Religion and Life

Cosmological Theories try to explain how the universe began:

The Big Bang theory is the most respected of these - it says that the universe began in an explosion of matter and energy, the matter formed everything in the universe. The fact that the universe is still expanding supports this

Evolutionary Theories try to explain how living things have changed:

Charles Darwin argued that life originated from simple cells. Life evolved and formed a variety of different species and the fittest survived. According to this theory humans evolved from apes not Adam and Eve 

Christian Ideas:

Genesis chapter 1 says God created the universe 6 days. Genesis chapter 1 and 2 explain how he made man in his image and women from men.
Creationists say that that is what happened they dissagree with evolution because of a lack of evidence
Many Christians see it as symbolic - the idea of the Big Bang theory was originally put forward by a Roman Catholic priest
Both the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church have recogined the benefits of working with science

Islamic Ideas:

Muslims believe God created the earth in 6 days
They believe that Allah created Adam from clay and breathed life and soul into hims - they believe all people are descended from Adam
Some see the Qur'an's descriptions as agreeing with science - it says the Earth and the heavens were joined togther and then split which they argue is similar to the Big Bang theory

Humans have damaged the enviroment:

Global warming: The increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere causes the earth to get hotter which can lead to sea level rise and flooding.
Natural resources: As the population increases more raw materials and energy is needed, if this continues may natural resources may run out. Fertile land is decreasing due to over grazing and irresponsible farming methods
Pollution: Pollution pollutes lakes, rivers and seas which can harm the plants and animals, people use chemicals for farming, bury nuclear waste, and make landfills. Smoke and gases from industry can pollute the air and cause health problems

Many people want to look after the enviroment, religious people feel it is their duty as God gave them the earth to care for. People can make easy steps such as recycling things and taking public transport. 

People of all religions love the world as it is God's creation, they feel he is present in the world through experiences that inspire people

Christians believe in looking after the enviroment:

Gensis says that humans can rule over animals - this power is called dominion and some people say it means humans can do what they want
Many Christians say God make them stewards of the envrioment and they cannot abuse it
Some people believe everything is interdependent so harming another species harms humans
Damaging the enviroment goes against this so many charities try to get governments and industries to be more enviromentally friendly

Muslims are Khalifah of the Earth:

The Earth is seen as a product of the love of Allah so they should love it. Muslims believe they have been appointed trustees of the Earth so they should take responability and make it nice. Muslims therfore protect the enviroment and try not to use too many resources, At The Day of Judgement Muslims believe they will be asked about the ill-treatment of the earth

Animals are somethimes used to test products or for medical experiments. Some people always see it as cruel, other can accept it if it helps humans because it does good but not if it is for cosmetics.

Animals are also used for food. Some argue humans are built to consume meat but others say that it is wrong so they become vegetarians/vegans

Christians believe animals should be treated well:

Christianity teaches that animals should be treated with kindness but they can be used to help humans as long as they do not suffer - they support this by saying only human life is sacred as only humans were created in the image of God.
The Catholic Church accepts animals testing but only if it benefits mankind (e.g. medicines)
Some Christians think it is always wrong to make animals suffer - they support this by saying that medicines often do not have the same effect on humans as they do on animals
Christianity has no specific food laws so not eating meat is up to the person - eating meat is spoken about in the Bible to it is accepted

Islam tecahes animals should never be mistreated:

Cruelty for animals is forbiden as is their use simply for pleasure because they are meant to be trustees, they should be compassionate - the animals must be slaughtered humanely for the meat to he halal
Muslims can test on animals if it is to make genuine medical advances and the animals should not recieve unnecessary pain

Abortion is when a foetus is removed prematurely from the womb before it can survive, it is legal in the England, Scotland and Wales if it is does before 24 weeks, it can be done after this time if there is a danger to the health of the mother or the foetus

Euthanasia is killing someone to relieve suffering - active euthanasia is when a patient is helped to die (e.g. with drugs), this is illegal in the UK. Passive euthanasia is when treatment is withdraw to induce death.

Christianity and Islam both believe that all life is created by God so it is holy. As as result many religious people believe they should not interfere with when a life ends/begins. 

Many Christians see abortion as undesirable:

They believe this because God created mankind in his own image. Roman Catholics say it is murder as life begins at fertilisation - they support this by saying God cares about children
The Church of England says that it is allowed if the pregnancy puts the mother's life at risk, and Quakers say that the foetus' life cannot be valued more than the mother's. They support this by saying allowing the mother to chose shows Christian compassion.
The Bible never mentions abortion but other Christian texts are against it.

Some Christians are strongly against euthanasia: Roman Catholics say that anything that intentionally causes death is wrong, they say it goes against the commandment "You shall not murder", and they say only God can decide when a life ends. Many Christians also see suffering as a part of life (Satan made Job suffer but he refused to end his life). They also feel they should care not kill so they support hospices. 

Some Christians support passive euthanasia: Some Christians suggest that the keeping someone alive artificially is wrong and they say that by letting them die they are being compassionate, but must only agree if the person chooses it for themselves. Anglicans say that terrible suffering should not be continued and death could be seen as a blessing (but they are against active euthanasia).

Muslims believe that people's lives are sacred so should not be takem.  When a foetus gets its soul (120 days) is called ensoulment. This means before 120 days there can be an abortion if the baby would be born with a serious defect, after 120 days there can only be an abortion if the mother's life is it risk. However some Muslims say they should be free to choose what happens to their body.

Muslims are usually against euthanasia because their lives are Allah's. They also believe that Allah has a plan for how long each person will live (and their life in general) and that they should not interfere with that plan. Islam teaches that life on earth is a test and that Allah knows everything. So instad of killing themselves they should turn to Allah. As a result Muslims support hospices, but if a patient has no hope of an improvement doctors can stop unnecessary treatement

Many atheists support abortion as it gives women control and humanists look at the impact on the woman first.

There is debate on the time limit because some babies born at 24 weeks can survive, so some feel it should be shortened, others argue there should be no time limit

Many people support euthanasia when a person will die from an illness as they see it as the kindest thing to do however some fear that people may be pressured into doing it.

Most people say that you should look at each case individually before making a decision as each situation differs

Christianity teaches that people go to heaven or hell depending on how God judges their actions - trying to live a good life according to Christian teachings and believing in Jesus will allow them to recieve God's grace and go to heave

Catholics believe that some go to Purgatory - This is a place where sins are paid for before going to heaven. Here the person undergoes purification. But protestants do not agree with it as there is no mention of it in the Bible.

Muslims believe that the afterlife means going to jannah or jahannam. After a person dies their soul goes to barzakh to await judgement. 

On Yawm ad-Din everyone's actions will be judged.

Those who Allah thinks have done good will go to jannah and the bad to jahannam

There are many arguments for life after death:

The paranormal is sometimes used as evidence
Some people claim to have evidence of reincarnation - there was a lot of reasearch carried out by young children who claim to remember past lives.
People claim to have had a near-death or out-of-body experience such as talking to a dead person
People say there must a judgement to compensate for the unfairness of life on Earth

Some people don't believe in life after death:

They argue there is no evidence for life after death and that the logical answer is it doesn't exist
They say that believing in an afterlife is a way of helping people deal with death
Sometimes they argue religions use it to put pressure on people to follow their teachings
Believers would disagree as they would say their beliefs come from sacred texts
Christians may argue that Jesus' resurrection shows their if life after death

"Evolution in nature does not confict with the notion of Creation" -  Pope Francis

"humanity's dominion cannot be understood as licence to abuse, spoil, squander, or destroy what God has made" - Christian Declaration on Nature, Assisi 1986

"The Lord took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it" - Genesis

"Medical and scientific experimentation on animals is a morally acceptable practise if it remains with reasonable limits and contributes to caring for or saving human live" - Catechism of the Catholic Church

"created mankind in his own image" - Genesis

"all direct abortion ... [is] to be absolutely exculded as lawful mean of regulating the number of children" - Humanae Vitae

"an act or omission which ... causes death inorder to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder" - Catechism of the Catholic Church

"And God rasied us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus ... For it is by grace you have been saved" - Ephesians

"Allah's Apostle said 'There is none amoungst the Muslims who plants a tree or sows seeds, and then a bird, or a person or an animal eats from it, but is regarded as a charitable gift for him.' " - Sahih al-Bukhari 

"It is Allah who made for you the grazing animals ... you eat" - Qur'an

"Allah's Apostle said ' Whoever keeps a dog, one Qirat of the reward of his good deeds is deducted daily unless the dog is used for guarding a farm or cattle.' " - Sahih al-Bukhari

"And do not kill your children. We provide for them and for you. Indeed their killing is ever a great sin" - Qur'an

"O you who have believed, seek help through patience and paryer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient" - Qur'an

"... one who had repented believed and done righteousness it is promised by Allah that he will be among the successful" - Qur'an