What is a worldview?
A “worldview” refers to a comprehensive conception of the world
from a specific standpoint. A “Christian worldview,” then, is a
comprehensive conception of the world from a Christian
standpoint. An individual’s worldview is his “big picture,” a
harmony of all his beliefs about the world. It is his way of
understanding reality. One’s worldview is the basis for making
daily decisions and is therefore extremely important.
6 Major Worldviews
• Biblical Christianity
• Islam
• Secular Humanism
• Marxism-Leninism
• Cosmic Humanism
• Post-Modernism
Biblical Christianity
What is
Theism?
The Belief in a
supernatural God.
What are the 2
foundations upon
whichGeneral
Christian
Revelation
theism
Special
rests?_________
Revelation
General Revelation:
God’s communicationthrough nature and
conscience-regarding
His existence. (Romans
1:18-20)
Special Revelation:
God’s more specific
communicationthrough the Bible and
Argument for Design: Argument
that purports that if something is
designed then it has a designer.
Trinitarian Theism: The belief in
One God who exists as three
separate
persons-Father,
Son, and
Spirit.
What is the linchpin of Christiani
Test Question
When C.S. Lewis says, “Unless I
believe in God, I can’t believe in
thought,” what does he mean?
(see page 46 in your textbooks)
It makes much more sense to think that our own
rational thought processes are the product of
some higher intelligence rather than billions of
years of random incidents. Human reasoning
must be suspect if it is not the result of a
previous reasoning process.
What are some of the characteristics of the
personal God? From the following biblical
references what do we learn about these
characteristics?
--------------------------------------------------Daniel 4:35
-Proverbs 15:3
-Exodus 32:11-14
-John 10:28
-Hebrews 1:10
-Isaiah 46:8-11
-Genesis 6:17-7:24
Monotheism: The belief in one God
Qur’an states that Muhammad was:
-last of God’s true prophets.
-the One prophet for all humankind
-the receiver of the ultimate authoritative scripture, which was
preserved without error: the Qur’an.
-the husband of 11-13 wives. One by the name of Aisha of whom
he consummated their marriage when she was 9 years old.
5 Pillars of Faith
* Confession of faith.
* Establishment of the daily prayers. (5x a day)
* Concern for and almsgiving to the needy. (2.5 %)
* Self-purification through fasting.
* The pilgrimage to Mecca for those who are able.
*Sometimes a 6th (Jihad) a. Battle against temptation and control
b. Battle against anyone who opposes Islam
Qur’an
Muslims believe that the Qur’an is the
literal word of God (Arabic Allah) and the
culmination of God’s revelation to mankind
as revealed to Muhammad (the final
prophet of humanity) over a period of 23
years through the angel Jibril.
Hadith
The traditions of the teachings,
rulings, and actions of
Muhammad and his early and
chief companions. From these
traditions are derived from
Sunna, which are the actions of
Muhammad that are viewed as
exemplary.
How does Christianity fulfill
Judaism? Islam claims to
fulfill Christianity, but why
can this not be true?
Unitarian Theism: The
belief in one God in
one person (i.e. no
trinity)
ATHEIST VS. AGNOSTIC
The denial of
the existence of
a supernatural
God.
The philosophical
belief that evidence
for the existence of
God is lacking or
inconclusive.
Humanism: The
belief that humanity
is the highest of all
beings and truth and
knowledge rest in
science and human
(Finite
vs.
Infinite)
reason.
Isaiah 55:8-9: For my thoughts are not your
thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares
the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the
earth. So are my ways higher than your ways and my
thoughts than your thoughts.
Key Secular Humanists:
Paul Kurtz
Richard Dawkins
Christopher
HItchens
John Dewey
Humanist Manifesto: The
title of three manifestos
laying out a Secular
Humanist worldview They
are Humanist Manifesto I
(1933), Humanist Manifesto
II (1973), and Humanist
Manifesto III or Planetary
Humanism (2000). The
central theme of all three is
an elaboration of a
philosophy and value
system that does not
include a belief in God.
MARXISM-LENINISM
Religion is opium for the people.
Religion is a sort of spiritual
booze…….
-V.I. Lenin
To be a Marxist
means one must
adhere to atheism.
Why?
Karl Marx &
Friedrich Engels
Communist Manifesto: First
published on February 21, 1848, and
is one of the world’s most influential
political tracts. Commissioned by the
Communist League and written by
communist theorists Karl Marx and
Friedrich Engels, it laid out the
League’s purposes and program. The
Manifesto suggested a course of
action for a proletarian revolution to
overthrow capitalism and,
eventually, to bring about a classless
society*
The Empire
(2000): Written
by Michael
Hardt of Duke
University and
Antonio Negri.
The Quest for a
Godless World
Continues.
*considered the
latest manifesto.
Ideas
have
Consequences
China:
Mao Zedong took control over China in 1949
and proclaimed China as the People's
Republic of China, a communist country.
China has remained consistently communist
since 1949 although economic reforms have
been in place for several years. China has
been called "Red China" due to the
communist party's control over the country.
Vietnam: Vietnam was partitioned at a 1954
conference that followed the First Indochina
War. While the partition was supposed to be
temporary, North Vietnam became
communist and supported by the Soviet
Union while South Vietnam was democratic
and supported by the United States. Following
two decades of war, the two parts of Vietnam
were unified and in 1976, Vietnam as a
unified country became a communist country.
Cuba: A revolution in 1959 led to the taking
over of the Cuban government by Fidel
Castro. By 1961, Cuba became a fully
communist country and developed close ties
to the Soviet Union.
Laos: Officially the Lao People's Democratic
Republic, became a communist country in
1975 following a revolution that was
supported by Vietnam and the Soviet Union.
North Korea: Korea which was captured by
Japan in World War II, was divided following
the war into a Soviet north and American
south. Despite being led by the USSR
beginning in 1945, North Korea did not
become a communist country until 1948.
Shirley Maclaine: “I am God”
Pantheism: the
belief that god is
everything and
that everything
is god.
“The wayward
stepchild of Marxism”
Postmodernism is
a continuation of
other Marxist
ideas, namely atheism, socialism,
punctuated evolution, and the socially
constructed, among others.
Friedrich Nietzsche:
“God is dead, we
have killed Him.”
What did he mean by this?
Death of God
Theology: A
movement
that flourished
in the 1960’s
and 1970’s,
essentially
promoting the
Religious Pluralism: The
conviction that we should
be tolerant
of all religious beliefs
because no one
religion can be true.
Emergent Church: A relatively new
movement of Christians who are
incorporating elements of Postmodernism
within their theology.
1.
2.
3.
4.
A critique of the negative aspects of modernism.
A strong emphasis on community
A strong emphasis on putting one’s faith into action.
A reminder that not all truth is propositional