Believing in God Flashcards
How can a religious experience lead to a belief in God?
- Miracles break the law of science and make you think only God could’ve done it eg Chilean miners
- Numinous gives you a feeling of the presence of something greater e.g. looking at stars
- Answered prayers show that you have contacted God and God has responded to you
- Conversion experiences show that a life has changed perhaps following a vision or hearing the voice of God eg Davey Falcus
Some do not accept religious experiences because…
- Miracles may simply be coincidence or luck – there is usually a simple reason
- The numinous is simply a feeling – it offers no real evidence of God
- Many people pray and they go unanswered thinking God is not real
- Visions and voices may be the product of other things e.g. drugs/alcohol/hallucinations
Argument from design can lead to a belief in God because…
- If something has been designed then it must have a designer. Must have been designed by a powerful figure due to its complexity
- The universe we live in is governed by laws which all involve complex things working together.
- There seems to be many examples of things that have been designed in the world such as the human eye
- Logical, step-by-step argument, easy to follow
How can a religious upbringing lead to a belief in God?
- Going to Church and surrounded by believers
- Going to a Catholic school – prayers, assemblies, RE lessons
- Praying with your family as a child
- Sacraments like Baptism, Holy Communion and Confirmation
Some disagree with the argument from design because…
- All the evidence for design can be explained by science not God.
- The argument proves there could be a designer but it doesn’t prove that the designer is God.
- There are many examples of poor design such as volcanoes and earthquakes which seem to prove that God doesn’t exist.
- Fossil records show that humans were not designed but evolved
Argument from causation can lead to a belief as …
- If everything has a cause, then the universe must have a cause so we need something that has always existed to cause the world and this is God.
- People believe that the universe must have had a beginning therefore there must have been a first cause.
- This is God as God is uncaused.
- The world we live in is intricate and complex and many Christians believe that God caused the world to work in this way as he is omnipotent.
- Must have been designed by an Omniscient figure who knew what the effect was going to be , this is God
Some do not accept the argument from causation because…
- If God caused the universe then what caused God? This could show that God does not exist.
- The universe could have existed forever which means it doesn’t need a cause.
- Even if there is a first cause it does not prove that this cause is God.
- If God is the cause then that means God caused natural evil.
Scientific explanations for the origin of the universe
- The Big Bang is a theory that means God did not create the world
- The theory of evolution shows that life has developed over millions of years, disregards Adam and Eve story
- Fossil records show that many of the stories in the Bible about how the world started are wrong
- Carbon dating has proven that the world is far older than the Bible says it is, older than 2000 BC
Christians believe scientific explanations prove God’s existence as …
- The Big Bang had to happen at the exact micro second to support life
- The universe is very complex so only God could have created it
- The Bible and science fit together – one day in Genesis could represent millions of years
- The order in Genesis is similar to the order of the Big Bang
Unanswered prayers
- God is supposed to care for world and answer prayers but He does not e.g. world peace or an end to starvation.
- Someone may have prayed to God asking for a loved one to be healed and they die.
- God is meant to be all-powerful (omnipotent) so he should answer all prayers
- God is meant to be all-loving (omni-benevolent) which means He should help all those people who pray
Christian responses to unanswered prayers
- God does answer our prayers but sometimes he says ‘no’ or ‘not now’.
- God does not answer prayers because they are selfish
- God answers all prayers but often not in the way we expect them to be answered.
- We cannot understand the reasons why God has not answered prayers but we have to just accept it.
Evil and suffering
- If God is all- powerful (omnipotent) he must be able to stop evil and suffering.
- If God is all-loving (omni-benevolent) he must not want any evil or suffering.
- If God is all knowing (omniscient) he would know what is going to happen and use his power to stop it.
- If God exists there should be no evil and suffering. As there is evil and suffering either God is not all-powerful, all loving and all knowing or God does not exist.
Christian response to evil and suffering
- Praying for those who suffer and helping those who suffer e.g. CAFOD, New Testament teaches that Jesus taught that evil was something to be fought against
- Saying that evil and suffering are not God’s fault and it is the result of human free-will.
- Believing that evil and suffering are not a problem because they are part of a plan in which those who suffer will be rewarded in heaven when they die.
- Suggesting that God must have a reason but humans cannot know or understand because they are not God.
How does the media portray belief in God?
- Bruce Almighty shows that God is said to perform miracles – people question why God doesn’t perform more miracles
- God does not answer people’s prayers in the film which can affect belief
- The homeless man in the film shows suffering which affects belief
- God cannot make Bruce’s girlfriend love him which shows free will and affects belief
- Homer the heretic shows that going to Church is not exciting which affects belief
- Homer the heretic shows that God helps those who believe in Him
Agnosticism
Not being sure whether God exists
Atheism
The belief that God does not exist
Conversion
When your life is changed by giving yourself to God
Free will
The idea human beings are free to make their own decisions
Miracle
Something which appears to break the law of science and makes you think only God could have done it
Moral evil
Actions done by humans which cause suffering
Natural evil
Things which cause suffering but have nothing to do with humans
Numinous
The feeling of the presence of something greater than you
Omni-Benevolent
The belief that God is all-good
Omnipotent
The belief that God is all-powerful
Omniscient
The belief that God knows everything that has happened and everything that is going to happen
Prayer
An attempt to make direct contact with God, usually through words
