Roles Of The Church In The Local Community And Living Practices Flashcards
Funerals - some Christian denomination views
wish funerals to be solemn occasions, others use them as more joyful celebrations of someone’s life.
Funerals - many denominations view
Many denominations are flexible about funeral practices, though the Catholic Church has structured funeral rites including a vigil.
Traditional Christian funerals
Christians were all buried, awaiting the resurrection of the dead; however, many are now cremated. The Catholic Church still prefers burial.
How church communities nurture and support families?
- Provides activities for children, e.g. Sunday schools and youth clubs -> helps children to learn about
Christianity and grow in their faith. - provides mother and child groups -> supports families by helping them with everyday life.
- Church members will visit those who are ill, elderly, or unable to attend church -> Christians will receive spiritual and practical support in hard times.
Quote
a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.
Rites of passage
ceremonies which celebrate an important stage in someone’s life. Christian rites of passage in a church help to mark and strengthen a Christian’s faith and link their life to the Christian community, who aim to support them.
Rites of passage examples
Baptism and confirmation, marriage
Baptism and confirmation
Christian rituals which mark rites of passage which show someone’s commitment to the Christian faith or (in the case of infant baptism), the commitment of someone’s parents to raising them in the faith. These are important for creating a community of baptised believers who have all affirmed the same beliefs.
Marriage
marks a rite of passage from being single to sharing one’s life with another. It is seen as a commitment to God as well as one’s partner. In some denominations, e.g. Catholicism, it is also a sacrament. Marriage ceremonies often involve exchanging rings and making vows. Marriages can be seen to strengthen communities – providing a stable foundation for families.
Baptism
Many churches baptise. Quakers and the Salvation Army do not. Some Churches, such as the Catholic and Anglican churches, practise infant baptism; others, such as the Baptist Church, practise believer’s baptism.
Some churches, such as the Methodist Church, offer either type of baptism and offer dedication as an alternative to infant baptism (before believer’s baptism later in life).
Confirmation
Some churches practise confirmation (after baptism) to make Christians members of the Church. Not all Christians see this as necessary as Jesus did not command confirmation. It often involves a commitment to pay money to the Church.
