Knowledge Of The Existence Of God Flashcards
Faith
Voluntary commitment to a belief without the need for complete evidence to support it
Empiricism
A way of knowing that depends on the five senses
Natural theology
Drawing conclusions about the nature and activity of God by using reason and observing the world
Protestantism
A form of Christianity which rejects the authority of the Catholic Church and places greater emphasis on the Bible and on personal faith
Revelation
‘Uncovering’. In theological terms, this is when God chooses to let himself be known
Immediate revelation
Where someone is given direct knowledge of God
Mediate revelation
Where someone gains knowledge of God in a secondary, non-direct way
Grace of God
God’s unconditional and undeserved gifts
Wisdom literature
A genre of writing from the ancient world, teaching about wisdom and virtue.
In the Bible, books such as Proverbs and Job are classified as wisdom literature.
What is ‘sensus divinitas’ and who said that we have this?
It’s a ‘seed of divinity’, innate knowledge for god that lives inside of us.
John Calvin
Who has ‘sensus divinitas’?
Every human has it - you cannot help but know God. To choose not to know God is an indication that you are damned.
What is epistemic distance?
Distance between humans and God that has been put there by human sinfulness.
How do we get close to God, according to Aquinas?
We use our own reason which is given to us by God and when properly used, it helps us to get close to him and fulfil our telos.
An example of immediate revelation
Giving Moses the Ten Commandments
Jesus speaking to his disciples
An example of mediate revelation
Moses telling people the 10 commandments
Jesus preaching his message
What is faith?
Belief held in spite of a lack of conclusive evidence, or sometimes held in opposition to evidence/reason.
Aquinas says that faith is a voluntary choice, and should work together with reason, being gifts from God.
Look for John’s Gospel on sheet - Jesus is the revealer of secret knowledge
What is Grace?
God’s unconditional gift to humanity. Gives people knowledge of God through grace.
God gives them the gift of faith, and sustains/strengthens their faith through the Holy Spirit.
Why is the grace of God so important in Christian understanding of the knowledge of God?
People can only have full knowledge of God when God graciously chooses to give it.
God as the Holy Spirit is believed to:
Give prophets of the Old Testament the right words to say at the right time, guiding the writers of scripture, God given authority.
Give people wisdom to understand what has been revealed to them.
Bring people to salvation.
Give people faith with which too believe the Christian message.
Enable people to live a Christian life on a personal level.
Give people the confidence to share the Christian faith, even in times of danger.
Strengthen the Church as a community of believers.
Revelation in the Bible
In Christianity and especially Judaism, there is the belief that people can gain insight into the purposes of God by looking at the past.
The events of history are seen as the work of God - gives us greater understanding of what God wants/displeased by.
Jeremiah 32:21-23 - People of Israel have ignored the things God had done for them through history, and so brought punishment on themselves.
Wisdom and words of the prophets
In the Bible, especially through ‘wisdom literature’, there is the idea that God can be revealed through the insights of wise people.
Those who have many years of experience of trying to live a normal life gain an understanding of God, which is revealed in their sayings and writings.
There is the belief the prophets directly reveal God’s words in the Bible - they are messengers.
Religious experiences and visions
God is understood to reveal himself to people through personal religious experiences.
This could be dreams/visions from God himself or angels (like Joseph, or the three wise men)
