How can one differentiate between fate and faith? Are these concepts or moral mantras?
Justin Paul Mitchell M. Adkerson Comp. II 0 Nov. 2004 "Are These Concepts or Moral Mantras?" How can one differentiate between fate and faith? These two concepts are remarkably similar, yet there is a bit of difference between the two. Are these concepts or moral mantras? The word "faith," implies hope, loyalty, and a belief system which has no proof. "Fate," on the other hand, implies resignation - a belief that things are predestined before time existed, and that this simply falls into one's destiny. This paper will delve into the question between fate and faith; how can these words co-exist, yet be completely different entities? Fate can be renamed as predestination, fatalism, or resignation, which all denotes man's inability to do anything that, would change his course in life. Believers in "fate" feel that God has ordained a specific thing to happen, and it is going to happen. We cannot opt for anything else to happen since there is only one outcome available. This essence of fatalism is that the will can make no difference in the outcome. (Collier's Encyclopedia 608) We are domed to follow whatever is happening in our lives as if we were forever stuck on a merry-go-round. Faith is the ability to believe in something that is a concept, but you may not be able
Miracles.Jesus was presented as a miracle worker in many ways; he performed healing miracles (LK 18:35-43) Jesus healed a blind beggar, Jesus said to the beggar your faith has healed you
Miracles a.1) Christians believe that a miracle is an event that apparently transcends human power and the laws of nature. That is attributed to a special divine intervention or to supernatural forces. However there is room for argument. some choose to believe that a babies first smile is a miracle, this of course dose not transcend human powers or the laws of nature, also some people think that all miracles are legends. Or stories but this does not come into the Christian faith. a.2) Jesus was presented as a miracle worker in many ways; he performed healing miracles (LK 18:35-43) Jesus healed a blind beggar, Jesus said to the beggar "your faith has healed you" this quote is teaching of devotion to God, the beggar devoted his life to God and truly believed that he would be healed, another example of Christians being healed by there faith is (LK5:17-26) Jesus healed a paralytic, some men lowered the paralytic man from the roof in front of Jesus, Jesus saw their faith and said "friends, your sins are forgiven." Then he told the paralytic to get and walk and the paralytic did so. This teaching shows that Jesus had the authority to forgive sins and had the power to perform remarkable things. Jesus also performed Exorcisms such as, (LK4:31-39) Jesus removed a demand (illness) from a man, with the power of God, Jesus had great influence over the demand and cast it away, this
Describe how Jesus was presented as a worker of miracles, giving examples from Lukes gospel
A1) i) Explain the term 'miracle'. On dictionary.com the definition is: an effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause. A Fundamentalist Christian would say that the miracles of the bible happened exactly as they were recorded. Conservative Christians believe that the miracles of the bible happened but the writer changed some points of the story in order to get the story across clearly. Liberal Christians, however would think that none of the miracles of Jesus happened but that the message they hold is very important. There are four types of miracles, and they are: when Jesus healed the sick, when Jesus raised people from the dead, when Jesus cast out demons (exorcism) and when Jesus showed his power over nature. Some people describe miracles as supernatural, unexplained events that go against known human or natural powers and are believed by Christians to have been the work of God. A1) ii) Describe how Jesus was presented as a worker of miracles, giving examples from Luke's gospel Jesus was presented in many ways as a worker of miracles in Luke's gospel. Luke realised that miracles were important and had meaning, otherwise he wouldn't have written about them. He wanted them to be remembered and wrote about twenty. The miracles of Jesus show the power of God in Him. An
Discuss the meaning of healing miracles with references to present day belief and life.
B) Discuss the meaning of healing miracles with references to present day belief and life. Many Christians believe in healing miracles today because they have a strong faith in god, and they still believe that god works his healing miracles through the Holy Spirit and people with a strong faith towards him. Here is my definition of a healing miracle, I think that it means that when someone is healed it is a miracle; such as if a handicapped child suddenly starts walking, that is a healing miracle. Christians also believe that if they pray when someone is ill, God will heal them in time because they have hope and faith towards him. In the bible it was considered that when someone became ill it was because they had sinned. One of the sacraments of the Roman Catholic church gives strength and hope to those who are weak and in need of help, this sacrament is called the sacrament of the sick. In Spain my grandfather had lung cancer from the cigars he used to smoke, there was no cure and I used to hate talking to him on the phone as it made me really upset because I knew he was soon going to die. My mother is a roman catholic and she believes in god, she prays to him everyday and she used to ask him to give strength to my grandfather, I used to do the same and sometimes I used to cry as well. Now I don't pray to
by definition a miracle can never happen. discuss.
By definition a miracle can never happen. Discuss There are many different questions that need to be answered when discussing miracles. These questions are: * What are miracles? * Do they occur? * Do they reveal God? * If so, what type of God do they reveal? However, this essay asks us to mainly focus on the first two questions, what are miracles? And can they occur? David Hume, an 18th century atheistic philosopher, defined a miracle in the following way, 'a transgression of a law of nature by a particular volition of a deity or by the interposition of some invisible agent'. Hume takes a transgression to mean a violation, and a law of nature to mean an action, which is repeated and therefore is predictable in nature. Most philosophers accept this definition today. Hume's argument states that by definition it is difficult to see how a miracle would occur. However, it is important to notice that Hume never states that miracles are impossible. Hume believed in empirical evidence, which relies on the senses to tell us what is real. This approach occurred after the Enlightenment period and many empiricists therefore reject revelation as proof of a miracle. Hume states that it is impossible to prove that a miracle has happened because of the scientific methodology that he believes in. miracles can only be proved by the testimony of people who have been there and their after
Christians & Persecution
Christians & Persecution To fully understand the persecution of Christians you must look at Nero. Nero was brought up by his twisted, alcoholic father, and his power crazed mother. He inherited his violent tendencies from his father and his lust for power from his mother. When Nero's father passed away Nero's mother (Agrappina II) immediately searched for power. She then went on to marry her uncle, Emperor Claudius. Soon after he was poisoned by a mushroom sauce and this is how Nero inherited the throne to the greatest empire. So Agrappina carefully engineered Nero's life so that he would become Emperor and she could assist him in his role. Romans hated the Christians because of their weird acts associated with their faith. They thought they were crazy and cannibalistic because they were said to eat the body of Christ and drink his blood! (This was symbolic but the Romans did not know that) Nero soon used this to his advantage when he later set fire to Rome while he performed on stage, so that he could build his golden palace on the land made available by the burned down houses. He blamed the Christians for that act of arson because they were believed to be crazy by many Romans. The fact remained that Nero was a bad leader and awful Emperor. It didn't help that Nero was a twisted and sadistic person. He found entertainment in "blood sports". He went to watch as Christian
'Miracles are a matter of faith, not fact', discuss.
Carol Bhaskar 'Miracles are a matter of faith, not fact', discuss. Rudolh Bultmann once said ' It is impossible to use the electric light and the wireless and to avail ourselves to modern medical and surgical discoveries and at the same time to believe in the New Testament world of miracles'1. What is it to speak of 'miracles'? how can we define what Bultmann rejects? The traditional perception of a miracle involves three clauses. Firstly, a remarkable 'transgression of a law of nature', which is 'by the particular volition of the Deity or by the interposition of some invisible agent'2. This is to borrow Hume's stipulated definition, but Hume fails state the third clause mentioned. This is a corollary of the presence of 'a deity; that this event has some religious consequence. Swinburne's offered definition perhaps becomes helpful here; a miracle is 'an event of an extraordinary kind, brought about by a god, and of religious significance'3. Bultmann's standpoint is not of the title quotation, but instead moves beyond this, denying the very concept and basis for 'faith' in the light of the modern world, he as an absolute sceptic. Hume was an eighteenth century, Scottish philosopher and also a sceptic who was content with destroying the conception of God and, as subsidiary to this, attacked the notion of Miracles. The emphasis of his
How far may theology be reconciled with science in explaining the nature of, and reasons for, the miracles of Jesus?
Laura Howe How far may theology be reconciled with science in explaining the nature of, and reasons for, the miracles of Jesus? The debate about the relationship between science and religion has been ongoing for centuries. It can be traced through scholars such as Thomas Aquinas, to the emergence of 'Modern Theology' in the 19th Century, and the teachings of 20th Century scholars such as Rudolph Bultmann. However, before considering whether theology can be effectively 'reconciled' with science regarding the question of miracles, it is important to firstly define what is meant by 'theology' and 'science'. 'Theology' is 'the systematic study of Christian revelation concerning God's nature and purpose'1. It derives from the two Greek words 'theos' and 'logos'. 'Theos' is a title for God, it describes the trinity of God and 'logos' means words. This means that theology is 'words about God'. Theology deals with why things happen, for example God's love, and the purpose for mankind. God is the author of life and 'the cause' of all things. At its narrowest, Theology bases its belief on God's word - the Bible. This is the absolute, and what is written in the Bible is taken literally. Science is 'the systematic study of the nature and behaviour of the physical universe, based on observation, experiment, and measurement'2. It is something that depends upon observation,
Explain the improtance of the Miracles of Jesus for Christian life today
Miracles Coursework: Section B The miracle stories in the Gospels indicate the power and authority of Jesus over everything in this world, and this also shows that Jesus as the Son of God and his authority came through his father. Accepting Jesus means acknowledging and understanding his teachings and his work. Christian's faith rests on Jesus and accepting him as the Saviour and Lord, this is one of the reasons the miracles stories are so important for Christians today, and it also indicates Jesus' presence in the world and in our lives. Christian miracles are closely linked with the faith, and it is through this faith the effect of healing are acknowledged. As mentioned in aii, the Miracles that Jesus performed were seen as supreme acts of kindness and many Christians today have faith in God and believe that miracles still take place around the world. This is because the Bible has recorded evidence of miracles that took place. Christians believe this as the Bible stands as proof of Miracles taken place. There have also been places in which miracles are believed to have occurred. One of the, most famous places is Lourdes, France. In 1858, in the grotto of Massabielle, near Lourdes in southern France, it is believed that Our Lady appeared 18 times to Bernadette Soubirous, a young peasant girl. She revealed herself as the Immaculate Conception, and asked the girl that a
‘Our knowledge of miracles leads us to the conclusion that God exists.’ Discuss this point of view.
'Our knowledge of miracles leads us to the conclusion that God exists.' Discuss this point of view. A miracle may be defined in different ways, presenting the first problem in establishing their occurrence. A miracle is a concept which, in everyday usage, might mean little more than an unexpected yet welcome event. However, in religious terminology it is usually considered to describe something of much greater significance. And yet, even here, opinion varies on what may or may not be legitimately classed as a miracle. St Thomas Aquinas identified three definitions of a miracle. The first includes all those events in which something is done by God that nature could never do (the resurrection of Jesus Christ, for example, would fit into this category). The second describes events in which God does something that can occur in nature, but not in that order. The third relates to events in which God does what usually occurs in nature, but without the operation of nature. Another biblical example of this third definition might be a man recovering from polio in a minute. It is certainly not impossible to recover from polio, but to do so in one minute would be, according to Aquinas, 'miraculous'. There is another understanding of what constitutes a miracle. RF Holland proposed that 'A coincidence can be taken religiously as a sign and called a miracle.' Moses is said to