God Flashcards
Outline monotheism
The belief in one God. In Christianity the foundations of monotheism can be seen in the Old Testament.
Deuteronomy 6:4 “The Lord is one”
Isaiah 44:6 “I am the first and the last; apart from me there is no God”
Paul’s letters reaffirm the belief in one God. He writes to Timothy “there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ.” and to Corinthians “There is God God but one”
Outline ethical monotheism
When belief in one God sets the rules and moral standards by which someone should live by. God is the sole source of morality and ethics.
Eg: 10 commandments
The Sinai Covenant illustrates this, where in return for the Jews commitment to God and following God’s commandments, God agreed for the Israelites to be his chosen people.
Exodus 19:5 “If you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possessions.”
Outline God’s transcendence
Beyond time and space. He became immanent and involved with the world through the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
Boethius argues God exists in a “simultaneous present.”
Otto’s notion of a “wholly other” reflects how God’s nature is ultimately unknowable and outside the human experience.
Outline God as omnipotent
All powerful as creator of all things. Genesis “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
Luke 1:37 “Nothing is impossible with God”
Mark 19:26 “With God all things are possible”
Descartes argues God’s omnipotence means God can do even the logically impossible. For Aquinas, omnipotence means God can do the logically possible.
Peter Vardy - “God is limited by the universe he has chosen to create.”
Outline God as love
Gospel of John - “God is love”
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world so much he gave his one and only son”
Jesus teaches that the most important commandment is to love God and to love thy neighbour.
Agapeic love is modelled by Jesus Christ and forms the foundations of Situation Ethics.
Christian love is the centrality of Situation Ethics. William Temple argues “love should be the predominant Christian impulse”
Outline God as Father
In the Old Testament, the term father is used to help Christians understand God’s omnipotence. The patriarchal context of religion recognises the oldest male of the household to have the power, authority and control. God in the Old Testament is shown as the creator and controller of all things, who sets the standards of behaviour and punishments.
In the New Testament, the term father is used to reflect God’s omnibenevolence and fatherly love.
In the parable of the forgiving father, Jesus says to pray to “Our Father in heaven”
Abba is an intimate Aramaic term used for father. Paul uses this term when writing to Corinthians of how to pray God. “Abba, father when they pray they will become adopted children of God.”
Outline God as King
Monarchy was a familiar concept for early Christians, where the monarch was seen to have absolute power. “The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice” shows God as king as it implies he is ruling. The power of the king is absolute, shown here.
In Isaiah, God is repeatedly depicted to be seated on a throne.
Jesus reinforces idea of God as king as “Jesus is the messiah”
Moreover, Jesus has also been associated with the inauguration of the Kingdom of God. This refers to God’s rule as King of the universe as both a present and future reality. As part of the future reality, Jesus will return as anointed King to fully establish the Kingdom of God where there will be no pain or hunger but peace instead.
Outline the role of the Trinity
The Trinity consist of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. They were all present at the time of creation and share the same essence of divinity.
All aspects of the Trinity are described to be in a relationship of mutual indwelling. This sentiment is echoed by Pope Benedict XVI who states “God is not solitude but perfect communion.”
The Trinitarian view was established in 325AD by the Council of Nicaea. The Nicaean Creed outlines how “Jesus is consubstantial with the Father” and that “The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son.” The Apostolic Creed similarly shows the foundations of the belief in the Trinity.
Jesus - John 1:1-3 “The word was with God and the word was God” John 1:14 “The word became flesh and dwelt amongst us.”
Holy Spirit: Genesis describes “the spirit of God hovering over the waters”
The complexity of the Trinity reflects God’s ultimately unknowable and transcendent nature and “fundamentally distinguishes” Christianity from other religions. - Karl Barth.
Outline Jesus as the Son of God
John 10:30
“The Father and I are one” - debated if this refers to one substance or one purpose.”
Paul to Corinthians: “There is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came through who we live.”
Some believe this shows Jesus and God are equal in divinity but others argue Paul is stating Jesus is God’s agent in creation but that he himself was not equal to God. Rather a vehicle in which people can access God. This is suggested by the term “through.”
Evaluate the use of anthropomorphic language within the bible
Anthropomorphism reduces God down to human terms and thus, undermines his transcendence.
The Via Negativa approach aims to combat this issue by only using negative terms to describe God. However, Inge argues that by approaching theological language by negation, lead theists to having no knowledge of who they are worshipping and ultimately the annihilation of God.
Jesus uses anthropomorphic language within the bible when he tells his disciples to pray to “our father.”
Gender specific language in the bible is criticised for reinforcing patriarchal standards.
Mary Daly - “If God is male than male is God”
Daphne Hampson - “Christianity is a historical language bound to a sexist past” She argues that gender specific language only “subverts women and establishes man as the norm.”
Reuther argues we should take a gender neutral approach to religious language, by replacing God with “God/ess”
She argues the overemphasis on Jesus’ maleness should be replaced by a focus on his role as a liberator of the oppressed and marginalised.
Reuther argues that Christianity is an eschatological religion and therefore focussed on the future. So, the bible should be open to reinterpretation.
