Religion and life

what do christians believe about he origins of the universe

-designed and created by God
-God made the world out of nothing, 'ex-nihilo'
-the genesis creation story gives account of how God created the universe

what do literalists believe about creation

-a fact and is how God made the universe
-creationsists
-each day is 24 hours
-fossils is a test from God, the world is 6000 years old
-seperate from the animal kingdom because humans have a soul and relationship with God

what do conservatives believe about creation?

-the bible shows how God creates the world, in what order but it could of been the days were millions of years
-Genesis two tells Christians that God creates them deliberately
-They do believe it is factual
-"intelligent design theory" the belief that God is behind the Big Bang

what do Liberalists believe about creation?

-the creation story should not be taken literally, instead told to pre-scientific people to help them understand why the world came into being
-Genesis is a myth, with no science in it just telling people about their relationship with God
-God is behind everything

quotation for the origins of the universe (christianity)

'in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth"

What do Muslims believe about the origins of the universe?

_believe the world was created by God in six days
-most muslims understand the original text of six days to mean six phases, or periods of time
-unlike the Bible, the Qur'an does not specify exactly what took place during each period.
-the Qur'an does not mention a day of rest

quote from the Qur'an about the origins of the universe

"created the heavens and earth in six days"

what does science say about the origins of the universe

-the Big Bang Theory is the leading scientific explanation of how the universe began
-it suggests that all matter was compressed into a small hot mass. which exploded

what is stewardship?

believers have a duty to look after the environment for God

quotation for stewardship

"God gave Adam the task of looking after the garden of Eden"

what is stewardship known as in Islam

khalifah (guardian of the planet)
Muslims believe that God gave humans the responsibility of looking after the planet.
People should protect the environment and on the day of judgment humans will be answerable to God concerning how well they have fulfilled this role.

quotation from the Qur'an about stewardship

'it is He who has made you successors on the earth"
"Indeed the world is sweet and green"

what is domination

-In christianity some believe that humans were given the power and authority to rule over the world.
- A minority of Christians believe that people can do what they like with the earth and everything in it because humans are in charge.

quotation on domination

"Rule over the fish in the sea and birds in the sky"

why is the world valuable?

Because God created it "God created the world"

what are the Assisi and Ohito meetings?

Leaders from five different world religions came together in 1986 by the WWF, to celebrate their anniversary, in which they celebrated how to be a good steward.

why do Christians value human life more than animals

humans are sacred, god gave them a soul. Humans are the pinnacle of Gods creation, God gave humans animals to use as their benefit. Jesus and the prophet Muhammad ate meat and fish.

what do muslims believe about animals

-Each animal is valuable to God
-animals have been made to benefit humans but they are not to be abused
-they must not be beaten or used to fight
-avoid animal cruelty
-Muhammad treated animals respectfully.

quotation about animals islam

"All the creatures that crawl on the earth are those that fly with their wings are communities like yourself"

Christian beleifs about animals

-animals were created by God for humans house and care for
-God values animals but humans are more important because they were created in God's image
-animals are to be treated kindly

quotation on animals christianity

'The righteous care for the needs of their animals"

what are muslims beliefs on animal experimentation

-causing harm to an animal, doing anything that may harm it is not allowed
-causing them stress is not allowed
-all suffering must be kept to a minimum
-Testing cosmetics on animals is wrong

Christian beliefs on animal experimentation

-modern society, christians generally support animal testing
-Christians believe that all human life is sacred, using animals to develop new drugs may benefit millions of people
-they believe animals can be used as long as there is no other way to safely develop medicines
-testing cosmetics was banned in the UK in 1998, and most support the ban

Muslims beliefs on using animals for meat

-allowed to eat halal meat
-must be farmed to Muslim teachings
-the Qur'an expressly forbids the eating of pif meat as it is haram
-shouldnt cause undue suffering on animals

quotation on using animals for meat islam

God will hold him accountable on the day of judgment

Christian beliefs on using animals for meat

Christians have a choice, most eat meat. The bible does not teach it to be wrong.

quotation on using animals for meat christianity

"are you not five sparrows sold for two pennies"

humanist view on using animals for food

"to give preference to the life of a human because they belong to our species is speciesism it is the same as a racist who gave preference to members of their race" -Peter singer

what did Charles Darwin come up with

the theory of evolution. He suggested that creatures appeared in the sea, which over a long period of time, evolved into other species. Some survived on land and some began to fly

What do christians believe about the origins of life

-Fundamentalists believe that the origin of human life was exactly recorded in genesis
-some accept adaptation in species, they do not believe their is enough evidence to prove creatures evolve
-some believe God is the creator, but also accept evolution
-they believe the bible is concerned with 'why' it happened not 'how'

quotation on the origin of life, christianity

"So God created mankind in his own image" Genesis 1:27

What do Muslims believe about the origin of life

-God made the universe, he made Adam
-The whole human race was destined from Adam and Eve
-Some Muslims reject the idea of evolution, believe that God formed all species.

quotation on origin of life Islam

'You were lifeless and He gave you life" Qur'an 2:28

what is the definition of abortion

the removal of the foetus from the womb to end a pregnancy before the child is born, deliberate termination of a pregnancy

what is the latest you can have an abrotion

24 weeks, 40-70% chance of survival

when was abortion illegal in the uk

became legal in 1967

what are christian views on abortion

-encourage people to think through abortion
-Roman Catholics believe that life begins at conception and therefore it is morally wrong
-However, other denominations believe in some cases it is still permutable, but the amount of abortions that take place are too high
-believe in the sanctity of of life- that humans are made in the image of God, life is sacred and God given.

quotation on abortion christian

"you shall not murder"
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you" Jeremiah

what is the view for abortion

-womens life comes first
-she carries the baby and goes through child birth
-human life doesn't start till birth

what do humanists think about abortion

abortion can be a morally acceptable choice to make and they generally approve of the law in the UK as it stands. Many humanists and humanist organisations around the world actively campaign for abortion to be legally available.

islam views on abortion

-Doesn't explicitly mention abortion but the Qur'an clearly says to value human life
-Many Muslims regard abortion as haram but should be allowed in certain circumstances
-e.g if the result of rape
-if an abortion is going to happen they believe it should be before ensoulment

when do muslims believe ensoulment (the period when a foetus is given a soul) takes place

4 months, or 120 days, after conception.

quotation on abortion islam

"Do not kill your children for fear of poverty"
"killing them is a great sin" Qur'an 17:31

what is euthanasia

Greek 'merciful death', the intention to end the life of someone who is in pain or has a poor quality of life

what is voluntary euthanasia

a persons CHOICE to end life as they don't want to live anymore

what is non-voulantary euthanasia

when somebody is to ill to request to die, so other people have to make the choice for them

what is passive euthanasia

indirectly ending a life by withdrawing treatment, e.g turning of a life support, withdraw food and water

what is active euthanasia

direct and active steps taken to deliberately end someone life e.g lethal injection

is there a moral difference between active and passive euthanasia?

-many say it's acceptable to withdraw treatment allowing them to die, but never acceptable to kill a patient by a deliberate act

-some say there's no moral difference; withdrawing treatment is a deliberate act intended to cause death it's just as much an act of killing as giving a lethal injection.

what are muslims views on euthanasia

-not included for reasons to be allowed to kill
-sancity of life, they think life is a gift from God and should be valued. No person has a right to take away a life, only God decides when it is ended.
-God could be testing their faith or providing an opportunity for someone to help look after them and do the good necessary to gain entry into paradise
-Therefore it is haram and considered a sin

quotation on euthanasia islam

"do not take life, which God has made sacred"

what are Christian views on euthanasia

-taking life is interfering with Gods plan
-potentially lead to those who are old feeling pressure to ask to die in order to not be a burden
-Others believe that it is against the sancity of life and only God has the right to take away life
-some people say when suffering if can bring you closer to God as you can understand the suffering of Jesus
-some support it and beleive that drugs are used to end Gods life are God given and it is the nicest thing to do
-God gave them free will

quotation on euthanasia Christianity

"Euthanasia and assisted suicides should not, however be considered acceptable"
"you shall not muder"

what do christians believe about death

-humans receive eternal life as gift from God, and so the afterlife is dependent on the belief on God
-The afterlife either begins upon death or at the day of judgement

what do christians believe about what we are made from

substance dualists- composed of two substances: a material body and immaterial soul. the soul is the 'spiritual' aspect of a person, God given at conception. "God made mankind in his own image" Adam was the first person to receive a soul.

what do christians believe about the afterlife

Jesus resurrected so will they, "those who believe in me will have eternal life".

christians believe about heaven and hell

heaven: "indescribably wonderful"
hell: a place where "wiping and gnashing of teeth"
Liberal christians do not believe hell is a literal place but a state of separation from God
Universalists believe that everyone goes to heaven as God is omnibenevolent

what do catholics beleive about heaven and hell

believe in purgatory, a place or state of suffering where impure souls of sinners are cleansed of sins before going to heaven

what are Muslims views on life after death

-death isn't the end but the start of a new stage in life called Akhirah. after death you lie in a grave and wait for the day of judgment Barzakh
-Angles are sent to question them about their life
-if they are good and honest they will be rewarded and if they are bad they will be punished

what do Muslims beleive about the afterlife (akhirah)

Jannah- paradise as a place with "lofty mansions and delicious food and drink"
Jahannam- place where you will wear "garments of fire and your lips will be burned off"

what do muslims believe about ressurection

one of the five roots of Shia islam. Sunni Muslims believe in ressurection but it is not included in the six articles of faith, they will cross the 'Sirat Bridge' to enter paradise; those weighted down by sin go to hell

what do atheists (materialists) believe about life after death

made of matter; decays after death. No soul that can die, Freud Dawkins believes in 'wishful thinking'