2. Issues of Life & Death Flashcards
Overview of Generic Key Terms for Theme 2
Afterlife
Life after death; the belief that existence continues after physical death.
Environmental Sustainability
Ensuring that the demands placed on natural resources can be met without reducing capacity to allow all people and other species of animals, as well as plant life, to live well, now and in the future.
Euthanasia
From Greek, eu ‘good’ and thanatos ‘death’. Sometimes referred to as ‘mercy killing’. The act of killing or permitting the death of a person who is suffering from a serious illness.
Evolution
The process by which different living creatures are believed to have developed from earlier less complex forms during the history of the earth.
Abortion
When a pregnancy is ended so that it does not result in the birth of a child.
Quality of Life
The extent to which life is meaningful and pleasurable.
Sanctity of Life
The belief that life is precious, or sacred. For many religious believers, only human life holds this special status.
Soul
The spiritual aspect of a being; that which connects someone to God. The soul is often regarded as non-physical and as living on after physical death, in an afterlife.
Creation
The idea that the universe was planned and brought into being by a divine power.
Karma
The ‘energy’ stored in your soul reflecting good and bad deeds.
Evolution [Natural Selection]
The idea that the species that flourish are those which are best suited to their environment.
Interpretation
The way we make sense of a piece of writing. Different
believers interpret passages from the holy books in different ways.
Literal
Understanding something exactly as it’s written.
Liberal
Free-thinking.
Intelligent Design
The idea that certain features of life are best explained by an intelligent cause, rather than an undirected process, such as natural selection.
