What is happening here?
What advice might a Christian have for this person? Why?
Homework
Due: Next week
Complete the following 8 mark Part C question:
Explain why some Christians prefer to follow the
guidance of the Church over the authority of
the Bible. (8marks)
c/w
Tuesday 10th Sept 2013
Christians and the authority of the Church
L.O: - To analyse why some Christians prefer to look to the Church for
moral guidance rather than the Bible
To understand the structure and mark scheme for part c questions
(8marks)
Pair & Share: Think back to last lesson.
1) Tell your partner one reason why Christians use the
Bible for guidance.
2) Your partner should tell you another reason.
3) Continue until you run out of reasons.
Bible Church-
The holy book of Christians
The community of Christians
church- Christian place of worship
Authority
Decalogue -
Source of power/guide
The Ten Commandments
Christians believe that the
Bible is the word of God,
dictated by God to the
writers of the Bible books.
This means that the Bible
is God’s guidance to
humans and so it has
absolute authority for
Christian decision-making
The Bible records events
in the life of Jesus. This
means many Christians ask
themselves how Jesus
would behave in this
situation and then follow
his example. As Christians
believe Jesus is God’s son,
his example must be the
best one to follow.
The Bible contains God’s
teachings on behaviour,
this can be seen in the
Decalogue, which gives
Christians very clear moral
guidance:
2 examples of this?
The Bible contains the
teachings of Jesus on how
to live. As Christians
believe Jesus is the Son of
God, they should follow his
teachings about moral
decision making.
e.g. sermon on the mount
Not all Christians agree that the
Bible should be used for moral
decisions…
Why do you
think this
is?
Some Christians would use the Church to
tell them what the Bible means for today,
so they would put the authority of the
Church over the Bible.
Other Christians would use their own
conscience or reason to decide whether
to follow the Bible in making a moral
decision in the twenty-first century.
Some Christians believe that the Bible
was written by people inspired by God.
They believe that, although it has
authority for moral decision-making,
many of its attitudes reflect the social
situation at the time of the writers and
need to be revised in the light of modern
knowledge.
Comprehension – Watch the clips and note down:
1) 2 ways that people use the church to guide their moral decisions
2) 4 reasons why Christians may prefer to use the Church as authority
for moral decisions rather than the Bible.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT7lUR09zeM&feature=related
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RvRbfbKxQk
How the Church guides Christians
• Talking to other Christians
• Listening to the priest or vicar
• Praying and worshipping God together
• Accepting the authority of the Church to explain and teach
God’s word
Christians believe the Church is the Body of Christ = how
Jesus works in the world. Therefore, the Church should
have the same authority as Jesus Christ
Most Christians believe that God did not stop speaking to
people after the last book of the Bible was written. They
believe that God speaks to the world today through the
Church.
The Church is the community of Christian believers. Therefore
it must be guided by God and so be able to make moral
decisions on issues.
If individuals were to make their
own decisions then there would be
lots of different opinions about
how to behave
Making Moral Decisions – the Church
The Catholic Church
The Pope is believed to have been selected by God so
has supreme authority. He and the Council of Bishops,
authorise teaching on moral and religious issues to
Catholic Christians through the Catechism or from
official letters from the Pope, which are known as
encyclicals
Explain how Christians make moral decisions
(8 marks)
1-2
marks
Little understanding of the issue shown, typically by:
• giving a brief reason
• not explaining but only describing the issue.
3-4
marks
Basic understanding of the issue is shown typically by:
• using two brief reasons
• or a developed reason.
A more developed understanding of the issue is shown typically by:
• using three brief reasons
• Or fully developed reason
• Or two reasons with one developed.
5-6
marks
7-8
marks
A clear understanding of the issue is shown typically by:
• using four brief reasons
• or two developed reasons
• or three reasons with one developed
• or a comprehensive explanation using one reason only.