self, death and afterlife Flashcards
The meaning and purpose of life
- To glorify God and have a personal relationship with him
- To prepare for judgement
- To bring about God’s Kingdom on earth
What does it mean to glorify God?
To mirror His image and to acknowledge and honour his greatness
What does glory refer to?
The infinite beauty and splendour of God
Heaven can be seen as a reward for…
good behaviour, which links to the idea of justification by works
Justification by works
The belief that a person becomes just before God by the performance of good works
The ______ substantiates the idea of bringing about God’s Kingdom on earth
YouCat
What is the YouCat?
The Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church
What do Christians mean when they say “Thy kingdom come”?
To invite God’s will into the world and ti be open to what God wants for your life
Forms refers to…
Plato’s theory that everything in the physical universe is a particular and imperfect instance of a perfect idea in the metaphysical world of Forms
Reincarnation is the belief that…
at death, the soul is separated from the body and is ‘re-enfleshed’ into another body
Dualistic in relation to the concept of the soul means…
that the soul is thought of as a totally separate entity from the body, from which it separates at birth
Why was/is belief in the resurrection of Jesus a central tenet of the Christian faith?
- It forms the basis of the Christian hope of life after death
- Paul expressed memorably the sheer pointlessness of life and faith if the resurrection of Jesus is a fiction (1 Corinthians 15:17-19)
- All four gospels state that the tomb was empty
- It was a unique event
Resurrection of the flesh according to the writings of Augustine
Jesus’ resurrection and ascension were physical. Augustine believed that the physical body will be restored and transformed to live eternally in communion with God
Augustine’s thinking about resurrection of the flesh can be seen in…
the Catholic Church’s teaching about resurrection
Youcat 153 resurrection of the flesh quote
“At the end of the world he does not drop the ‘flesh’ like an old toy”
Spiritual resurrection
- The belief that after death, the body decomposes in a grave or is destroyed by cremation
- They believe that the soul survives death and lives on with God
What analogy may be used to explain the idea of spiritual resurrection?
The analogy of the life cycle of a butterfly:
The various stages of the life cycle are physically totally different, yet the essential identity is the same
What did Paul teach about the nature of the resurrected body?
Paul taught that the resurrected body would be imperishable, glorious, powerful and spiritual. It would be transformed from its earthly state to a glorious and incorruptible form, conforming to the likeness of Christ’s resurrected body
1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 50-54
“flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God”
Particular judgement refers to the idea held by some that…
judgement occurs immediately after death
General judgement refers to…
the final judgement believed by some to occur at the end of time
Mortal sins are…
very serious sins, e.g. murder, that will result in eternal separation from God if those who commit them do not seek God’s forgiveness
Venial sins are…
less serious sins that do not lead to eternal separation from God
Purgatory
The mainly Catholic idea of the intermediate state after death in which those destined for heaven are purified of venial sin to make them fit for heaven
What are the different interpretations of judgement, heaven, hell and purgatory
- Judgement, heaven, hell and purgatory as physical
- Judgement, heaven, hell and purgatory as spiritual
- Judgement, heaven, hell and purgatory as psychological realities
Judgement, heaven, hell and purgatory as spiritual quote
“Heaven is the endless moment of love” (Youcat 158)
“Hell is the absolute absence of love” (Youcat 161)
Judgement, heaven, hell and purgatory as psychological realities
Some Christians reject any belief in life after death as it lacks empirical evidence. They think in terms of living in such a way to bring heaven on earth
John Hick’s view of purgatory
Hick believed in a type of purgatory– after death people could continue existing in a “resurrection” world and continue to have a chance to redeem themselves and become better (soul-making)
What is John Hick’s view on purgatory part of?
Hick’s universalism - the view that all people will be saved as an omnibenevolent God would not damn anyone to Hell. Eternal punishment cannot be justified
Hick’s universalism critique
The idea ofterrible people like Hitler going to heaven doesn’t seem right to many people
Hick’s universalism argument can be justified by…
- Hume’s reasoning that sending someone to Hell cannot ever be justice since as a punishment it is always disproportionate
- Hume argues it cannot be justice for God to give an infinite punishment for a finite crime
What do most process theologians believe in about life after death?
objective immorality
What is objective immorality?
The belief of process theology that after death, all living things exist for ever in the mind of God
What do most process theologians reject about life after death?
subjective immorality
What is subjective immorality?
Subjective immorality refers to the belief of most Christians that the thinking self continues as the same subject of consciousness
