P1S2 Flashcards
What is:
Cyclical
The view that time has no beginning or end and that the sould of human beings is reborn again and again
What is:
Human destiny
The future of human beings/what happens to them when they die
What is the:
Law of cause and effect
The belief that every human action has an automatic consequence
What is:
Linear
The view that time has a beginning and an end and that humans live only once on Earth
Views supporting:
Live after death
theists
- Human life lacks prpose if life stops at the point of death
- They believe in a day of judgement, and in the existence of heaven and hell
- Jesus’ death and ressurection are part of God’s divine plan for humankind
Justification for the view that:
There is no afterlife
Human lives are purely physical and non-spiritual
Scientific evidence for possibilites of the creation of the universe without God
Religion is a “physcological crutch”
Why non-religious people believe:
Life after death
- Ghosts
- remembering past lives
- near death experiences
What is:
Sanctity of life
quote
The view that all human life is intrinsically sacred, holy and precious
Justified as humans are made in God’s image, and God’s creation was good in genesis,
“Let us make mankind in our image”
The catholic church takes an absolutist view on this topic as:
Give life is an act of love by GOd
All human life is sacred because of imago dei - this marks humans out as special and beyond other parts of creation
Therefore anything that violates the sanctity of life is unethical
Different interpretations of:
Agape
- fletcher
- motherly love
- kierkgaard - disintrested, analogy of a dead person
What is:
Christian Escathology
conceptions of last things such as immortality of the soul, rebirth, end of time
What are:
Problems with heaven, hell and purgatory
- People are irreversibly punished for eternity for a choice
- An omni-benevolent God would not punish people
- Does the soul even exist?
- What is the criteria for going to pugatory?
What are different views on:
Whether or not we have a soul
- Augustine - mind body dualist - argues we do and that the soul is independent. This is responsible for one’s choices and is judged when you die by God
- Aquinas - hylomorphism - the body and the soul is united, and the soul can survive the death of the body but it is an incomplete form of existence, and at the end time we are re-united with out bodies
- Dawkins - Scientific materialism - body is purely physical, so there is no soul and no possibiility of conscious life after death
- Atheism - soul does not exist as there is no proof
What are:
Christian characteristics of life after death
- Dualistic view - material body and immaterial soul
- Life continues after death for the soul
- people will be judged on ethical grouds
- There will be a last judgement where everyone will be ressurected and judged
Passage explaining:
Hell and heaven
Sheep and the goats
“the righeous to eternal life”
Reasons for:
Belief in life after death
- Near death experiences where consciousness leaves the body
- Miracles
- Ressurection of Jesus which suggests other can do the same
- The character of God, omni-benevolent, omni-potent and omni-scient would not want his followers to die
What are the:
Purposes of life
with quotes
- Salvation
- Shown through ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.’, suggesting that what counts is a relationship with God
- Parable of the sheep and goats, saying that it is about helping people in need
What are the:
Advantages and disadvantages of justification by works
Advantages - costly grace indicates that out place in heaven will involve sacrificial actions
Parable of the the Sheep and the Goats indicates the value of works
Disadvantages -
works can be done for the wrong reasons or insincerly
How can a person be rewarded without faith?
Advantages and disadvantages of:
Justification by faith
Advantages: Makes sense that one should be rewarded for believing they can be saved
Some degree of response required justification by faith acheives this.
Disadvantages -
People without faith who have done good actions are not rewarded
Bible says: “faith without deeds is useless”
What are the different views of acheiving:
Salvation
- through good works - doing good actions
- Through faith as Jesus has done the work
Meaning of life for:
Atheists
- They believe they only have 1 life on earth, and that is it, so it has more value than religious believers as they have life after death
What is the:
Sanctity of life
The view that all human life is intrinsically sacred, holy and precious
What are:
The different views on sanctity of life
- Absolutist view - Catholic church - due to Imago Dei
- Fletcher - situational agape ethics
- Invalid concept - Singer - quality of life matters more
Why do:
Christians believe in the sanctity of life
- Christianity teaches that life is a gift from God, genesis 2
- Christianity teaches that humans are made in the image of God, ‘God created man in his own image’
- Christians believe that every life has a God-given purpose
- Many Christians believe in the sanctity of life because of the ten commandments, ‘You shall not commit murder’
Case study:
Dianne Pretty
- Had motor neurone disease, and wanted to control how she died, but could not do it herself and asked help from her husband
- Government rejected assisted suicide
- Argued for the right of death, and that the right of living should be controlled by quality of life
Case study:
Tony Bland
- Was on life support, had brain damage and no chances of getting better after 4 years
- house of lords accepted this.
Case study:
Katy’s pregnancy
- 17 year old and pregnant, with the father running away, with no parents, and works 30 hours per week and is going to uni
- She should be allowed, as it would decrease her quality of life, as well as that of the child who would have a complicated childhood
What are the key terms for:
Euthanasia and abortion
Active euthanasia - a person deliberately and directly ends the life of a patient
Passive euthanaisa - death brought about by omission
Voluntary euthanasia - request of the person
Involuntary euthanasia - the person is not able to make a decision
Theraputic abortion - Performed to save the life of the mother and or child
Selective abortion - perfromed when there are too many foetuses or the foetus is perceived as having and undersirable characteristic
Elective abortion - performed at woman’s request for non-medical reasons, e.g. unwanted pregnancy or rape
What is the:
Law on abortion in the UK
Can take place in the first 24 weeks of pregnancy and has to be approved by two doctors agreeing that the baby would pose a greater risk to the physical or mental health of the woman than a termination
What are the key questions that need to be analysed for:
Abortion
Point of viability, where 50% of foetuses would survive on their own
foetuses are scanned for disabilities
Views of when life begins
When does:
life begin
- Roman catholic church believe that the soul enters the body at conception
- Aquinas believes that it is when the foetus has an intelllectual soul, at 40 days for boys and 90 for girls
- Impossible to determine when this would take place however
- Some believe it is dependant on brain activity, with spasmodic starting at 40 days and continuous brain function around 32 weeks
- Viability, which is when foetus is self-sufficient, however with our medicine a 20-week foetus could survive.
Arguments for:
Abortion
- “clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, gentleness and patience” , suggests the decision should not be over moral decisions but whether it is kind and compassionate or not
- Flecter’s agape love
What are arguments:
Against abortion
- Humans are made in the image of God, “God created man in his own image”, therefore sanctity of life
- All life is created by God, and is therefore sacred and has a purpose
- Abortion is murder as DNA is present to create an individual, and exodus quote murder is wrong
Law on:
Euthanasia and assisted suicide UK
Euthanasia illegal and punishable up to prison for life, assisted suicide up to 14 years
Arguments against:
Euthanasia being legalised
- Slippery slope argument, that other things will be legalised
- Degredation of elderly life - could put them pressure to die for resources for other people
- Raises the question of age limits and those under the age of consent
- Sanctity of life - disrespects that human life is sacred
Religious arguments:
Against euthanaisa
- Many view Euthanasia as murder, and “You shall not commit murder”
- Each individual matters to God
- Compassion leads to sharing pain, not killing to end the suffering
- Sanctity of life, “God made man in his own image”
Arguments for:
Euthanasia
- individuals should have full control on what affects them only
- Vooluntary euthanasia is not murder as they already dying anyways
- Volunatry euthanasia is merciful when there is no hope
What is:
Peter Singer’s view on Euthanasia
Quality of life matters more, sanctity of life is an invalid concept
What are the different:
Purposes of having a partner
- To maintain a life-long vow and remain faithful throughout the duration of a marriage
- To procreate, using the gift of Earth
- To provide a unit of stability that provides the foundations for freedom, security and fraternity within society
- To form a partnership with responsibilities toward one another as they no longer rely on their parents
- Companionship and meeting the need of their respective partner
What is:
Cohabitation
- Living together and having a sexual relationship without being married
What is:
Annulment
A legal procedure that cancels a marraige, which is erased from a legal perspecitve and declares that the marriage never existed
View of the:
Old testament on homosexuality
- It is viewed as unpure and condemnable for death, “if a man practices homosexuality, both men have committed a detestable act”
What does the:
New testament say on homosexuality
- Does not mention it
- Jesus however abandoned seeing the law in terms of purity but on purpose and integrating people
- homosexuals can be seen as the outsider
- However, St Paul condemns it
What is the view of the:
Catholic church on homosexuality
- The act of homosexuality is wrong and a sin
- However, only practicing is wrong, not the person
What is the view of the:
Church of England on homosexuality
- degree of acceptance
- Adopts a traditional view of marriage between men and woman
View of the:
Episcopal and Quaker church on homosexuality
- God’s creation is =, but discriminating some on their sexual orientation is denying equality, so God should support it in a faithful relationship
What could be a potential problem of:
Accepting homosexuality and same-sex marriage
- Just accepting what society says without changing your belief, but is not sincere and just a form of coercion
- Views can’t be permanent if it is just what the state says
What is:
Kierkgaard’s view on homosexuality
- Adopts the view of disintrested love, as if the person that agape is applied to is dead
- Therefore, the most loving action should be done in each scenario and that includes accepting the outsider and therefore accepting homosexuality
What is the view of:
Feminist motherly love on homosexuality
- Love is inclusive
- Love is unconditional
- Therefore no matter what a person does they should be loved and same applies for being homosexual
What is the:
Purpose of human sexuality
- Procreation
- Companionship
- Autonomy of choice
- Pleasure
What are 3 reasons:
A couple would want to get married
- Framework for procreation and living in a family unit
- Showing a life-long commitment
- To make a formal and legal declaration of love
What are:
3 ways people can commit to each other
- Marraige
- co-habitation
- civil partnerships
What are:
3 purposes of sexual relationships
- To share in affection and intimacy
- Procreation
- Fulfil physical needs
What is the view of the:
Roman catholic church on cohabitation
- They disagree as it devalues the special and sacred nature of sex which only takes place within a marriage
What is:
Marriage for Christians
- a permanent and lifelong union till death with a man and woman for the procreation and nurture of children and affections and comfort
- faithful and monogamous commitment, making adultery wrong, which is also one of the 10 commandments
- A sacrement that a person is giving them totally to someone else
- A relfection of Christ’s love for the church
Quaker view on:
sex before marriage
non-judgemental as they see sex as a gift from god
They focus on the way it is done/used
What is the view of the:
Roman catholic church on sex before marriage
- Unacceptable
- It is a gift from God so therefore sacred and holy and should not be abused
- Church of England has same viewpoint
What aer the purposes of:
Marriage
6 marker structure
- God’s creative plan and intention for humanity, “the two will become one flesh”, might cause a homosexual Christian to remain celibate
- To procreate, “Be fruitful and increase in number”, they might try fertility treatments if they are struggling to coneive
- Companionship, “it wasn’t good for man to be alone”, encourage to view the relationship as a refuge from the world for comfort and support
- Social order, “You shall not commit adultery”, encourages Christians to get married before getting children for order and a solid foundation
View of the Roman Catholic church and Church of england on:
Civil Partnerships
- Disagree with it
- Marriage is the proper place for procreation
What are the:
Positive outcomes of a divorce
6
- Greater control over personal finances
- Can be healthy for the children to remove themselves from an unhealthy relationship between their parents
- allows freedom to break out of abusive relationships
- Creates freedom and libertry for the partners to move on with their life
- Allows departure from an unhealthy relationship
- Can find a more compatible companion
What are the of:
negative outcomes of divorce
6
- Can create financial instability due to division of assets
- Decreased time which children due to time split between parents
- Loneliness for the aggrieved spouse who never wanted their marriage to end
- Can be associated to behavioural changes in children due to having less parental authority
- children can attach blame to themselves for the divorce
- Divorce is not always wanted by both parties - it can be a sad time for one spouse
What is the law on:
Divorce UK
- Can get divorced if your married over a year
- The relationship has permanently broken down
- Marriage is legally recognised in the UK
- Used to be different critereas, this is for no-fault divorces
What are the positives of:
No fault divorce
- Divorce can be granted without one person blaming the other, just by saying the marriage has broken down
- Couples can both apply for divorce
What did the:
Bible say about divorce
- Divroce was possible
- A husband could divorce their wife by writing a certificate of divorce
- The woman could not divorce the man
- However, Jesus shows that human need is more important than man-made laws and regulations as shown on the Sabbath where his disciples were sent to work
- This should mean that in some circumstances a divorce should be granted when need demands it
What did:
Jesus teach about divorce
divorcing and re-marrying leads to adultery
View of:
Roman Catholic Church on divorce
- Unacceptable as marriage is meant to be an unbreakable union between two people and God
- “a threefold cord is not quickly broken”
- The couple’s commitment to each other should echo Jesus’ commitment to his people
- Therefore a marriage can only end when a partner dies or there are grounds for an annulment, and a divorce is recognised by the state but not by the church
What is the view of the:
Churh of England on divorce
- Often seen as the lesser of two evils
- Divorce is not a good thing but in circumstances is better than continuing to live in an abusive relationship
- divorce and re-marriage are both accepted
What is the view of the:
Quakers on re-marriage
- Marriage should be a lifelong commitment
- There will be times where a marriage simply cannot be preserved and divorce is recognised
- Re-marriage of a divorce person however is sensible and there should be a pre-martial meeting to make sure that the person re-marrying is intending to make a genuine life-long commitment
What are the different:
Family structures
- Nuclear
- Extended
- Single parent
- Childless couple
- Reconstituted family
- Stepfamily member
What is a:
Nuclear family
A family with two parents and children
What is a:
Reconstituted family
Where a family member enters the family despite not being related by blood through e.g. marriage
How should :
Christians complementarianism structure their marriage
- Complementeriasim holds that men and women are equal but different despite different roles
- Men are better suited to leadership roles as they are more competitive and women are better at supporting as they are more nurturing
View of:
Egalitarianism
- Men and women are created equal and should have equal oppurtunities and treatment even with biologoical differences
- Men and women should have equal oppurtuities and rights
- Women should not be discriminated when applying for leadership roles in the church
Different ways of structuring:
Family positions
- Complementarianism
- Egalitaraianism
Arugments for:
Complementarianism
- the bible mentions “Wives, submit yourselves to you own husbands as you do to the Lord”
- Bible says that a woman should not assume authority over a man, leading to different roles in the church
Arguments for:
Egalitarianism
- “God created mankind in his own image”, suggests men and women are equal
- God punished Eve and Adam by making childbearing severe and submissive to their husband. This is suggesting that this is the case just because of the fall but is not a naturally good thing
View of the:
Roman catholic church on family structure
- Complementarianism
- Motherhood is the key role of the women in the family
- Although both parents should contribute to childhood, the mother should contribute more
View of the:
Quakers on family struture
- Egalitarianism
- men and women are equal in all ways, as God is in everyone equally
How does the bible say:
Children should be raised in a Christian family
- Show children you respect your own parents
- Model them on how to live according to a biblical worldview
- Invite children to turn to Jesus and confess their sins and receive the holy spirit and be baptized
- nurture children to become mature Christians
- avoid irritating or disheartening your children
- Diligently teach the scriptures
- take care of your children’s needs
What are
different ways religious communities can support the upbringing of children
- Providing Sunday schools
- mark significant life stages through religious ceremonies
- all-age family services
- Youth clubs
- mother and toddler groups
What are some:
Secular view on gender roles
- Power structures exclude women
- limitis the active role of women in Christianity
- teaches women are subordinate to men
- theology reflects male intrersts
- male-focused theological concepts
- women blamed for major problems eg eve
What is:
Hampsom’s view
- Post-Christian
- Finds Christianity unmoral as it is a historical patriarchal religion reflecting male dominated 1st century Palestine
What are:
Critisisms of Hampsom’s view
- Christianity is a living tradition so it grows adapts and changes
- Bible says men are equal to women
View of:
Mary Wollstonecraft
Liberal feminism: Women should have the same rights in society as men , as they are “the feathered race” which restricts women and prevent them from flourishing
What is:
Kate Mellett’s view
- Radical feminism
- Women do not need to become like men but is different and should be accepted by society
- This is not possible due to sexual opression, so we cannot know the differences
What is:
Postmodern feminism
- Gender is just a social construct as a result of language, and gender does not have fixed roles
What are reasons a:
Couple might not want to have children
5
- Might be too expensive financially
- Too much time required which might not be able due to their professional career
- Quality of life might not be guaranteed
- Fear of childbirth
- Do not want children
What is a:
Condition that affects how a woman’s ovaries work
- Polycrystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
- Irregular periods
- polycrstic ovaries where ovaries become enlarged and contain fluid filled sacs that surround the eggs
What is:
NICE
- The national institute for Health and Care Excellence
- Determines who can have IVF
- women aged under 40 should be offered 3 cycles of IVF treament on the NHS if:
- Unprotected sex for 2 years or more
- not able to get pregnant after 12 cycles of artificial insemination
- <40
- if tests show IVF is the only method likely to hep
Arguments for:
fertility treatements and artificial insemination
- “Be fruitful and increase in number”, doesn’t specify how to do it
- “Clothe yourself with compassion” suggests that the Christian’s primary concern is empathy and compassion not an objective moral stance
- agape love
- Overcoming infertility is pleasing to God - Abraham tried to get a child but failed for a long time
Arguments against:
fertility treatments
- Sanctity of life - when spare embryos are destroyed through IVF can be seen as murder, exodus “Do not commit murder”
- Life is a gift from God, which humans should not have a say in
- Fertility treatement is not natural - God knows and chooses each person before they are born, and fertility treatements go against this process
- It is a process controlled by God, and an old woman managed to get a child by praying, which should be done instead of fertility treatement
What are different forms of:
Contraception
- Vaginal ring
- contraceptive pill
- contracpetive implant
- Condmos(male and female)
- IUD
What are:
Genetic engineering treatments
- Genetic diagnosis for IVF checking if the baby would be healthy
- Three parent IVF using genetic material from a donor to correct that of the parents
- Gene editing
- Designer babies
- Somatic cell therapy
What are alternatives to:
Fertility treatments
- Adoption
- Foster care homes where a child lives with another family for a few days or years as their family cannot look after them, foster careers have to be trained and assessed
What are:
Reasons a person may abstain from sexual relations
- Can make them feel more empowered by moving their attention away from relationships towards personal development
- Their sexuality doesn’t align with Christian teachings
- The person concerned may have suffered a traumatic sexual experience
- Could be a vow that a priest or monk takes to signify their commitment
- They could be asexual
What is:
St Paul’s teaching on celibacy
- Sexual relations with a woman is good, but only within marriage, and Paul suggests celibacy as the Corinthian church was struggling with sexual immorality
- Encourages the unmarried to stay unmarried unless their desire cannot be controlled, as it allows focus on the affairs of God, not the world
What are:
Christian views on celibacy
- Leads to Godly obedience, and individuals choosing this will stop doing things that satisfy their earthly desires
- To focus on God, leading to priests commiting to a life of celibacy
- Not a requirement, as Anglican and Baptist church allows their ministers to marry
