The Existence Of God Flashcards
Upon who is the world dependent on?
God
What does God bring to the world?
Order
Most Christians believe the world was created…
ex-nihilo
Let us make man…
Let us make man in our image, in our likeness
Genesis 1:26
What role does God give to humans in creation?
The role of stewardship
God ensures who are provided for?
Adam and Eve
He provides humans of a means for…
He provides humans of a means for salvation
What did Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross repair?
The relationship between humans and God
What did God lower himself to?
The level of a human
How does God maintain his relationship with Christians?
Through the presence of the Holy Spirit
What word describes God as outside of time?
Atemporal
What is the opposing perspective of God being atemporal?
God is always active in time and changes in response to events, so it’s more fitting to say he is everlasting instead
How can humans communicate w/ God according to RCs?
Through a priest, possibly by confessing their sins
What do Christians of the Protestant Church believe about communicating w/ God?
Stated in which book?
A mediator is not needed stated in Hebrews 7
Why do they believe a mediator is unnecessary?
Anyone who truly believes in God can pray directly to Him
Give an example of God’s goodness through law
Moses is given the Ten Commandments and God gives humans free will
Why will God’s judgement be fair?
He is omniscient and sees everything
Give an example of God choosing to offer forgiveness to humans.
Allowing them to sacrifice animals
What was the ultimate sacrifice made by God?
Sending his son, who died on the crucifix
What does Richard Dawkins call God?
Immoral
Give an example that would show why some believe God acts without justice.
Flooding the world during the time of Noah
What is the Augustinian theodicy?
Humans are responsible for evil because they make wrong choices
What is the Iranaean Theodicy?
It is the soul making theodicy, that evil needs to exist for us to understand goodness. We were not created perfectly.
What questions the Augustinian Theodicy?
Why were Adam and Eve created in the first place, if God knew they were disobedient?
What questions the Iranaen Theodicy?
The suffering of a baby
What do some believe suffering is a test of?
Test of faith eg. Job who succeeds
What can the design argument also be called?
Teleological argument
What does William Paley compare the world and God to?
A watch
What is the thinking behind the watch comparison?
The watch is very intricate and it must have had a designer. The watch is the world and God is the designer.
Why does John Stuart Mill disagree with this?
God must be cruel if he allows cruelty as part of natural selection, where small animals are harmed for no reason
Who came up with the anthropic principle?
FR Tennant
What is the anthropic principle?
The universe was perfectly structured to ensure life would develop
What is an example of the anthropic principle?
Increasingly complex life forms
Who also supports the anthropic principle?
Professor John Polkinghorne
What denomination is Professor John Polkinghorne?
Anglican minister
What is his explanation of the anthropic principle?
There has to have been a precise development in order for life to exist. It cannot possibly be luck.
What book supports Polkinghorne’s theory?
Genesis 1 and 2, how a perfect environment for human habitation is created
What is the first cause argument also called?
Cosmological argument
Who came up with the first cause argument?
Aristotle
What did Aristotle say?
Everything must have a cause.
What role does God take in the first cause argument?
The first cause
What does the first cause argument say?
The universe must have a cause, as something must have triggered the development of it.
Who was another philosopher who developed the first cause argument?
Thomas Aquinas
What is the moral argument?
Humans have an inner sense of right and wrong because of God
Who came up with the moral argument?
Cardinal John Newman
What did Cardinal link our sense of guilt with?
The voice of God speaking through our conscience
Why can people choose to ignore their conscience?
God has given them free will
What did Newman teach about God’s voice?
It is a reminder that we are responsible to him
What did John Hick link our behaviour in this life to?
Our existence after death
Whose theodicy does Hick mirror?
Iranaeus
What can people become more like through the soul making argument?
God, being good and perfect
For how long does this process continue?
After death
Why do some Christians reject Hick’s argument?
It does not include the belief about heaven and hell and hence, judgement day
Which parable in what book shows the effect of moral behaviour on judgement day?
The parable of the sheep Matthew 25:31 - 46
How is this reflected in the parable?
Those who acted kindly are rewarded with heaven
Those who did not were sent away from God for eternity
What do Christians believe about the conscience and the Holy Spirit?
By listening to it, they can make good decisions
What does 2 Corinthians say?
“our consciences testifies that we have conducted ourselves with integrity and godly sincerity”
In what three ways does God reveal himself to humans?
- The Bible
- Conscience
- Experiences like visions and dreams
In what four ways will Christians live ethically?
- Buy eco-friendly products
- Buy Fair Trade products
- Renewable sources of energy eg. Bethesda Methodist Church w/ 32 solar panels
- Trees for Life to increase reforestation eg. Lemon trees in Mexico
How much is a toilet and how much is a block of them in a school?
£60
£240
What is the donation used for and by who?
Tearfund for clean water and basic sanitation
” for the word…
“For the word of God is alive and active”
What do fundamentalists/literalists believe?
The Bible is literally God’s words on page
Which denominations mainly consist of fundamentalists?
Protestant and Charismatic Churches
When was this view brought about and why?
In the Age of Enlightenment against new scientific discoveries
How do the Amish not adopt to modern culture and why?
They do not take photos due to the 2nd commandment
What passage is used by the Dutch Reformed Church to support Apartheid?
Genesis 11
What occurs in this passage?
God separates different nations
What do conservatives believe?
Bible writers were inspired by God, but humans wrote it so it may have mistakes
How do conservatives explain prejudice in the Bible?
The Bible needs to interpreted so that it is relevant to the world today.
What do conservatives believe the Bible’s purpose is?
To teach us moral messages
What two things do liberalists believe?
It is more mythical and symbolic.
They accept scientists have a better understanding of the world.
What is an example of liberalism?
Believing in the Big Bang rather than the fact that the world was created in 6 days.
What is the Bible’s purpose in a liberalist’s view?
It can be interpreted however you want to.
“The Word became…
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” John 1:14
“While we were…
“While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” Romans 5:8
In what 2 ways was God coming as Jesus significant?
He died on the cross to repair the relationship between humans and God
He came as a human to Earth taking on all the pressures and emotions and realities humans experienced
