The existence of God and revelation Flashcards
(34 cards)
1
Q
Christian and Jewish design argument
A
The world is well organised, balanced, complex and sustained by design. every complex design as a designer, including Earth, meaning there must be a God that created the world
2
Q
William Paley design argument
A
he uses a watch as an example: it is so intricate and the parts work so well together because someone put them together to do this. The same must go for the Earth.
3
Q
Isaac Newton design argument
A
the human thumb: precise and delicate movement, evidence of design therefore evidence of designer
4
Q
Thomas Aquinas design argument
A
the plants rotate in a solar system without colliding . Only an intelligent being could keep everything functioning - evidence of God
5
Q
Objections to the design argument ( x 3 )
A
- Evolution: species ‘design’ themselves - the systems or characteristics that don’t work no longer exist due to natural selection
- Suffering in the world proves there is no designer : things do not work perfectly / there is no perfect design
- The order and structure of the universe looks ‘designed’ but really humans try to impose patterns etc. in order to explain it
6
Q
The First cause argument
A
- everything that exists must have a cause , nothing we know of can create itself from nothing
- The Earth / the universe therefore must have a cause
- There must be an eternal power with no cause that causes everything else
- God is the only thing powerful enough to be this eternal power
7
Q
In the past, who has argued the First Cause Argument?
A
- Thomas Aquinas
- Rabbi Bachya ben Joseph ibn Paquda
- Maimonides : 12th century jewish philospher and scholar
8
Q
Objections to the first cause argument
A
- If everything has a cause, God must have a cause, God’s cause must have a cause etc. (why would God be the exception)
- If God is eternal, the universe could also be eternal
- If this universe has a cause, it may not be God
9
Q
The argument from Miracles
A
- if there is no scientific explanation, there must be an explanation from outside of / a higher power than nature/humans
- God is the only idea that exists outside of nature and human understanding
- So, God must have intervened on Earth in order to make these unexplainable events occur
10
Q
Objections to the argument from miracles
A
- miracles are simply lucky coincidences
- there may be undiscovered scientific explanations / many things we know of now used to be considered divine intervention / miracles
- miracle healings/visions etc. might be placebo
- some miracles are made up for fame/money
- miracles make God seem unfair, why would he specifically favour some people and not others that are equally deserving
- Overall, there is no way to prove miracle and then also prove the miracle’s connection to God
11
Q
David Hume objection the argument from miracles
A
- miracles deny the laws of nature but there is not enough evidence that the ‘miracles’ have done so
- witnesses to miracles are unreliable due to : hope/fame/money or many of them are uneducated/primitive
- many different religions depend on miracles to explain them, not all religions can be simultaneously correct
12
Q
Christian responses to miracles
A
- evidence of God’s existence
- Jesus worked many miracles during his time on Earth
- Jesus incarnation and resurrection are the most important Christian miracles
- Lourdes is a place recognised by the Church as somewhere miracles have taken place : the catholic church has recorded 69 miracles there
13
Q
Jewish responses to miracles
A
- miracles are wonders that show God’s loving power
- A traditional Jewish saying states that a person is a fool if they believe all miracle account but a non-believe if they believe no such miracles could happen at all
14
Q
scientific arguments against the existence of God
A
- Things that people explained as God / intervention from God in the past have now been scientifically explained
- The fact that science is getting closer to creating human life suggests that God does not exist
- Many religious descriptions of God can be disproved through science, e.g. the biblical description of God’s creation of the world
15
Q
Christian and Jewish responses to scientific arguments against God
A
- Many Christians / Jews see no conflict between Genesis and science: they believe Genesis is a moral/spiritual teaching rather than a literal one
- They believe that science reveals the laws by which God created the universe
- God created science, scientific explanations are still divine explanations
- Some Christians / Jews reject scientific theories entirely e.g. evolution if they contradict religious scripture
16
Q
Argument of evil and suffering against the existence of God
A
- God is believed to be omnipotent, omnibenevolent and omniscient
- How can a God that knows about suffering and has the ability to end it but chooses not to, be all loving? : especially children / animals etc. who deserve no punishment
17
Q
Christian responses to the Argument of evil and suffering against the existence of God
A
- Suffering and Evil are a result of the free will that God allowed humans to have
- If God constantly intervened against evil then humans would not have much freedom
- Suffering and evil is a test of faith to God
- suffering allows people to grow mentally
- if there was no evil/suffering people could not appreciate the good
- humans cannot know God’s intentions
18
Q
Jewish responses to the Argument of evil and suffering against the existence of God
A
- evil arises from human’s free will that God allowed humans to have
- suffering tests people’s faith
- choice between good and evil tests people’s character
- Human’s cannot know God’s will - he may allow evil for reasons we cannot understand
- If God constantly intervened against evil then humans would not have much freedom
19
Q
How may God be known (x 3)
A
- special revelation
- general revelation
- God cannot be known: he is beyond human understanding and his being is limited by human vocabulary
20
Q
Visions (religious arguments and non-religious objections)
A
- a type of special revelation
- usually involves seeing an image of a spiritual being
- both C and J study accounts of visions and reject the if they go against the Bible or the Tenakh
- objections: people lie for fame/money, people can be under the influence of drugs/alcohol/sleep deprivation , people can want to believe they have seen a vision so much that they convince themselves of something that is not true
21
Q
special revelation
A
- an individual experiences God directly in a particular event, this usually has a profound effect on them e.g. Mary being visited by Gabriel or Moses communicating with god through the burning bush
- very rare occurrence
- includes: hearing God’s call, dreams, visions, prophecies, miracles
22
Q
Enlightenment
A
Buddhists do not believe in God
- they use meditation and spiritual practices to find the meaning of reality by gaining true knowledge
- they aim to discover how to end suffering and achieve happiness
23
Q
General revelation
A
God making himself known through ordinary experiences e.g. the beauty of nature, scripture, coming to understand god through conscience or morality etc.
24
Q
Nature as a way of understanding the divine
A
- Many Cs and Js believe that God is revealed to them through the beauty and functionality of the natural world
- the sense of vastness and beauty ca leave an impact of awe which results in stronger faith and admiration of God
25
Scripture as a way of understanding the divine
- Fundamentalist Christians and Orthodox Jews believe their religious scriptures are directly the word of God
- Reform Jews and Liberal Christians believe that their religious scriptures are inspired by God
- Therefore people gain understanding of God and his will through scripture
- Readers can feel the presence of God in the words
26
Personal
- Has human characteristics e.g. compassion
- people can have a relationship with God through prayer and devotion
27
Transcendent
- is beyond and outside life on Earth
- Not limited by the world, space or time
- Does not act within the world or intervene in people's lives
28
Immanent
- present in the universe and involved in life on Earth
- influences events / acts in history
- people can experience God in their lives
29
Impersonal
- Has no human characteristics
- is unknowable and mysterious
- an idea or force rather than a person
30
Impersonal and personal simultaneously
Js and Cs believe God can be both of these at the same time:
- God is higher than the Earth and has knowledge unattainable to humans
- However humans can also have a relationship with God
31
Transcendence and immanence simultaneously
Immanence:
- Jews: God speaking to Moses through the burning bush, covenants with Abraham and at Mt Sinai
- Christians: Jesus on Earth, work of the Holy Spirit
Transcendence:
- Both Js and Cs believe that god has higher knowledge that is not comprehendible to humans
32
How can religious believers prove / disprove a claim to revelation
1. does it match the real world
2. does it fit with other accepted accounts of revelation
3. Does it change the faith or life of a person
33
Nicky Cruz
- He was a gang leader in Brooklyn in the 50s
- he heavily associated with violence, drugs and alcohol
- His best friend was stabbed and died in his arms and he began to have nightmares
- He was arrested many times and a court ordered psychiatrist said that he was 'headed to prison, the electric chair and hell'
- David Wilkerson, a Christian street preacher showed kindness to Nicky even though he beat him up, spat on him and threatened murder
- Nicky and his gang later attended David's religious meeting where he suddenly felt compelled to pray with the preacher
- unexpectedly, Nicky and some of his gang members handed in their weapons to the police, converted to Christianity and went to Bible college
34
The value of revelation
- can provide proof of God's existence
- help to start a new religion
- help believers to have a relationship with God
- help people discover how God wants them to live
