Jesus as role model in the gospel of Matthew: Does the Matthean Jesus practise what he preaches?

Many scholars have argued that Jesus is presented as the definitive Christian role model in the Gospel of Matthew. In this text, especially in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus preaches a high standard of ethical conduct, and the remainder of the Gospel demonstrates how Jesus lives by these ideals. On this view, the Matthean Jesus practices what he preaches. But this thesis can be questioned. Jesus' attacks on the scribes and Pharisees, especially in Chapter 23, seem to conflict with his teachings in the Sermon, and Jesus' future activity as the final judge is also at odds with his earlier moral standards. Consequently, Jesus does not always practice what he preaches in Matthew, and this study aims to explain why this is the case

The Logic of the Method of Agent-Based Simulation in the Social Sciences: Empirical and Intentional Adequacy of Computer Programs

The classical theory of computation does not represent an adequate model of reality for simulation in the social sciences. The aim of this paper is to construct a methodological perspective that is able to conciliate the formal and empirical logic of program verification in computer science, with the interpretative and multiparadigmatic logic of the social sciences. We attempt to evaluate whether social simulation implies an additional perspective about the way one can understand the concepts of program and computation. We demonstrate that the logic of social simulation implies at least two distinct types of program verifications that reflect an epistemological distinction in the kind of knowledge one can have about programs. Computer programs seem to possess a causal capability (Fetzer, 1999) and an intentional capability that scientific theories seem not to possess. This distinction is associated with two types of program verification, which we call empirical and intentional verification. We demonstrate, by this means, that computational phenomena are also intentional phenomena, and that such is particularly manifest in agent-based social simulation. Ascertaining the credibility of results in social simulation requires a focus on the identification of a new category of knowledge we can have about computer programs. This knowledge should be considered an outcome of an experimental exercise, albeit not empirical, acquired within a context of limited consensus. The perspective of intentional computation seems to be the only one possible to reflect the multiparadigmatic character of social science in terms of agent-based computational social science. We contribute, additionally, to the clarification of several questions that are found in the methodological perspectives of the discipline, such as the computational nature, the logic of program scalability, and the multiparadigmatic character of agent-based simulation in the social sciences.Computer and Social Sciences, Agent-Based Simulation, Intentional Computation, Program Verification, Intentional Verification, Scientific Knowledge

The pacifist Jesus and the violent Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew

The Gospel of Matthew presents two starkly different depictions of Jesus. The earthly Jesus of the past is a pacifist who teaches non-violence, compassion, non-retaliation, forgiveness and love of enemies, and he lives his life according to these ideals. The other Jesus is the eschatological figure of judgement who is the antithesis of the earthly Jesus. This Jesus is violent, merciless and vengeful in his treatment of the wicked. The evangelist constructed and promoted this terrible figure of judgement to assist his readers to cope with certain situations of crisis, but in doing so he paid a steep christological price by presenting Jesus in contradictory terms

Matthew’s anti-Paulinism: A neglected feature of Matthean studies

Half a century ago, S G F Brandon argued that the Gospel of Matthew was an anti-Pauline text. Brandon’s case was not especially convincing and his hypothesis was quickly  consigned to the scholarly scrap heap. But  in  recent  times Matthean scholarship has been moving towards a position whereby Brandon’s basic insights can and should be resurrected. This study argues that the view that Matthew was an anti-Pauline text is completely in line with current understandings of this Gospel and its underlying  community, and can be restated in a more detailed and much more convincing fashion

A Satisficing Alternative to Prospect Theory

In this paper, we axiomatize a target-based model of choice that allows decision makers to be both risk averse and risk seeking, depending on the payoff's position relative to a prespecified target. The approach can be viewed as a hybrid model, capturing in spirit two celebrated ideas: first, the satisficing concept of Simon (1955); second, the switch between risk aversion and risk seeking popularized by the prospect theory of Kahneman and Tversky (1979). Our axioms are simple and intuitive; in order to be implemented in practice, our approach requires only the specification of an aspiration level. We show that this approach is dual to a known approach using risk measures, thereby allowing us to connect to existing theory. Though our approach is intended to be normative, we also show that it resolves the classical examples of Allais (1953) and Ellsberg (1961).satisficing; aspiration levels; targets; prospect theory; reflection effect; risk measures; coherent risk measures; convex risk measures; portfolio optimization

Dual representation of choice and aspirational preferences

We consider choice over a set of monetary acts (random variables) and study a general class of preferences. These preferences favor diversification, except perhaps on a subset of sufficiently disliked acts, over which concentration is instead preferred. This structure encompasses a number of known models in this setting. We show that such preferences can be expressed in dual form in terms of a family of measures of risk and a target function. Specifically, the choice function is equivalent to selection of a maximum index level such that the risk of beating the target function at that level is acceptable. This dual representation may help to uncover new models of choice. One that we explore in detail is the special case of a bounded target function. This case corresponds to a type of satisficing and has descriptive relevance. Moreover, the model results in optimization problems that may be efficiently solved in large-scale.

Pengaruh Kualitas Layanan Terhadap Kepuasan Konsumen Pada Stroberi Teenager Accessories Palembang

This research was conducted in Strawberries company engaged in the field of retailers Accessories teenager. Decline in sales Experienced by strawberries become the background research and what factors cause a significant decrease in the sales. One of the factors that can make one grow customer satisfaction is the service quality. It's important to do research on service quality on customer satisfaction strawberry teenager accessories Palembang. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction composed of Reliability, Responsiveness, Confidence, Empathy, Tangible towards Customer Satisfaction. This study took a sample of 100 people who have the purposive sampling criteria of age 17 years and above and have made a purchase of at least as much as 5x . The data analysis technique used in this study is qualitative analysis techniques and quantitative analysis techniques. Based on the results of the study concluded that the quality of services consisting of Reliability, Responsiveness, Confidence, Empathy, Tangible has a strong influence on customer satisfaction in the amount of 51.7 % especially at Strawberry Teenager Accessories Palemban

An investigation of the perceived human resource factors that contributed to success of acquisitions of the Malaysian domestic banks

Acquisition activity is common among firms and banks as this is one of the strategic tools they use for their expansions and organizational growth. However, the government directed acquisitions on Malaysian domestic banks to date, is still an exceptional case as no such exercise has been practised by any country at the national level. Although several studies have been conducted to measure the success of directed bank acquisitions using financial indicators, not many studies have been carried out to measure the influence of factors such as human resource competencies, human resource development programmes, corporate work culture and leadership style, on the success of the acquisitions. For the purpose of this study, a total of 139 respondents were randomly sampled from 8 Malaysian domestic banks. The respondents included chairperson and those who are directly or indirectly involved in the acquisitions of the Malaysian domestic banks. Using SPSS, the data collected were analysed descriptively, tested using normality tests, Cronbach’s Alpha Reliability Test, Pearson Correlation Analysis and Multiple Linear Regression Analysis. The Pearson Correlation Analysis showed that all the 4 Independent Variables and the one Dependent Variable are all positively correlated and significant. The Regression Analysis proved that all the 4 hypotheses are significant and accepted. The findings proved that all the 4 predicting Independent Variables, namely human resource competencies, human resource development programmes, corporate work culture and leadership style positively and significantly contributed to 55.9 per cent of the criterion Dependent Variable, that is the success of the acquisitions of the Malaysian domestic banks. The findings also discovered two most significant factors, namely human resource competencies and human resource development programmes. The implication of the overall findings suggested that human resource elements play significant roles in ensuring the success of the banks’ directed acquisitions