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Christianity 9 > Knowledge of God's existence NF > Flashcards

Knowledge of God's existence NF Flashcards

1
Q

Define ‘faith’

A

Voluntary commitment to a belief without the need for complete evidence to support it

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2
Q

Define ‘empiricism’

A

A way of knowing through the five senses

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3
Q

Define ‘natural theology’

A

Drawing conclusions about the nature and activity of God by using reason and observing the world

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4
Q

Define ‘Protestantism’

A

A form of Christianity which rejects the authority of the Catholic Church and places greater emphasis on the Bible and personal faith

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5
Q

Define ‘revelation’

A

Uncovering in theological terms when God chooses for himself to be known

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6
Q

Define ‘immediate revelation’

A

Where someone is given direct knowledge of God

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7
Q

Define ‘mediate revelation’

A

Where someone gains knowledge of God in a secondary and non-direct way

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8
Q

Define ‘Grace of God’

A

God’s unconditional and undeserved gifts

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9
Q

Define ‘wisdom literature’

A

A genre of writing from the ancient world teaching about wisdom and virtue e.g. Proverbs in the Bible

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10
Q

Why, in many world religions (inc. Christianity), is God understood to be unavailable empirically?

A

God is non-physical and so people who believe they can reveal him empirically are wrong and may even disprove God’s existence altogether and so this would make him meaningless

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11
Q

Why can logical knowledge of God also be faulted?

A

God can also not be known because he is beyond the capabilities of all understanding and reason of the human mind

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12
Q

Who was Bonaventura and what was his book?

A

A Franciscan monk from the 13th century

The Mind’s Road to God

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13
Q

What did Bonaventura believe about the human mind?

A

The mind has at least three different ways of knowing, he used the analogy of an eye to represent the mind’s ways of ‘seeing’

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14
Q

What was Bonaventura’s analogy of the eyes?

A

Eye of the flesh: sense perception to gain knowledge about the physical world
Eye of reason: mathematical and philosophical truths through logic
Eye of contemplation: knowledge of God through faith beyond sense and reason

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15
Q

Who was John Polkinghorne?

A

Cambridge physicist and Anglican priest

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16
Q

What was Polkinghorne’s theory?

A

Binocular vision (developed from Bonaventura) science through one eye and spiritual truths of God through the other. Both eyes need to work together to give all dimensions, it is foolish to reject one eye to pursue the other

17
Q

What is the difference between natural and revealed theology?

A 
N.T. = knowledge of God through reason and observation 
R.T = God revealing himself e.g. religious experience
18
Q

Describe Robert Boyle’s two books theory

A

Natural world and the Bible were both created by the same author, the words of the Bible and discoveries of science were complimentary enhancing each other

19
Q

In which theology did William Paley support?

A

Design argument of the watch on the heath supports natural theology as the world presented clear evidence of God

20
Q

Give an example of natural theology in the Bible

A

Psalms 8:3-9 “you have set in place… you made them a little lower than the angels”

21
Q

Why is Psalms 8:3-9 an example of Natural theology?

A

The wonders of the world are presented as evidence so God’s existence is proven empirically by nature

22
Q

Give an example of Paul in his letter to the Romans in support of natural theology

A

Experience and knowledge can easily lead to knowledge of God he argues people have made God angry because they have led Godless lives

23
Q

Give a quote from Paul’s letter to the Romans

A

“What may be known about God is plain to them because God has made it plain to them… clearly seen… their foolish heart darkened”

24
Q

What was Aquinas’ aim in natural theology?

A

To show that Christianity was not in opposition to reasonable common sense but reason and observation could work together in support of Christian belief

25
Q

Describe Aquinas’ theory

A

Seeing the chain of cause and effect in the world must mean that there is an uncaused causer so by observation there must something that started it in necessary existence

26
Q

Describe Swinburne’s theory

A

We have good reason to believe that the world shows order and purpose and so reason would suggest that there is an intelligent being who is the author of the universe which we call God

27
Q

Describe the view of Cicero

A

All cultures and in all times in history people have had a sense of an infinite being in control of the universe even if the cultures do not mi their religious ideologies are very similar so we must be bon with a sense of God

28
Q

How does the Bible support the notion that people are born with a sense for God?

A

Genesis 2:7

God breathes into Adam

29
Q

Give a quote from John Calvin

A

There is within the human mind and indeed by natural instinct an awareness of divinity

30
Q

Who was John Calvin?

A

16th century Protestant theologian

31
Q

Describe the views of John Calvin

A

Because of sensus divinitas people have no excuse but to worship God as this was not restricted to Christians but anyone who recognises beauty and order in the natural world

32
Q

What does Calvin say in his writings ‘institutes’ about who can recognise God?

A

Knowledge of God can be gained by “even the most unlearned and ignorant people”

33
Q

How did Calvin describe the created world?

A

As a mirror or theatre for God who may increase capacity for awareness of his presence so no one could claim they didn’t know him so everyone should live in fear of his punishment

34
Q

Why does Calvin believe there is some lack of clarity about God in the natural world?

A

Human sin clouds people’s understanding and prevents us having a full awareness of his nature and purposes

35
Q

Describe the views of John Henry Newman and C. S. Lewis

A

Our feeling of guilt and satisfaction as a result of our actions is the inner voice of conscience which is evidence of God making moral demands of his people

Christianity 9 (11 decks)

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