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Define secular
something that is not connected with religion nor impacted by religious or spiritual concepts
How was the UK become more secular?
Shops open on Sundays
Religious holidays like Christmas are becoming increasingly secular
Less religious influence on the law
Fewer religious schools
Science developing, challenges some religious ideas
How influential was Christianity pre-Reformation
Church had control over everything eg: education and politics
How did Christianity’s influence change during the Reformation (15th-16th cent)?
Authority of the Church challenged by reformers and new churches established based on individual faith
Eg: Martin Luther gave 95 reasons why the Catholic church was corrupt
How did the Enlightenment change the influence of religion?
Science and reason became more important and was acceptable to be publicly atheist and attack religion
Seen in Hume’s work
How did religion change in the 19th century?
Religion is a personal commitment
It is something that can make us feel better but it’s an illusion
This is said by Feuerbach
What changed in the 20th cent?
Impact of wars and changes in society leads people to stop attending places of worship
What happened at the beginning of the 21st century?
Rise of humanism
Belief that morality can be rational and we can make the world better without the need of religion
How does this display how religion has been replaced as a source of truth and moral values?
Science is bigge eg: Darwin’s theory of evolution and the Big Bang Theory
Access to truth through the internet/ tech
Reasoning/ empiricism eg Aristotle and Hume
Moral values from dif authorities eg: parents, school, politicians
How does this show that religion has been relegated to the personal sphere?
Rise of Protestantism, sola fide
We don’t need church leaders to have a relationship with God
Who is Richard Dawkins and what are his beliefs surrounding religion?
Militant Atheist
Thinks God is a delusion and he doesn’t exist
Is hostile towards theists
What does Dawkins’ main argument elaborate on?
The question of “who made God?”
What does Dawkins criticise about Christian practice?
They pick and choose which bits of the Bible to take as symbolic and which to take literally
He objects to the subjectivity of religious faith but also dislikes absolution
How does Dawkins depict religion as dangerous?
Says religious people are led to crime while atheists aren’t led to evil
Gives the example of the 7/7 bombings
This devastated many victims and their families
Says only religious faith is strong enough to encourage those actions
Why does Dawkins disagree with religious schools?
Places a basis on unquestionable belief which leads to extremism and terrorism
How does Dawkins describe God and what are the issues with this?
“misogynistic, homophobic, megalomaniacal and sado-masochistic”
There is more evidence to suggest God is loving
As a scientist his claims should be well-evidenced
Name some of Dawkins’ publications
“The God Delusion” - McGrath writes “The Dawkins Delusion” in response
“The Blind Watchmaker”
“Outgrowing God”
How are Dawkins’ claims influenced by Feuerbach?
He claims God is created by us and not the other way around
How does Dawkins use science to rebuke religion?
He required empirical evidence, believes in evolution and the big bang
We do not have this for God so it is irrational and there’s no reason to seek him out as an answer
He believes we use God to fill in the gaps in our knowledge - “God of the gaps”
Science is far more rational
How does Dawkins claim religion is immoral?
Theists rely on the word of God to make moral decisions, these should come from within ourselves not out of fear or a wish for reward in heaven
How could one counter some of Dawkins’ claims?
Religion goes beyonf reason - “belief in” rather than “belief that”
Dawkins believes all theists to be extremists but this is simple not the case
Violence can be secular
Religion holds great positive value in people’s lives
Religion can be used for good
Dawkins looks at small bits of evidence and jumps to big conclusions
He doesn’t really understand religion and its context as he’s not a theologian!!
Who is Alister McGrath ?
He was an atheist who converted to Christianity while studying Chem at Oxford
Wrote “The Dawkins Delusion”
What does McGrath say about religion and science?
Science can be seen in different ways, Christians can believe in it too
Science and religion can work together eg: Christian vision of God and reality
If Christianity is true then science actually makes more sense eg: Creation of the universe, design due to complexities of science
What is creationism?
The belief that God literally created the world (the Genesis story) about 8000 years ago
How does Dawkins worsen creationism and what is McGrath’s view on this?
Dawkins’ militant nature makes creationists stronger in their beliefs in order to combat him - they are two extremes
McGrath likes neither as neither are truly scientific - he sits in the middle
What example does McGrath give of secular violence?
Atheists killing theists
eg: Stalin ordered the killing and imprisonment of thousands of religious leaders to eradicate the concept of God
Shows how political ideology can breed violence as much as religion
What mistakes does McGrath say Dawkins seems to make?
He believes all theists are fundamentalists when they aren’t
Doesn’t acknowlegde that if religion went away there would still be violence between the sexes/races/genders
Dawkins also doesn’t separate “belief in God” from “religion”
He doesn’t apply the historical contexts to the writing of religious texts
What does McGrath say science and religion are?
“partially overlapping magesteria”
What percentage drop in Christianity has there been in the last 10 years?
13%
Define weak atheism
Not believing in God
Define strong atheism
Actively deciding that God does not exist
Define Militant Atheism
Atheism that is hostile to belief in God
What 3 ways does atheism argue against religion?
Faith as irrational
Faith as dangerous
Faith as abusive
How is faith irrational?
There is no evidence for God
Prayers aren’t always answered
Existence of evil and suffering
Theists constantly qualify God
Theists pick and choose
How is faith dangerous?
Religious wars and conflict
Extremism and terrorism
Teaches shame and repression
Can breed cults
Could be said to support slavery, prejudice and discrimination
How is faith abusive?
Leaders exploit their power
Define materialism
Material possessions, wealth and personal comfort being more important then spiritual beliefs or practices
What was the role of monasteries in the middle ages like?
Living a monastic life was superior as a moral/ spiritual state
Involved living a life of poverty and simplicity
What has happened in recent years to alter the way we view wealth?
The secular world requires you to have money/ possessions
Rise of capitalism allows wealth to be controlled by individuals
This leads to inequality and poverty
What does Luke 16 say about wealth and possessions?
Tells story of a rich man who didn’t give to the poor and needy
“The rich man also died…where he was in torment”
He is punished not for his wealth but because he didn’t share it
What does Luke 6 say about wealth and possessions?
“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God”
Says the poor will be rewarded in heaven for faith even during hardships and not idolising money over God
What does Matthew 19 say about wealth and possessions?
“It is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven”
Is about idolatry, money shouldn’t take precedence over God
What does Acts 2 say about wealth and possessions?
“distribute the money among all", according to what each one needed”
Says wealth should be shared
Is from the Early Church, is model for how Christianity should be
What does 1 Timothy 6 say about wealth and possessions?
“For love of money is the root of all kinds of evil”
It is not money that is the problem, but the way we interact with it
What is Christian Aid and how does it challenge secular values?
A Christian charity
Aims to eradicate poverty and provide disaster relief
Can make legal changes
Goes against secular values because believes in sharing wealth to help others
What is Bruderhof and how does it challenge secular/ material values?
Is a Christian community inspired by the Early Church
They share all wealth and possessions with eachother
Mostly in Germany but also in Kent
Rejects materialism because nothing is owned by the individual
What is the Prosperity Gospel and how does it support secular values?
They believe that if faith increases, God will reward them through health and wealth
Supports the secular because it works on the idea of profiting from faith
What is tithing and how does it challenge the secular?
Means giving 10% of income to the church
In Genesis it says “of all that you give me, I will give you a tenth”
It is obligatory
Challenges secular values as it demands that wealth is shared
What is the aim of Fresh Expressions?
To bring the Church and faith to those who cannot access it but also those who have never encountered it
Aims to evangelise and build communities accessible to all
Works WITH the secular
What is the Biblical justification for Fresh Expressions?
Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came down and all people spoke in tongues making faith accessible
How does Fresh Expressions challenge militant atheism?
Those such as Dawkins see all theists as extremists
FE explores more moderate types of Christianity which can involve itself in the lives of others
Shows religion doesn’t have to cause violence
Name one of the Fresh Expressions projects
Digital Saints
They gather 3x a week for Night Prayer online, begins with a reflection of their day or a poem
Once a month they meet to walk and meditate
Means they can stay connected online and in person so builds relationships and faith
What are some of the problems with Fresh Expressions?
It’s not organised/ led by ordained ministers
Takes away from traditional Christianity
Loss of the scared elements and respect
What is the House Church Movement and how is it different to regular church?
They meet in houses not church buildings
It is non-liturgical and non-structured
There are no sacraments
Is all about personal reflection, prayer and spiritual healing
What is the history behind the House Church Movement?
In the New Testament, the Early Church meetings were in houses
They shared belongings and praised God
How does the HCM work against the secular?
They aren’t taking faith into the secular world but bringing people into their homes reverting it to the traditions of the Early Church
What are some of the potential problems of the HCM?
No authority so the advice could be wrong
Could become a cult as they are isolated from outside influence
How is Christianity still relevant today?
People still attend church esp during holidays eg: Christmas and Easter
Still largest religion
Influence in the law
Still taught in schools
Define Liberation Theology
The church should support people by bringing justice and power to the powerless
Links to the Social Gospel Movement - puts Bible teachings into practice
Also like Situation Ethics - teaches love first!
Define Traditional Theology
The church showed focus on supporting people spiritually
Who was Oscar Romero and why did he decide to speak out?
Was Archbishop of San Salvador in El Salvador
Most lived in extreme poverty, few families controlled all wealth
Violence used against people to repress them and against the repression
Chose to speak after a fellow priest was killed
How did Romero speak out against the injustice?
Condemned repressions and used his sermons to challenge those in power
Named all the people that went missing/ were killed
These sermons were broadcast nationwide and was the only way people found out about these atrocities as the country was heavily censored
How did Romero’s life end?
He received death threats and knew he would be killed
1980 he was shot dead at the altar
Give a quote by Romero to summarise his actions
“Aspire not to have more but to be more”
What was “Faith in The City” and what did they find?
1985 CoE researched urban areas and did a report on their findings
Found high levels of poverty and powerlessness in poor communities
How did this report help the Church of England implement changes?
They asked Churches to be part of their communities and provide for secular as well as spiritual needs
eg: use of buildings for help for the homeless as shelter, playgroups for parents etc
Led to the est. of the Church Urban Fund
They asked the govt to help improve poverty eg: employment and housing
CoE now regularly holds food banks and homeless support
What are the arguments for Liberationism?
Living out love pragmatically
Following Jesus’ life and teachings
Brings God’s kingdom on Earth
Rejects legalism to treat others with respect
Demonstrates Godly love
What are the arguments against Liberationism?
Not Church’s place to intervene in legal matters
People should help themselves not expect others to do so
It is wrong to see Jesus as a political revolutionary
Church is only there for spiritual help
