Jesus and Suffering Flashcards
Describe what Pope St John Paul II Teaches in Salvifici Doloris.
-In his letter, Salvifici Doloris (which means ‘the saving power of suffering’) Pope St John Paul II said, “In order to perceive the true answer to the ‘why’ of suffering we must first look to the revelation of divine love.”
-This shows that the only way human beings can grasp the ‘why’ of suffering is to try and understand the depth of God’s love for human beings, which Jesus showed through his willingness to die on the cross.
-He also says that if Christians willingly ‘offer up’ their own suffering in prayer for the sake of others, they can somehow share in the saving suffering of Jesus.
-This is very difficult to understand but Pope St John Paul II believes that if we try and bear our suffering patiently and offer it to God in prayer, that God will somehow be able to use it to bring about good for others.
-If a Christian can do this, it is an act of love which is like Jesus’ own act of sacrifice.
Describe what St Augustine Taught About the Trinity.
Describe Catholic Beliefs About the Trinity
-Catholics believe that God is one yet consists of three persons in the Godhead: God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
-The doctrine asserts three things, the three persons are distinct, coexistent, coeternal, and coequal. This belief is based on biblical testimony, coined by Tertullian, and formalised in the Nicene Creed.
-Catholics may explain this through St Augustine’s analogy of love, “There are three things in love, as it were a trace of the Trinity…he that loves, and that which is loved, and love.”
-God is taught to be love in John 4:8, so these three aspects must have been present in God from all eternity – even before God have made any creatures to love.
-Therefore, one God can be three persons as because God is love, three persons must be present to reflect the three aspects of love.
How are Catholics Influenced by Belief in the Trinity
-Catholics will be influenced to confirm their belief in the Trinity through external expressions.
-This will be through outwards signs of faith such as the Sign of the Cross.
-Catholics will also say the Nicene Creed every week at mass to remember the ‘mystery’ of the nature of God.
Evaluate Catholic Beliefs About the Trinity
-Catholics provide a convincing argument because the idea of God being love is a helpful one for Christians because it makes clear that love needs to be an important part of every Christian’s life.
-It emphasises the importance of relationships for humans as although we do not exist as three persons in one being we are made for communion.
-This reflects the divine relationship between each member of the Trinity. However, in St Augustine’s model the lover and the beloved are clearly persons, while the third member, “love” itself is not a person.
-This can be problematic as it might downplay the personhood of the Holy Spirit in the context of the Holy Trinity.
Describe Jewish Beliefs About the Trinity
-Jews believe that there is one, indivisible God. This means that God cannot be separated into parts.
-Jews are told this directly in the Shema, “The Lord is one.”
-This shows that there is only one God but mentions nothing else related to being made up of different persons.
-In turn, jews believe that belief in a Trinity is a challenge to the belief in one God.
-Instead, they believe that God can only be described by His attributes such as that He is creator and judge.
How are Jews Influenced by belief in the Trinity
-Jews will be influenced to write God as G-D and to not have statues in synagogues.
-Jews believe there is only one God so only He is worthy of worship.
-Therefore, they will write God as G-D to avoid blasphemy and give their full respect to the one God.
-Jews will also not have statues in synagogues to avoid worshipping false Gods.
Evaluate Jewish Beliefs About the Trinity
-Jews provide an unconvincing argument because elsewhere in the Torah, other being are named in the place of God.
-This is seen in Genesis when, “The spirit hovered above the water.”
-Hence there, must be persons to God as only He existed before creation.
Describe Christian Beliefs About the Trinity in the Old Testament
-Other Christians believe that there is a triune God. This means that God exists as three persons in one being.
-They believe this because of Biblical interpretations expressing the existence of the Trinity including the Old Testament.
-For example, the very first line Genesis 1:1 uses the word Elohim for God. This is interesting as it uses the plural suffix ‘im’ which suggests a plurality to God.
-Genesis also shows the trinity through God saying, “Let us make mankind in our image,” as He uses plural pronouns.
-This shows other Christians that one God can exist in other forms but not specifically three.
Describe Christian Beliefs About the Trinity in the Old Testament
-In the New Testament, all members of the Godhead appear at Jesus’ baptism.
-Moreover, Jesus Himself mentions each person when He taught to, “Go baptise in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
-Therefore, one God can exist in three persons as there is testimony from eyewitnesses of all three persons being seen/ heard together.
-Jesus who is Himself God also acknowledges the distinction of the members of the trinity.
How are Other Christians Influenced by Belief in the Trinity
-Other Christians will be influenced to focus on the Trinity when evangelising.
-This is because Jesus directly gave the Apostles this as a command.
Therefore, other Christians will continue to do the same today.
-This will include the Sign of the Cross during baptism as commanded by Jesus in the Great Commission.
Evaluate Other Christian Beliefs About the Trinity
-Other Christians provide a convincing argument because ‘liars make bad martyrs.’
-Many early Christians were killed for proclaiming their faith such as St Paul who wrote about the Trinity in his letter to the Corinthians.
-Therefore, they are likely to be correct as if they had not been eyewitnesses to the evidence for the Trinity, they would have likely given up their lie.
-However, the language used in Genesis may be seen as God referring to Himself in a royal sense to show His majesty over creation rather than to show His plurality.
Describe Catholic Beliefs About the Incarnation
-Catholics believe that Jesus was God incarnate.
-This is important because it shows how much God loves human beings, because the Son willingly gave up His equality with God and became a human being.
-This is evident in the Kenosis hymn: “But emptied Himself taking the form of a slave.”
-This means that God, in Jesus, has experienced what suffering is like through His death on the cross. Catholics can be comforted in their suffering through this.
-Therefore, Jesus was more than just a good man because through His suffering on the cross, He has brought humanity redemption.
How are Catholics Influenced by Belief in the Incarnation
-Catholics will be influenced to try to connect with God through their suffering.
-Jesus experienced suffering like humans do so Catholics can be comforted by this in their own suffering.
-To do so, they may focus on the sorrowful mysteries to help them reflect on Jesus’ suffering to help with their own.
Evaluate Catholic Beliefs About the Incarnation
-Catholics provide a convincing argument because Jesus’ divinity was proved by His resurrection. Jesus rose form the dead to save us, but this is something only God can do.
-However, some may argue that the resurrection as evidence for Jesus’ divinity is weak because it was a ‘collective delusion’.
-Although, this is unconvincing as there were over 500 eyewitnesses to the resurrection, so this is very unlikely.
-The atheist historian Gerd Ludemann even said that “It may be taken as historically certain that Peter and the disciples had experiences after Jesus’s death in which Jesus appeared to them as the risen Christ.”
