Explain how the bible shows God as creator
Thomas Hurley Philosophy Homework Questions Explain how the bible shows God as creator (25 marks) In the bible God is described as the creator of everything. This is accepted without being questioned rather than being a matter of discussion. The nature of God as creator is most clearly seen in passages from genesis, Job and Psalms. God is described as the creator meaning he designed and produced everything. According to Christian tradition, God caused the Universe to exist, he is responsible for the Universe coming into existence and existing at every moment. God is also responsible for everything that will ever exist in the Universe. God is seen as a craftsman in Job 28, this is where he is described as the designer who laid the very foundations of the earth. God is pictured as being in control of the sun and the moon even though we know through science that they follow regular patterns of behaviour. In genesis 2, God making Adam from dust is like a potter shaping clay. As he is a creator, he is viewed as being in control in the bible. In Isaiah, God is described as sitting above the earth and having the power to reduce the princes to nothing. The same idea is shown through the genesis creation stories when God throws Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden. In Christian belief, God created the world out of nothing. The idea of God creating the universe out of nothing is
Critically assess the traditional Christian Concept of God being eternal.
Critically assess the traditional Christian Concept of God being eternal. (35) The traditional Christian concept of God’s eternity has been highly influenced by the early philosophy of Plato and his concept of the unchanging reality of the world of the Forms, and more modern philosophy of Boethius. It is argued however that the concept of God’s eternity has not only appealed to people because of the influence of early Greek philosophy, but instead Wolterstoff has suggested it appeals to people because the eternal God is different from human experience of life in the physical world. He continues, in this world the idea of God being different and always existing, as it says in the Bible, leads to philosophical understanding of God’s nature as eternal and makes believers’ conviction that God is eternal more understandable. The Judaeo-Christian concept of God being eternal can refer to God being timeless (existing outside of time) or God being everlasting (having no beginning and no end, but time does pass for him). The Bible supports this view that God has always existed and will never cease to exist it is written “I the Lord do not change.” The classical understanding of God being eternal also suggests that God has knowledge of everything that has happened, what is happening and what will happen in the future, and he sees this all simultaneously. However
Christian views on marriage.
AO1: Marriage is a life long commitment and is not to be seen as something you do spontaneously or without thought. Many couples get married for many reasons, and this union of two people is seen as a very important thing in the Christian church. Every Christian sees marriage as something not to be taken lightly, and every Christian believes marriage is a total commitment for life, but the many Christian denominations are divided on their opinion of divorce and remarriage. The Catholic Church places such great importance on marriage that for them it is a sacrament. A sacrament is an outward religious act, with a spiritual meaning. In marriage, the outward religious act is the exchange of rings and the vows. The spiritual meaning in marriage is; the love of the couple mirrors God's love for us. In the Catholic Church marriage is also a covenanted agreement, which is a two-sided agreement. In the Catholic Church marriage has key themes of; permanence, exclusiveness and life giving. There is lots of evidence for this in the marriage ceremony. Permanence is evident in a lot of the marriage ceremony. For example; in the greeting the priest asks the couple three questions, one of which is, "Will you love and honour each other for life?" This shows the couple agreeing to love each other for life not just until they get bored, but for life, and life is a permanent thing. Also the
'Christians should lead active rather than contemplative lives.'
'Christians should lead active rather than contemplative lives.' I believe that the statement is saying that Christians should lead a life of witnessing and helping other people i.e. raising money for charities, looking after the destitute and the dying, educating people, evangelising to people, and much more, rather than leading a life of prayer, worship and reflection in an enclosed order. Some people would say that you should lead an active life, as this would provide help i.e. for schools. This would show that they would be able to help a community through living a practical life, which would enable them to raise money for charities, and helping others. Some people would also say that leading an active way of life would be obeying the gospel message, which teaches that Christians should bring the light of Christ to others, and that this cannot really be done by leading a contemplative lifestyle. People might also say that those in apostolic religious orders devote their lives to meeting needs throughout the world and so that is a selfless dedication. They can also be backed up by Mark's Gospel chapter 6 verses 6-13, as this is the mission of the 12 disciples where they spread the good news. Other people might be against leading an active life and might say that you should lead a contemplative life instead, so that way you can focus on God and so should be separated
Explain what a study of St. Mark's Gospel can tell Christians about the nature of discipleship
AO1: Explain what a study of St. Mark's Gospel can tell Christians about the nature of discipleship There is a great variety of things that Mark's Gospel can teach us about discipleship and its nature, the fundamental core of being a disciple. It tells us what, when, where and how to do things in a Christian manner, and how we can respond to varying situations through simple stories and parables. It gives us a basis for our beliefs, practices, church organisation and the authority of certain figures. When Jesus first calls the twelve it gives us an insight into the kind of people disciples must be: anyone and the more varied the better. Jesus chooses fishermen, tax collectors, and a zealot/terrorist amongst other people. Any one can be a disciple. These original disciples were told to give up everything to follow Jesus in poverty (giving us one of the central beliefs of our religious orders: a vow of POVERTY must be taken.) These examples of poverty are seen in "The Rich Young Man" (Mark v10:17-31), where the disciples are puzzled as to Jesus telling them that: "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God!" (Mark v10:25) In these times, it was seen as a sign of the favour of God to have riches and many personal possessions. The disciples and Jesus were mostly devout Jews: that is why this story is so radical.
This essay shall be based on the portrayal and characterisation of the Pharisees and the Sadducees according to Luke and his gospel.
Religion Essay This essay shall be based on the portrayal and characterisation of the Pharisees and the Sadducees according to Luke and his gospel. This essay shall also be about what we know about the Pharisees and the Sadducees based on Luke’s gospel. The Pharisees in Lukes gospel are portrayed as very separate to the rest of society in the days of Luke. They were the ‘progressive party’ of Judaism; the Pharisees were very strong in the belief of protecting and following the Law. This made the Pharisees very influential to the people compared to the Sadducees. The Pharisees refused ALL Greek influences. They believed in the form of resurrection. The Pharisees also promoted tradition and biblical law, The Pharisees belonged to a Jewish party that Jesus often came into conflict with in the gospels. “Steve Mason – From examining a range of sources, it is fair to say they were from a non-priestly group.” The Pharisees often criticised and questioned Jesus, they tried to contradict him and prove his claims that he was the messiah wrong. They questioned Jesus for forgiving peoples’ sins. They hated what Jesus did on the Sabbath such as working and healing people. They scrutinised Jesus for helping people, and for this they were seen very hypocritical as Jesus often pointed out how if it were one of the Pharisee’s own, it would not matter if it were Sabbath
Explain the judaeo-christian concept of God as lawgiver and judge
A ) Explain the Judaeo-Christian concept of God as lawgiver and judge. [25] God loves and cares for his creation because of this he creates rules in order for his creation to live together harmoniously. Judaeo-Christians have many views about God as law giver and judge. Firstly God can be seen as Law giver in Exodus 20 when is God is said to have revealed the 10 commandments to Moses, but the Children of Israel have just been warned that if they approach him directly, he may break out against them and kill them. In this story it God is seen as omnipotent and the presence of Him is a mortal danger and threat. He gives direct commands to Moses and Moses obeyed God's orders despite personal danger and overwhelming odds. It shows that God supplies the power when he asks us to do things that seem impossible. Another example of God being seen as a law giver can be found in Genesis 2 when he says to Adam: ‘Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.....' This was actually a test of Adam’s love for God, that would be shown by whether or not he obeyed this one command. In essence, however, this was the first declaration to humanity of the moral law of God and of God’s right to impose His law upon mankind. The moral law of God may be defined as ‘the expression of God’s will, enforced by His power, for His rational
Explain what is meant in the Bible by the phrase 'God is good'
Amy Van Schalkwyk Philosophy: Mrs White Explain what is meant in the Bible by the phrase ‘God is good’ (25) There are two key ideas which emerge in the Bible about the goodness of God. The first of these is that god is good; the second is the idea that God’s actions are good. In both the New Testament and The Jewish Scriptures we can find clear images of God’s goodness through his interaction with the world and him being the ex nihilo Creator of the world. His goodness is reinforced in the Bible through the repetition that his actions are good, for example, in Genesis 1 it states ‘God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.’ God’s goodness can also be seen through his actions for the benefit of the people, for example healing (e.g. in the Gospels) or support of his followers in battle (e.g. at Jericho and freeing the slaves from Egypt, “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery”). Again the idea emerges that God’s activity within the world is to be seen as good. The goodness of God’s actions is not a matter of human judgment; this is clearly seen in the story of Abraham’s attempt to sacrifice his only son Isaac at the command of God. In this story it is evident that God is challenging Abraham to do something which to most human’s would seem to be immoral and so many would question God’s
Outline theories on the immortality of the soul and ressurection of the body
Jack Bull . Compare and contrast the immortality of the soul and the resurrection of the body. The concept of the immortality of the soul is a dualist one, meaning that the body and soul are two separate entities. Whereas resurrection of the body is the opposite believing that one cannot necessarily live without the other. People that accept the idea of immortality of the soul believe that the soul is separate from the body and that when we die the soul will live on making it immortal. Resurrection of the body however differs because the body and soul are together and when you die both will be resurrected. Plate is a dualist and he believes the soul is not of this world but another where there are perfect forms of everything on earth. He uses the allegory of to demonstrate this idea. Prisoners are bound in a cave and cannot look out the mouth of the cave. Behind them is a fire casting shadows onto the wall they are facing. They believe these shadows to be reality. One then is released and he is blinded by the real world. He sees the perfection of the world and realises his previous thoughts were wrong. When he tells the prisoners in the cave about what he has seen the do not believe him, because they have not yet experienced it. This is like our souls. They want to be realised into the higher world of perfection because they desire greater things. René Descartes is also
Explain the biblical beliefs about the attributes of God.
‘’Explain the biblical beliefs about the attributes of God.’’ (25 marks) When we speak of God's attributes, we are talking about those characteristics that helps us to understand who He truly is. Jeremiah 32:17 — "Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for you." The concept of God as omnipotent means God has the unlimited power to accomplish anything that can be accomplished. The things God does are neither difficult nor easy for God; they are only either done or not done. Since God is infinite and since He possesses power, He possesses infinite power. He does allow His creatures to have some power, but this in no way diminishes His own. “He expends no energy that must be replenished.” When the Bible says God rested on the seventh day, it was to set an example for us and our need for rest, not because he was tired. Omnipresence; this theological term means “always present.” Since God is infinite, His being knows no boundaries. So, clearly He is everywhere. This truth is taught throughout the Bible as the phrase “I am with you always” is repeated 22 times in both the Old and New Testaments. These were even Jesus’ words of assurance just after giving the challenge to his disciples to take his message to the entire world. This is certainly a comforting truth for