Christianity: The Existence of God Flashcards
What does Unitarianism believe about the nature of God?
God is one being
What do the Jehovah’s Witnesses believe about God?
Jesus was created by Jehovah and because he has a beginning, unlike Jehovah, he is not eternal
What does the Nicene Creed teach?
The Spirit comes from both God the Father and God the Son
Where does the Eastern Orthodox Church believe the Holy Spirit comes from?
Only the Father
In what way does God’s relationship with the world continue after creation?
1) the Promised Land of Canaan for the Israelites
2) laws and commands
3) a means for salvation
How is God’s creation described in Genesis?
Good
What do Christians believe makes Gods rules good and best for humans?
God allows human free will; he does not force goodness upon anyone
State how God is different to human judges.
God knows and sees everything. He is therefore able to judge fairly, ensuring justice
What do Christians say enables people to be forgiven by God?
If people have faith in Jesus and repent then Jesus will forgive them and they will be able to spend eternity in heaven with him when they die
What does Augustine teach is the cause of human suffering?
Evil
State the way in which Adam and Eve disobeyed God.
They ate the fruit that God had forbidden in the Garden of Eden
What is the purpose of suffering according to Iranaeus?
Man was not created perfect but immature, needing to grow and develop to perfection, as planned by God
What does the example of Job in the Bible lead some Christians to believe about suffering?
Suffering is a test of faith for believers and a punishment for the wicked
State the analogy that William Paley used to illustrate the design argument
A watch found lying on the floor when picked up and looked at would clearly show evidence that it had been designed
Describe how Tennant used evolution as evidence for the design argument.
The process of evolution has a purpose and that purpose is to develop increasingly complex life forms. These increasingly complex life forms become more intelligent and ultimately, in the form of humans, also possess moral awareness
State what Aquinas observed about the natural world.
There is no event in the natural world that does not have a cause
What is another name for the first cause argument?
The cosmological argument
Who do Christians say is the first cause?
God
What did Cardinal Newman link our sense of guilt to?
When we do something wrong to the voice of God speaking through our conscience
State why Kant taught that there must be a God and an afterlife.
After death people will be rightly rewarded for good they have done in this life
In what way did Hick link our life in this world with the afterlife?
In this life humans have to make decisions about what is right to do in any given situation. Suffering and evil are opportunities for humans to learn and to act in a way that would best please God. After death this process would continue
Why do some Christians disagree with Hick’s view?
It does not fit with the belief of God judging people after death
Who is it, in the lives of believer, that is able to guide them to make good decisions?
Holy Spirit
What is the word of God?
The Bible
What are the conservative views of the Bible?
1) the Bible writers were inspired by God
2) the writers were human and as such the Bible may contain mistakes
3) the Bible needs to be interpreted so that it is relevant and applicable in the world today
3) if decisions conflict with biblical teaching then those decisions should be rejected
What are the liberal views of the Bible?
1) sees the stories in the Bible as mythical and symbolic
2) scientists have a far better understanding of the world than anything recorded in the Bible
Who did God come to Earth as?
Jesus
What did God demonstrate by coming to Earth in human form?
His great love for humans
How did God show his great love for humans?
1) teachings
2) miracles
3) sacrificial death on the cross
How do Christians come to know about Jesus?
Gospels
What is a miracle?
A wonderful event or act that cannot be explained by the laws of nature
Give some examples of miracles from the Bible.
1) Jesus’ ressurection
2) the parting of the Red Sea in Exodus
3) Jesus healing people from leprosy (Matthew 8)
4) Jesus calming the storm (Mark 4)
What does God reveal to humans through miraculous acts?
1) power
2) love for humanity
Why do some Christians not believe that God still does miracles today?
1) God revealed himself through Jesus and then finally through the Bible, so further revelation is unnecessary
2) miracles can be seen as random and even immoral
How may meeting an inspiration person affect a Christian?
1) they may feel a sense of God’s presence
2) they may be inspired
3) they may gain a sense of God at work
What is revival?
A time of increased numbers of people converting to Christianity
How may reading about revivals from the past help Christians in their faith today?
1) causes them to pray that God will to the same in the current world
2) the way their lives reveal the power of God at work across the ages and around the world
What is a religious experience?
When people claim to have had some kind of direct encounter with God
What is conversion?
An occasion or event that cause a person to adopt a belief in God
What is a mystical experience?
An overwhelming awareness of the presence of God, leading to feelings of awe and wonder
What is religious ecstasy?
A period of intense religious feeling
What is a prophecy?
God-inspired prediction about a future event
What is speaking in tongues?
Speaking miraculously in a language unknown to the speaker, as the Holy Spirit enables them to
Why do some Christians reject ecstatic experiences as acts of God?
Nowhere in the Bible do the prophets, the apostles or Jesus himself ever lay hands on someone, allowing the Holy Spirit to come through their hands and causing the person to fall over
What is Pentecostalism largely based upon?
The coming of the Holy Spirit to the twelve apostles during the first festival of Pentecost after Jesus’ ascension to heaven
What is the Sacrament of Penance?
The confession of sins to a priest in the Catholic Church
