Christian practices Flashcards
Liturgical worship
• Worship services that follow a set pattern and order, usually including a focus on the sacrament of the Eucharist.
• Led by a priest/vicar.
• The sacrament of the Eucharist (Holy Communion), the most important act of worship in Liturgical Worship, provides the focus for the service.
Christian denomination of liturgical worship
Catholic
Strength of liturgical worship
same structure in any Church so anyone can join in
Vicar/Priest are important so help teach Christians
Weakness of liturgical worship
Not very personal
Non- liturgical worship
• Worship services that have less set patterns and structures, usually including a focus on scripture readings and a sermon.
Non- liturgical worship denomination
Baptist
Strengths of non-liturgical worship
More personal to the congregation
Focussed on scripture which is
word of God
Weakness of non-liturgical worship
Not always led by a priest so may not be as important
Informal worship
Worship services with a strong focus on spontaneous prayer. No set structure. No specific leader required. Often a focus on the Holy Spirit.
Informal worship denomination
Quaker
Informal worship strengths
very personal as people wait for the Holy Spirit to take over them
Informal worship weaknesses
Not many denominations follow this as it is too flexible
Types of prayer
C-confession
A- adoration
T-thanksgiving
S- supplication
Lord’s Prayer
• Christians believe The Lord’s Prayer to one of the most central prayers of their faith.
• It tells Christians how to forgive others, ask for help and praise God; 3 fundamental beliefs in Christianity
• Jesus taught it to his disciples and so Christians follow in Jesus’ footsteps when they recite the words of the prayer.
Why is prayer important?
• Allows Christians to ask for forgiveness from God
• Ask for help and guidance from God
• Give thanks to God for giving Christians the world
• Praying in public is important to building a community of Christians who support each
other
• Praying as a group can also help guide them to a shared goal e.g. spreading the word
• Jesus and his disciples prayed together so Christians are following in his footsteps.
The Catholic Church believes there are … sacraments
7
How many sacraments do the Protestant churches think there are?
Protestant Churches, such as the Church of England, believe that there are only 2 sacraments: baptism & the Eucharist.
Where did baptism begin?
- Jesus was baptised by John in the River Jordan and Christians think they
should do the same. - After Jesus was baptised, he began preaching, performing miracles,
healing, and teaching the people about God. Baptism allows Christians to
begin sharing and teaching other people about the religion.
Sacrament quote
“make disciples of all Nations…Baptise them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit” (Matthew)
Infant Baptism
baptism done on a baby, where the parents choose for this to happen, and Godparents are given who promise to guide the child in the faith.
Symbols in baptism
1.Water to wash away sin
2.White clothes to represent purity
3. Oils to repel evil
4.Baptismal Candle lit to represent Jesus is always with you
Believers’ Baptism
baptism on older people who choose to be baptised.
They make a declaration to be forgiven and start a new life.
They are submerged under water to represent washing away their old life and
starting a new Christian life.
Yes believers baptism is better…
- The person chooses to
make the commitment - They start their life fresh
once they have confessed
their sins
No believers baptism is not better…
- Having Godparents makes sure the person has good role models and can learn about Christianity
- Infant Baptism removes the Original Sin so they are pure from a young age
Eucharist representation
• The wine represents his blood that he sacrificed when he died
• The bread represents his body he sacrificed when he died
• By eating and drinking these as a congregation they are sharing in remembering that Jesus died for the sins of humanity and he was innocent
Why is the Eucharist important to Christians?
• Catholics believe in TRANSUBSTANTIATION which means the bread and wine actually TRANSFORM into the body and blood of Jesus during this ceremony
Importance - people become an active part of his death
‘This represents my body…eat it in remembrance of me’ (Luke)
• Church of England believe in CONSUBSTANTIATION where the bread and wine are only symbols of Jesus’ death. It does not turn into the body or blood but helps Christian’s remember his sacrifice
Importance – helps Christian’s reflect on Jesus’ sacrifice and think about how they can change their life to follow Jesus.
Why is Christmas/Incarnation important?
✓ Christmas is the time when God came to earth in
human form (the Incarnation – Jesus)
✓ Jesus is The Word of God – he shows people
how to live and delivers God’s message to the
world.
✓ Christmas / the Incarnation demonstrates God’s
power.
✓ Christmas / Incarnation demonstrates God’s love
for humanity.
✓ Without Christmas, there would be no Jesus.
Without Jesus, there would be no salvation for
humanity.
✓ Jesus’ humble birth demonstrates the Christian
belief that everyone in society is important and
equal – Jesus was born to deprived parents and
seen first by poor shepherds – to God, these
people are just as worthy, maybe more so, of his
message than the priests and the kings of the world.
How do Christian’s prepare for Christmas?
Preparation for Christmas is called Advent
They prepare spiritually by increasing prayer,
think about helping others as that is what Jesus
told them to do and strengthen their faith
Christian’s take part in Nativity plays, give gifts
to remind them of the joyful message of the
incarnation
They light Advent Wreath – 5 coloured candles
that represent 4 key messages from the
incarnation. The candles are lit the 4 Sundays
before Christmas Day, the 5th white candle is lit
on Christmas Day to celebrate Jesus’ birth.
What do each candle represent on the advent wreath?
The 1st candle represents HOPE
2. The 2nd candle represents JOY
3. The 3rd candle is pink and represents LOVE
4. The 4th candle represents PEACE
5. The final candle is white and is lit on
Christmas
day – this candle represents Jesus’ birth
Why do Christians celebrate Easter?
Easter remembers the last week of Jesus’ life which is
called Holy Week:
•Palm Sunday – Jesus comes to the city of Jerusalem.
The people welcome him and believe he is a great
leader sent from God, this angers the Roman and
Jewish authorities, ultimately leading to his death
•Holy Thursday – the day of the Last Supper and Jesus’
arrest
•Good Friday – the day of Jesus’ death on the cross
•Easter Sunday – the day of Jesus’ resurrection
How do Christian’s prepare for Easter ?
Lent = 40 days leading up to Easter.
• Lent starts on Ash Wednesday (where
Catholics mark their heads with ashes with
a cross symbol, to represent the death of
sin during Lent)
• Christian’s use Lent as a time to evaluate
their life, pray for forgiveness and change
their actions to ensure they are following
Jesus’ teachings
• During Lent – Christians PRAY, FAST
(restrict food consumption or certain
foods) and give to CHARITY.
Why was Jesus’ death important to Christians?
•Christians believe that there is a lot of evil in the
world – mostly caused by humans when we do
things wrong.
•Our wrongdoing ruins our relationships with
others, our planet, and our relationship with
God.
•The separation between God and humanity is so
great that it would take a phenomenal act
of atonement to make up for it.
•Jesus offered his life as a sacrifice in order
to make up for all the sins of all humans, past and
future.
•Jesus’ death therefore bought salvation– it
saved humanity from its own sinful ways.
Why was Jesus’ resurrection
important to Christians?
•Jesus’ resurrection breaks the cycle
of sin and death – it shows that death
has been defeated and is no longer
eternal. For Christians, this gives them
hope that their own death will not be
the end either.
•Proves that Jesus is who he says he is
– God.
•Demonstrates God’s / Jesus’ power.
•Begins the Christian religion. Without
this event, Christianity
would probably not have spread and
grown in the way that it did
How do Christians remember Good Friday?
- Stations of the Cross: are displayed in all
Catholic Churches, and many Church of
England churches too. People walk around
the church, stopping to pray at each stage of
Jesus’ journey towards his death. This helps
them to make a “personal pilgrimage” with
Jesus and remember his sacrifice. - Re-enactment of the crucifixion: Jesus’
journey towards the cross is re-enacted in
towns, churches, cities across the country.
This might help some Christians to feel
closer to what happened. - Fast on Good Friday to show gratitude to
Jesus - Attend a Church service at 3pm when Jesus
died.
How do they celebrate Easter?
• Easter Eggs – symbolise new life and Jesus resurrected
• Hot Cross Buns – they symbolise the empty cross of Jesus’ resurrection
• Church Services – attend Church to hear the story of Jesus’ last week and pray to God for thanks and love
• Easter Vigil – starts at 12am on Easter Sunday where candles are lit to symbolise life overcoming death.
The Paschal Candle symbolises Jesus’ resurrection and defeating sin.
What does the Church do?
- Provides a place for the community to meet, worship and pray
- Provide spiritual guidance
- Hold prayer meetings
- Support the community with Youth Groups, Toddler Groups and Sunday
School
Why does the Church help local communities?
- Agape = agape love means love for all people,
selfless and unconditional love - Active faith = need to put your faith (belief)
into action e.g. helping others, otherwise it is
meaningless.
How do Street pastors help the local community?
What? – trained volunteers who
patrol streets usually at night to
help vulnerable people
Example – give water or sweets to
drunk people, give blankets to
homeless
They DO NOT PREACH – they
simply HELP THOSE IN NEED
Why? – Agape and active faith
How do food banks help local community?
What? – a place where food and
essentials are collected and
donated free of charge to people
in need.
Why? Christians will donate to
food banks to show AGAPE to
those in need.
In the Parable of Sheet and Goat,
Jesus taught his followers to help
vulnerable people in need
How does parish nursing help local communities?
What? - a Christian charity
which supports whole person
healthcare through the
local church.
Their work includes;
• Diagnosing early signs of
health problems
• help alleviate loneliness
• They encourage healthy living
through exercise and a healthy
diet, and provide education
and health advice
• They will listen to problems
Church in the Worldwide Community
The Church believes they have a duty to try to tackle POVERTY.
There are many organisations that work to end poverty in the UK and around the world e.g. by
providing health care, education, essential supplies or by helping after natural disasters
Why does the Church try to tackle poverty?
- Follow the example of Jesus who worked to help those in poverty
- Jesus taught to look out for those less fortunate than you
- There are lots of teachings in the Bible about helping those in need. We are all equal in eyes of God
and should show AGAPE - “Jesus said to go sell all you have and give the money to the poor” (Mark)
- “For I was hungry, and you fed me, for I was naked, and you clothed me” (Matthew)
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
(Luke) - a man was left for dead on
the street, two Jewish leaders ignored
the man but a Samaritan (who was an
enemy of the injured man) stopped to
help the man. The Samaritan took
him to an inn and offered to pay for
his treatment until he was better.
How does CAFOD (Catholic Agency for Overseas Development) work to end global poverty?
CAFOD works to fight poverty and injustice around the
world.
It works through churches in places that have suffered
natural disasters, aiming to give people the skills to help
themselves.
How do they help?
- Raise awareness and money for education of people to
help their community e.g. providing training to be a
midwife
- They campaign against injustice e.g. women getting
education
How does Christian Aid work to end global poverty?
Christian Aid was set up after World War Two to help
refugees in Europe. It now works in disaster zones around
the world.
How do they help?
- Raise money and awareness of key issues around the
world to end poverty
- Gaza conflict: raising awareness and wanting votes for
a ceasefire
- Provide clean water, food and emergency supplies to
the poor around the world
Why do Christians get involved in evangelism and
missionary work?
- Share their joy of the religion with other people
- Encourage people to join so they can be saved
(SALVATION) in Heaven - Bible teaches Christians to actively spread their
religion to others
The Great Commission
Before Jesus ascended to Heaven, he taught his
disciples one last lesson…The Great Commission
How can Christians evangelise today?
- Church of England: Evangelism is important and Christians van do
it by “living openly as a Christian so they can witness faith in
action” (Archbishop of Canterbury) - Catholics: evangelism is done by living a good Christian life rather
than preaching in public e.g. in towns - Jehovah Witnesses: MUST evangelism by approaching people and
actively seeking to convert others .e.g. Door-to-door ministry, or
sending their magazine to people so they can believe.
How do Christians carry out evangelism and missionary work?
Alpha Course Course aimed at helping Christians and non- Christians to learn about the religion- Evangelism
Gideons Go into schools, hospitals, hotels and communities to give out free copies of the Bible (little red Bibles)- Evangelism
Going abroad to provide medical care to those in need- Sharing skills to help those less fortunate e.g. medical skills. This is an example of doing good actions to spread the mission- Missionary Work
Key Facts about Christian Persecution
- 80% of all acts of religious discrimination are
directed to Christians - 2019: Church was bombed in Sri Lanka on Easter
Sunday to try to destroy the religion - 2019: increasing persecution of Christians in China
by shutting Churches, removing flags or jailed for
being an outspoken pastor - High rates of persecution in North Korea, Libya
and Iran
Examples of Christian Persecution
- Making Christians pay higher taxes
- Attacking Churches
- Burning Bibles
- Forbidding the religion in the country
- Forcing people to convert to other religions
How do Christians respond to persecution?
Positive Response Negative Response
- St Paul said you should never respond to
persecution with violence but overcome it with
peace and love e.g. forgiveness, charity work,
education to end intolerance, raising awareness
- “Do not be overcome by evil, but instead overcome
evil with good” (Romans)
- Persecution may help make faith stronger
- Feel more connected to Jesus as he overcame
persecution, so can they.
- Church can grow after persecution as people
realise the Church is innocent and want to support them
Negative response
- If one Christian suffers then ALL Christians should
feel their pain - ”if one part suffers, every part suffers with
it” (Corinthians) - It causes pain and suffering to those going through
it.
Examples of Responses to Christian Persecution
Barnabus Aid- Provide emergency supplies like food parcels to Christians in need
- Help pay for school fees for persecute Christians
- Providing Christian literature e.g. DVDs, magazines to those in need
- Setting up Christian schools as persecution have left families poor
- Training and sending pastors to persecuted communities to spread the
mission
- Building Churches after bombings/attacks
Christian Solidarity Worldwide
- Raising awareness of human rights for religious freedom
- Train politicians, activists and journalists to advocate for social justice
Why do Christians work for Reconciliation?
- The Church has a role to restore people’s relationship
with God and one another - There is conflict and disharmony around the world so
Christians must work to reconcile their relationship
with each other to bring peace and harmony to the
world. - If we expect God to forgive us, we should forgive
others. - Jesus forgave his persecutors on the cross “Forgive
them Father they know not what
they are doing” (Luke) - Christians believe if someone repents (says sorry) for
their sins, they will be shown mercy –
“Blessed
are the merciful, for they will be
shown mercy” (Matthew)
Examples of Reconciliation in Christianity
The
Corrymeela
Community
- The Corrymeela Community was founded in
Northern Ireland in order to help heal the country’s
political and religious divisions. The organisation
works with people in areas around the world, but
particularly in Northern Ireland, where there is
political tension and aims to help
communities reconcile.
- Have support groups to help people work together,
reflect on their experiences and help people
become more tolerant
Community
of the Cross
of Nails
- Based in Coventry following the bombing and rebuild
of the Coventry Cathedral in WW2
- The Cross of Nails symbolises the rebuild of the
cathedral as an act of reconciliation.
Why do people go on a pilgrimage?
• Become closer to God
• Strengthen their faith
• Express sorrow for sins / seek forgiveness
• Reflect on their life
• Pray for something particular
• Meet other members of their faith
• Experience a holy place
• Seek a cure for an illness
Lourdes
Denomination- mainly catholics
Style of worship- informal
Examples of what happens here- • - Lighting candles at the Grotto (where the water is) to show respect and love for Mary
• Praying the Rosary: a special prayer for Mary
- Special prayer services for sick/disabled people for healing and strength
• Prayer processions to where Mary appeared
Reasons for attending this particular pilgrimage site-
• In 1858, Bernadette a 14-year- old girl had 18 visions of Mary.
Mary told Bernadette to dig where she was standing, and a spring of fresh water came up out the earth – people think this water can cure illness.
• Receive mental or physical
healing from the water
• Experience a miracle
• Pray with the community
• Develop a deeper connection
to Mary
Iona
Demonisation: any
Style of worship: • Ecumenical Worship – no one style of worship or denomination but use traditions from all groups • e.g. silent meditation for Quakers, Eucharist for Catholics
Examples of what happens here- • Visiting the abbey where the original monastery was
• Hikes around the island
• Meditation, Bible readings,
Eucharists
• Time for private reflection and
prayer
• Working as a community to feed
and do chores while staying there
Reasons for attending this particular pilgrimage site-
• Columba (a Christian traveller) arrived in Iona and set up a monastery to teach about Christianity
• Considered the birthplace of Christianity in Britain
