Central teachings Flashcards
The nature of divinity
-Christianity
-Islam
-Christianity:
* Christians believe in the existence of the divine being known as God
* God manifests himself in three persons:
* God the Father - Creator of the universe
* God the Son - The Saviour and Liberator of humanity
* God the Holy Spirit - the Counsellor and advocate of Christians
-Islam:
* The Muslims believe in a universal God called Allah.
* Belief in oneness with Allah is the foundation of Islam.
* He is the Creator of the universe, continuing to create new forms of life and sustaining all of creation.
* Human must live in accordance with His divine will.
* The Muslim understanding of divinity is essentially shaped by the Qur’an
The nature of the world
-Christianity
-Islam
- Christianity:
- According to Christianity the world was created for the pleasure of humanity.
- God created the earth and allowed humans to use the resources of the Garden of Eden
- Humans, marine, animal and plant lives all belong to God.
- It is God who oversees the weather, climate, time, and seasons of the year.
- God the Father sent his Son, Jesus, into the world
- After ascending to heaven, the Son then sent the Holy Spirit.
- The Holy Spirit in turn sent the Church into the world to continue God’s missionary work.
- Islam:
- According to Qur’an Allah created the universe in six phases for the benefit of humanity
- Allah provides the energy to everything the universe needs for survival and growth
- New forms of life are continuously created and function according to the established laws
- The universe is not eternal but have a fixed timespan
- Allah alone is eternal
The nature of humanity, with reference to community and the individual
-African Traditional Religion:
* The understanding of life is based on the idea of the relationship between all living beings
* The individual depends on the community for growth,
* The individual also derives the meaning of life from the community
* Individual security is attained through the construction of the community.
-Bahai Faith:
* Baha’i Faith teaches that humans are the greatest representatives of God
* Humans were created to know and to worship God
* Humanity will not be able to achieve the success and prosperity of which it is capable until women are treated as equal to men
The place and responsibility of humanity (humans) in the world - Islam
Islam:
* Humans are seen as the highest form of creation.
* This places an enormous responsibility on human beings.
* They are entitled to use the earth’s resources for their own benefit.
* They must respect creation highly and use resources responsibly
* They are accountable for their actions on the Day of Judgment.
The origin and the role of evil in
-Christianity
-Islam
-Christianity:
* God did not create evil when he created the world - He created a perfect world and perfect human beings.
* Evil was introduced later when Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s commands.
* Christians call this kind of disobedience ‘sin’.
* Christians believe that evil is often used by Satan
* Satan was once God’s angel but rebelled and tried to claim power for himself
* When Satan uses evil, it causes communities to disintegrate and destroys the relationship between humans and God
* Believe the role of evil is God can use evil as a tool to teach humanity
Islam:
* In Islam the concepts of evil and good are determined by three sources namely:
* The primary sources: the Qur’an and hadith specify what is virtue and what is vice
* Consensus of Muslim scholars: if the sacred scriptures are not clear about the issue, scholars apply their minds and decide if it is beneficial or harmful
* Human nature: human beings have a natural moral sense given to them by Allah, which enables them to distinguish between good and evil
* The Muslims believe that evil is linked with Satan or the devil.
* Allah created Adam and commanded all of creation to bow before him.
* Satan refused to bow claiming that he was better than Adam because he was created from fire, whereas Adam was created with clay.
* That pride led Satan to fall from grace with Allah
* Satan vowed that forever, he would use his power to mislead people and dissuade them from obeying God.
* Human beings have a natural moral sense given to them by Allah, which enables them to distinguish between good and evil.
* Every individual is obliged to avoid what is evil and do what is good
Life after death
CHRISTIANITY:
* Believe life continues beyond the grave.
* Those who die enter a new phase called paradise.
* Sinners go to hell where they are punished.
* On the Last Day, the ordinary world will no longer exist. - The rule of God will prevail.
* Only those who will have lived according to the will of God will live eternal life.
* The resurrection implies that life has a purpose.
* The Day of Resurrection is when good and the evil will be rewarded according to their actions on this world
ISLAM:
* Those who believed in Allah and fulfilled their obligations to the Creator and creation, will enter Paradise.
* They will dwell forever in this place, and this will be their destination.
* Those who denied Allah will be sent to Hell, to be tormented forever
* According to Islam, life does not end with death.
* The dead enter a state of being called barzakh, which lasts until Judgement Day.
* On Judgement Day, all people will be resurrected and called to account for their deeds before Allah.
What are Doctrines?
A set of beliefs held and taught by various organisations i.e religion
What are Parables?
A simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson
What are Myths?
A type of sacred story, mainly about the origin or the end of time or a key event in time
Define a Ritual
A religious observance intended to remind of a sacred occasion or to bring a sacred presence about
