Knowledge Of God

Question 1

Reasons why God can be known through reason alone?

Answer 1

-If God has created humans then it makes sense that he would provide ways of humans being able to discover and get to know him. We should be able to fine the tools for this in all people
-Pre Christian philosopher Cicero talked about the ‘universal consent argument’- the idea that so many people believe in Gods of different sorts that it must be part of the natural make-up of humans

Question 2

Reasons why God cannot be known through reason alone?

Answer 2

-Reason is an intellectual exercise and not all people are academic. Perhaps it is not reasonable to suggest that everyone can use reason correctly to understand God

Question 3

Reasons why Faith is sufficient for believing in Gods existence?

Answer 3

-Engaging with God should not be seen as merely an academic exercise but as a spiritual and emotional task: life it not just about academic or physical things
-It stands to reason that a God who is beyond this earth will not be able to be understood without faith and God’s grace to enable that faith

Question 4

Reason why Faith is not sufficient reason for believing in God’s existence?

Answer 4

-Why would God create humans with the ability to be rational and them seem only to offer some and not all humans the gift of faith
Brunner says we need natural theology as a starting point and Barth says Faith alone isn’t enough to believe in God’s existence, spiritual relationships not possible need God grace first-Barth

Question 5

What did Barth argue

Answer 5

He thought that human nature had been corrupted by the fall and that there is no authoritative source of knowledge of God apart from God’s revelation. Thus, all of natural theology is rejected and there are no points of contact between God and humans. The only way for us to know anything about God is through God’s loving, free choice to reveal something to us.

Question 6

Reasons why the Fall removed all natural knowledge of God?

Answer 6

-The effects of the Fall utterly decimated human relationships with God. The Bible is clear that humans must labour alone (in the punishment of Adam) unless God says otherwise
-The argument of Cicero’s universal consent can be rejected simply because even though many people have a sense of religion, the fact they interpret it so differently proves human reason inadequate

Question 7

Reasons why The fall has not removed all natural knowledge of God?

Answer 7

-Too much emphasis put on the fall. Catholics downplay this and focus, instead, on the gap between us and God because of our very natures so it is possible to know something of God through reason.

Question 8

Reason why There is no difference between natural and revealed theology?

Answer 8

The two are simply different sides of the same coin because you cannot have natural knowledge without revealed knowledge first

Question 9

Reasons why There is a difference between natural and revealed knowledge?

Answer 9

-Natural knowledge must be different because it is impossible due to the fall as the points of contact have been lost
-Natural knowledge gives a different sort of knowledge to revelation. Nobody becomes believer through natural theology alone.
Paul 17:16-34 ‘some of the people became followers of Paul and believed’

Question 10

Reasons why Faith in God is rational?

Answer 10

-All people believe in different ways- some are intellectual and some are not. This surely does not matter to God who made humans to worship him. Belief in God in whatever form should lead to a commitment
-Belief in God requires a leap of faith. If one is prepared to make that leap then one must put trust in God

Question 11

Reason why Faith in God is irrational?

Answer 11

-Belief in God needs proper context and understanding- through an understanding of Jesus as mediator as taught by the church

Question 12

Reasons why Jesus provides the Best source for knowledge of God?

Answer 12

-In Christian belief and according to John’s Gospel Jesus was the ‘world made flesh’, so the eternal creative wisdom and power of God born into the world as a man
-Jesus’ words are believed to be the very words of God, and his actions and sacrifice on the cross are believed to be the actions and sacrifices of God

Question 13

Reason why Jesus is not the best source for knowledge of God?

Answer 13

Through the events of history could be a better source because we can learn from the work of God in the past and learn from the future E.g book of Jeremiah people ignored good things done so brought punishment on themselves

Question 14

What does Brunner argue?

Answer 14

If a person wishes to have full knowledge of God, then they need to accept and have faith in Jesus Christ and true knowledge of Christ and the redemption he brought only comes through revelation. Therefore, natural theology exists to give us the ability to begin the conversation, about what we know about God but not to give full knowledge

Question 15

What is an innate human sense of the divine?

Answer 15

-In the 16th century John Calvin said that all people have an innate sensus divinitas that makes it possible for anyone to know God
-He also spoke of the semen religionas that is found inside all people
-Calvin thought people are not fully aware of the sensus divinitas because they are confused by sin- it is sin, through human free choice, that makes people unable sometimes to recognise God

Question 16

What are 3 key examples of how humans experience the sensus divinitas?

Answer 16

1. The conscience- the feeling of guilt that we have inside us when we do something wrong is a voice inside us that provides innate evidence that God exists. This view of the conscience suggests humans are open to understanding goodness as an aspect of God- goodness comes from God and we feel good or bad when we do good or bad things. Calvin said that the conscience is a capacity given by God and is part of the human response to God
2. Humans are also aware of beauty and the Roman Catholic Church states that this appreciation of aesthetics helps people to understand God’s existence. When we see a beautiful sight or hear a beautiful sound, we can use our reason to interpret this experience to understand that God is working in the world. Our ability to do this is a capacity that God has given us and from this realisation we can use our reason to learn about God and God’s nature
3. What sets humans apart from the rest of the world is our intellectual ability- our powers of reason. This reason can help us to reflect on what we see around us, such as the nature of objects, natural laws, as well as the fine tuned design of the world to recognise God’s existence. Thomas Aquinas is one of the most famous thinkers to use reason to justify the existence of God in his 5 ways. Which many claim probe the existence of the Christian God. Even if they do not, theologians often argue that put together the 5 ways provide significant evidence that there is a God

Question 17

How do we have natural knowledge of God’s existence through the order of creation?

Answer 17

-Given the view that we have a basic understanding that beauty comes from God, reflecting on the beauty of creation- according to natural theologians- is a way of us experiencing something that leads us to God. Design arguments for the existence of God challenge us to use our reason to see if we can debate that God exists from the beauty and intricacies of the world around us. Calvin sees the idea of the beauty of the earth as being like a mirror of God, reflecting his nature through the world. Similar to Paul’s argument in Romans 1

Question 18

What are the strengths of natural theology?

Answer 18

-Natural theology works in a way that we are used to. It is normal for humans to use their brains to reason.
-Furthermore, there is a long tradition, both within Christianity and outside it, that shows people using reason to show God exists
-It is reasonable to suggest that the sheer number of people who have had some sort of faith suggests that there is a point of contact between God and humans
-It is reasonable to believe that a God who lovingly created humans would have made some way for those humans to have contact with him
-Appreciation of awe and wonder takes us beyond the physical and the feelings we experience seem to be on a level different to material things- this might point to a God that can be known form earthly things

Question 19

What are weaknesses of natural theology?

Answer 19

-Is the gap just too great between humans and God to accept the sensus divinitas?
-Is natural theology of any use if we cannot gain personal knowledge of God: knowing God should be able to lead to a relationship with him?
-Many people use their reason to come up with different conclusions, including that God does not exist, so perhaps reason is not helpful and too subjective
-Order and purpose in nature can perhaps be explained by other factors, such as natural selection in the theory of evolution
-Just because beauty makes us feel awe, it does not mean that God has made this feeling

Question 20

What is Grace?

Answer 20

-Grace is the word used to describe God’s unconditional, constant and immense giving of goodness to the world; it is often referred to as ‘undeserved favour’.
-It is not something humans can ask for. Christian’s believe that it is because of God’s Grace that they are given faith and it is because of God’s Grace that faith becomes a real, personal relationship with God

Question 21

What does Calvin say about the Holy Spirit?

Answer 21

-He said that it helps humans in their lives by giving faith- the Holy Spirit acts in the world to give gifts, such as wisdom and understanding, and right judgement to open people up to faith and God’s Grace

Question 22

What is revelation through faith and God’s Grace?

Answer 22

-Christian’s do not believe that natural theology alone is enough to gain full knowledge of God because humans are sinful (because of the Fall, as well as their natures) and because human intellect is finite or limited.
-Roman Catholics see faith as being something that works alongside reason- it is about ‘buying in’ to something that you have reasoned to be true.
-True faith is something that comes through a process of formation where prayer and reflection allow a person to let go of reason alone
-Aquinas reflected on the idea of faith at some length and he saw it as a conscious choice to accept something that is not certain- and so it is different from science
-For Calvin, Christian faith comes properly through an acceptance of Jesus as the Redeemer of the world, which is done not on a rational level but at a spiritual level
-Once people understand that Jesus is a special revelation of God’s purpose for the world then, for Calvin, faith in Jesus leads towards true knowledge of God

Question 23

What are the strengths of revealed theology?

Answer 23

-Only God can properly reveal something as indescribable as himself- compare the idea of religious experiences which often emphasise how indescribable it is to encounter God directly
-The concept of faith reflects the difference when talking about knowing things on earth and knowing God, so revealed theology must be required to know about God
-The concept of Grace shows how humans need to appreciate that God is so much greater than them and they require his revelation to know about him
-Revealed theology emphasises the special nature of Jesus and gives appropriate importance to Jesus
-Understanding the Bible as a revealed text shows how agora has left that revelation for all to have access to

Question 24

What is revealed theology through nature and actions of Jesus?

Answer 24

For Catholics:
-God’s revelation was completed through the Christ event and the sending of the Holy Spirit, but the way it is relevant today needs to be understood in each new circumstance
-This is the work of the church: to explore God’s revelation in the present day, to make it accessible to people and to enable them to access God’s Grace in their daily lives
-God is revealed through both the Bible and church tradition
For Protestants:
-The Bible holds more authority than the church
-Th church’s role is generally seen to point believers towards the revelation found in the Bible
-Calvin emphasised the work of Jesus on the cross- Jesus bridged the gap between humans and God, created at the fall, and redeemed the world. It is this idea of Jesus as mediator and Redeemer that Calvin returns to again and again

Question 25

What is the story of salvation history that the Bible tells?

Answer 25

-God works through history to bring his people to a place where they can fully understand the person of Jesus
-The Old Testament shows the ups and downs of the Jewish people and the work of God through the mediation of key figures: patriarchs, kings, priests and prophets
-Christians believe that Jesus combined all these roles in his life and death, while also being God in human form. Each key figure in the Old Testament gives a glimpse into what Jesus will offer in the world
-In the New Testament, the Bible shows the good news of Jesus working it’s way through the world as it begins to spread and this reveals how God can work in the life of the church
-It is clear throughout the Bible that God speaks to his people directly through visions and the work of key figures

Question 26

What are weaknesses of revealed theology?

Answer 26

-The idea of revealed theology is no use to the non believer because they cannot interpret or understand it
-Revealed theology suggests a God who only reveals himself in certain circumstances and so could be accused of being biased in some way to some people
-People who claim that God has revealed himself in some way have contradicted others who claim that God has revealed himself to them
-It assumes Christianity is the correct revelation

Question 27

What is Brunner’s argument?

Answer 27

-It is possible for us to know God through natural theology- the conscience and sensus divinitas
-Humans recognise the point of contact between God and themselves and then become aware of their own sinfulness
-Natural theology cannot save people- however it can create a discussion that points towards the existence of God
-Natural theology can help us to be aware that there is a God, but there is a limit to what we can know
-The fall damaged people on some levels, but there is a limit to what we can know
-The fall damaged people on some level, which means there is still a way we can connect to God

Question 28

What was Barth’s argument?

Answer 28

-God is so ‘radically other’ that we cannot use reason to know God- like pouring the Niagara Falls into a milk jug
-Human language came about to describe human things so we can never fully describe God or the human relationship to him
-Human reason cannot be fully trusted- we must not put ourselves in a position where we put reason above God
-The Bible contains God’s revelation but it is only ‘God’s word’ because God allows revelation to occur through it
-Human nature was completely corrupted by the Fall so only through revelation can God interact with humanity