1 - Revision – Existence of God!
Key Terms
Theist
Monotheism
Polytheism
Atheist
Agnostic
Design
Argument
First Cause
Argument
Moral
Argument
Infinite
Regression
Incompetent
Design
someone who believes in a God or gods
belief in ONE God
belief in MANY gods
someone who believes there is NO god.
someone who believes it is impossible to know if God
exists
The belief that the world is so perfect it must have had a
designer
The belief that there is a first cause that started everything
else off – this cause was uncaused and is God
The belief that everyone has certain rules inside of them
that have been given to them by a universal law giver –
God
the belief that time has no beginning or end.
If there was a designer of the world then it is not a very
good designer as the world is so badly designed – e.g.
earthquakes etc.
The Design Argument (the Teleological Argument)
The universe and nature is so complex and finely balanced that it could only have
been deliberately created. It could not have happened by random chance.
The unique design of every human thumb convinced Sir Isaac
Newton the universe must have been designed.
William Paley compared the universe to a watch. If you had never
watch, you would realise it had a designer, it didn’t just drop
the sky. So it is with the universe. It is so well balanced and
organised that it must have had a designer.
seen a
from
However
Is there a problem here? Surely if there was a designer, the design would not harm
each other? Would the designer not have designed a world where people could not
hurt or be hurt by that creation? Why is there disease and natural disasters? If there
is a designer – surely the designer is a bad one? Do the big and strong always need
to be the ones who survive? Surely this points to a natural evolution – one that does
not involve a God? Remember what Darwin says about the intestinal worm!
The Uncaused Causer (First Cause Argument)
A thirteenth century philosopher and monk called Thomas Aquinas said he could
prove the existence of God. This was his theory.



Everything that exists must have a cause.
Therefore the universe must have a cause.
God is the cause of the universe.
Today we might add that even if we believe in the Big bang or evolution
theories, these must have had an original cause. That cause was God.
However
Who’s to say that the world has a cause? Why could the existence of things not go
back forever – before the world there were other things that existed! This is called
infinite regression and is how some people believe we can argue against the first
cause argument.
For example Hindu’s believe that time is like a wheel – that it has no beginning or end
- showing that there is no first cause!
Dawkins also asks – why if we think that God cannot be caused, can the universe also
not have a cause? If so then God is not necessary!
The Moral Argument
The 18th Century Philosopher Immanuel Kant thought that everyone in the entire
universe has a sense of morality; what is right and wrong. For example,
we all know that murder is wrong. He believed that this moral sense was
given to us by God before we were born. Therefore because we all know
what is right and wrong God must exist.
Therefore even though people perform really bad crimes, they all know instinctively
that they are wrong. It is God who has placed the knowledge of this wrong in their
hearts. So Hitler for example knew what he did was wrong as God put that knowledge
into him!
However
Immanuel Kant thought that everyone had a sense
of
morality as God had given it to them before birth;
however why is it that different people in different
countries have different ideas about what is right
and wrong? For example in many Islamic countries
such as Iran women who commit adultery (cheat on their husbands) are stoned to
death. Many British people would think that this is wrong yet in Iran it is
considered to be right. Social conditioning is the idea that morality is learnt,
from parents, teacher and the government for instance, rather than being given
this sense by God; therefore God need not exist as Kant claims.
Proof against God existing
The God of the Gaps theory claims that God is not real but merely an idea
invented by humankind to explain all things unexplained by our scientific
knowledge.
For example millions of years ago people assumed that ‘God’ was
the cause of earthquakes, now we know that they are caused by
the friction from the movement of the Earth’s tectonic plates.
Hundreds of years ago people assumed that an eclipse was due
to God, now we know it is the alignment of the sun, moon and
earth. Nowadays when cancer patients suddenly enter into
remission and begin to get well again with no scientific
explanation some people argue that it is the work of God, but
how long will it be before we find a scientific
As our scientific knowledge increases there are fewer gaps and so less
need for God. Consequently at some point in the future there will be no
gaps and so no need for the idea of God
Questions from the Video
Outline Thomas Aquinas’ ‘First Cause’ argument
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
What is the problem that Dawkins states?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
What is Paley’s Argument from design?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How might someone argue against design?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Why did Kant say that God might exist?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Why might someone think the Moral Argument is not a good argument?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
2 - Revision Revelation
Key Word
General
Revelation
Meaning
When believers feel God is revealed through the Natural
World or experiences anyone can have e.g. reading holy
books.
Special
The belief that God is revealed in a special way such as a
Revelation
miracle or a vision – usually only to one or a few people.
Numinous
The feeling people get when they look at the natural world and
think there must be something greater than them.
Conscience
Theists believe this is the voice of God
Conversion
People converting from being an atheist to a theist
Transcendent The belief that God is Supreme and above the world – God is
not controlled by time and space
Immanent
God is involved in the world – e.g miracles and Jesus (for
Christians)
Personal
That humans can know and have a relationship (talk to) God
Impersonal
Humans cannot know God or understand God
Omnipotent
The belief that God is All Powerful
Omniscient
The belief that God knows and sees everything
Benevolence The belief that God loves everything
Illusion
The idea that revelation is just made up and imagined by the
believer
Key things to remember
You must be able to tell the difference between general and special revelation and use
an example to explain these. Remember the many we have looked at and learn the
example.
General Revelation
Nicky Cruz:Nicky Cruz was born to a Satanist family in Puerto Rico, into a home where his parents
brutally abused him, both physically and mentally. His mother often said that
she did not want him and his father used to lock him in a room full of pigeons
who would scratch his skin.
He moved to New York, soon, due to his fighting, he was the talk of the
neighborhood, and became a member and then the leader of a gang called
the Mau Maus, who were known as one of the most feared gangs in New
York.
Conversion
Soon a preacher by the name of David Wilkerson was preaching in Cruz's neighborhood when
Cruz heard of him. Wilkerson told Cruz that God loved him and would never stop loving him.
Cruz didn’t care about what Wilkerson was telling him and was so angry at him that one day
went a meeting held by Wilkerson in order to kill him
When Cruz threatened to kill him, Wilkerson said that ”You could chop me up into a thousand
pieces and lay them on the street and every one would still love you”
The following day Cruz and some of the gang members who converted went to the police and
turned in all of their bricks, hand guns and knives. Cruz began to study the Bible and returned
to school. He became a preacher and returned to his old neighborhood, where he preached
and persuaded some of the Mau-Maus along with his parents and many, many more to accept
Jesus,
Ministry – effects of revelation
Cruz is the founder of Nicky Cruz Outreach, which is a program that helps teenagers
with troubled lives. The program has branches in the United States, Latin America,
and Europe. Nicky Cruz is also the founder of halfway houses which help in the
rehabilitation of drug addicts.
Numinous
Learn this Key term!
Remember – this is a feeling that people can get when they see an amazing example
of nature, a sunset for example or the stars at night. This makes them believe there is
something greater than they are!
General and Special Revelation
You can recall what we looked at in our first lesson on this subject about Lourdes –
both the miracle itself or the cure of the lady that I (Mr Tubb) knew. You might also
want to remember the stories that we have looked at.
Special - The conversion of Saul. Saul is a man who spent most of his time
persecuting and killing Christians just after Jesus had died. Once he was
journeying to Damascus from Jerusalem and he had a vision of Jesus whilst
he heard a voice from heaven calling ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’
Saul started to believe in Jesus and became a Christian eventually dying for
what he believed in.
General - Many religious people have found their faith by reading
the
scriptures of that faith. They have gained a special knowledge of
God
through reading their Holy Books. Some religions believe that their
Holy
Books are actually the real word of God. Muslims for example
believe
that Allah speaks directly to them when they read the Koran.
Muslims
will treat the Koran with the highest respect, always covering it
when it is
not being read. They will wash the parts of their body that will touch the book before they read
it. It is always placed on the highest shelf when it is stored.
General - Many religious people believe in God as they look around them at
the beauty of Nature and feel a sense of Awe and wonder. This is often
called the Numinous – which is a feeling or sense of something greater than
they are (God). Often this is seen in nature and the way nature has a way of
amazing human beings.
General - Many religious people believe that God becomes known and talks
to people via their conscience. This they believe is the voice of God within
them telling them what is right and wrong. St Thomas Aquinas – a famous
Christian philosopher (you may remember from the first cause argument for
God’s existence) believed that we should always follow our conscience and
allow it to be ‘informed’ by what others believe is right and wrong.
Muhammad (PBUH)
Special - Muslims believe that this is the cave, just outside Mecca
where the Angel Jibrail gave the words of the Qur’an to Muhammad
(pbuh). The story goes as follows – Muhammad (pbuh) had taken to
meditating in caves just outside Mecca. He was confronted by a huge
figure – who he later learned was the Angel Jibrail. This man ordered
Muhammad to read, but Muhammad (pbuh) was illiterate and couldn’t
read. The man squeezed him so hard that he thought that he would
die. He did this three times altogether, demanding that he read – on the third time
Muhammad (pbuh) recited the words as if he knew them already. Muhammad (pbuh) then
realised he was alone and went to the mouth of the cave. Outside in the sky, he saw the giant
figure of a man flying. The man said he was Jibrail and Muhammad (pbuh) had been chosen
to be Gods messenger to spread his word to Mankind. A couple of months later Muhammad
was confronted by Jibrail again and he accepted his role as a prophet. Form then his whole
life changed.
Speaking in tongues
Special - Some Christians believe that when they come together in worship, they
may become so overcome with God’s Spirit that they are able to talk in a different
language (often this is not a foreign language but a completely unique one).
Others in the congregation claim that they are able to interpret their message as
the message of God. There is examples of ‘speaking in tongues’ in the Bible where the
apostles, after Jesus’ death, are afraid. But the spirit of God comes to them and they are able
to go into the streets and speak other languages.
Prayer
Special and General All religious people (who believe in God) Pray! How can
you keep a relationship with someone if you never speak to them? However,
are prayers answered? There are many stories of people being cured from
illnesses and great things happening due to the power of prayer. Many religious
people believe it is the most powerful force in the world today! God reveals by answering –
often in a way that the person doesn’t imagine – these prayers, also some believers believe
they get a direct answer and God speaks to them.
What do these revelations teach us about what God is like?
Again – learn the key words – what do they show God is like?
Transcendent – God is
Supreme and cannot be
understood. Looking at some
stories in scripture shows
believers that God cannot be
understood.
All knowing,
Omniscient – If God
can cure the woman in
Lourdes, God must
know when all things
happen.
Immanent – God is
involved in the world and
active in history – for
example the Numinous
and the conversion of
Nicky Cruz and the
relationship he has with
Jesus
Impersonal – Revelation
shows we cannot
understand God – God
sends messengers as in
Mohammed’s vision or the
visions in Lourdes of Mary
Benevolence – God loves
everyone – he cures us in
miracles – tells us when we
do wrong in our conscience,
talks to us in prayer and
gives us this beautiful world
to be amazed (Numinous)
at.
Personal – Many people
see God as a personal
and have a relationship
with Him. Those who
pray a lot believe they
are talking to God and
believe it works – e.g.
People pray for a
miracle and one
happens.
All Powerful
(omnipotent) – From
revelation some theists
see God’s Omnipotence,
for example God has the
power to talk to people
through their conscience
or cure an incurable
disease like the woman
in Lourdes.
Are Revelations an illusion?
Special revelation cannot be trusted as they are subjective and cannot be proven e.g.
you cannot scientifically prove the visions in Lourdes.
General revelation – many religions have holy books – which is right? Also the world
has come about through natural selection, this provides beauty and confusion
(Numinous) not God.
The revelation could have been brought about by drugs, alcohol etc
The believers are often desperate and therefore they are wishful thinking (Nicky Cruz).
People are suffering from mental illness that makes them hear voices or the mind is
playing tricks (like a Mirage)
Different religions have different revelations – they can’t all be right – so none are.
Evidence for revelation –
Often the revelation comes to be true – water in Lourdes has cured people.
The revelation backs up what people believe e.g. that prayer works – and someone is
cured because of prayer.
The revelation changes someone’s life (atheist to theist) like Nicky Cruz or from
religion to religion like St. Paul.
Revelation affects millions of people in the world – people are willing to die because of
revelation.
If someone doesn’t usually lie (Bernadette) why doubt them if they say they have had
a revelation.
Questions from Video
What is General Revelation – Give and describe at least two examples!
____________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe the events in Lourdes – how was this event Special Revelation?
____________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
What happened to Mrs McCloy – how is this described as Special Revelation?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe a how a particular revelation shows an attribute of God!
Omnipotent
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Omnipresent
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Benevolent
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Immanent
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Personal
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Impersonal
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Transcendent
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How might some people believe that Revelations are not Real?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
3 - The Existence of God!
Problem of Evil and Suffering!
The specification says –
Key Words
Word
Omnipotent
Omnipresent
Benevolent
Devil
Meaning
The belief that God is All Powerful
The belief that God sees everything and knows everything
The belief that God loves everything
The person that some theists believe causes humans to be
evil
The belief that humans are able to make their own choices
and can choose whether or not to do bad things
The belief that evil exists to make humans realise how good
life is – without evil and suffering we would not know what
good is.
Both natural and man made – that life is not only good but
also humans experience pain and emotional problems.
A deliberate action of humans that causes people to suffer
e.g. stealing
The Hindu belief that what you do in the world (good and
bad) will come back to you – either in this life or after
reincarnation.
Free Will
Soul Making
Suffering
Evil
Karma
The Problem!
You must know what the ‘Problem of Evil’ is for theists – before we begin to look at the
answers.
Omnipotent All Powerful
Omniscient –
All Knowing
Benevolent
– Loves
everyone
?
How can God be all these things?
Surely if he is all-powerful, he could stop evil?
Surely if he is all-loving he could never allow such suffering?
Surely if he is all-seeing, he could act to change events.
This is the problem of evil and suffering – you may be asked a question about this
problem and you need to be able to state what the problem is.
Many atheists and agnostics state that this is the reason why they don’t believe in
God. It is the biggest reasons for not believing in God.
Reasons why theists believe evil and suffering happens –
1. It comes from GOD giving human beings FREE
WILL. (Adam and Eve)
2. It comes from PEOPLE

HUMAN NATURE when people give in to greed, prejudice or hatred.

A PSYCHOLOGICAL PHENOMENON. People are influenced by their
backgrounds, genes or peers.
3. It is an IMPERSONAL FORCE that seems to take over people and make
them act irrationally.
4. It is from the DEVIL – a personal being who is the source of all evil and tempts
humans to follow him.
Most theists feel evil is something that is necessary in the world 1. (St Augustine) God must give humans free will – if humans
didn’t have free will then we would be just robots who did what
God wanted. Therefore we theists can explain why evil
happens.
2. (Irenaeus) God must create a world that allows massive
disasters – if God did not do this then the world God
created would be a toy world, where people would care
about each other, but not very much as they knew
nothing serious could happen to them.
Religious Responses to evil!
Most religious people find evil a really hard thing to deal with, but when it happens to
you, how do you deal with it? Remember the story of Gee and Anthony Walker –
Anthony was killed in a racist attack and his killers were
given
life imprisonment. After the trial the Gee Walker
(Anthony’s Mother) publicly forgave the people who killed
her
son. She used the story of Jesus on the Cross – Jesus
said
“Father forgive them – they know not what they do”!
Jesus said forgive – I
have to forgive them!
Karma
Karma is the Hindu response to Evil and Suffering – whilst Christians
respond to Evil by forgiveness and understanding, Hindu’s believe
people will be punished for the evil that they commit. This will either be in this life or in
another life when they will be born to a lower caste or even as an animal. Because of
this most Hindu’s are vegetarian. Suffering is therefore a punishment for previous sins
(maybe of a former life) or a test to enable a believer to achieve enlightenment or an
escape from the circle of death and life etc.
Christians however believe that suffering is necessary – as we have seen with
Irenaeus and his soul making – don’t forget the example of Jesus also
who suffered for others – many Christians believe they are called to do
this also such as Martin Luther King who died for his cause (freedom of
black people in the south of America) just as Jesus died.
Questions from Video
Describe the Problem of Evil
____________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
What are the three things people believe evil is.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How do religious people respond to the problems of Evil?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
And suffering
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
What is the difference between natural and moral evil?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe what Hindu’s believe about suffering - Karma
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Why do Christians believe suffering is necessary?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
What do Augustine and Irenaeus say about the problem and how people can cope
with Evil (Augustine) and Suffering (Irenaeus)
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
4 - Immortality Revision
Keyword
Immortality
Dualism
Materialism
Body
Soul
Resurrection
Legacy
Heaven
Hell
Reincarnation
Moksha
Karma
Rebirth
Scripture
Ghost
Channelling
Near Death
Experience
Definition
Living forever
The idea that a human being is made up of two parts; body and soul. This
is an idea of the philosopher Plato.
The belief that a persons mind is inseparable from the body therefore no
survival of the soul after death.
The physical part of a person. The part that we can see and touch such as
skin and bones
The non-physical part of a person. The part that we can’t see and touch:
the real ‘you’ inside of you.
When your soul (and body) rise from the dead and come back to life.
Something handed down from an ancestor; a way of being remembered
The state of eternal happiness in the presence of God
The state of eternal separation from God, seen as a punishment for sin
The soul is born again in another body
Hindu belief. Breaking free from the cycle of life – death – reincarnation, to
become one with Brahma (God)
The law of cause and effect (Hinduism)
A transfer of energy from one body to the next (Buddhism)
Sacred writing s of a religion, for example; The Bible, The Qur’an, The
Vedas.
A soul without a body.
Communicating with the dead through a medium (a spiritualist)
Some people, when they are close to death or in an intense situation claim
to have a sense of leaving their bodies and seeing what exits beyond this
life.
Dualism
Plato was an ancient Greek
Philosopher in the 4th Century BCE. Plato
was a dualist, he believed that a human
being was made up of two parts; body and
soul. Plato argued that the human Body is
constantly changing and decaying. The Soul
however he argued was eternal; it was
perfect and never changed. According to
Plato when a human being dies, their body
dies but their soul lives on in a perfect world.
Christians and Muslims agree with Plato’s
idea but instead say that the soul continues
to live in heaven.
A problem with this idea is that there is no
proof of this perfect world or of a soul.
Richard Dawkins.
Richard Dawkins is an evolutionary biologist
born in 1941. He argues that there is no soul,
and that instead we are simply made us of
different cells full of DNA. Consequently when
we die, our cells die and nothing is left over.
There is no afterlife, no heaven, no hell, no
reincarnation, just death.
A problem with this idea is that surely we are
made up of something more than skin and
bones. Having no soul means that things such
as love is simply a chemical reaction,
something many people in love would argue
against
Whether we think of a person as being made up of a body or a body and a soul impact on
what we consider death to be. Is death when our body dies, is it when people forget the things
that we did in our lifetime, or do we never die?
Different ideas as to what could count as immortality
Resurrection
Resurrection is the act of rising from the dead, coming back to life. The
most famous scriptural account of a resurrection is the resurrection of
Jesus in Christianity. Christians believe that Jesus died on a cross, was
buried and then 3 days later rose from the dead in a spiritual body.
Christians believe that, depending on how we have lived our lives, we will
be resurrected in either heaven or hell. A problem with resurrection is that a
body will decay when buried, and apart from scriptural accounts (which are
very biased themselves) no one has any proof.
Reincarnation
Reincarnation is when the body dies yet your soul lives on in a different
body. This is a Hindu (and Sikh) belief. Hindu’s believe that your next body
depends on how good you have lived your life and so gained good karma.
For example, if you lead a good live (lived according to Holy Scripture) you
will come back in a better body. Eventually, Hindus believe that we will
reach the top of the karmic ladder and become one with Brahman (God)
forever. Many argue that if indeed we have lived many times before, why
can’t we all remember these lives?
Rebirth.
Buddhists do not believe in a soul; however they do believe that
everybody has a kind of cosmic energy. After a human dies their energy
will be passed onto another being. They often describe this as a snooker
ball hitting another snooker ball. As the white ball hits the red it transfers it
energy to the red, just like a reborn person will be born with the
transferred energy of one who has just died. Another analogy is that of lighting a candle with
another the flame of another candle: transferring the (heat and light) energy from one to the
other. Many against rebirth claiming that there is more to a person that just skin and bones,
we must have a soul.
A Legacy
Stories of a person’s life that have been handed down through generations of a
family or a community. For example, Walt Disney: Walt Disney’s body died in
1966 yet many argue he somehow lives on in his films and of course
Disneyworld. The same is so of any person who did remarkable things, no
matter how long ago, Henry VIII, Adolf Hitler Socrates for instance. A problem
with a legacy being an argument for immortality is that the person’s body is
dead and buried in the ground!
Memory of Others
Many believe that even though a person’s body may be dead they still
continue to live in the memory of those who were close to them before
they died. Sometimes people will keep items that once belonged to their
loved ones in order to remind them of them, photographs, jewellery,
clothing or even places that they used to visit. A problem with memory of
others being an argument for immortality is that the person’s body is dead
and buried in the ground! Another problem is does the person dies when
the last person to remember them dies?
Evidence for Immortality!
Scripture – In Christianity a major belief is in the resurrection of the body
and life everlasting. Jesus Himself is vital to this belief and Christians
believe that Jesus died on the cross and went on to rise from the dead
three days later – this shows that there is something after death and
Christians believe this will happen to them. Jesus said ‘there are many rooms in my Fathers
house’ – (John 14v2) Christians believe that people will go to heaven in a spiritual body – or
hell???
Hindus also have guidance from their sacred texts about how to obtain Moksha –
‘Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, offer service to Me, bow down to Me and
you shall certainly reach Me. I promise you because you are very dear to Me
(Bhagavad-Gita)
However – i) These accounts are only accepted by the people who follow the religions – if
people don’t follow the faith, they will not be seen as true. ii) Different scripture accounts from
different religions contradict each other – iii) Scripture comes from a time when there was little
knowledge of science – this often contradicts modern knowledge of science and medicine.
Ghosts – Manifestations of dead people – often more than one person
see’s them so they cannot be hallucinations, or the same ghost is seen in
more than one place. As ghosts could walk through walls, this supported
the belief in the resurrection of the body as it seemed that the body
resurrected in a spiritual form.
Look at - http://www.borleyrectory.co.uk/
However – Ghosts could be hallucinations or a trick of the light – a hoax made by someone to
trick another person.
Channelling – Some people believe that certain people can communicate
with the dead – these people (called mediums) often give people accurate
information about the person who has died.
However – Investigations into mediums prove many of them are frauds – they might be
reading people’s body-language (called cold reading – watch the video!)
Near Death Experience (NDE’s) – People who have been declared ‘clinically
dead’ have then been brought back to life. Many claim to have had an
experience and often these are very similar – going towards a light, a sense
of happiness and seeing dead relatives. Often these experiences are life
changing and could prove life after death?
Have a look - http://www.near-death.com/experiences/evidence01.html
However – NDE’s are given the name as the person is not really dead –
experience comes about because of a lack of oxygen to the brain.
the
Arguments against Immortality!
Science – You can use other parts of the course to show how people have tried to prove that
there is no afterlife. For example – many people who reject the idea of God also reject the
idea of a soul and therefore an afterlife. Darwin’s idea of evolution for example shows how we
have come about – look above to remember what Dawkins says about a soul.
Cryonics – The practice of preserving humans until they could be resuscitated –
Ted Williams for example was a baseball player who believes he will be brought
back to life in the future – then his afterlife will be spent in this world. If this is
possible, will this prove there is no soul as it hasn’t left the body for an afterlife?
Would the soul return to the body or will it prove there is a body without the soul?
Space – Humans are exploring space and have yet to find any evidence of
a afterlife – the souls of the dead becoming one with the universe (as
Buddhists think).
However many of the explorers of space have seen it as proof there is a
God – James Irwin who walked on the moon said ‘I felt the power of God as
I have never felt it before’.
Athiests – As with science above, look at the views of Richard Dawkins above. Humanists
believe there is a purpose to life and that is improving the quality of human life on earth.
Theists would argue – if there is no divine purpose to life, then why have humans always
wanted to worship – does this alone not suggest there is a divine need and purpose?
The Video is not the best on this revision section – sorry
Because of this, really focus on the above!!
Explain the difference between dualism and Dawkins belief about scientific
explanations
____________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Briefly describe the following
Resurrection
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Reincarnation
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Rebirth
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Legacy
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Memory of others
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe two pieces of evidence for immortality.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How might these be seen as bad evidence?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe three ways people disagree with immortality –
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How might a dualist argue against these?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
5 - GCSE RS: Miracles
Keyword
Miracle
Omnipotent
Omniscient
Omnibenevolent
Immanent
Transcendent
Definition
1. Something impossible
2. A violation of the laws of nature
3. An Act of God
All Powerful
All Knowing
All Loving
God is active and involved in the world, proving that
he cares for us
God is not involved in the world because He is
outside of time and space. God is too complex for us
to understand
What is a miracle?
A violation of the
laws of nature
A miracle is
impossible
A miracles is an act
of God
A miracle is something
that breaks the laws of
nature. For example
the miracle of Jesus
walking on water
breaks the law of
gravity.
A miracle is something
that should not be able
to happen. For
example it is
impossible for a statue
to cry but this miracle
has been reported
many times all over the
world.
A miracle is something
that only God does, for
example the parting of
the red sea. God is
thought to be
transcendent and so he
is not limited by the
laws of science and
therefore able to
perform miracles
Is it only God that can perform miracles, or can humans do them too?
God
Muslims believe
that only God can
perform miracles,
the greatest miracle
in Islam is thought
to be God giving
people the Qur’an
Christians believe that God
performs miracles, for example at
Lourdes in France many sick
people have been healed, one
man is reported to suddenly be
able to see after a lifetime of
blindness and many theists think
that this is a miracle.
Humans
Buddhists believe that if a
person lives a holy life,
they can learn how to
perform miracles. The
Buddha, the founder of
Buddhism, had these
powers. He is reported to
have tamed a crazed elephant simply by
placing his hands on the elephant; he could
also fly and appear in two places at once!
In the Christian Bible Jesus (a human!) is
reported to have performed many miracles,
including walking on water, feeding 5000
people with just 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish,
brought people back from the dead, cured
people from illnesses, and after he was
crucified he came back from the dead!
Examples of Miracles
Miracles from scripture (holy books)
God parting the Red Sea, so that the Israelites could
escape the Egyptians who were keeping them as slaves
Miracles from History
Richard D’Wyche blessing the Droitwich salt pits to make
them produce salt after they had dried up
Miracles from Tradition
Varanasi – a place of pilgrimage for Hindu’s, It is where
the God Shiva is supposed to have lived, and has been the
centre of religious teaching for centuries. Hindus enter the
river Ganges at the site and many hope when they bathe in
the water that their sins will be miraculously washed away.
Other Hindus bathe in the Ganges in the hope of miracle
cures.
Miracles from Experience
Faith Healing is when a person cannot be cured by doctors;
they attempt to be cured by God. Many travel to Lourdes in
France, others prayer in the hopes of being healed
Evidence for miracles
“Scientific studies
have proved the
power of prayer to
heal”
“Miracles still
occur today”
“There are too
many miracle
stories for them
all to be wrong”
“Miracle have been
investigated and
no scientific
explanation found”
Prayer
In 1995, a research project began to investigate the power
of prayer to heal people. Twenty AID’s patients were
enrolled in the programme. All patients received the same
medical care, but the psychic healers prayed for 10 of
them. The 10 patients prayed for did not know they were
chosen. The healers lived over 1,500 miles away from the
hospital. During the 6 month study, four patients died, but
none of them was in the group that was prayed for. At the end of the six months, all
the patients prayed for were still alive. The research showed that those not prayed
for spent 68 days in hospital and received treatment for 35 AIDS-related illnesses.
The group prayed for spent only 10 days in hospital and contracted 13 AIDS-related
illnesses.
How do miracles reveal God?
Miracles, such as cures at
Lourdes show that God is
omnibenevolent; he
loves people and wants
them to be healthy
Some claim that God
revels Himself to be
unfair, as why would
he help some people
and not all.
Some claim that God
revels Himself to be trivial
(useless), as why would He
perform miracles that are
not useful, such as the
Toronto blessing
Miracles show that God is
active and involved in the
world - Immanent
Miracles show that God is
omniscient and
omnipotent. They show
that he is not limited by
scientific laws.
Hume’s Arguments for the impossibility of miracles
Miracles are impossible because…….
Never enough evidence
We have evidence from hundreds of
years that the laws of science are
correct, there is overwhelming evidence
that people do not fly, appear in two
places at once, or rise from the dead.
Hume argued that if a miracle is going to
be accepted, then there has to be
sufficient evidence to outweigh the
evidence for the law of nature. This
cannot happen, so it is always going to
be more likely that miracles do not
happen
Witnesses are unreliable
Evidence of miracles cannot be trusted
because they are biased - they
desperately want miracles to happen to
back up their beliefs, so they may
exaggerate or even lie about what they
have seen. The same is true of those who
spread accounts of miracles
Witnesses are
uneducated
Hume said that miracles
are usually reported by
primitive, uneducated
people. This means that
they are willing to accept
extraordinary events as
miracles because they
can’t explain them any
other way: they have no
knowledge of science.
Religions depend on
miracles
Hume argued that the
religions of the world
depend on miracles to
prove their claims to be
truth—but, as they cannot
all be right, then it means
none of them are right.
Religions therefore cancel
each other out.
Problems with Hume’s arguments
The witnesses are unreliable
Never Enough Evidence
Believers argue that Hume has
missed the point as to what is
meant by a miracle. It is something
that breaks the laws of nature but is
a rare occurrence. Miracles are the
exception to the rule so there can
never be more witnesses to
miracles than to the laws of nature.
Events are researched and witnesses
interviewed to see if they are reliable
before an event can be considered a
miracle
The witnesses are uneducated
However many miracle s are
reported to have occurred by
people with a high level of
education.
Religions depend on
miracles
Many religions do not
depend on miracles as proof
of their teaching; they mostly
just support the beliefs and
teachings of the faith. Nor
are religions in competition
with each other to prove
their miracles are right and
the others are wrong.
Revision Checklist
For the assessment you will need to know all the following issues surrounding
miracle – why not tick them off when you’ve revised them?



Definitions of the term miracle

Examples of miracles from scripture (holy books), tradition,
history and personal experience.





Evidence that claims miracles are real
Examples of miracles that are performed by God
What different religions say about humans performing
miracles (with examples)
What miracles reveal God to be like
Problems miracles create for believers
Hume’s arguments against the possibility of miracles
Problems with Hume’s arguments
Questions from Video
How does God and Humans perform miracles, give examples?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Explain a Miracle from two religious scriptures
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Explain two traditional religious miracles (Lourdes and Varanasi for example)
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
What do we learn about God from miracles?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe Humes argument about miracles
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How might a theist argue against these?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe Dawkins arguments against Miracles
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
The story about Prayer makes you believe in Miracles?
DYAGRFYOSYHTAMTOPOV
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Religion and Science
Key Word
Scientific Truth
Religious Truth
Big Bang
Creation story
Creationist
Myth
Cosmological
revolution
Evolution
Natural
Selection
Absolute truth
Authority
Meaning
Truth that has been found by theory and evidence –
experiment and testing.
Truth that is claimed by religious believers due to faith and
belief evidence comes from conscience, experience and
tradition.
Explanation for the origins of the universe happening 1015 billion years ago where the universe is still evolving.
The story in Genesis about how the world was created
People who believe that the story of creation is true.
A story with truth within it – but not necessarily scientific
truth but moral truth.
Scientific period of time when people realised the world
was round and not at the centre of the universe.
The fact that the world as we know it has come about by
billions of years of change and survival.
The fact that some species survive and others die off
depending on the fittest. Species adapt to their
surroundings and survive.
Fixed unchangeable facts that something will be true for all
time and in all cultures
Something that has power and deserves obedience.
What is Truth?
Based on evidence – opinion or theory is tested and eventually truth is sought.
The type of evidence used to prove something can be placed into categories.
Scientific Truth – Science takes observations and theories and
tests it – scientific truth constantly changes as further experiments
can build on or disprove earlier scientific theories. For most
people it is the most reliable truth as the evidence used is hard to obtain.
Historical Truth – Historians use the period of time they are
studying – evidence could be written, archaeological or more
recently film or sound recordings. Historians then state why
things happen and other historians might disagree with them.
The truth is therefore subjective.
Religious Truth – Believers look at religious truth by assessing the
existence of God and origins of life but most important – purpose of
life. Believers make claims about religious belief looking at
evidence from scripture, conscience, religious experience and
history/tradition.
Origins of the universe –
Big Bang – this is the theory that the world was formed millions
of years ago. The universe is constantly changing an evolving
one. The universe started at a single point and constantly
changes. After this initial event the universe has expanded and
when the temperatures had cooled (after around ½ million
years). It took another billion years before the stars and galaxies to appear.
Billions of years later – here we are!
Genesis view of Creation –
You don’t need to know this story off by heart, just be aware what happens on
each
day –
Day
– Night and Day
Day
– Sky and Earth
Day
– Land and Sea
Day
– Sun and Moon
Day
- Sea Creatures
Day
– Plants, animals and Humans
And on the seventh day – God rested Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Now – the key thing that you will be asked about is whether or not science
and the religious story can be reconciled (both believed at the same time).
It would appear at first that that would be impossible – but it depends on how
you look at the creation story.
Some (fundamental) Christians believe that the story of creation is HOW IT
HAPPENED and evolution and the Big Bang is wrong!
Some Christians believe that the story is linked – that the days of creation
could have been much longer than we now call ‘days’. But it did happen like
the creation story.
Most Christians however will believe that the creation story tells us that God
did create the world and he guides evolution. He was the ‘first cause’ of
creation the creation story is just a Myth!
The Cosmological Revolution
In the middle ages science and religion agreed with each other – mostly they
fed from each other as the evidence of science – what we see – agreed with
the religious view. Humans believed that the Earth was the centre of the
universe and that everything created on that earth had never changed. The
world seemed young (they believed around 6000 years old). However
developments in science led to people to change their views of the universe
and God’s place within it.
Ancient Belief
The world view that humans had for hundreds of years
revolved around the evidence that they believed they
could see with their eyes. It seemed the heavens
revolved around the earth the planets and sun were in
orbit around us. Humans appeared to be the centre of
creation. How could the earth be moving, surely if it
was we would have the wind buffeting us constantly?
Humans trusted the evidence of their eyes, the world
was flat and the heavens went around this flat earth.
The story in the bible, in Genesis seemed perfectly
believable.
Nicholas Copernicus here, I am an astronomer, I was
appointed by the church to make a calendar. In my
research I realised that the earth was in fact round and
we went around the sun. I was not the first to say this,
but the first to start to be believed – my ideas were
taken by others, I believed that the heavenly bodies
travelled around in perfect circles – I was not quite right
but there you go! Many religious believers said that I
wrote against the scriptures – but I just recorded what I
tested.
Galilei Galileo here – my contribution to this was
immeasurable. I supported the findings of Copernicus
– a support that would lead me to living most of my life
under house arrest. I sort of discovered the telescope
but used it to see that there were sunspots proving that
the heavens were not unchanging. The planets
movements had nothing to do with God but were
natural. As the sun was not the centre of the universe,
could humans claim to be the most important creation
of God?
The cosmological revolution showed that the earth and therefore humanity
was not the centre of the universe. Did God have this amazing relationship
with humanity? Science became free to do things and no longer refer to God
as the cause of all physical things. Science did not have to match the
teachings of Christianity. God still was the explanation of things people didn’t
understand – but science and religion separated and the idea that everything
had never changed was being questioned.
The Origins of Life – How did we get here!
The understanding that we lived in an unchanging world led people to look at
other questions – Were human beings created, as the Bible seems to
suggest, or was there a ‘changing’ way to look at how we got here. This led
science to further question religious belief and begins the ‘theory of evolution’.
Evolution
All life on earth has developed from early stages to its
present state. A chain could be established that leads
back to the origin of each species. This challenges the
idea that humans (indeed all life) has been created by an
all powerful God – nature selects what survives and
continues, not God.
Lamarck
An early evolutionist called Jean-Baptiste Lamarck believed that
organisms changed due to there environment and that the most
successful grow to be the strongest.
He also suggested that changes to life forms, which happen to benefit their
survival – are inherited by the species offspring. E.g. the long neck of the
giraffe grows with each generation.
Darwin
For Darwin the process of evolution happened because of ‘Natural Selection’.
Nature selected the species that will survive because they are able to adapt to
there surroundings. Species that cannot adapt die away as those who adapt
well survive. This happens over millions of years!
Darwin was brought up a Christian and he believed in the
cosmology and the ideas of the Bible. However as he
travelled around the world finding information he began
looking at the world in a different way. He originally saw
that the world was designed and learned a lot about
the idea of design as put forward by Paley.
Gradually Darwin became more and more convinced that although God
created life, there was no immanence and God has left the details of life to
Natural selection. He eventually doubted that God had any control over
nature and indeed he rejected the Bible’s account of creation.
The old argument of design in nature, as given
by Paley, which formally seemed to me so
conclusive, fails, now that the law of natural
selection has been discovered. We can no
longer argue that, for instance, the beautiful
hinge of a bivalve shell must have been made
by an intelligent being, like the hinge of a door
by man…..Everything in nature is the result of
fixed laws.
Darwin and Religion
Darwin eventually described himself as an agnostic; he would not ultimately
deny the existence of God. However his work was criticised by Christians as
against scripture. Darwin suggested that living things developed – not
everything was created by the sixth day of creation.
If Natural Selection is the result of nature’s choice by the fittest – God could
not have designed the world – our environment is not there for the benefit of
our needs, we change to fit with our environment!
Religious reasons why people reject Darwin
How can humans created in God’s image – evolved from
other species?
Humans have a soul – this distinguishes us from animals,
therefore we could not have evolved.
There are gaps in the fossil records – many people use this to reject evolution.
Religious reasons to accept Darwin
Evolution is the ‘process’ by which creation happened – some believe it still is
happening.
Evolution could be seen as God’s plan – there are often big ‘jumps’ in the
evolutionary process – these unexplained jumps could be God?
Can Science and Religion agree?
‘Science without religion is lame, religion without science
is blind’
What does Einstein mean?
Both have a place in the world and indeed, many people (scientists and
theists) believe they both look at the same thing, but from different points of
view. God can sustain the universe and science is just our way of
understanding it.
Science and Religion however must be able to adapt – the idea of a earth
centred universe is only accepted today by the fundamentalist few. But this
requires another look at the scripture and how they are interpreted. Intelligent
design is one way that people see the two come together, or theistic evolution.
Evolution is amazing and many people would not think it possible if there was
not an overall intelligence.
Mathematics is the language that God wrote the
universe (Pythagoras)
Questions
Science evolves as further discoveries are made – there is no truth that
cannot be changed. However religion believes that some truths are constant
– e.g. that God created the world. Yet some atheists also see such truth e.g.
Dawkins would state ‘God does not exist’.
Could both religion and science benefit by looking at their points of view being
open to interpretation?
Also do Religion and Science ask different questions? For example Science
asks ‘How did I get here?’ and uses Evolution to answer the question.
Religion says ‘Why did I get here?’ one word of difference but a completely
different answer!
Stephen Hawkins stated in his book – a brief history of time –
If we do discover a complete theory …… we shall
all, philosophers, scientists and ordinary people, be
able to take part in discussion of the question of
why it is that we and the universe exist. If we find
an answer to that, it would be the ultimate triumph
of human reason – for then we would know the
mind of God.
Questions from the Video
Describe Scientific and Religious Truth
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Write out one story of Creation
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
In your own words describe the cosmological revolution – you must use
Copernicus and Galileo in your example!
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe how this challenged religious belief
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Describe Darwin’s teaching on Evolution and Natural Selection
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How was this a challenge to religious belief?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
How has religion reacted to Darwin’s teaching?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Darwin has disproved God!
DYAGRFYOSYHTAMTOPOV
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________