RS Christianity Practises Knowledge

worship, prayer, baptism, holy communion, pilgrimage, festivals, the role of the church in the local community, mission + evangelism, church growth, persecution of christians, the worldwide church, reconciliation. NOT christian attitudes to poverty

Worship

an act of love & devotion

Examples of worship

prayer, reading the bible, going to church, taking part in ceremonies

Liturgical worship (4)

• follows a set structure

• public + communal

• formal prayers with set responses

• catholic, orthodox, anglican, CofE churches

Non-liturgical worship (3)

• no set structure

• emphasis on bible teachings & sermon - word of god

• methodist, baptist, pentecost, quaker churches

Informal worship (3)

• type of non-liturgical worship

• spontaneous prayers / sharing thoughts

• e.g. quaker worship - mostly silent, speak when moved to by the holy spirit

Charismatic worship (3)

• type of non-liturgical/informal worship

• ‘led by the spirit’

• dancing, clapping, speaking in tongues

2 main differences between liturgical & non-liturgical worship

liturgical is more formal & structured | non-liturgical is more casual

liturgical can evoke a sense of unity | non-liturgical can feel more personal

Private worship

praying by yourself - individual prayer

advantages of private worship

• from the heart

• person & close connection with god

• no judgement

disadvantages of private worship

• confusing - no guide

• less motivation

• distractions at home

adoration

praising god for his greatness

confession

owning up to sins & asking for fogiveness

thanksgiving

thanking god for blessings e.g. health

petition

asking god for something e.g. courage

intercession

asking god to help others who need it

the lord’s prayer (3)

• summary of christian faith

• taught by jesus as a ‘perfect’ prayer

• been used for centuries

Extempore prayer (3)

• free form prayer without text

• freedom to be more personal

• applied to various situations

set prayer

• prayer that is written down, read, and memorised

• communal

• tradition in passing down prayers

baptism

a sacrament that initiates someone into the church & brings them closer to god

• water as a symbol of washing away sin

• believed that god is present

• god’s grace + gift of holy spirit is transmitted to the person being baptised

sacrament

a sacred ceremony involving outward signs of inward spiritual grace

infant baptism (4)

• marks baby’s entrance into reigion

• promises made by parents on baby’s behalf

• as child grows god is present with them in their lives

• orthodox, catholic, some anglican & cofe churches

Adult/believer’s baptism (4)

• wait until person is old enough to choose

• consciously commits to god

• more special as person is aware

• baptist, protestant, evangelical, pentecostal, some anglican & cofe churches

holy communion (3)

• sacrament of thankgiving where the death & resurrection of jesus are celebrated with bread & wine

• also known as eucharist, mass, divine liturgy, lord’s supper

• celebrated to remember jesus, his sacrifice, & because jesus instructed them to do it

eucharistic prayer

a special prayer of consecrating the bread and wine using the same words jesus said at the lst supper

consecrate

to declare bread and wine to be/represent the body & blood of jesus

new covenant

the new relationship between god and humans because of jesus’ sacrifice

divine liturgy

the service where they celebrate holy communion every sunday morning

transubstantiation

belief the bread and wine actually transform to be jesus’s body and blood in catholic worship

pilgrimage

a journey by a believer to a holy site for religious reasons, an act of worship & devotion

lourdes (4)

a town in france where apparitions of the virgin mary appeared, major catholic pilgrimage site

• people visit grotto where a girl saw the virgin mary

• millions go there each year

• some have been cured of illness

iona (4)

small island off the coast of scotland, centre of gaelic monasticism for 400 years, renowned for tranquility & natural beauty

• believed to be a ‘thin place’ where veil between physical & spiritual is thin so people can sense spiritual more

• monastery build by saint columba who brought christianity to scotland

• remote, known for beauty + nature

why do people go on pilgrimage

• feel closer to god + build closer connection

• renew/strengthen faith

• be healed mentally or physically

• find unity/community

festival

a day / time of celebration for christians

advent

first season of church year, leading up to christmas & including the four proceeding sundays. looking forward to the ‘coming of jesus’

christmas (4)

day celebrating birth of jesus + next 12 days ending with epiphany

• celebrates the incarnation - god in human form

• gifts are symbol of god’s love for us and the gift he gave us = jesus

• remember those living in difficult circumstances

epiphany

celebration of the visit of the magi (three wise men) on jan 6

lent

period before easter devoted to fasting, absistence & penitence, from ash wednesday to holy saturday

easter

religious season celebrating resurrection of jesus

pentecost

festival celebrating descent of the holy spirit on the disciples of jesus after his ascension, 7th sunday after easter

christian calendar

two main seasons:

1. advent, christmas & epiphany

2. lent, easter & pentecost

2 definitions of church

1. holy people of god, aka body of christ, among whom jesus is present and active

2. a building in which christians worship

ekklesia

a gathering/assembly of people in ancient greek - where the word ‘church’ comes from

agape (3)

greek word for love, how ‘love’ is translated in the bible

• loving god is the same as loving other people - love for god is expressed through love for others

• love is not a feeling, it is an action

golden rule

treating others as you would like to be treated

foodbanks

many churches run foodbanks e.g. the trussel trust

street pastors

go out onto the streets at night and tackle cases the police can’t prioritise

directly follows teaching of helping people & expecting nothing in return

salvation army

organisation (some say its a denomination) that works nationally to help those less fortunate

church growth

growing in south america, africa, aisa | not growing in the usa, europe, middle east

80k people become christians each day worldwide

how can evangelism be done

christians are expected to help spread the faith. this can be done in lots of ways:

• advertising + using media

• praying for others to accept god

• sharing what god has done for them with others

• inviting people to christian meetings & events

evangelism

spreading the christian gospel by public preaching or personal witness

missionary (4)

• a person sent on a religious mission to promote christianity in a foreign country through preaching or charitable work

• the main aim is to persuade others to accept jesus as their lord

• according to the great commision christians have a responsibility to tell others of their faith

• example: serving in mission

persecution

hostility or ill treatment because of race, political, or religious beliefs

examples of christian persecution

• christians have to go underground in china & worship in secret. persecution is becoming more severe e.g. attacks, surveillance

• in north korea christians could be killed for their beliefs

• in other places they could be imprisoned, stopped from getting jobs, given extra taxes, attacked, punished etc

persecution of christians

80% of all acts of religious descrimination are to christians, and in 75% of nations

the church has faced persecution since jesus, when the roman & jewish authorities persecuted him & his disciples

10 disciples were martyred (killed for their religion)

barnabas fund

charity sends money to suport people persecuted for their faith e.g. bibles, christian schools, essentials etc

reconciliation

the restoring of harmony after relationships have broken down - bringing together people who are opposed to one another

• its a sacrament in the catholic church

• jesus reconciled humanity & god through his death

• can also mean ‘making things better’ so helping those less fortunate

corrymeela

charity that brings people together, help groups embrace differences, have important conversations, find common ground

all people from all around the world come

Convert

someone who has decided to become comitted to a religion and change his or her religious faith

Poverty

having a lack of economic means to support yourself with the basic necessities

Christian views of poverty

• giving what you can to the poor

• agape - love for others

• jesus grew up in poverty so came for everyone including the poor

• jesus’s disciples weren’t rich

• love thy neighbour

cafod

catholic charity that helps people living in poverty internationally with practical help no matter religion or culture

Parable of the good samaritan

a man is attacked by robbers and two of his countrymen choose not to help him but someone from an enemy country helps him - your neighbour is everyone

Parable of the rich man and lazarus

a rich man doesn’t give money to a beggar (lazarus) and then goes to hell while lazarus goes to heaven - help the poor

Parable of the lost son

a father forgives a son who spent all his inheritance on himself (father represents god) - those who confess their sins will be loved by god