Wednesday 5th March 2014
Does God sustain the world?
How?
L.O We are learning the arguments
for God Sustaining the created world.
Starter: What does the term sustain mean?
strengthen or support physically or mentally
What facts do we know about time/space and the
created world?
How is God different?
God sustains through Jewish creation
stories
Genesis 1:1-3
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the
earth.
2 And the earth was without form, and void; and
darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the
Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was
light.
What does this imply the universe was like before
God’s creation?
Creation as a Continuum
Creatio Continua
Those who speak of creatio continua think of
creation taking place in many successive acts,
partly in response to events in time. Thus, at
any particular time God's creation has not
been completed, and the future is partly
open, in some theological views, even for God.
God’s sustainability through other
sources
Hebrews 1:3
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the
exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds
the universe by the word of his power. After
making purification for sins, he sat down at
the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Who is He?
Homework
Read Psalms 90-100 and explain how it links to
the subsection of the topic.
Also think about what issues arise from the
belief that God sustains the world.
Mainstream Christian view
Holds that the existence of the universe depends on
God’s Will: God’s creative word ‘holds’ the
universe in existence.
How can God’s attributes prove his sustainability
within the world?
Omnipotence – power
Omniscient – knowledge
Omni benevolence – Love
Omnipresent – everywhere
Friday 7th March 2014
God sustains the world part 2
L.O We are continuing learning about
the arguments linked with God
sustaining the created world.
Starter: Talk to the person next to you about
your homework.
Will be randomly selecting people for their
understanding in 5-10 mins 
More philosophical view
It is often asserted that God’s essence is his
existence, thus He sustains the universe by
existing… know of a theory/argument?
Plato
Aristotle
Aquinas
Copelston comments
Cosmological argument
Handout- Nothing can come from nothing – must be a
creator. Creation keeps on changing so the creator must be
outside of creation. It can only be God. He is the first and
last cause , He is the Unmoved, mover. He is transcendent.
Copleston's comments on Aquinas (Hick pp. 86-93)
• Aquinas means a hierarchy of movements and causes
existing now, not a sequence in time.
• Aquinas admits that time might be infinite, but says that
the hierarchy of movements and causes could not be.
• The third way assumes that time is infinite (so that
contingent things must have ceased to exist by now).
• The key to all the cosmological arguments is to admit that
existence is a problem.
Process Theology
Summary
• Process theology argues that the reality of God is not fixed
and that God himself is still developing. From this point of
view, God is "dipolar" - that is, has two "poles", one mental
and one physical. The physical pole is the material world
itself, which acts almost as God's "body".
• Because of this relationship, God is partly distinct and
partly immersed in the world - just as we are in our bodies.
As a result, any suffering in creation is also undergone by
God, and creation itself is seen as a cooperation between
God and all other beings. Whether this cooperation actually
takes place is thus up to humanity - in other words, God
cannot force humans to do His will, but can only influence
them.
Conclusions/ summary
1) The concept of God as creator and sustainer of
the world underpins most accounts of God’s
relationship with the universe. Having created the
universe, God is said to sustain it by his will – its
continued existence is willed by God, and without
that act of will, nothing could continue to exist.
2) God remains distinct from the universe, and
transcends it.
3) God sustains creation because everything is
dependent on God.
Homework
Complete the macrotheme plan for essay
question
Explain the view that God sustains the created
world.
Jan 2012 paper.