Knowledge Of God Flashcards
What is the ao1 spec for knowledge of God
Natural knowledge of God’s existence as an innate Human sense of the divine
Natural knowledge of God’s existence as seen in order of creation
Revealed knowledge of God’s existence through faith and god’s grace
Revealed knowledge of god’s existence in Jesus christ
What is the ao2 spec for knowledge of God
Whether god can be known through reason alone
Whether faith is sufficient reason for belief in god’s existence
Whether te fall has removed all natural knowledge of God
Whether natural knowledge of God is the same as revealed knowledge
Whether belief in god’s existence is sufficient to put ones trust in him
What is natural theology
The idea that God can be known through reason and observation of the natural world
What is revealed theology
The idea that God has deliberately chosen to give some knowledge to people that could not be gained rationally or empirically
Who was calvin
16th century protestant, inspired by st Paul and st augustine
Summarise what Calvin believed
All humans have an innate sense of the divine (sensus divinitatis) and a seed of religion (seed of religion)
The fall has impacted this god given point of contact, so we can only access it in a limited way
How did Calvin explain why atheists seem to have no innate knowledge of god’s existence
They have chosen to reject the innate sense of God within them
They are unable to connect with their innate knowledge due to original sin
How did st Paul influence Calvin’s beliefs
He said people are without excuse in choosing to not know god because god’s existence is self evident when we look at the world around us
In Athens he saw an altar ‘to an unknown god’ showing that the Greeks who worship many gods, still have an innate sense of the ‘true god’
How does the altar to an unknown god show we need revealed theology aswell
All they know of the god is his existence, but nothing about his nature
How does the catechism of the Catholic church support natural theology
It says ‘the desire for god is written in the human heart’, showing that god desires a relationship with us and natural theology provides a personal connection
What is the principle of accommodation
The idea that it is reasonable to suggest that a benevolent god would ‘accommodate’ human beings by communicating with us in ways we can understand
What is the principle of universal consent
Made by Cicero, idea that there seems to be an agreement across all cultures and all times in history that there is a divine being
How does the ability to recognise beauty support natural theology
We can know more about god through our ability to recognise beauty as it shows his benevolence
How does conscience support natural theology
When we do something wrong, we feel guilty - God is the source of this moral guidance so we can use it to understand God’s laws
How does Calvin support natural knowledge as seen in the order of creation
He says the universe acts as a ‘mirror’ as it gives us a glimpse into who God is
E.g we can see that the world is skillfully ordered to give us an impression of his omnipotence
Who was Aquinas
13th century catholic Christian inspired by aristotle
How does Aquinas support natural knowledge as seen in the order of creation
He says out powers of reason are what makes us different to the rest of the world
We can use this reason to reflect on the world we see and recognise God’s existence
What are points of contact
Things that allow us to gain natural knowledge of God
Why is Calvin ambiguous
- sometimes describes God as transcendent and detached, we can only access him through the world as it is a mirror, but sometimes describes God as immanent and personal through the holy spirit and jesus
- isn’t clear on the impact of the fall on our ability to know god
Who were Emil Brunner and Karl barth
20th century swiss theologians in the Calvinist tradition who debate what impact the fall had on our ability to know god
What did Emil Brunner believe
We can have a basic understanding of God through points of contact, as, though we are fallen, we are still god’s creation
To gain full knowledge we need to accept jesus
What did Karl barth believe
Human nature has been completely corrupted by the fall and we can only gain knowledge of God through revealed theology
Karl barth cons
- allows his experience of Nazism to cloud his view
- bible points us in the direction of natural theology
Why is revealed theology necessary
The essentials of Christian faith are based on revealed theology
E.g the trinity, incarnation
What is immediate revelation
When God reveals himself directly to a person or group of people
What is mediate revelation
When God reveals himself via another source
True or false: all Christians believe that natural theology is not enough, and revealed theology is necessary to gain true knowledge
True
What are three examples of revealed theology
The trinity
Jesus as the ‘mediator’ who reconnected humans with God
The holy spirit as the power of God active in the world today
What is faith
A knowledge of God that goes beyond that which can be obtained through rationalism or empiricism
It involves an element of risk and is gifted by the holy spirit
Is faith alone sufficient to know God
Most Christians agree that faith is not sufficient to know God, we require god’s grace to enter real intimacy with God
Where does Calvin believe faith comes from
Accepting Jesus as the redeemer of the world and the mediator who offers us the possibility of salvation
The holy spirit helps us have faith by repairing the damage caused by original sin
What does Aquinas believe about faith
Faith works alongside reason
If what we have reasoned contradicts faith, we have failed to interpret the data, or have misunderstood what has been revealed to us
How does Aquinas’ beliefs about faith support his arguments for god’s existence
Aquinas’ arguments for God’s existence do not prove god’s existence but confirm it
They will not convince the sceptic because faith is required aswell as reason
What does Dawkins believe about faith
‘faith is the great cop out’
Faith fills in the gaps that science will eventually be able to fill
What is the greatest form of revelation
Jesus as he is God incarnate
What two ways can the bible be interpreted
- the infallible word of God
- an inspired text that holds authority but must be interpreted
What is the catholic view of the church
The bible and the church have equal authority
The role of the church is to reinterpret the bible in the present day
What is the Protestant view of the church
The bible is central
The role of the church is to simply point people towards revelation found in the Bible
