Chapter 4: Christian Perspectives Flashcards
Define creed
Christianity is a Creedal religion (means to believe) and sectarianism (many thousands of sects due to differences in creed). Example of a creedal statement: I believe in one God, the father almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible…
Define Messiah
Messiah means “anointed one”
Define Docetism
Many theological and doctrinal debates took place regarding soteriology, and there were many different viewpoints. For example, the Docetists believed that Jesus was a divine being who only “seemed” to live and die, untouched in reality by the suffering and problems related to fleshly existence
Define Martyr
Martyr –> witness
Define Imitatio Christi
the imitation of Christ- dying in the image of Christs death
Define Purgatory
Purgatory, as an intermediate place or state of suffering and purification, does not have direct Biblical support but was developed in response to a number of issues. From the third century on, it had been accepted that the prayers of the faithful could benefit the dead. By the Middle Ages, it was popularly thought that the saints, and especially Mary, could intercede on behalf of the souls in purgatory to relieve the amount of penance required of them and shorten their stay.
Define intercessory prayer
Intercession (official doctrine of the catholic church- mary and the saints could intercede for the living on the behalf of the dead)
Define Lamb of God
Christs death as ransom (to set them free)
The sacrificial lamb (blood is used to purify those who have sinned) the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world
Explain Augustine’s compromise (between spiritual and bodily resurrection)
Augustine emphasized the connection between human mortality and the state of original sin that every human inherits at birth: you are dust and to dust you shall return and at the time of death the soul separates from the body and enters into an intermediary state where it experiences peace or suffereing. For Augustine, “body” has two meanings – the body of corruptible flesh that dies because of original sin and the resurrected “spiritual
body,” which is immortal not because it is purely immaterial spirit but because of God’s power to transform the corruptible into the incorruptible. Finally on the day of judgement all will be resurrected to receive their eternal reward or punishment. In both cases the body is necessary in order that the identity of the person be fully restored to bear the punishment of hellfire or the beatitude of heaven.
Explain the stages of resurrection
1) Jesus’ resurrection. The prototype for our own resurrection someday
2) the resurrection of the saints takes place and the martyred dead (they will dwell in the new Jerusalem)
3) Finally at the end of all time people will be resurrected
Explain the key features of the four theories of the atonement
- Christ’s death as ransom (the lamb of God)
- The theory of satisfaction (Proposed by Anselm of Canterbury. God’s justice is such that he is offended by the sinfulness of the community. According to the satisfaction theory, the only penalty that could pay the price of our sins is to have someone who is divine and sinless die for us. Basis: medieval criminal law)
- Christ’s death as a moral example
- Eastern Christian view: atonement provided by the entirety of Christ’s life (theosis)
Consider what Perpetua’s story tells us about early Christian perspectives on death and the afterlife
Perpetua’s jailhouse vision of her deceased brother. Perpetua converted as an adult. Her younger brother who died when he was 7 was not a Christian, according to this story her brother was being punished for dying unbaptized. However there is a solution for this –> Intercessory prayer (praying for the dead). Perpetua- wants to be killed for her beliefs.
Consider varying perspectives on Heaven and Hell in contemporary Christianity
Christian imagery of heaven and hell, which was greatly expanded upon during medieval times, finds its most prominent Biblical reference in the last book of the New Testament commonly called Revelation or the Apocalypse of John. Over the years, this text has been subjected to various interpretations, both literal and metaphorical, but in general, it speaks of the comfort and hope offered to the faithful by Jesus. the notion
of hell as everlasting torment for the unrepentant has been the subject of intense debate. The problem of hell in Christianity reflects the relationship between the infinite and the finite, between God and humankind. It reflects the primeval problem of choice in all its subtlety and depth. Is Hell a failure on God’s part to save all humankind? Or if God has the power to save everyone and they will eventually be saved what is the significance of hell?People attempt to answer this question through emphasizing the relationship between God and the individual. Heaven and hell are the result of one’s relationship with God in their life, once you die your fate is sealed. The dissapearance of hell is also a contemporary thought, hell disappeared from many religious sermons and personal belief systems because people had a hard time conceiving that virtuous non believers went to hell, people still think there is a hell but it is thought to be a “soul sleep”. For many modern theologians, both Catholic and Protestant, heaven,
hell, and purgatory are no longer described or understood in literal terms but as states of the soul in relationship to God. However some theologians reject this and believe that belief in the supernaturalism of the new testament goes hand in hand with belief in God and the Bible. Although hell (and heaven) may have lost their literal truth to some theologians, Hell is still a reality. It has a state of soul powerlessness, isolation, darkness and self centredness, i.e., a state of subjective reality.
Consider resurrection and apocalypse in the Book of Daniel
Apocalypticism (end times) in the Book of Daniel. ALSO: Resurrection of the dead in the Book of Daniel. Anticipates: the reign of a coming messiah (“anointed one”)
