Christianity Revision Booklet
The Human Condition
Name:
Christianity: Area 1 Revision. The Human Condition
According to the SQA, this is what you will need to know for Area 1 of
Christianity.
Q. What is the human condition?
A. Human beings are created good by God but they suffer and die.
Source: Genesis ch 1-2
Points to Study
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God ‘s Qualities
God’s relationship with human beings.
Imago Dei
Stewards of creation
Moral conscience
Free Will
Q. What is the cause of the human condition?
A. Human beings suffer and die because they are alienated from God through sin.
Source: Gen 3: 1–24
Points to Study
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The Fall
The misuse of freewill.
The consequences of Adam and Eve’s disobedience
The nature and effects of sin
Alienation
Two Church views Understandings of Original Sin
God’s promise of salvation.
This booklet is designed to help you revise what we have covered in area 1.
Completing this booklet will also help you to create your own coherent notes. These
notes will then help you in your revision as you approach the NAB and then eventually
the exam. As you complete this revision activity you should make full use of the
Christianity book and the source booklet.
At the back of this booklet there are some sample exam questions. It is a good idea
to begin thinking about what information you would want to include in your response
to these questions – perhaps begin doing this simply by making a brief plan. This is a
useful revision task for you to undertake as a part of your personal study.
Q. What is the human condition?
A. Human beings are created good by God but they suffer and die.
What
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do we learn about God from Genesis 1-2
There is only one God
God is the creator of all
He created the world in 6 days and rested on the 7th day
He is all powerful (omnipotent)
God is eternal – he is without beginning or end
What do Christians believe was God's intention for His creation?
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Humans were intended to enjoy a relationship with God
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They were to enjoy the creation that God had made and to have dominion over
it all
What
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does it mean to be made in God's image?
The Latin is Imago Dei
Christians don’t accept that God is a physical person
To be made in His image refers to the goodness that is there in everyone
Humans have relationships just like God does
Humans have the ability to love, think, reason, understand, reflect and create
just like God does
Humans have a spiritual and moral nature that separates them from all the
other creatures God made
What does it mean to be a steward of creation?
 A steward has control and responsibility over something
 A steward is not the owner though – a steward cares for something on behalf
of someone else
 In Christianity, humans have responsibility to care for God’s creation. They
have been given dominion, which means they are the dominant species which has
control over what happens to the world
 Stewardship is a reminder that the world does not belong to us – but to God.
Humanity is called by God to care for it.
How might Christians be responsible stewards? Give examples.
 They may be concerned about global warming. They may recycle as a result or
not use their car in order to reduce pollution
 They might be against nuclear weapons as they can destroy the earth
completely
 They may donate money to a group such as Christian Aid who help bring relief
to disaster areas of the world
 They might support Fair Trade
 They may be against animal cruelty
How might Christians misuse their position of stewardship? Give examples.
 Some Christians might think that having dominion allows them to do what they
want with the planet. The earth’s resources are there purely for human
consumption
 This view justifies exploiting the earth’s resources and justifies harmful
behaviour
 For example – “I am a rich businessman and I think it is ok to pollute the
environment as long as profit is involved, after all, we have dominion over this
planet. I am just using my God-given right.”
What is your moral conscience?
 Your moral conscience is the voice inside of you that tells you the difference
between right and wrong
 Every human has a conscience – this makes us distinct from animals
 Having a conscience is a reminder to us that we are made in God’s image and
that we are to be good (just as God is)
What do Christians believe about free will?
 God gave all humanity free will according to the book of Genesis
 Christians believe that God didn’t want programmed robots – he wanted
relationship with real people
 This means that humans can choose to worship God or not
 Humans have used their free will to disobey God
 Humans have become disobedient to God
1. Q. What is the cause of the human condition?
A. Human beings suffer and die because they are alienated from God
through sin.
Read the Source: Genesis 3
Summarise what happens in Genesis ch3
 The serpent tempts Eve to eat the fruit from the forbidden tree
 Eve ate it and gave some to Adam who also ate
 Immediately things changed, they became aware of their need for clothes.
They felt fear and hid from God
 God finds out what happens
 He curses the snake to crawl on its belly and to have enmity with the women
 He curses the women with pain in childbirth and a desire for her husband.
 He curses Adam to work the ground to make it produce food; it will now
produce thorns and thistles as well as good food.
 He curses Adam and Eve to both ‘return to the dust’ from which they were
made (death)
 Adam and Eve are banished from the Garden of Eden
Give
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a definition of 'sin'.
Sin means to fall short of perfection
As in archery, if you miss the bullseye you have ‘sinned’
Sin is refusal to live as God intended
What
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were the consequences of the Fall?
The curse on Adam and Eve
Suffering brought into the world
Physical death
Banished from Eden
Broken relationship with God
What is meant by 'alienation'?
 Alienation refers to broken relationships caused by the Fall
 It is the feeling of being cut off from God and those around you.
How were each of the following relationships affected by the Fall?
Man and Woman
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God curses the woman and says her desire will be for her husband
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She is to be ruled over by her husband
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Sin and alienation affects the way they relate to each other – relationships
between man and woman often breakdown as a result
Man and environment
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God curses Adam and says that he will have to work the ground to make it
produce fruit
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Adam will work by ‘the sweat of his brow’
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God says that now the ground will produce weeds and thorns
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The earth will no longer be an easy source for Adam to draw from
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The earth is cursed and perhaps this can be used to explain natural disasters
such as tsunamis, hurricanes etc etc
Man and God
 The perfect relationship was broken
 Man no longer enjoyed union with God after being kicked out the garden
 Man is now alienated from God as a result
What is meant by 'original sin'?
 Original sin refers to the sin that Adam and Eve committed that we are all
affected by.
 Different church denominations understand original sin differently
What does the Roman Catholic Church believe about Original Sin?
 The Roman Catholic Church agrees with the teaching of Augustine. They
believe that all humanity is born with original sin but this can be cleansed by
infant baptism. The rest of life is spent trying to restore ourselves back into
God’s image and earning salvation by taking part in the sacraments
What does the Church of Scotland believe about Original Sin?
 Protestant Christians also agree that all humanity inherited the sin of Adam
and Eve. However, they do not believe that humanity can be restored back into
God’s image by our own efforts. John Calvin taught that we are so utterly
infected by sin that we can never really get rid of it – even by doing good
deeds on earth these are still tarnished by sin. Our only hope is God’s
generosity and grace to give salvation.
 Not all Protestants are as negative as Calvin was about humanity. However,
they would still say that the sin of Adam has infected us all and that it is like a
disease that can never be shaken off. The would agree that the only hope is
God’s grace and gift of salvation.
What does the Orthodox Church believe about Original Sin?
 The Christian Orthodox churches don't interpret original sin in the way that
Protestants and Catholics do. They don't accept that people can be guilty of a
sin they did not commit, and so reject the idea of inherited guilt passed down
through the generations.
 The Orthodox interpretation of original sin is that the way in which human
beings inherit sinfulness is that human history, culture and society have
created a moral climate which 'teaches' human beings to behave sinfully; as a
result, all people need God's help to avoid sin.
What does the word ‘grace’ mean?
 In this context, grace refers to God’s favour. It means to receive something
from God that we don’t deserve.
Remember, you will need to know two different understandings of Original Sin for the exam
Which view on original sin do you agree with most? Explain why.
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How can the effects of the Fall be overcome?
 The suffering and death of Jesus paid the price for human sin
 Recovery from the Fall and Sin starts with faith in Jesus
 Jesus restores the relationship between God and man – ending alienation
 This is known as the atonement (at-one with God)
Sample Exam Questions: The Human Condition
The following is a selection of questions that have appeared in past exam papers.
Solidify your knowledge and increase your confidence by practicing your essay writing
skills based on these questions.
KU = Knowledge and Understanding. This is simply providing an answer based on
what we have learned
AE = Analysis and Evaluation. This is a bit trickier. For these questions you have
to insert a lot more of your own thinking into the answer you give. You have to
analyse the answer you give and then evaluate what it means. It involves engaging
with the question based on your knowledge and your own ability to thrash out the
meaning of it!
What do Christians mean when they say God created man in his own image? (5KU)
What does it mean to be a steward of creation? (3KU)
What is dominion? (3KU)
What are the different Christian ideas about dominion? (3AE)
Outline the Christian belief about how sin entered into the world. (3KU)
What, according to Christian belief, were the consequences of sin entering the
world? (5KU)
What is Imago Dei? (4KU)
Describe what Christians would understand by “The Fall”. (3KU)
Describe what Christians understand by freewill. (4KU)
“God chose to give humans free will, this was a big mistake”. How far would a
Christian agree with this statement? (8AE)
Explain two implications of belief in freewill for Christians. (6AE)