Christianity : Content Flashcards
To help learn the content from the Study of Christianity section of the course, Route A.
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
What do Christians believe about their being evil and suffering in the world?
- Suffering results from sin
- God shares in people’s sufferings
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 each 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 Gods 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
What is crucifixion?
- A form of Roman execution
- Criminals were nailed to a wooden cross and left to hang until they were dead
What is the Christian teaching on Jesus’ crucifixion?
- The death of Jesus was part of Gods plan to bring about salvation of humanity
- It is the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecies.
- The crucifixion was necessary for the Resurrection to take place
Why is the crucifixion important to Christians?
- The death of Jesus was an act of atonement for the sins of the people of the world
- The death of Jesus is part of humanities redemption/salvation
- The death of Jesus was necessary to allow the resurrection to take place
What is the meaning of salvation for Christians?
- Christians believe Salvation is part of God’s plan.
- Original Sin brought the need for salvation to repair our broken relationship with God.
- Jesus offers salvation and we were saved by his life on earth, death, resurrection and ascension into heaven.
- ‘Dying he destroyed our death, in rising he restored out life’
- ‘lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world’
What do Christians believe about Salvation?
- Humans rejected God by their sins; humans are so important to God that God sent Jesus to free humans from the effects of sinfulness.
- Their relationship with God depends on Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. Without it, they cannot be close to God or obtain forgiveness for their sins.
- They need to repent of their sins, asking God for forgiveness, and accept Jesus Christ as Son of God and saviour of the world.
What is the role of grace in redemption/salvation?
- Grace is the love and mercy shown by God because God wants people to have it, not because they have done anything to earn or deserve it, because he WANTS to give it.
- Christians believe they do not deserve it but they are given it freely and they must freely accept it from God.
What happened at the death of Jesus?
- After the Last Supper, Jesus went with his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane.
- Jesus prayed at the Garden and shortly after was betrayed by Judas and arrested.
- He was tried by the Jewish religious leaders and found guilty of blasphemy (insulting God)
- He was put to death on the cross by Pontius Pilate.
- He was mocked and beat by the soldiers before his crucifixion.
What does Jesus’ death have to do with sacrifice?
- We explain Jesus’ death through sacrifice.
- Jesus hoped to mend our relationship for God.
- The animal making the sacrifice takes blame for something it did not do - Jesus did not commit everyone’s sins yet he freed human beings from the sins they had committed.
- Jesus total obedience to God was so powerful taht it made up for the sins of human beings in a way that other sacrifices could not.
What is the importance of the resurrection?
- It is the central belief to Christianity.
- Christians believe Jesus overcoming death proves he was the Son of God - only God can conquer death.
- The resurrection demonstrates that Jesus is our saviour.
What is the ascension?
When Jesus was taken up to heaven 40 days after his resurrection.
Why is the ascension important to Christians?
- Jesus’ mission on the earth was complete
- He had completed everything God the Father wanted him to.
- Jesus returns to heaven to prepare a place for his followers.
- Jesus’ ascension prepared the way for the Holy Spirit to come.
What happens at the ascension of Jesus?
- After the resurrection while Jesus was with his disciples he lifted his hands to bless them
- As he did Jesus was lifted up to the sky
- The disciples knelt down in worship
- This is the lifting up of Jesus into heaven
What happened at Jesus resurrection?
- On Sunday morning Mary Magdalene, Mary (James’ mother) and Salome went to anoint Jesus’ body.
- The stone had been rolled away
- A young man was standing there who said Jesus had risen from the dead (an angel)
- They flee from the tomb and say nothing because they are afraid
What do Chistians believe about life after death?
- Jesus rose from the dead and there will be life after death.
- They believe in eternal life.
- They will have a spiritual resurrection body given by God.
What do Christians believe about the survival of the soul?
- It is a non-physical thing which lives on after death.
- Most Christians believe in the immortality of the soul. They believe that when the body dies, the soul leaves the body to live with God.
- Other Christians say the body and soul are one and cannot be separated. After death the soul is temporarily apart from the body, but then the body and soul will be reunited on Judgement day.
What are the parables of judgement?
- The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant
- The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus
- The Parable of the Sheep and the goats.
What do Christians believe about Judgement?
- When a person dies, God passes judgement on their soul.
- Each person is responsible for their own actions.
- There will be a final judgement ‘judgement day’ when the whole of creation will be judged.
What do Christians believe about heaven?
- A person who has lived a holy life will be rewarded with eternal happiness in heaven.
- Heaven is described in the Bible as a ‘banquet’ or ‘feast’
- The Bible teaches there is no sadness, suffering or pain in heaven.
- Christians believe it is a holy, happy and peaceful place to be with God.
- It is beyond human experience.
What do Christians believe about Hell?
- It is a place where unrepentant sinners go after death.
- It is often thought of a place where eternal fire burns and you suffer.
- It is a place of eternal separation from God.
What do Catholics believe about purgatory?
- The world to come will be different from now - so we need to prepare for that change.
- We need to transfer from sinful to pure.
- This happens in purgatory - it means to cleanse and get rid of sin.
- Purgatory is a place where we prepare for heaven.
- Catholics believe you can help souls in purgatory by praying for them.
What do Christians believe about bodily resurrection?
- St Paul says our heavenly bodies will be unlike our earthly bodies.
- Heavenly bodies will be glorious