Life after death Flashcards
What do Catholics teach on the meaning of death
- Catholics believe that death is not the end of our existence.
- Jesus taught that whose who believe would have eternal life.
- Death is not the end - just a way to new life.
What do Catholics teach about dying well?
- They should prepare to die well.
- they will seek palliative care.
- They might spend time with their loved ones and get their funeral in order.
How does the Church comfort those who have lost loved ones?
- Prayers are said for those who have died.
- They explore the belief of eternal life through music and art.
What does the Catholic Church teach about euthanasia and assisted suicide?
- It rejects them as appropriate ways of ending life.
- They disagree because all life is sacred and is a gift from God and should be respected until a natural death.
- They are against ‘do not murder’
What is palliative care?
- care in a hospice or another similar place
- it offers pain-relieving medication, nursing care and supervision until natural death.
- Essentially they make the sick person as comfortable as they can.
Why is palliative care important?
- The Catholic Church supports palliative care.
- It respects the value of every person until their death.
- The pain reducing medication allows people to retain as much dignity and quality of life as possible.
What do non-religious people think about the right to die?
- People who suffer from incurable diseases might choose to end their life before their illness reaches the final stages.
- they wish to end their life before their quality of life is diminished.
- a person who is fully conscious and rational has the freedom to choose when to end their life.
What do Catholics believe about the Sanctity of life?
- All human life is sacred and holy
- Life is a gift from God and should be respected
- Euthanasia and assisted suicide are going against the sanctity of life.
- “do not murder”
What do Catholics think about euthanasia/assisted suicide?
- it is wrong.
- it goes against the sanctity of life
- it goes against the Ten Commandments ‘do not murder’
- anyone who assists in euthanasia is co-operating with murder
What do Catholics think the right way to die is?
- People should die with dignity using palliative care.
- It is acceptable to turn off a life support machine if the patient is braindead.
- it is acceptable for a person to refuse treatement which would prolong a painful illness.
- It is not acceptable to withdraw food and fluids to someone in a permenant vegetative state. As food and water are part of basic human digity.
What do some people think about quality of life and euthanasia?
- quality of life is more important than life being considered sacred.
- if someone is in constant pain beyond any pleasure they could have they could have a poor quality of life.
- some people argue if a person has a poor quality of life they have a right to die.
What would the argument be against no quality of life condoning euthanasia?
Quality of life is subjective. How do we measure it?
What arguments are there FOR the right to die argument?
- Many consider it a basic human right to control the ending of your life.
- Advances in medicine have led to people being alive who would previously have died. They should be allowed a painless death.
- Those who believe in free will think it is wrong to keep someone alive who has no hope of recovery
- we do not let animals suffer so why should humans?
- people should be allowed to die with dignity.
What arguments are there AGAINST the right to die argument?
- life is given by God and so should only be taken by God
- if Euthanasia is legalised people might stop looking for cures to stop terminal illnesses
- People may want to live but go through euthanasia as they dont want to be a burden to people anymore
- The role of the doctor is to save life not to destroy it
- people might change their minds, but it would be too late.
- All life is special and worthy of protection.
What do Catholics believe about life after death?
- The Nicene Creed teaches us that Jesus rose fro the dead and there will be life after death.
- They believe in eternal life.
- They will have a spiritual resurrection body given by God.
- St Paul describes what happens after death in his first letter to corinthians
What do Catholics believe in the ressurection of the body?
- In 1 corinthians Paul teaches that Jesus rose from the dead and that what happened to Jesus will also happen to his followers.
- Ressurection is the belief that after death people will have bodilt existence.
- Paul teaches people will have a ressurection like Jesus and will have a spiritual resurection body given to them by God.
- This is the glorified body.
- When Jesus rose his body was familiar at times but his disciples did not recognise him
Give two quotes for the belief in the ressurection of the body in Corinthians
“if christ has not been aised then our faith is vain”
“if there is a physical body there is a spiritual body”
What do Christians believe about the survival of the soul?
- It is a non-physical thing which lives on after death.
- Most Christians believe in the immortality of the soul. They believe that when the body dies, the soul leaves the body to live with God.
- Other Christians say the body and soul are one and cannot be separtated. After death the soul is temporarily apart from the body, but then the body and soul will be reunited on Judgement day.
What do Humanists think about life after death?
- Humans are just a physical body.
- there is no soul.
- this is the only life we have and we should make the most of it.
- there is NO life after death.
What might another religion - Sikhs/Hindus say about life after death?
- they believe in reincarnation
- In death the soul passes onto a new body
- how you are reborn depends on how good/bad you were in your previous life.
What does the Catholic Church say happens when you die?
- You are judged by God and you go to heaven or hell.
- Estachology is end of time
What are the parables of judgement?
- When a person dies God passes judgment on his or her soul, this is called particular judement.
- Each person is responsible for own actions.
- Final judgement when whole of creation is judged
- This idea is found in parable of the sheep and goats (Matt 25:31-36)
What do Catholics believe about Judgement?
- When a person dies, God passes judgement on their soul.
- Each person is responsible for their own actions.
- There will be a final judgement ‘judgement day’ when the whole of creation will be judged.
What do Catholics believe about heaven?
- A person who has lived a holy life will be rewarded with eternal happiness in heaven.
- Heaven is described in the Bible as a ‘banquet’ or ‘feast’
- The Bible teaches there is no sadness, suffering or pain in heaven.
- Christians believe it is a holy, happy and peaceful place to be with God.
- It is beyond human experience.
What do Catholics believe about Hell?
- it is a place where unrepentant sinners go after death.
- It is often thought of a place where eternal fire burns and you suffer.
- It is a place of eternal separation from God.
- Unrepentant sinner is someone who does not regret their wrong doing and refuses Gods offer of salvation through Jesus
What do Catholics believe about purgatory?
- The world to come will be different from now - so we need to prepare for that change.
- We need to transger from sinful to pure.
- This happens in purgatory - it means to cleanse and get rid of sin.
- Purgatory is a place where we prepare for heaven
Catholics believe you can help souls in purgatory by praying for them.
Give a quote from the rich man of lazarus
“He is comforted here and you are in anguish”
-Everyone is judged on how they lived their life and will be rewarded accordingly.