4. Deity- Christianity Flashcards
Theists
People who believe there is a God.
Atheists
People who don’t believe in God.
Agnostics
People who believe that you can’t be sure either way.
Hard Agnostic- will think it is Epistemology impossible to know if there is a God or not.
Soft Agnostic- unsure
The 4 main arguments for God existing…
Ontological Argument
Design Argument
Cosmological Argument
Moral Argument
Main arguments against the existence of God…
Problem of evil- challenges the very nature of a Judeo-Christian God
No primary evidence
Not answered prayers/ miracles scientifically cannot happen.
Gods attributes
Creator Higher power Omnipresent Omnipotent Omnibenevolent Omniscient Necessary Eternal Merciful Personal Trinitarian (trinity)
Why do Christians believe in God?
Universe must of come from somewhere Personal experience Conscience/ Morals Upbringing Bible The life and work of Jesus Christ
What was the apostles creed?
An early statement of Christian belief. Based on Christian theological understanding of the gospels, the letters of the new testament and to a lesser extent, the old testament.
The trinity
God the father, God the son and God the holy spirit.
3 persons in one being
God the father
Creator of the universe
Father of Jesus
Loving father of all people
God the son
Jesus.
Always existed but became human (incarnated) for a time.
Shows the human, loving side of God
God the holy spirit
Can take any form.
Giver of life
Lives in people who believe in God.
Brings people to God, comforts people, shows people when they are wrong.
Personal God
Refers to God as a person who cares for us and has emotions, prayer like a conversation.
Impersonal God
Refers to God as a concept, a force, or an idea of goodness and light.
Immanent God
Is a God who is in the world with us- who takes an active role in human history.
Transcendent God
Is outside the world and doesn’t directly act in human history.
Who came up with the cosmological argument?
St Thomas Aquinas
Who decided that the earth just was.. Brute fact?
B. Russel
Who came up with the design argument?
Philosopher,’William Paley’
Weak religious experience are…
Indirect e.g an amazing sun-set
Strong religious experience is…
Direct(involve an immediate awareness of God) e.g hearing his voice
Numinous religious experience
A feeling you get / a sense of being overwhelmed by the presence of something greater than you.
Conversion religious experience
More definite feeling of God’s presence which makes you much more religious and changes your life.
Miracle religious experience
A true miracle is breaking of the law of nature. It can be believing a miracle happened.
Prayer religious experience
Make some form of connection with God when they pray. People pray in all sorts of circumstances, comfort, need, thanks, guidance and for others. Can feel their prayers are answered by God?
What was Saul/Paul on the road to damascus?
A conversion miracle- hunting down followers of Jesus at time- sight taken for a couple of days.
Other explanations for ‘religious experience’?
Mental illness Coincidence Hallucinations Drugs/drunk Peer pressure/ society Emotional hysteria- particularly in group worship e.g Toronto blessings.
The morality argument can be challenged by…
Evolution theory
And
Social conditioning
Miralce
An event that appears to be unexplainable by the laws of nature and is believed to be supernatural in origin or an act of God.
Examples of miracles…
Jesus heals a leper
Jesus calms the storm
Jesus raises a widow’s son
How are miracles in the New Testament into 4 groups;
Healing the sick
Raising the dead
Nature miracles
Exorcisms (casting out demons)
What did David Hume state about Miracles?
1) there are never enough reliable witnesses to miracles
2) humans just want to believe the miraculous, so they go looking for miracles.
3) stories of miracles always come from unreliable places.
4) miracle stories happen in many religions, they can’t always be true.
