Christian Beliefs Content Flashcards
To help learn the content from the Christian beliefs part of the Christianity section.
What are the three main attributes that Christians believe about God?
- Omnipotent
- Omnibenevolent
- Omniscient
Why do Christians believe God is omnipotent?
- God is all powerful, there is nothing he cannot do
- God created the world from nothing
Why do Christians believe God is omnibenevolent?
- God is all-loving, full of mercy and compassion
- God so loved the world that he sent his only son so that people could have eternal life
Who is the Trinity?
- God the Father
- God the Son
- God the Holy Spirit
What do Christians believe about the Trinity?
- There is only one God (monotheism)
- God exists as three persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- Each of these three are distinct from one and other, but each is wholly God.
- There are NOT three Gods.
Why do Christians believe in the Trinity?
- The way the Trinity works is supposed to be a mystery, but it helps with the understanding of Gods qualities.
- It is how God makes himself known in the world.
- It is called ‘the doctrine of the Trinity’
- It is a fundamental belief for all Christians.
Why is the Trinity important for Christians?
Without the Trinity it is not possible to believe that Jesus is God. - This is one of the most important Christians beliefs.
What do Christians believe about the oneness of God?
- They believe in monotheism
- God is one
- The oneness of God is seen in the Creeds, the decisions of Church Councils and the writings of Church leaders
What does the Nicene Creed say about the Trinity?
The Trinity works as one - yet each of the three persons has a special role.
a. God the Father created heaven and earth,
b. God the Son, Jesus, is the saviour of the world.
c. God the Holy Spirit guides, helps and inspires human beings.
What are different understandings of the Trinity within Christianity?
- Mormons - believe that they are not one substance, instead they are three different beings united in will and purpose
- Jehovah’s witnesses - Jehovah is the one true God. Jesus is God’s Son. The Holy Spirit is God’s power in the world and so is not a person
- Unitarians - There is only one God. Jesus was a man whose teachings give him moral authority but not divinity. There is no difference between God and the Holy Spirit.
How do Christians show their belief in the Trinity through worship?
- They say the Nicene Creed
- They use the Sign of the Cross
- Priests begin their sermons with the Sign of the Cross
- Baptisms and Marriages are performed in the name of the Trinity
- Priests bless a congregation at the end of services with the words ‘May the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit be with you now and for evermore’
What do Non-Literalist Christians believe about Creation?
- Nothing existed before God created the world - Creation Ex Nihilo
- Only God creates because he is omnipotent
- This belief can be found in the Bible in Genesis.
- They believe it is a symbolic story.
- The world was NOT created in 6 days exactly as it says.
Which Catholic scholar talks about Creation ex nihilo?
St. Augustine
What happens in Genesis 1?
God creates the world in 6 days and rests on the 7th. He looks at all he has made and sees that it is good. He creates humans on the 6th day.
What happens in Genesis 2?
Adam names all the animals in the world but is still lonely. God creates Eve from Adams rib.
What do Literalist Christians (Creationists or Fundamentalists) believe about the creation story?
- They believe that the Bible account is accurate and is exactly how the world was created.
- The world was created in 6 calendar days.
- They believe this because the Bible is the word of God and is never mistaken.
What do Non-Literalist Christians believe about the Big Bang?
- They believe in the Big Bang.
- The theory supports their believe of creation out of nothing.
- The Big Bang theory was put forward by a Catholic Priest.
- ‘Let there be light’ could be reference to the explosion.
- Science explains HOW the universe came about and Genesis explains WHY.
Is there a problem between science and religion?
- No - for Catholics there is no conflict.
- Yes - for people who take the Bible literally (Creationists) there is a conflict.
What does Creation Ex Nihilo mean?
Creation out of nothing.
What does Genesis 1 teach us about God and his qualities?
- God is transcendent - he exists outside of space and time (God created the heavens and the earth)
- Eternal - God already existed and has no beginning.
- Omnipotent - God can speak the world into creation and God creates from nothing - only God can do this.
What does Genesis 2 tell us about God’s qualities?
- Omnibenevolent - God loved humans so much that he created a world that had everything on it that they needed to survive.
- Omnibenevolent - God doesn’t want man to be alone so he creates Eve.
- Omnipresent - God is involved in creation and he creates everything.
What do the Genesis creation stories tell us about human beings?
- Sanctity of Life - We are created last and are the high point of God’s creation.
- Humans were created in the image of God
- We were made Male and Female to have children.
- God gave us free-will.
- We were made stewards of creation.
What do Christians think about stewardship?
- We should all be stewards of creation.
- Christians believe God made humans superior to other animals by giving them reason and free will and this is why they should look after the world.
- Every individual has a duty to care for their neighbours around the world.
What is the incarnation?
- This means ‘made flesh’
- The Christian belief that Jesus was both fully human and fully divine.
What does it say in John 1:1 about Jesus as ‘the word’?
- ‘In the beginning there was the word…and the word became flesh and dwelled among us’
- Jesus was there at creation and he became human. It is clear that ‘the word’ or Jesus is a separate person from God.
What does John 1:1 mean about Jesus as ‘the word’?
- In the beginning there was the word - Jesus was there before the world began
- The word was with God - Jesus was with God
- And the word was God - Jesus was God
- He was with God in the beginning - Both Jesus and God were there at the start
- Through him all things were made - Through Jesus all things were made
- Without him nothing was made that has been made - Without Jesus nothing was made that has been made