Sources Of Wisdom And Authority Flashcards
(21 cards)
What are the four views on authority of the Bible
-Evangelical protestant
-Catholic
-Neo-Orthodox
-sea of faith network
Bible
‘Bible’ means book - it contains the old and New Testament
-old testament contains writings shared with Jewish scripture
-New testament contains Christian writings including the 4 gospels and st pauls letters
The Bible - Evangelical Protestant view
-Fundamentalist view of the nature and authority of the Bible
-Bible is the infallible word of God
- contains no mistakes - it is inerrant
- It therefore has complete authority
-some Evangelical protestants are literalists, meaning they believe that creation occured about 6000 years ago and took places over 6 literal days- followed by a day of rest.
-leads to sola scriptura - belief in Bible as only source of religious authority
Bible evangelical protestant quote
“ Let us not change the word of God; we ourselves should be changed through the word… It is by the standard of scripture that the believer is enabled to measure all other teaching” (A skevington wood)
The Bible -catholic view
-Bible is inspired by God but was written by humans
-The Bible has equal authority to the catholic church
(Bible should not be used alone)
- The church’s magisterium has an important role in interpreting scripture.
- The magisterium has the duty of “giving an authentic interpretation of the word of God” catechism
-Genesis contains spiritual and moral truths (e.g God created the world out of nothing - creation ex nihilo) but not literal truth
The Bible catholic view quote
“Sacred tradition and sacred scripture, then, are bound closely together, and communicate one with the other”
-catechism
The Bible Catholic view second quote
“The Bible is not meant to convey precise historical information or scientific findings to us”
-Dei Verbum encyclical
The Bible- neo orthodox view
-Karl Barth was a swiss protestant theologian who believed that the Bible is not the word of God but contains the word of God
-this is because it contains divine commands given by God, as well as the teachings of Jesus - who is the incarnate son of God
- It is not inerrant with respect to science, history and religion, as its writers were products of their time and subject to limitations of intellect
(this is as it was written by human beings) - Barth said that the Bible contains “Divine thoughts about men, not human thoughts about God”
Barth neo orthodox quote - Bible
- Barth said that the Bible contains
“Divine thoughts about men, not human thoughts about God”
the Bible - sea of faith network (liberal)
- the sea of faith network believe that religions and religious faith are
“creations of the human imagination” - They regard religion as a human creation.
- They are a “shared, open minded quest for a rational and creative framework for the one life we live”
- The Bible is written by human beings who were writing in specific historical contexts, trying to make sense of the world around them.
- It is human words giving human guidance on how to live
- The Bible has no authority other than any that an individual may choose to give it
(arguably not even Christian)
(can use in this in a dialogues essay on secularisation- modern day application)
The church
- after his resurrection, Jesus gave his apostles the authority to lead the church. “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church” (Matthew 28)
- The apostles passed on their authority to new leaders(bishops) and this transmission of authority continued - Apostolic succession
- In western Europe, the Bishop of Rome (pope) was the leader of the church
- In the 16th century, the protestant reformation saw some Christians rebel against the catholic church.
- Martin Luther was a figure in this reformation. In 1517, he nailed his ‘95 theses’ on a church door in Germany.
He criticised the Popes authority(in the catholic church the pope has papal infallibility he cant be wrong), criticised the sales of ‘indulgences’ (paying to get into heaven) and said salvation is through faith alone thats why Jesus died for our sins, we cant earn our own salavation which highlights Jesus’ significance as if it was only through works then why did Jesus have to die(catholic is faith and work)
he established the five solae - sola fide, sola scriptura, sola gratia, solus christus and sola deo gloria
-‘protestant’ is now an umbrella term for many denominations of Christian
martin luther church
- Martin Luther was a figure in this reformation. In 1517, he nailed his ‘95 theses’ on a church door in Germany.
He criticised the Popes authority(in the catholic church the pope has papal infallibility he cant be wrong), criticised the sales of ‘indulgences’ (paying to get into heaven) and said salvation is through faith alone thats why Jesus died for our sins, we cant earn our own salavation which highlights Jesus’ significance as if it was only through works then why did Jesus have to die(catholic is faith and work)
he established the five solae - sola fide, sola scriptura, sola gratia, solus christus and sola deo gloria
the church -catholic church
- oldest church - over 1.3 billion followers wordwide
- authority is traced directly back to the first bishop of Rome, st Peter. Pope has ‘papal infallibility’
-centered at vatican city
- core beliefs are set out in the NIcene creed
- Bible and tradition(The church) have equal authority for Catholics
-Magisterium is the gaurdian and interpreter of Bible and Tradition
- seven sacraments - infant baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Reconciliation, Anointing of the sick, Marriage and Holy orders
the church - protestant church
-16th centuary protestant reformation
-Martin Luther - led protest against the catholic church
- Established ‘five solae’ including sola scriptura and sola fide
- the bible gives the standard of measurement for deciding on the truth of church teachings
(unlike the catholic church where the church interprets bible for u, protestants value the bible more than anything) - the bible takes precedence over the church
- salvation is through faith and not through the institution of the church.
- All Christians have equal access to God through prayer and should read the Bible for themselves - ‘priesthood of all believers’
- A example of protestant is the Baptist church. They do not have any sacraments. Instead, they have ‘ordinances’- Believer’s Baptism and Holy communion. They allow female ordination
Jesus Christ
- very little is known about the historical Jesus of Nazerth- nearly everything we know from the Gospels(which are a biased source)
-He was 1st century Jewish preacher, believed by Christians to the incarnation of God the son and the awaited Messiah - the Christ.
- Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist. According to Matthew’s gospel, as Jesus emerged from the water “a voice from heaven said “this is my son”
-according to the gospels, jesus performed 37 miracles - including walking on water, turning water into wine, feeding the 5000 and restoring sight.
- Jesus taught in parables - simple stories illustrating moral messages.
- He challenged the religious authorities, reached out to the outcasts and gathered followers - including his 12 apostles.
- after his triumphant arrival into Jerusalem, Jesus was arrested by Jewish authorities, handed over to the roman government and executed by crucifixion for treason/insurrection.
- Christians believe that this has a significant purpose as the act of atonement.
- Christians believe that Jesus rose from the dead on Easter Sunday and the ascended back to heaven 40 days later. They anticipate his second coming
what are the two views on Jesus
Jesus as the son of God vs Revolutionary man
Jesus’ authority as divine
-Jesus’ authority as Gods authority
-The tradituional view held by christians
-based on the new testament and Jesus’ claims to have divine authority.
-This authority is seen in his teaching, miracles, titles attributed to him.
-‘all authoty in heaven and on earth has been given to me’ (matthew 28)
-‘father, the hour has come. Glorify your son, that your son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people’ - John17
-‘the people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law’(mark1)
-‘all things have been commited to me by my farther. No one knows the Son except the father, and no one knows the father except the son’ (matthew 11)
- ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the farther except through me’ (John 14)
Jesus’ authority as human
-Jesus’ authority as human authority
-Reza Aslan - Jesus was a political revolutionary who wanted to transform 1st centuru Greco-Roman society.
- Liberatin Theologians focus on the ‘political’ aspect of Jesus’ teachings - he showed a preferential option for the poor and wanted to transform society.
- gospels are filled with ‘theological enhancements’ lacking historical proof.
- Adoptionism- God ‘adopted’ Jesus as his ‘son’ at his baptism. This is the same way as king in ancient Israel were ‘chosen’ by God to be his earthly representatives. Kings were ‘adopted’ by God at their accession, and were meant to reflect God’s justice and mercy in their rule
-utilitarianism - hold a deist view of the world. God created the world but then had no further connections with it. Jesus was a spiritual leader who had useful teachings - but there is no divine authority attached to them.
attitudes towards Matthew 5:38-48
eye for eye
“you have heard that it was said ‘Eye for an Eye, and tooth for a tooth.’. But i tell you do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them over the cheek also”
attitudes towards Matthew 5:38-48
love for enemies
“you must have heard that it was said ‘love your neighbour and hate your enemy’ But i tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your father in heaven’
“if you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? do not even pagens do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly father is perfect”
