Topic 1: Believing in God

Question 1

1.1 Christian upbringing

Answer 1

• Baptism (made a promise to God to stay holy)
• Worship (taken to church, meet people who believe)
• Community (sense of belonging, gives challenges)
• School (choose a church school - encouragement)
• Adulthood (stay with them, community supportive)

Question 2

1.2 Religious experience

Answer 2

• Miracle (breaks laws of science, resurrection=greatest miracle of all, God could have done this)
• Answered prayer (God has done as requested, evidence that God exists, strengthens faith)
• Numinous experience (a feeling of a presence of something greater than you, God must exist)
• Conversion (someone who did not believe changes, a life-changing experience)

Question 3

1.3 The design argument

Answer 3

• Everything is designed for a purpose
• Complex world must of been designed
• Only designer powerful enough is God = God exists
• Paley’s watch - watch needs watchmaker, universe needs universe maker

Question 4

1.4 The causation argument

Answer 4

• Everything is caused for a purpose
• Universe can’t happen unassisted
• Only character powerful enough is God = God exists
• Dominoes - God is the first domino

Question 5

1.5 Scientific explanations for the origins of the world

Answer 5

• Non-believers believe in scientific theory’s
• The big bang theory - 15 bil yrs ago, explosion of matter
• Red shift theory - light from other galaxies is evidence that the universe is expanding
• Evolution - Darwins theory

Question 6

1.6 How christians respond to 1.5

Answer 6

• Some Christians reject scientific explanations (genesis is true and supported by evidence of faith)
• Some Christians believe the bible is factual (fundamentalists believe world created in 6 days)
• Other Christians believe bible can be interpreted
  (Science says how and bible tells why)
• Some Christians believe physical form can be explained but not the beauty
• Ultimately, God started the big bang

Question 7

1.7 The problem of unanswered prayers

Answer 7

• If God was omni-benevolent and omniscient then why isn’t everybody’s prayers answered
• Pray about suffering and pain = God does nothing
• Makes it easy to reject God
• Christians can doubt and begin testing faith
• Bruce Almighty - answered all prayers = chaos

Question 8

1.8 How Christians respond to 1.7

Answer 8

• God hears all prayers but sometimes the answer is no/not now
• They trust God to do what is best for them
• Other Christians believe that God answers prayers but not in the way they expected
• Some prayers will contradict other prayers = cannot be answered at same time

Question 9

1.9 The problem of evil and suffering

Answer 9

• Moral evil = actions done by humans to cause suffering
• Natural evil = actions not done by humans that cause suffering
• Strongest argument against the existence of God
• Either God is not omni-benevolent, omnipotent or omniscient or God does not exist
• Evil and suffering do exist, therefore God cannot

Question 10

1.10 Christian responses to 1.9

Answer 10

• It was planned (original sin)
• Test from God (some may reject, some may grow closer)
• Free will (result of our choices in life)
• God knows why (ultimate plan)
• Jesus’ example (we need suffering to pray and do good)

Question 11

1.11 The media and belief in God

Answer 11

• Vicar of Dibley - CONS: drinks and swears (not good example), only 4 people at service PROS: Holy music at the start of the programme, seeing the inside of a church
• Songs of Praise - PROS: full of examples of people helping others, lots of hymns CONS: Put off by the title, boring