Finals Flashcards
The thing from which everything else comes(also called Prime Reality)
Ultimate Reality
Understandable;product of a rational mind
Intelligible
The universe was designed by God
God Hypothesis
Effect on wavelength of receding objects
Redshift
Matter and energy are everything and have existed forever
Materialism
Recent group of authors who call themselves anti-theists
New Atheism
Reasoning from effect back to cause
Abductive Reasoning
The science of the origin and development of the universe
Cosmology
Having a limited existence;not always here
Finite
How is worldview a type of faith?
It is a belief in a system of thought,a personal philosophy,and a hypothesis about ultimate reality
Does faith assume that you have no evidence for believing in what you do?Explain
No because faith might be something you believe in for which you have some really good reasons
What is the most important questions that a person’s worldview answers?
What is the prime reality?
What worldview do most atheists hold to?According to this worldview,where does all matter in the universe come from?
Materialism and according to atheists all the matter in the universe has existed forever
Which worldview was held by most of the founders of modern science,including Kepler,Galileo,and Newton?
Theism
Which major worldview is represented in the movie,Star Wars?
Pantheism
How can abductive reasoning help us to determine the origin of the universe?
We can look for evidence in the world to help us reason bacteria to a cause
The 19th century saw a dramatic move away from theism toward undirected evolution.Was this the result of scientific discovery or the personal philosophy of many scientists?
Personal philosophy of scientists because they wanted a reason to prove that God wasn’t real.
In the 1920’s,what did Edwin Hubble discover about the universe?
That the universe was expanding
What theory arose from this discovery?
The Big Bang Theory
How does the Big Bang theory support the Biblical claim that “In the beginning,God created the heavens and the earth”?
An affirmation that the first event took place in a finite time in the past-but doesn’t tell you what caused that first event
What does the God Hypothesis include that the Big Bang theory does not?
Where it all began or that it began by God
Describe the 3 cosmological theories and the evidence that supports or disproves them
Steady State Theory is disproved because Sir Fred Hoyle tried to come up with another theory to explain the expansion of the universe that did not imply that there was a beginning to the universe
The Oscillating Universe Theory is wrong because the measururements show that there’s only a small fraction of the needed mass in order to cause a gravitational re-collapse
Creatio ex Nihilo is proved right because the field equations of general relativity proved that the universe began at a zero point in both time and space,which coincides with the biblical account of creation out of nothing
The act of reaching a conclusion about something from known facts or evidence
Inference
Hypothetical contents of a living cell-the “goo inside the globule” idea
Protoplasm
How you get from non-living chemicals to the first living organism
Chemical Evolution
How you get from simple life forms to complex (Darwin’s Theory of Evolution)
Biological Evolution
Every physical parameter set just right to make the galaxies and life possible
Fine-Tuning
Imaginary ocean of amino acids at Earth’s beginning
Prebiotic Soup
Universe collapsing inward if its expansion rate were slower
Big Crunch
Function dependent on the arrangement of the parts
Sequence Specificity
Fine-tuning is no suprise since we wouldn’t be here otherwise
Weak Anthropic Principle
Deoxyribonucleic acid;a molecule which stores and transmits hereditary information within the cell
DNA
Our universe is the outcome of a cosmic lottery
Many Worlds Hypothesis
Desirable traits in the chemicals of the “prebiotic soup” were selected and passed on to create the digital code (DNA)
Prebiotic Natural Selection Hypothesis
What is the most “compelling evidence” for the intelligent design of the universe?
The fine-tuning of the laws of Physics and Chemistry
How many conditions in the universe must be “just right” in order for human life to exist?What are some of these conditions?
35 conditions must be set just right one of the conditions is a fine-tuner
What evidences lead us to infer that something has been designed?
An IPad,DNA molecule,Mt.Rushmore
What is the problem with the Weak Anthropic Principle?
There is no explanation of the cause of the necessary conditions for life
What is the problem with the Many Worlds Hypothesis?
Who or what is generating the universes?We have no evidence of other universe
What is the side of debate about Intelligent Design?
Things look designed because they are designed
What is the side of the debate about Darwinism?
Things look designed but they are not designed
What does Biological Evolution explain?
It explains how you get from simple pre-existing forms of life to more complex forms of life
What does Chemical Evolution explain?
It explains how you get the first cell
In Darwin’s day,what did scientists think about the makeup of a cell?
They thought that cells were made up of protoplasm (a jello-like goo)
What is the function of DNA within the cell?
It contains information (digital code)that directs the making of proteins
Give an example of something that is sequence specific
Letters in a word
In human experience,what is the only source of specified,functional information
Proteins
To what does Bill Gates compare DNA?
A software program
All of life is made up of proteins-what are the odds that a single functional protein could come together by chance?
One chance in 10 to the 164th power
About how many proteins does it take to make up the simplest single-cell organism?
About 250
Why are serious scientists no longer thinking that life beg a by chance?
Because it takes 250 proteins to form a minimally complex single cell organism
What is the problem with the Prebiotic Natural Selction Hypothesis?
It’s not alive yet.Natural selection depends on reproduction:it presupposes organisms that can copy themselves
What is the problem with the Self-Organization Hypothesis?
Natural forces of attraction do not explain the information produced
If something has the appearance of design,what do we naturally conclude?
It really is designed
What 20th century discovery has made these scientists unable to explain the origin of life?
They cannot explain the origin of the information of DNA
If you’re trying to explain an event in the remote past,you must invoke a “cause”known to produce the effect in question.In our experience,what “cause” produces information?
Intelligence
Why is the intelligent design hypothesis not a option for many scientists?
They refuse to include Intelligent design as part of science
What should be the most important rule of science?
Follow the evidence wherever it leads-to the truth
Based on facts rather than feelings or opinions
Objective
Based on feelings or opinions rather than facts
Subjective
Moral sentiments evolved to promote human survival and reproductive success
Evolutionary Ethics
Discovered DNA structure
Watson and Crick
Only materialistic theories allowed
Methodological Naturalism
Evidence in the fossil record of the sudden appearance of major forms in life
Cambrian Explosion
Beliefs about what is right behavior and what is wrong behavior
Morality
Morality stems from God’s character and how He designed human beings to function best
Virtue Ethics
No objective standard of morality;only personal preferences
Relativism
What evidence do we now have in the fossil record that disproves Darwin’s idea of a gradual morphing of life forms over time?
The sudden appearance of all the major new “body plans”…to form new types of animals
What are 3 key conditions for an objective morality?
- Objective Standard
- Human Free Will
- Intrinsic Value of Humans
Describe “Theistic Virtue Ethics.”
God’s moral injunctions are a reflection not only of His character,but also reflect how He designed humans and by obeying Him we will function the way He intended
What does the Materialist believe about morality-about what is right and wrong?
Ethics are purely relative;they are merely personal preferences
What do materialists think of the idea of human free will?Explain.
There is no personal choice.We are totally decided by genes,environment,and our evolutionary history.
To the materialist,what is just as valuable as human life?
Animal’s lives
Describe the philosophy of moral relativism
It’s all a matter of personal preference;it’s merely opinion
What is the problem with relativism?
It implies that there are no real ethical disagreements-only differences in taste
What are some things you can’t do if you are a moral relativist?
Can’t accuse others of wrong-doing,can’t complain about being mistreated,can’t blame others or accept moral praise,and can’t make charges of unfairness and justice
In spite of what they may say,explain how the actions of all people reveal that they truly do believe in moral standards.
If somebody dropped their wallet and a relativist picked it up it wouldn’t be wrong but if the relativist dropped their wallet they’d want somebody to return to them
Describe evolutionary ethics.What is the problem with this idea?
They are moral rules developed from moral sentiments or moral emotions;the problem is it destroys any reason to obey moral norms when ones own interests contradicts that of the group or society
What is the only logical explanation for the existence of an objective moral code?
On,y the presupposition of the existence of God allows people to live consistently with their belief
Researching the author/source and purpose of biblical texts
Higher Criticism
Many authors wrote the first 5 books of the Bible
Documentary Hypothesis
An act of God;something not explainable by natural laws
Miracle
The period of Israel’s history dominated by Abraham,Isaac,Jacob,and Joseph
Patriarchal
When a story’s details help pinpoint its actual historical setting
Situates
When something doesn’t seem to belong to the time period it has been assigned to
Anachronism
Biblical narratives have no historical basis
Biblical Nihilism
Biblical narratives,though loosely based on real people or events,are mostly fiction
Biblical Minimalism
A conclusion based on the lack of contrary evidence
Argument from Silence
Detailed match between the Biblical and archaeological records
Specificity
Egypt’s Nile Delta area where the Israelites settled after Joseph’s time
Goshen
Nomadic,marauding tribes in the Middle East-possibly referring to the Hebrew people
Habiru
The promised land of the Israelites
Canaan
Archaeologist who claimed that Jericho was destroyee much earlier than the Bible says
Kenyon
Large dung beetle regarded as sacred in ancient Egypt
Scarab
Type of pottery imported form Cyprus and used by the wealthy in the 15th century BC
Cypriot
What are the 3 tests used to determine the reliability of a historical document? What do they attempt to answer?
The Bibliographical Test:Is the text we now have the same as what was originally written?
The Internal Evidence Test:Is the original written record credible?
The External Evidence Test:Is the content of the document supported by other sources?
Something you assume to be true
Presupposition
What motivation did the Jews have for accurately copying Scriptures?
- It was the Word of God
- God had entrusted them with its presentation and transmission
- They had been commanded by God not to change it.
What 20th century discovery proved that the OT had been accurately copied over the last 2000 years?
Dead Sea Scrolls
What 2 archaeological discoveries situate Jericho’s fall around the biblical date of 1400 BC
- Lots of Late Bronze Age imported Cypriot pottery
2. Egyptian scarab seals of Hatshepsut,Thutmose III,and Amenhotep III found in a Jericho cemetery
Describe the archaeological evidence we have for the Israelites 40 years of wilderness wandering
Egyptian Temple Inscription-It places these nomads in Moab and Edom
What archaeological evidence has been found which supports the Biblical account of the destruction of Jericho?
- Walls of Jericho were impressively fortified
- Houses of mud brick built into the walls
- walls fell outward,unlike what normally happens in a siege
- Attack occurred after spring harvest
Describe 2 archaeological discoveries that provide evidence for the presence of Israel in Canaan
Amarna Letters-14 Century BCdocument referring to raids and conquests of several Canaanite cities by the Habiru
Merenptah Stele-records an attack on areas in Canaan by Pharoah
What and where is Tel el-Dab’a?
Archaeological dig in ancient Goshen
In light of their worldview,who do materialists view the Bible,and why?
They view the Bible as one big storybook,because there is things that usually dont happen in real life
If the 1st big question is where did it all come from,what is big question #2?
Is the Bible reliable? Who is God?
Explain Wellhausen’s theory of the evolutionary origin of religion.
The idea of religion evolved from pantheism to polytheism to monotheism
Summarize Wellahausen’s Documentary Hypothesis and his reasons for it
Claimed that the Torah was written by multiple authors,written over hundreds of years,and written over 1,000 years after the events described.His reasons were lack of external evidence,use of different names for God,and recording of miracles
