Christianity Flashcards
Revealed Theology is
Provides arguments for existence of God based on revelation that primarily comes from scripted religious experiences
Natural Theology is
Provides arguments for the existence of God based unreason and ordinary experience of nature
Sensus Divinitatis (sense of the divine)
Created by John Calvin (French Protestant) to describe human ability to sense God
Reason is
The power of the mind to think and form judgements logically
Imago Dei
Literally means “Image of God”
God’s Grace is
A supernatural gift that God gives humanity
Conscience is
A person’s moral sense of right and wrong, viewed as a guide to one’s behaviour
Numinous is
Having a strong religious or spiritual quality; indicating or suggesting the presence of divinity
Tradition is
The transition of customs and beliefs from generation to generation. Catholic doctrine is part of the tradition of the Church and is believed to have divine authority
Fideism is
The doctrine that knowledge depends on faith or revelation
Catechism of the Catholic Church is
Promulgated by Pope John 2 in 1992. It sums up the beliefs of the Catholic faithful
Types of knowledge of God’s existence
- Natural- we naturally have a sense of the divine and can know about God’s existence through reason or by reflecting on the beauty and order of the world
- Revealed- how he reveals himself in sacred Scriptures like Bible, through the person of Jesus Christ
Natural knowledge of God, Calvin:
- Christian Protestant
- Every person has a natural sense of the divine and made Imago Dei- we long to be back at his presence
- God has ensured that everyone has a sense that there must be God- every civilisation has had one (Sensus divinitatis)
- Even atheists recognise that there is God- at Judgement Day they would be “pretending ignorance”
- Semen of religion- we only know that God is the creator that needs to be worshipped. Revealed knowledge- Jesus
