Christian Philosophy and Applied Ethics

Christian Philosophy and Applied Ethics

• Is something boring

because of it or

because of you?

Reasons Christians believe in God.

Obj:• to recap the meanings of

theist, agnostic and atheist

• to explore our own beliefs about God and the Universe

• to think about the reasons Christians believe in God

What do you believe?• Look at the

statements on your sheet and shade in the boxes that are closest to your views

• Then, compare your sheet to a person sitting close to you

What do other people think?

• Watch the following clip which shows a rather ironic criticism of belief

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9goLXFJzSik

Theism• A theist is someone who

believes that God exists• There are many theistic

religions in the world each claiming different things about God

These are also known as monotheistic faiths because they all teach that there is one GodLook at the pie chart on your leaflet to see how many theists there are in the world

• Some of these religions are: Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Sikhism

Video Clip• Watch the following

video clip about why people might believe in God

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gq4C9s7hHiQ

Add them to your books

What would make you believe?• Look at the statements

on your sheet about what makes people believe in God

• Rank them in order of what would make you more likely to believe (1 being the strongest reason, 7 being the weakest)

Agnosticism

• Agnostics note that some people have tried to prove that God exists and others have attempted to prove that God does not exist

• Agnostics feel that neither side has convincingly succeeded at their task

• An agnostic is a person who feels that God's existence can neither be proved nor disproved, on the basis of current evidence

A famous Agnostic • Charles Darwin, most famous for his

theory of evolution, said:

"The mystery of the beginning of

all things is insoluble by us;

and I for one must be content

to remain an Agnostic."

"I think an Agnostic would be the more

correct description of my state of mind. The

whole subject [of God] is beyond the

scope of man's intellect."

Atheism• An atheist is

someone who does not believe that God exists

• There may be many reasons why they believe this, including:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-lKy8dsdqU&feature=related

1. They believe that science has provided evidence of how the universe began

2. They are convinced that everything that happens can be explained scientifically

3. They are convinced that if there was a God, he/she would not have created a world where evil exists

4. They have not seen any evidence in their daily life or experience

5. They see all the suffering and disease in the world and this makes them feel that a loving God would not allow suffering

Richard Dawkins• It’s easy to put people

into 3 distinct categories

• But can we divide belief so easily?

• Watch the following review of faith by the famous biologist Richard Dawkins

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_jD-ki6b_Q

See sheet-do you agree?

Your Task:• On your leaflet are 3 sets of discussions• In each discussion one argument has

been given for you• Your task is to write what the other

person would say in reply• This will show that you understand what

each group of people believe about God

Plenary – next lesson…• Religious people rely

on faith and personal experience rather than scientific proof to support their reasons for belief in God.

• What do you think this means?

Presentation by Brockwell