Religion Year 9 Sem 2
Living the Commandments and Beatitudes
The 10 Commandments
The Law
Judaism and Christianity believe in one God
They believe in a ==divinely inspired law== and that God invites them into a ==covenant relationship==
The Torah is the law of god revealed in the first 5 books of the bible and jewish scriptures
Christians and Jews believe it contains divinely inspired morals from god
The Law literally describes how to live
There are 613 Mitzvot (Commandments) which cover all aspects of life and worship and guide to moral behaviour
The 10 Commandments are the 10 most important Mitzvot
The Covenants
Covenants are an agreement between Jewish people and God
It began with Abraham (Gen 17) and Moses (Ex 6:7)
The agreement was that the Israelites would worship God and follow his law and in return be granted the promised land
10 Commandments
The 10 Commandments were written by God and delivered to the Jewish people through Moses on Mount Sinai in Exodus
- I, the Lord, am your God. You shall have no other Gods beside me
- You shall not take the Lord’s name in vain
- Remember to keep holy the Lord’s day
- Honour your mother and father
- You shall not kill
- You shall not commit adultery
- You shall not steal
- You shall not bear false witness
- You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife
- You shall not covet your neighbour’s goods
The Beatitudes
The word beatitude means ‘blessing’
While the 10 Commandments instruct people on what not to do, the ==Beatitudes encourage people to be good people== (positive reinforcement vs punishment)
There are two versions of the Beatitudes in both Matthew and Luke’s bible
Matthew’s bible described the Sermon as being on the mount, whereas Luke’s was on level ground
Matthew’s was targeted towards a Jewish audience to remind them of Mount Sinai, whereas Luke’s was targeted towards Gentiles and shows that Jesus is with everyone, not above them
| blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven | poor in spirit means complete dependence on god |
|---|---|
| blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted | mourning means accepting sadness with an open heart, can say sorry for their mistakes, look at god as the one who can give meaning and comfort to their pain |
| blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth | the meek are the humble, the lowly, the gentlethose who treat others with kindness and understanding |
| blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied | to thirst for righteousness is to work for justice, acting with the right intention, upholding the commandments |
| blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy | the merciful are those who are kind, understanding, compassionate, help others in need, heal others and broken relationships |
| blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see god | the pure of heart are those who are perfectly sincere and honest, have good intentions towards anyone, selfless and single-minded towards god |
| blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of god | peacemakers work for authentic justice and promote conditions or situations for real peace and promote love of enemies and are agents of reconciliation |
| blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven | these are people who stand up against un-christian values, have the courage to do what is right, defend the christian faith |
Sacred Heart Ethics
JPIC stands for Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation
JPIC is a movement within the church that the RSCJ have adopted
Justice, peace and integrity of creation is a movement of ==addressing social justice issues, change and transformation==. It focuses on ==transforming relationships== that flow from the love of the heart of Jesus. We are to make Jesus’ heart known to all
Justice is at the centre of the Sacred Heart mission. Justice is empathy for those in need and involving them in the actions and decisions to address the causes of their suffering
The sacred heart, through the heart of Jesus, is called to act where there is need. There is a close relationship between Jesus and the oppressed/marginalised
The sacred heart framework for JPIC is to have compassion for the suffering. ==Relationships of care/love and seek transformation==. Through seeking justice, raising awareness and action
In practicing JPIC, we can discover who we truly are - ==witnesses to hope seeking transformation that is drawn from the love of Jesus==
Counter-Cultural Nature of the Church
Countercultural is used to describe ==any activity that goes against society’s current trends== and beliefs
Jesus’ message of inclusivity and love of enemies is a good example of Jesus’ counter-cultural nature
The Church is counter-cultural in some ways
Values in the Beatitudes are often at odds with society such as:
- being humble
- being merciful
- being open-minded and having good intentions for all
the environment
A modern example of an issue where the Catholic church teachings can be seen as counter-cultural is the environment
Laudato Si was written in 2015 by Pope Francis before the climate change protests, so it was and in many ways still is counter cultural
Laudato si highlighted how all of creation is suffering and will continue to suffer in the future if humanity did not change their ways
Change requires people to be selfless, prioritise the environment and equality of people, even if it means making sacrifices and working together for the good of all
The Catholic Church in Australia
Introduction of Christianity to Australia
Christianity was brought to Australia by the Irish convicts arriving from 1788 - 1868
They were convicted of rebelling against the British government in Ireland, and they were poor and bitter about their oppression
Irish convicts were Catholic, but authority figures in Australia were Protestant
The colony were Church of England, and Irish people were despised as the goal of the colony was to uphold British rule
In 1820, the first official Catholic priests Fathers Therry and Conolly arrived
This marked the beginning of regular Catholic worship and education in Australia
From then until 1872, the colonial governments gave money to any denomination that wanted to run schools, since there was no developed state system of schools. In the beginning untrained lay people staffed these schools
Education
Catholics began to argue for Catholic schools, saying that since they payed tax, the government should provide schools for them
The government required all children under the age of 14 to attend non-religious government schooling
Victoria believed that European wars started because of religion
This led to the Goulburn strike in July 1962, where students at St Brigid’s school were enrolled in a state school, putting pressure on their resources
Welfare
Welfare refers to government-sponsored assistance programs for individuals in need
This includes health care assistance, food stamps, and unemployment compensation
Some needs may not be adequately addressed, which is why social justice and charity organisations are important
Charity is essential and meant to be done for public benefit, relief, and to provide assistance to people at times of need in any part of the world
The catholic church has always had a concern for health care. This stems from ideas such as human dignity, love of neighbour, and Jesus’ example of caring for and healing the sick
Jesus also had a special place in his teachings for the poor and oppressed
Most catholic hospitals and health care facilities were established by religious orders
St Vincent’s Hospital
This was the first catholic hospital established in Australia. It was set up by the Sisters of Charity who arrived from Ireland in 1838
They taught religion, supervised an orphanage, visited prisons and the sick in their homes
From what the sisters saw, they believed that the medical care could be improved. They appealed to the public for funds in order to set up st vincent’s hospital in 1857
The hospital was open to all and many who worked there were not catholic (including some protestants). This was at odds with the image some people held of Catholics in Australia being exclusive and intolerant of others
Vatican II
It opened under Pope John XXIII (23rd) on 11 October 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI (6th) on 8 December
It sought to change and redefine the Church’s practice in the modern world
Evangelisation - making someone catholic
Ecumanical - bringing together many christian denominations
Pope John XXIII had convened it in 1959, with the goal of renewing Catholic life and uniting all Christians
On average, 2200 bishops attended each session. They came from 116 countries, making Vatican II the most ‘ecumenical’ council in the history of the church
| Before Vat II | After Vat II |
|---|---|
| Eucharist doesn’t really mean muchMasses said in LatinWomen must cover their hair in churchAlter is turned away from lay people | Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian lifeLanguage that suits societyWomen do not need veilsAlter can be seen by lay people |
Basically they just wanted to bring the different Christian denominations together
Census Data
Christianity and religion overall are decreasing
Plenary Council
A formal meeting of bishops and other representatives of all the dioceses and eparchies of the catholic church in australia
Its purpose is to discern what God is asking of us in Australia at this present time
While the church should be asking that question continually, a plenary council is a particularly graced instrument for seeking the Holy Spirit’s guidance and it has the authority to make church laws on the results of its discernment
First Assembly
As children of god, disciples of Jesus and guided by the Holy Spirit, the members of the Fifth plenary council are called to develop concrete proposals to create a more missionary, christ-centred church in australia at this time
Second Assembly
In the First assembly members discussed a number of matters relating to the agenda
the second assembly was where the voting took place to implement key changes in the Church
8 Themes Discussed
- Reconciliation: Relationship with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders
- Choosing repentance: seeking healing for the wounds of the church
- Called by christ: sent forth as missionary disciples
- Witnessing to the equal dignity of man and woman
- Communion in grace: sacrament to the world
- Formation for leadership
- At the service of communion, participation and mission: governance
- integral ecology and conversion for the sake of our common home
They discuss issues and the Church’s response to them
Sacrament of Reconciliation
Humanity and the world needs healing because we experience suffering
This can come in many forms including: suffering as a result of human actions and suffering as a natural phenomenon
Nature of the Sacrament
The Sacrament of Reconciliation is a Christian ritual that ^^allows humans to receive God’s forgiveness for their sins^^
These three terms refer to the same sacrament: Sacrament of Reconciliation, Sacrament of Penance and Confession
There are three different types: individual, multiple penitents and group
| individual | ^^one on one^^begins with the sign of the crossthe penitent reads the thingthey confess (anonymously if they want)the priest forgives and blesses them |
|---|---|
| multiple penitents | starts with a liturgy - hymns, psalms, readings^^then, individually they confess^^ |
| group | starts with a liturgythen, everyone thinks about what they want to confessthe priest blesses them all without hearing them^^only used in times of national emergency,^^ and penitents must do it individually as soon as possible |
Scriptural Foundations
Confession arises from ^^Jesus’ ministry of forgiving and healing others^^
Most healing miracles involved an act of asking to be forgiven and turning away from sin
Jesus helped on two levels - Physical and Spiritual
The shepherd and the lamb thingo
The prodigal son
The one where the woman blesses him
Quote
Significance
Reconciliation isn’t called confession because ^^it’s not about confessing your sins, it’s about being reconciled and repairing the damage in your relationship with God^^
^^Jesus takes the penalty for all our sins^^
Priests are the apostles successors
If you forgive sins, you are forgiven
^^Reconciliation repairs our relationship with God^^
Helps Catholics remain with God