RE: Religion and Life

Section 1: Believing in God

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  • Created by: Alice
  • Created on: 04-04-13 13:18
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  • Section 1 - Believing in God
    • Main Features of a Catholic Family
      • Baptism - vow to bring children up in a christian way and teach them to be a good catholic
      • teach children to believe in God - children believe what their parents say
      • Prayer - children are taught to pray - they believe they can't be praying to nothing so God must exist
      • Mass - taught to worship - children believe because they see so many people at Mass, it shows god must exist
      • Catholic school - teaches about the faith and gives children a further understanding of the catholic so therefore they believe what their teachers say
      • Why is it a good thing?
        • Keeps the family together with activities
        • gives children a sense of belonging and emotional stability
        • gives children an understanding of right and wrong and some morals
      • Why is it a bad thing?
        • means children a brought up on a religion they haven't chosen
        • take away a child's freedom to choose a religion
        • may work against community cohesion - think other religions are wrong
    • Design Argument
      • 1. the world has clearly been designed (evidence DNA, laws of science)
        • 2. if the world is designed, it needs a designer
          • 3. only possible designer is God
      • Why are people against?
        • No designer would make destructive thins like volcanoes and earthquakes
        • science can explain everything without the need for a God
        • Doesn't explain extinct animals. Part of the plan?
        • the designer doesn't have to be god
      • Design - plan to produce something because everything is so complex and well designed like a watch
    • Causation Argument
      • 1. any effect has a cause and visa versa
        • 2. the universe needs a cause to have begun
          • 3. God is the only logical cause
      • Why are people against?
        • If everything has a cause, so must God
        • Possible that the process has gone on forever
        • Perhaps that the universe is an exception - doesn't need a cause
        • God doesn't have to be the 1st cause
  • Scientific Explanations
    • Matter is eternal
    • The Big Bang - Red shift shows that the universe is still  expanding
    • Evolution
    • Gases on the earth's surface produced primitive life - not God
    • Why does this lead to atheism or agnostisim
      • science can explain the universe and humans - no need for God
      • Atheists - if God existed he would be the only explanation for the existance of the universe
      • No explanation for God starting the Big Bang
      • an omnipotent God wouldn't have created the universe in such a random way
    • Catholic Response to Science (proves Gods existance)
      • Only God made the Big Bang - to the exact microsecond
      • Only God could have made gravity needed for the Big Bang
      • Only God could have made the gases needed to react to make life
      • Believe Bible and science is right but creation was in order but over millions of years
  • Catholic Response to Science (proves Gods existance)
    • Only God made the Big Bang - to the exact microsecond
    • Only God could have made gravity needed for the Big Bang
    • Only God could have made the gases needed to react to make life
    • Believe Bible and science is right but creation was in order but over millions of years
  • Prayer
    • Lead to belief in God
      • feels like God is listening to them - have a numinous experience
    • Why unanswered prayers may lead to atheism etc.
      • feel like no-one is listening
      • feel like God doesn't care
        • Feel abandoned
          • Feel like the problem of evil is too great
      • Why people believe unanswered prove God doesn't exist
        • If God is all loving he should answer all prayers
        • He shouldn't pick and choose his prayers
        • If he is all powerful, he should be able to sort out all the prayers
    • Catholic Response to unanswered prayer
      • prayer may not be answered in the way you expect
      • may be praying for selfish things - God teaches you a lesson
      • gives us not what we ask for
      • God loves us does the right thing for us
  • Why Evil and Suffering may lead to atheism etc.
    • Omnipotent
      • all-powerful - no power to stop it all
    • Omnibenevolent
      • all-good - he doesn't care enough to stop all evil
    • Omniscient
      • He can't predict all the suffering to stop it
    • Why does the problem disprove God?
      • inconsistant triangle etc....
      • Is God evil?
      • not powerful?
    • Catholic Response to the problem of evil
      • God must have a reason but we can;t understand
      • free will - it was all good but humans made it to all evil by temptation
      • Without bad there wouldn't be good
      • We are being tested by temptation before we go into heaven
  • Kinds of Religious Experience
    • Numinous
      • something greater must be at work so God must exist
    • Conversion
      • Feel as if god is calling them
    • Miracle
      • God is the only logical explanation
    • Prayer
    • How it stengthens your belief in God
      • they feel they had direct contact with God so he must exist
    • Why people don't think religious experiences proves God
      • Numinous is just awe
        • all miracles can be explained
          • more unanswered prayers so it's just luck

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