Arguments for the existence of God (3.1) Flashcards
1
Q
Revelation
What does revelation mean?
A
God making himself known to humanity
2
Q
Revelation
Describe natural revelation
A
- the idea you can look at the world and see signs of God
- religious believers see life as spiritual as well as material
- they believe the greatness of the universe and the beauty of nature are enough to make people believe in God
3
Q
Revelation
Describe special revelation
A
the idea God has revealed himself in special ways
4
Q
Revelation
Why do Christians believe the Bible proves the existance of God?
A
- it is inspired by the Holy Spirt
- the Church teaches that God speaks through the Bible (OT and NT), showing his character
- contains God’s laws on how to behave
- brings people into a closer relationship with God by learning what God wants
5
Q
Revelation
Why do Catholics believe revelation culminated in the incarnation?
A
God made complete revelation of himself because the son is the exact representation of Gods being
6
Q
Revelation
What does the incarnation show Catholics?
A
- one who forgives
- one who brings healing
- one who wants people to have eternal life
- one who’s main characteristic is love
7
Q
Revelation
Give SOWA on revelation
A
CCC - it pleased God, in his goodness and wisdom, to reveal himself through christ, the word became flesh
Timothy 3:16-17 – “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.”
8
Q
visions
What is a vision?
A
something seen in a dream, trance or religious ecstasy
9
Q
visions
Name 2 visions in the Bible
A
- Abrahams vision
- The transfiguration
10
Q
visions
What was Abraham worried about and what happened?
A
- Having no descendants
- God appeared to him, took him outside and pointed to the stars in the sky
- God gave him a message of hope
- assured he would have a son and would have as many descendants as there are in the sky
11
Q
Vision
Where is Abrahams vision in the Bible?
A
Genesis 15
12
Q
Vision
Give an example of a non-biblical vision
A
- Joan of Arc
- Vision of Our Lady of Lourdes
13
Q
vision
describe the Vision of Our Lady of Lourdes
A
- 1858
- 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous saw 18 apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes in a grotto
- where the Virgin Mary identified herself as “The Immaculate Conception”
- instructed Bernadette to dig, revealing a miraculous spring of healing water
14
Q
visions
Why might visions lead to a belief in God?
A
- If they happen, God must exist
- changes in behaviour of the person having the vision
- moment of awe
- if the person having the vision is honest and not crazy it must be from God
15
Q
visions
Why might non-believers believe visions do not prove the existance of God?
A
- may be hallucinations if the person is suffering
- no evidence
- visions exist in the mind and prove nothing
16
Q
visions
Why do Catholics disagree with the non-believers?
A
church’s investigations of visions rule out mental illnesses and drugs
17
Q
Miracles
What is a miracle?
A
- an event which seems to break the laws of science
- the only explenationfor which seems to be God
18
Q
Miracles
What does the Bible show about miracles?
A
- brings about faith
- helping faith grow
19
Q
Miracles
What is cononisation and what does it depend on?
A
- Church’s process of declaring someone a new saint
- being able to establish 2 miracles connected whith the proposed saint
20
Q
Miracles
Give examples of miracles from the Bible?
A
- feeding of the 5000 - Gospels of Mark and Matthew
- Raising of Lazarus
- Jesus healing a royal officials son - John 4:46-54
21
Q
Miracles
Describe the events of Jesus healing a royal officials son
A
- The son is close to death
- The official asks Jesus to heal his son
- Jesus tells him his son will live
- The official goes home and discoveres his son has recovered
- This leads him and his household to believe
22
Q
Miracles
Name a recent miracle and the events
A
- St Bernedette of Lourdes
- Bernedette saw an apparition of a girl clothed in a brilliant white whith a blue girdle
- This was followed by 18 apparitions
- 1 included a miraculous spring in a grotto
- in 1 the woman said she was the immaculate conception (Mary)
- Lourde became a place of pilgrimage for Catholics and many miracles have taken place
23
Q
Miracles
Why do Catholics believe that miracles prove that God exists?
A
- if a miracle happened, God must have peformed it
- only God can peform miracles, so if they happen God must exist - authenticated by the Church and proven to be true
- if someone witnesses a miracle and cant find a natural explenation …
24
Q
Miracles
What do non-believers believe?
A
- miracles are supposed to break the laws of nature - the evidence must be stronger than our whole experiance of life but it never is
- many miracles from the past can now be explained
- evidence is based on the witness - can be mistaken
- why doesn’t God use miracles to stop hunger and war?
25
# miracles
Why would **Catholics disagree** with non-believers?
* authenticated by the church
* rely on the truth of Biblical miracles - the Bible comes from God
* if God used miracles to stop hunger and war, he would be changing the laws of nature
26
# religious experience
What is a **religious experience?**
An event that people feel gives them direct contact with God
27
# religious experience
Describe **conversion experience**
an experiance of God which is so great - the person changes their life or religion and commit themselves to God
28
# religious experience
Describe **numinious experience**
* a feeling of the presence of God
* feeling of the presence of something greater than you
* awe
29
# religious experience
Describe the **experience of prayer**
* feels that God is listening
* an answered prayer will lead to a belief in God
30
# religious experience
Why do **the religious** believe religious experience is a proof of God's existance?
* only possible cause is God (numinous)
* laws of science are broken and God is the only explenation
* if a religious experiance changes ones life, it must've been caused by God
* if a prayer is answered
31
# religious experience
Why don't **non-religious** believe religious experiences prove the existance of God?
* only one person experiences a numinious experiance even though there is more than one in the area
* believe that all miracles can be explained
* more unanswered prayers than answered ones
32
# religious experience
Why would **Catholics disagree** with non-believers?
* everyone has a spiritual sense
* they can interpret experiances differently
33
# religious experiences
What are some **SOWA's** on religious experiances?
CCC - religious experiances happen beacuse people are created by God and for God, **and God is always trying to contact humans**
**Acts 9:3-6** – The Conversion of Saul (St. Paul)
34
# The design argument
What does the **the design argument** claim?
Something which seems to be designed, **must have a designer**
35
# The design argument
Who wrote **The Classic Design Argument?**
William Paley
36
# The design argument
What did **William Paley** argue?
* If you were walking in an unhabited place and found a watch you could not say it had been put there by chance
* you would naturally conclude that it had a designer due to its complexity and purposeful design
* the universeis far more complex than a watch
* so if a watch needs a designer so does the universe
* must be God
* God must exist
37
# The design argument
What is the **modern** argument for design?
**evolution** - complex life forms from simpler ones
38
# The design argument
Describe The modern design argument
* anything that has been designed needs a designer
* plenty of evidence that the world has been designed e.g. DNA gravity, etc..)
* ... must have a designer
* only possible designer is God
* God must exist
39
# The design argument
Why do **Catholics** believe The design argument is **important?**
Uses *natural theology* to show that:
* God's existance is demonstrated by his creation
* God is the creator
* God wants humans to use their reason to understand the world
40
# The design argument
Why do non-religious reject this argument?
* ingnores the evidence of lack of design (natural disasters)
* can be explained by science without God
* who designed God? - there could be many or 1 evil
41
# The design argument
What are some **SOWA's** on The design argument?
**Psalm 19:1** – “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”
**CCC**- the existance of God the creator can be known with certainty through his creation
42
# The cosmological argument
What are the **3 parts** of *Summa Theoligica* and **who** wrote it?
**St Thomas Aquinas**
* The way of motion
* The way of causation
* The way of contingency
43
# The cosmological argument
What does **St Thomas Aquinas** put forward in the **Summa Theologica?**
* **The way of motion** - things in the universe in motion but nothing can move unless it is moved, so if things are moving, there must be a first mover... **God**
* **The way of causation** - that everything seems to have cause and nothing cause itself. An infinite regression of causes is impossible, there must be a first cause... **God**
* **The way of contingency** - evrything is contingent(doesn't have to exist), therefore at one time nothing existed, there must be a non-contingent being...God
44
# The cosmological argument
Why is the cosmological argument **important** for **Catholics today?**
* **God is the origin of everything** - the Unmoved mover, the first cause, the non-contingent being
* **God is not another thing within the universe** - sauce of all beings
* **God is a mystery** - humans can only grasp so much much about God's being and nature
45
# The cosmological argument
Why do **non-religious** think the argument **does not prove the existance of God?**
* if everything needs a cause then so does God
* it is possible that matter itself is eternal and so was never created - no need for a first cause as the prosses of causes would go back forever
* even if there was a first cause, it could be a different God
46
# The cosmological argument
How does the **Catholic Church** **respond** to non-believers
* to claim the universe 'just happened' is more unbelievable than claim it was created by God
* the universe is to vast and complex, and works according to too many laws, to have appeared by chance
47
# The cosmological argument
What are some **SOWA's** on The cosmological argument
**John 1:3** – "Through him all things were made; without him, nothing was made that has been made." This reflects the belief that God is the ultimate cause of the universe
**Summa Theologica** – "It is necessary to admit a first efficient cause, to which everyone gives the name of God." (First Cause Argument)
48
# The problem of evil and suffering
What are the **2 forms of suffering?**
* **Moral** suffering
* **Natural** suffering
49
# The problem of evil and suffering
Describe **Moral suffering**
* caused by humans missusing their free will to do something evil
* E.g war and burglary
50
# The problem of evil and suffering
Describe **Natural suffering**
* suffering that has not been caused by humans
* E.g cancers, earthquakes etc
51
# The problem of evil and suffering
Why do **evil and suffering cause problems for Catholic beliefs about the nature of God?**
* God is omnipotent - why doesn't he remove evil and suffering from the world?
* God is omnibenevolent - God must want to remove all evil and suffering
* God is omniscient - he must have known all the evil and suffering that would come
52
# The problem of evil and suffering
What do **non-religious** believe?
* that a good God would've created a world without natural evil in it
* find it easier to believe that these features are a result of the earth evolving by accident
53
# The problem of evil and suffering
What are some **SOWA's** on The problem of evil and suffering?
**Romans 8:28** – "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him."
**CCC** - 'God's very being is love'
54
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
What are some **biblical responses** to the problem of evil and suffering?
* The Book of Job
* The Book of Pslams
55
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
What does **The Book of Job** explain?
* how God **allowed Satan** to punish sinless to prove to Satan that Job loved God
* Job protested but when he came face to face with God, he realised God is **so great** that humans have no right to challange him
56
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
What does **The Book of Psalms** explain?
* that suffering is simply apart of life, but so is joy
* the 2 go side by side
57
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
What are some **theoretical responses to the problem of evil and suffering?**
* free will
* vale of soul making
* good out of evil
58
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
Describe the **free will** response
* God gave humans the freedom to do good or evil, to believe in God or to not
* means that God cannot intrfere if humans choose evil - **fault of humans** not god
59
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
Describe the **vale of soul** making response
* this life is a preperation for paradise
* at the end he will show his omni-benevolence and ominpotence by rewarding the good in heaven
60
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
Describe the **good out of evil** response
suffering may have the purpose of bringing good out of people as they respond by determing to improve things
61
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
What are some **practical responses**?
Follow Jesus' example and react in practical ways
Intecessory prayers
Giving practical help e.g nurses, doctors, etc.
62
# Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering
What are some **SOWA's** on Solutions to the problem of evil and suffering?
**John 16:33** – "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
**Job 42** - God is so wonderful his actions cannot be challanged
