Component 1: Religious, Philosophical and Ethical Studies in the Modern World Theme 2: Life and Death

Afterlife

Life after death; the belief that existence continues after physical death

• tomorrow you will be with me in paradise'

environmental sustainability

Ensuring that the demands placed on natural resources can be met without reducing capacity to allow all people and other species of animals, as well as plant life, to live well, now and in the future

• Cultivate and keep the earth'

Euthanasia

from Greek, eu 'good' + thanatos 'death'. Sometimes referred to as 'mercy killing. The act of killing or permitting the death of a person who is suffering from a serious illness.

• Decalogue 'you must not kill'

Evolution

the process by which different kinds of living organisms are thought to have developed and diversified from earlier forms during the history of the earth.

• fossils

Abortion

When a pregnancy is ended so that it does not result in the birth of a child

• Be fruitful and multiply'

Quality of life

The extent to which life is meaningful and pleasurable

• Take delight in the lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart'

Sanctity of life

The spiritual aspect of a being; that which connects someone to God. The soul is often regarded as non- physical and as living on after physical death, in an afterlife.

• God created man in his own image'

Soul

the spiritual aspect of a being; that which connects someone to God. The soul is often regarded as non-physical and as living on after physical death, in an afterlife - God breathed the breath of life into the nostrils of man'

What is a literal christian?/ creationist?

Literal christians or creationists believe that the bible should be understood word for word. Therefore they believe that the creation of the world happened exactly as it was described in Genesis.

what would a liberal christian believe about creation?

Liberal Christians say that people should be free to understand the bible in whatever way they choose. Some stories should be understood more like metaphors or symbolic stories. They are still true because the stories carry meaning but don’t relate to actual historical events.

Describe Genesis 1

• god created the world in six days
• god rests on the seventh day
• humans are the peak of gods creation, made in his image.
• god gives humans a unique status as God’s stewards on the earth
• “god said let there be light”
• “in imago dei”

Describe Genesis 2

• God made Adam, before all animals, and placed him in the Garden of Eden to live in paradise.
• Adam is formed from the dust of the ground and the breath of God (symbolising the human soul), making him the son of the earth but also child of God
• To give Adam a partner and companion, God created Eve out of one of Adam’s ribs

what is creationism?

the belief that all life was made by God - many evangelicals are creationists as they believe that the Bible is God breathed.

What is Old Earth creationism?

God must have created the world, but creation took place millions of years ago. The seven days of creation refer to periods of time not 24 hours. (apparent age theory)

Young earth creationism?

The world was created by God, in seven actual days, and this happened less than ten thousand years ago.

Was the World Designed? Christian view

• The fact that the world is so beautiful and well-ordered gives us strong evidence of a creator God
• The complexity of life could not have come about by itself. There must be a divine mind behind creation
• The argument for Intelligent design says that life cannot have come about through random evolution
• William Paley- the human eye is perfectly formed to enable a being to see. It cannot have come about by chance and therefore must have been designed.

Was the World designed? Atheist and humanists view

• although life looks like it includes design, the human eye, for example, has evolved from other, less complex eyes in other species

Richard Dawkins argues that the world might appear to have been designed but can be explained by Darwinian natural selection. •DAWKINS ARGUES THAT THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION IS THE BEST EXPLANATION OF HOW LIFE HAS COME ABOUT. 

•HE SAYS WHILE THE WORLD MAY APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN DESIGNED; IT RAISES THE QUESTION WHO DESIGNED THE DESIGNER?

•FOR DAWKIN'S THE SOLUTION LIKE DARWIN IS NATURAL SELECTION TO ‘WHERE DO WE COME FROM?’ •AS AN ATHEIST HE ARGUES EVOLUTION NEEDED NO HELP FROM GOD!

• the blind watchmaker

Explain the Big Band Theory

• Georges Lemaitre ( a priest who made the theory)

• 1923

• The big bang is how astronomers explain the way the universe began. It is the idea that the universe began as just a single point, then expanded and stretched to grow as large as it is right now—and it is still stretching!

• “there is no conflict between science and religion”

• THE BIG BANG THEORY SUGGESTS THAT THE UNIVERSE BEGAN FROM A ‘SINGULARITY’ AS FOUND BY HAWKING AND AS IT EXPANDED ATOMS BEGAN TO APPEAR. PHYSICISTS ESTIMATE THIS HAPPENING ABOUT 15/18 BILLION YEARS AGO AND THIS LED TO THE CREATION OF THE WHOLE UNIVERSE. HAWKING BELIEVED THIS COULD BE TRACED BACK TO THE BIG BANG AS THE INITIAL EVENT. 

  AS GASES AND MATTER RELEASED BY THE EXPLOSION BEGAN TO COOL, THE INDIVIDUAL STARS AND PLANETS OF THE GALAXIES WERE FORMED. TODAY THE DISCOVERY OF BACKGROUND RADIATION IS THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN LEFT OVER FROM THE INITIAL EXPANSION. 

  EVIDENCE THAT APPEARS TO CONFIRM THIS THEORY CAN BE SEEN THROUGH THE MODERN HIGH POWER TELESCOPES.

  UNFORTUNATELY THE BIG BANG DOES NOT TELL US WHETHER THERE IS ANYTHING UNIQUE ABOUT THE EARTH ITSELF OR WHETHER LIFE EXISTS ON ANY OTHER PLANET IN THE UNIVERSE. 

What is cosmology?

COSMOLOGY IS CONCERNED WITH THE ORIGINS OF THE UNIVERSE

IT IS BASED ON SCIENCE NOT RELIGIOUS BELIEF THUS NOT CONCERNED WITH IDEAS OF GOD CREATING THE UNIVERSE RATHER WITH THEORIES SUCH AS THE BIG BANG

religious reactions to the Big Bang theory?

•LIBERAL CHRISTIANS HAVE NO PROBLEM IN ACCEPTING THE BIG BAND THEORY. THEY HAVE NO REASON TO QUESTION THE EVIDENCE ON WHICH IT IS BASED AND ACCEPT THAT GOD MAY HAVE CHOSEN TO ALLOW THE UNIVERSE TO CREATE INTELLIGENT LIFE “MY WAYS ARE NOT YOUR WAYS”

•

• CHRISTIAN CREATIONISTS SUCH AS SOME EVANGELICALS ARE CRITICAL OF THESE IDEAS AS THEY CONTRADICT THE TRUTH THAT GOD FORMED ALL LIFE THROUGH HIS OWN POWER “LET IT BE”

what is Darwin’s theory of evolution?

•DARWIN SUGGESTS LIFE BEGAN WITH A SIMPLE SINGLE CELL AND EVOLVED AND DEVELOPED INTO A VARIETY OF PLANT AND ANIMAL LIFE WHICH IS NOW PRESENT ON THE EARTH. 

•

• THIS THEORY OF EVOLUTION OR ANIMALS SURVIVING WAS DOWN TO NATURAL SELECTION – NATURE SELECTS. (GALAPAGOS ISLANDS)

NATURAL SELECTION MEANS THAT THOSE WHICH WERE BEST SUITED TO THE DEMANDS OF THEIR ENVIRONMENT SURVIVED TO REPRODUCE PASSING ON THE STRONGER CHARACTERISTICS AND THOSE WHO WERE WEAKER TO DID NOT. (ADAPTION) THUS SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

DARWIN BELIEVED HUMANS HAD EVOLVED IN THE SAME PROCESS AND THAT MEANT:

 THEY WERE NOT SPECIAL CREATION

THE EARTH DID NOT EXIST FOR THEIR BENEFIT 

religious reactions to Darwins theory?

TODAY MANY RELIGIOUS BELIEVERS WELCOME DARWIN’S THEORIES. FOR EXAMPLE LIBERAL CHRISTIANS ACCEPT SCIENCE CAN TEACH US THINGS THE WRITERS OF THE BIBLE DID NOT UNDERSTAND IN THEIR TIME.

HOWEVER SOME EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS ARE AGAINST DARWINIAN THEORIES AS THEY GO AGAINST BIBLE TEACHINGS WHICH IS THE WORD OF GOD “GOD BREATHED” – TIMOTHY (CREATIONISTS).

THE BIBLE CLEARLY TEACHES IN GENESIS THAT THE CHRISTIAN GOD IS A CREATOR GOD AND MADE EACH SPECIES ESPECIALLY TO ITS KIND WHICH EVOLUTION CONTRADICTS. IT ALSO CLASHES WITH THE IDEA OF A SOUL “GOD BREATHED LIFE INTO THE NOSTRILS OF ADAM” AS WE WEREN’T INDIVIDUALLY MADE RATHER EVOLVED OUT OF OTHER LIVING ANIMALS, THUS NO SPECIAL PLACE FOR THE HUMAN SOUL (HIGH POINT

humanist attitudes to the creation of the world?

HUMANISTS BELIEVE THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND THE WORLD THROUGH SCIENCE AND THAT RELIGIOUS EXPLANATIONS ARE UNRELIABLE. 

EVOLUTION CAN HELP US UNDERSTAND THE WAY SPECIES ARE RELATED TO EACH OTHER TODAY RATHER THAN BELIEVING LIFE IS A ‘MYSTERY’. 

HUMANISTS FOR A BETTER WORLD (H4BW) AIMS TO CREATE NETWORKS FOR HUMANISTS TO SHARE IDEAS ABOUT THE NEED TO BE ACTIVE IN CAMPAIGNING ON ISSUES SUCH AS PEACE, GLOBAL JUSTICE, CLIMATE CHANGE ETC.

THEY ARGUE THAT THE FUTURE OF THE WORLD IS IN OUR HANDS AND IF WE DO NOT ACT NOW WE WILL DO IRREPARABLE DAMAGE TO THE PLANET. 

THE HUMANIST PERSPECTIVE EMPHASISES PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND SOCIAL COOPERATION.

Stephen hawking quote

“given a law of gravity the universe can and will create itself”

Do Science and Religion oppose each other? (d)

yes:

• fundamentalists (literalists) believe that if science and the bible contradict each other, then science is wrong.
• God revealed His truth through holy scriptures god breathed
• Science gives us an accurate picture of the world whereas religion tells us nothing. The world may appear to be designed but this is an illusion

no:

• there is no conflict because science tells us how the world was made and religion tells us why.
• Albert einstein said, the more I study science the more I believe in God.
• The fact of evolution or the Big Bang cannot prove that God did not cause the first reaction or inspire the first development

Evidence of Design?

• fine tuning of the universe e.g balanced forces and equalities
• irreducible complexity (system needs all components to contribute)

Stewardship definition

caring for the planet and maintaining its resources

Explain How should we treat the environment? (6)

DOMINION

• to rule over the environment. we can exploit the worlds resources we are in charge.
• when Jesus said love they neighbour he never said love all the other kingdoms of animals and plants
• Adam got divine life breathed into him.
• we are made in gods image animals are not so they must be worth less
• Adam got made before all animals in genesis two
• most christians find it acceptable to eat meat.

STEWARDSHIP

• to live in harmony with nature. we cultivate the earth not destroy it.
• humans have a responsibility towards the environment, looking after the earth’s precious resources
• we should be responsible global citizens, using the earth’s natural resources in a sustainable manner
• green christians are environmental activists who promote awareness and action at church, community and national levels
• cultivate the earth
• life is a gift so stewardship is our given role

HUMANISTS VIEW ON THIS

• most agree with stewardship
• looking after the environment is sensible because it’ll help our children
• we have a responsibility to everyone and everything to do as little harm as possible
• humanists want to ensure development and prevent to preserve nature and repair damage

Is Life a product of chance or up to God’s plan? different views?

Christians

• there is a divine life behind all life
• god knows all people before their birth and has a plan and a purpose for all living beings “you knit me together in my mothers womb”

Atheists and humanists

• life comes from life
• life is a result of blind chance
• natural selection has no purpose in mind. it has no vision, no foresight - Richard Dawkins

sanctity of life arguments for yes it is important - christians

• life comes from God, it is a gift, unique and priceless.
• god is interested and involved in each human’s life
• god created each person unique and in his image, just as he created Adam and eve
• only god can give and take life
• quaker christians oppose the death penalty because each person contains a reflection of god which makes every human soul sacred.
• “don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s spirit dwells in you?”
• Jesus showed that all lives are worthy of respect and compassion

sanctity of life arguments for yes it is important- humanist views

• life is precious because we only get one
• the value of life does not come from God, there is no afterlife so that makes this life special
• a central purpose of life is to make ourselves and others around us as happy as possible
• life is not sacred it is worthy of the highest respect

Pro Life arguments-

conservative christians ROMAN CATHOLICS

• abortion is wrong
• every living thing has a right to live
• “do not kill”
• roe vs wade
• “before you were born, I knew you in the womb”
• terminating the pregnancy is evil as it has a soul
• against the first law of Aquinas- to preserve life

atheists

• the child is alive since conception

Pro-choice arguments-

• abortion is acceptable
• everyone should have the right to choose what to do with their bodies.
• sometimes the situation such as rape means that they aren’t ready for a child (Church of England would accept this- they are relativists)
• want to focus on career
• child is likely to be born severely disabled with a low quality of life
• love thy neighbour
• lesser of two evils

humanists

• abortion is acceptable
• find the kindest action - which would produce more happiness
• must be an informed choice
• situation ethics

Abortion in Britain today

• legal before 24 weeks
• 1 in 3 will have an abortion
• the father has no legal right

What are the different types of euthanasia?

• voluntary/ assisted suicide is where a person explicitly asks for help to die . often this is due to a terminal illness
• active, when a person takes a specific course of action to end their own life e.g. overdose
• passive, where life sustaining treatment is removed, eg a feeding tube or unplugging oxygen
• involuntary, where death is forced on a person- death sentence, the holocaust

is euthanasia legal in Britain today?

no.

stephan hawkings quote

we don’t allow animals to suffer so why humans?

Should euthanasia be legalised? - arguments against

• may put pressure on the sick or elderly
• gives murders such as Harold shipman a legal basis
• other practices may become legalised- slippery slope.
• euthanasia is not the only option- hospices

Is euthanasia acceptable? - liberal christians

• the person might be brain dead
• lesser of two evils
• love thy neighbour
• Jesus taught compassion for others

is euthanasia acceptable? - conservative christians

• no
• all life is sacred
• do not kill
• life is a gift from god and is precious
• suffering can have a purpose- Job
• hospices are an alternative decision
• \

humanist attitudes towards euthanasia

• support it
• want to reform the ban
• believe quality of life is important

humanist vs christian view of the soul?

• christians believe that christians have a soul, which is immortal, and lives on after the body has died
• humanists deny the existence of a soul

explain the different views about the soul and its relationship with the physical body

• DUALISM
• the belief that we are made of two separate parts: a physical body and a spiritual soul. the soul lives in the physical body and is the true, inner part of us which will live on after death
• it is through our souls, we connect to God ;
• ensoulment is the moment when the soul is believed to enter the body. st Thomas aquinas believes this to be whilst the foetus is developing in his womb
• MATERIALISM
• the beliefs that nothing else exists apart from matter. all we have , as human beings, is a spiritual body. there is no soul or spirit

some christians are non dualists but they believe that the body and soul are one and cannot be separated. after death the soul is temporarily apart but will be reunited with the body on judgement day. just like Jesus

How do humans get to heaven?

• humans are born with original sin, the sin inherited from Adam and eve
• we must be reconciled with god for this sin. we must be saved and forgiven. this can only happen through believing that Jesus died on the cross to cleanse us from our sins.

what happens when we die? afterlife? atheist/humanists vs Christians

• atheists and humanists- believe that nothing survives death. materialism
• christians- believe in resurrection, heaven and hell. after death we will rise up from the dead to be judged by god.
• death is not the end it is a gateway to a perfect existence.
• some christians say that we will experience a bodily resurrection - like Jesus
• evangelical christians believe heaven and hell are real
• some liberal christians believe these ideas are symbolic and they remind us there are consequences.
• purgatory is a catholic teaching to help people get to heaven

humanist attitudes

• nothing we only lie once there is no afterlife
• materialism

how do christian funeral rites reflect belief about the afterlife?

• when a person is close to death a priest or minister is called to say the last rites.
• prayers are said for the dying person and they can ask god for forgiveness of their sins- roman catholic
• helps ease them into the afterlife
• christian funeral normally held in a church. flowers candles and prayers
• I am the resurrection and the life
• candles- Jesus light of the world
• the lord is my sheperd- will guide souls and comfort those who mourn
• ashes to ashes dust to dust
• buried due to bodily resurrection with god in heaven
• cremation because soul goes to heaven- environmental argument- takes up less space

how do non religious funeral rites reflect belief about the afterlife?

• informal, personal ceremony
• readings and songs personal to the dead or their family and friends
• special meaning
• reflect on their contributions to the world
• show respect
• music
• candles
• eulogy
• memory readings