voluntarily fast and abstain. He also allowed that fasting and abstinence might be substituted with prayer and works of charity, although the norms for doing so were to be set down by the Episcopal Conferences.

The current practice of fast and abstinence is regulated by Canons 1250–1253 of the 1983 code. They specify that all Fridays throughout the year, and the time of Lent are penitential times throughout the entire Church. The law of fasting binds those who have attained their majority, until the beginning of their sixtieth year. All persons who have completed their fourteenth year are bound by the law of abstinence on all Fridays unless they are solemnities, and again on Ash Wednesday; The number of days that require fasting has been greatly reduced by the Episcopal Conferences because under Canon 1253, it is these Conferences that have the authority determine the local norms for fasting and abstinence and their substitution by other forms of penance, works of charity and exercises of piety in their territories. The precept to both fast and abstinence on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday remains untouched.

Absent any specification of the nature of "fasting" in the current Canon Law, the traditional definition is obviously applicable here which is that on the days of mandatory fasting, Catholics may eat only one full meal during the day. Additionally, they may have two smaller meals, known as "collations". Church requirements on fasting only relate to solid food, not to drink, so Church law does not restrict the amount of water or other beverages – even alcoholic drinks – which may be consumed.

In some Western countries, Catholics have been encouraged to adopt non-dietary forms of abstinence during Lent. For example, in 2009 Monsignor Benito Cocchi, Archbishop of Modena, urged young Catholics to give up text messaging for Lent.

Eucharistic fast
In addition to the fasts mentioned above, Catholics must also observe the Eucharistic Fast, which in the Latin Church involves taking nothing but water or medicine into the body for one hour before receiving the Eucharist. The earliest recorded regular practice was to eat at home before the Lord's Supper if one was hungry (I Corinthians 11:34). The next known ancient practice was to fast from midnight until Mass that day. Pope Pius XII reduced this in 1957 to fasting (from solid food and alcohol) for three hours before the time of reception of Communion, which paved the way for the celebration of evening Masses. A further reduction came in 1964, when Pope Paul VI reduced the Eucharistic Fast to one hour, and less still for priests celebrating more than one Mass on the same day.

Particular law

Australia
The Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference decreed on 4 October 1985 that Fridays throughout the year, including in Lent (other than Good Friday), are not obligatory days of abstinence from meat provided that an alternative form of penance is practised. Although this remains the case to this day, support for the return of obligatory Friday abstinence has been gradually increasing since England and Wales returned to Friday abstinence in 2011, with some Australian bishops expressing interest.

Canada
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops decrees that the days of fast and abstinence in Canada are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and specifies that Fridays are days of abstinence. This includes all Fridays year round, not just Fridays of Lent. Catholics, however, can substitute special acts of charity or piety on these days.

England and Wales
Catholics in England and Wales are expected to abstain from eating meat, described as the flesh of warm-blooded animals, on Fridays if they are able to do so, a practice that has been observed for a number of centuries, and is regarded as a penance to remind people of past wrongs and to identify with those who are suffering. Although no food is suggested as a substitute, fish became a traditional alternative for Catholics. The practice was discontinued in 1984, and for a number of years Catholics were instead given the option to replace it with another form of penance. Current norms for England and Wales, issued by the Bishops' Conference in May 2011, re-introduced the expectation that all Catholics able to do so should abstain from meat on all Fridays of the year, effective Friday, September 16, 2011. The practice was reinstated to coincide with the first anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI's state visit to the UK, which had occurred in September 2010.

Ireland
On 25 November 2010 the Irish Bishops' Conference published the resource leaflet Friday Penance. It followed from the March 2010 Pastoral Letter to the Catholics of Ireland from Pope Benedict XVI suggesting initiatives to support renewal in the Church in Ireland. He asked that Irish Catholics offer their Friday Penances "for an outpouring of God's mercy and the Holy Spirit's gifts of holiness and strength", and that fasting, prayer, reading of Scripture and works of mercy be offered in order to obtain healing and renewal for the Church in Ireland.

The leaflet states that Penance "arises from the Lord's call to conversion and repentance" and describes that it is an "essential part of all genuine Christian living":
 in memory of the passion and death of the Lord
 as a sharing in Christ's suffering
 as an expression of inner conversion
 as a form of reparation for sin

Friday Penance also explains why penance is important: "Declaring some days throughout the year as days of fast and abstinence (Ash Wednesday and Good Friday) is meant to intensify penances of the Christian. Lent is the traditional season for renewal and penance but Catholics also observe each Friday of the year as days of penance. The link between Friday and penance is ancient and is reflected in the Irish language word for Friday: An Aoine (The Fast)."

The leaflet suggests ways of fulfilling Friday penance such as abstaining from meat or alcohol, visiting the Blessed Sacrament or helping the poor, sick and lonely as well as other suggestions such as refraining from the use of technology in the context of 21st century activities.

United States

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) produced a statement in 1966 called Pastoral Statement on Penance and Abstinence, which was modified slightly in 1983.

The current, commonly accepted U.S. rules, in effect as such for a decade or more, taken directly from the current U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Fast and Abstinence page are:

Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence.

For members of the Latin Catholic Church, the norms on fasting are obligatory from age 18 until age 59. When fasting, a person is permitted to eat one full meal, as well as two smaller meals that together are not equal to a full meal. The norms concerning abstinence from meat are binding upon members of the Latin Catholic Church from age 14 onwards.

A summary of current practice:
On Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all Fridays of Lent: Everyone of age 14 and up must abstain from consuming meat.
On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday: Everyone of age 18 to 59 must fast, unless exempt due to usually a medical reason.

The USCCB also states that:
Those that are excused from fast and abstinence outside the age limits include the physically or mentally ill including individuals suffering from chronic illnesses such as diabetes. Also excluded are pregnant or nursing women. In all cases, common sense should prevail, and ill persons should not further jeopardize their health by fasting.

Although some years past the USCCB declared that "the age of fasting is from the completion of the twenty-second year to the beginning of the sixtieth", the USCCB page quoted above also references a "Complementary Norm" explaining the lower minimum age of 18.

In accordance with canon 1253 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law, the USCCB has also allowed that some other form of penance for the traditional abstinence on all of the Fridays of the year, except for those Fridays in Lent, fulfills the obligation of penance.

Also, according to the USCCB:
Abstinence laws consider that meat comes only from animals such as chickens, cows, sheep or pigs – all of which live on land. Birds are also considered meat. Abstinence does not include meat juices and liquid foods made from meat. Thus, such foods as chicken broth, consomme, soups cooked or flavored with meat, meat gravies or sauces, as well as seasonings or condiments made from animal fat are technically not forbidden. However, moral theologians have traditionally taught that we should abstain from all animal-derived products (except foods such as gelatin, butter, cheese and eggs, which do not have any meat taste). Fish are a different category of animal. Salt and freshwater species of fish, amphibians, reptiles, (cold-blooded animals) and shellfish are permitted.

Because of this, many Catholic parishes in the United States sponsor a fish fry during Lent. In predominantly Catholic areas, restaurants may adjust their menus during Lent by adding seafood items to the menu in an attempt to appeal to Catholics. However, the same USCCB website says that:While fish, lobster and other shellfish are not considered meat and can be consumed on days of abstinence, indulging in the lavish buffet at your favorite seafood place sort of misses the point. Abstaining from meat and other indulgences during Lent is a penitential practice.

Commentary on fasting
St. Thomas Aquinas comments on fasting in his homily on the verse "When He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterward an hungered" (Matt. iv. 2.):
S. Augustine says that it is the highest religion to imitate what we worship, so that, when Our Lord fasted, we ought to imitate Him in fasting. There are four reasons which ought to move us to fasting—firstly, the command of God; secondly, the example of Christ; thirdly, the manifold harm which befals those who do not fast; fourthly, the manifold benefits which come to them from fasting. I. On the first head it is to be noted, that the Lord commanded us to fast in a fourfold manner—(1) By Himself, to Adam and Eve in Paradise, when He commanded that they should fast—i.e., abstain from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and eat it not. (2) He commanded it by the Law of Moses: Lev. xvi. 31, "It shall be a Sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls by a statute for ever". (3) God commanded it by the Prophets: Joel ii. 15, "Sanctify a fast". (4) God commanded it by the Apostles: 2 Cor. xi. 27, "In hunger and thirst, in fastings often" – whence he is a manifest transgressor of the precepts of grace who is unwilling to fast.

St. Robert Bellarmine, on the advantage of fasting, writes:
The fruit and advantages of fasting can easily be proved. And first; fasting is most useful in preparing the soul for prayer, and the contemplation of divine things, as the angel Raphael saith: "Prayer is good with fasting". Thus Moses for forty days prepared his soul by fasting, before he presumed to speak with God: so Elias fasted forty days, that thus he might be able, as far as human nature would permit, to hold converse with God: so Daniel, by a fast of three weeks, was prepared for receiving the revelations of God: so the Church has appointed "fasts" on the vigil of great festivals.

See also
 Friday fast

References
Notes

Further reading

External links
Women for Faith & Family – includes texts of Canon law
 Duffy, Eamon. "To Fast Again", The Tablet, January 31, 2004

Catholic spirituality
Catholic liturgy
Catholic penitential practices
Christian fasting
Sacred places and times in Catholic canon law

it:Digiuno ecclesiastico

Fasting and abstinence in the Catholic Church


Liu Bei (; 161-223) was the founder of the Chinese Shu Han dynasty and its first Emperor.

Early life

He went into battle against the Yellow Turban Rebellion rebellion in 184, along with his sworn brothers Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. Later (in 190) he joined Gongsun Zan against the evil Dong Zhuo who had seized the Han emperor Xian.

After Dong lost, the emperor was in the clutches of his followers—until Cao Cao saved him and seized control over him. Cao Cao tried to conquer all   of China for the emperor but in fact wanted to conquer it for himself. He defeated Liu Bei once at the Battle of Changban in 207 but was not able to win the Battle of Red Cliffs against the united forces of Liu Bei and Sun Quan, a warlord in the South.

Sun Quan granted Liu Bei some land in the West of his domain, and the two agreed to fight Cao Cao again if necessary.

Death

From 211 to 214, Liu Bei conquered the country Ba Shu in the West. Because he had now an empire of his own, Sun Quan demanded his western regions back but Liu Bei declined. This made Sun Quan quite angry.

After several useless battles against Liu Bei's general Guan Yu, Cao Cao chose to make a union with Sun Quan. They attacked Guan Yu with their allied forces and overthrew him in 219. Liu Bei was mad and swore revenge for the death of his brother and the loss of an important part of his empire.

When Cao Cao died in 220, his son Cao Pi forced Emperor Xian of Han to give up his power. Cao Pi declared himself Emperor of the Wei Dynasty. Liu Bei found that offensive, for he was a member of the royal family of Han and considered himself the righteous Emperor of China. That's why he declared himself emperor of the Shu Han in 221. The next year, Sun Quan claimed the title Emperor of Wu for himself.

Liu Bei was really mad at Sun Quan's arrogance. In 222 he opposed him in the Battle of Yiling but failed due to Lu Xun's (a Wu general) great tactics. After his defeat Liu Bei got ill and died a year later. His son Liu Shan followed him as emperor.

Reference

161 births
223 deaths
Emperors of Three Kingdoms era

Liu Bei


Bambara is a language from Mali.  More than 6 000 000 people (including second language users) speak it.  It is called Bamanankan in Bambara.  Bambara is very similar to Dioula.  Dioula is not spoken by as many people, but it is used in Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, and Gambia.  The Bambara language is spoken mainly by people in the Bambara racial group.  About 2,700,000 people are in this group, but Bambara is also used by other racial groups in Mali.

Bambara is in the Manding language family.  These languages are similar to each other.  This family of languages is in a larger language group.  This group is called the Mandé group.  It is an SOV language (Subject-Object-Verb) and it has two tones (pitches).

There are seven vowels: a, e, , i, o,  and u.

Writing started during the period of French rule.  There is not much written work, but there is a lot of oral literature, which is often stories about kings and heroes.  The people who tell these stories are called Griot.  They also sing religious songs.  Many of their songs are very old and some people think the songs are as old as the old Mali Empire.

Bambara is a national language of Mali, and it is also the most widely understood language in Mali.

Bambara has many local dialects.  Somono, Segou, San, Beledugu, Ganadugu and Wasulu and Sikasso are some dialects.

References

Mande languages
Mali

Bambara language


A dining room is a room used for eating and is usually near the kitchen. This is to make serving food easier.

Usually a dining room will contain a table with a set of chairs, normally positioned at the sides and end of a table. People often only use their dining rooms now for formal occasions and eating in the kitchen has become more popular.

Rooms

Dining room


The Red Sea is a sea between the Arabian Peninsula of Asia in the northeast and Africa in the southwest. It is a part of the Indian Ocean. The Red Sea is about 2200 km long and  less than 330 km wide.

Many ships go through the Red Sea because the Suez Channel at the north end connects the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. Bab-el-Mandeb in the south is a gate to the Indian Ocean. Ports include Suez, Port Sudan, Massawa, Yanbu al-Bahr, Jeddah, Aqaba and Eilat.

The Red Sea has that name because it sometimes looks red from the red algae. The water has more salt and is clearer than water of most other seas because almost no rivers run into it.

The climate is dry and warm. Many people, including those from Europe, like to vacation there. Some of them are divers and want to see the beautiful coral reefs and fish. Seaside resorts include Sharm el-Sheikh, Eilat or Hurghada.

Geography
The countries next to the Red Sea are Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel.

In the Bible
According to the book of Exodus, God parted it for Moses and the Israelites so they could escape from the Egyptian Army.

References

Seas of the Indian Ocean

Red Sea