RE/RS Edexcel Unit 3 Full Notes

Believing in God Unit 3.1:

Main Features of a Catholic Upbringing:

·        Teach their Children prayers and about the Saints.

·        Send their Children to a Catholic School where they’ll meet other Catholic Children.

·        Go to Church usually every week to pray and worship God

·        Have Religious Sacraments worshipping God such as Baptism Holy Communion etc.

How a Catholic Upbringing may lead to belief in God:

·        Their Parents will teach them about God and they’re likely to believe what their parents tell them.

·        Catholic Parents teach them how to pray to God which becomes a daily routine of their lives.

·        Seeing many people whilst in Church also praying to God will make them think God must exist.

·        Being confirmed would support belief as they’ll learn more during confirmation lessons and may have a religious experience when the Bishop touches them with his hand

How Religious Experiences may lead to belief in God:

·        Numinous- The experience will make them feel God is real. If you become aware of a presence greater than you, you’re likely to think that presence is God.

·        Conversion- It gives them the feeling of “being born again” and makes them feel God is calling them to do something.

·        Miracles- The experience will make them think that they have just witnessed one of God’s actions on Earth and so will make them think God is real.

·        Prayer- If their prayer is answered it makes them feel that God has listened to what they’ve asked for and made it a reality.

Design Argument and how it may lead to belief in God:

·        Everything designed needs a designer.

·        Plenty evidence the world has been designed

·        If the world has been designed it must have a designer.

·        Only possible designer for something so complex and amazing is God.

How Design Argument may not lead to belief in God:

·        Ignores evidence for lack of design in things like diseases, earthquakes volcanoes etc.

·        Does not refer to dinosaurs which must be part of design but no one believes they could’ve been part of design.

·        Only proves the Universe has a designer, not God. The designer could’ve been many Gods.

How Causation Argument may lead to belief in God:

·        Everything has a cause e.g. water temp falls to create solid ice at 0 degrees.

·        Everything must be caused by something as you cannot cause your own existence

·        You can’t keep going back with causes; Universe must have a first cause.

·        Only possible first cause is God.

How Causation Argument may not lead to belief in God:

·        Why should causes stop at God? God must need a cause too.

·        Matter of universe is eternal so the processes of causes go on forever.

·        First cause could’ve…