Explain the beliefs Christians believe about their responsibility for people at the beginning and the end of their lives.

Accepting the pregnancy is believed to be a sign of thanking God and the beginning of the preparation. The preparation may include giving up drinking and smoking, going to pre natal classes and also buying clothing and equipment for the child.

Some Christians believe that there are ideal conditions to bring a child into the world and they are to be in a family that is married or committed and not be born into a family in which there are drug addicts or alcoholics. The baby would need stability and caring parents, as some lifestyles wouldn’t suit a child.

When the baby is born, many Christians would naturally want the child to be baptised as it is a celebration of a new life and welcoming the child into Gods community. God is present during the baptism and this is also special to the parents of the child because they feel that the child would be protected from evil. The baptismal ceremony is also very symbolic, which is also very special. Also some Christian families believe that it is very important to teach a child the Christian values from a very early age and to take their children to church.

Before and at the end of a persons life, many decisions have to be made about what is going to happen, by the relatives of the ill or deceased person.

If a person is ill or is dying of an illness, Christians feel that it is their duty to go and visit the sick. They feel that this is a comfort to them and will mentally make them feel better. In Matthews Gospel the quote ‘when I was sick you came to visit me’ encourages Christians to follow in these footsteps and go and visit the sick in hospital or at home. A sick person may request to see a priest when they are ill to ask for the sacrament of Anointing the Sick, as its spiritual healing is believed to make the sick better and ease worries and the doubts. The Priest would also listen to the confessions to ease their fears. The sacrament is performed as a reminder to the sick that God loves them and that he cares for them. The Christian church believes that everybody is entitled to the sacrament of the Eucharist if they are ill and can not come to church, so it may be performed where ever the sick person may be. It is also felt that we have to pray for the sick when they are ill and that it is hoped they would pull through the illness. Many Christians think that the sick should be treated with dignity and therefore, would create hospices for the public who have a long – term illness. Many hospices are named after saints names and some are run by Nuns.

The church teaches the belief in heaven or eternal life after death. The resurrection of Jesus gave this hope after he was crucified.

Just before a Christian is about to die, they or the family may want the last rites to be given. This is otherwise known as the anointing of the dying. People feel that they should be with the dying person around the time of their death, because there is a feeling that nobody would want to die alone.

After the death, the family and friends of the deceased would like to prepare the funeral. The decision to cremate the body or bury the body has to be made, but the person who had died would usually have said his/her wishes to the family before they passed away.

Christians have different views of a funeral. Many believe that it should be a celebration of a person’s life, but on the other hand, other Christians think that it should be a sad occasion. The ceremony would be sad if somebody’s life had been cut short tragically, but most Christians feel that a funeral should be both a celebration of a life and a sad occasion. It would be customary to have a gravestone placed where the deceased had been buried with a positive quote written on it. Ashes would either be sprinkled in the persons favourite place or be kept in a graveyard and a small plaque would be put where the ashes are with the name of the person etc.

The anniversary of the death or the birthday would be remembered as well. The family may want to dedicate a mass, offer prayers, visit the grave or do something special on the anniversary.

Christians have a big responsibility at the beginning and the of a life. The church teaches the Christian values from a early age and they stick with the person who has been taught them till the end of their life. One of the important values is ‘love thy neighbour’, which is followed through many important stages in life.