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God and the Person
Religion and the emergence of values.
(how does religion influence the type of values that you have?)
• This whole section of the course is
about searching for meaning in life looking at the big questions!
• An understanding of God - and God’s
relationship with human beings is
central to a religious response to life.
Today:
• We will revise how our understanding of
God influences:
• 1. Our understanding of ourself
• 2. Our understanding of our World.
• The Relationship between God and the
Individual is crucial to all three major
world religions.
• The Syllabus requires that you explore
the relationship between God and the
Person in two religions
• 1. Christianity
• 2. Islam.
God and the Person in Christianity
•
Christians believe that they have a ‘personal’
relationship with God.
•
They believe that God loves and cares and
forgives every single person.
•
This close relationship between God and the
individual is central to Christianity.
•
Christians believe that God wants us to reach our
full potential.
•
Christians believe that life came from God and so
is sacred.
God and the Person in Christianity
• Christians believe in the same God as Jews and
Muslims.
• Christians believe in the Genesis accounts of
creation and they believe that God made the
world.
• Christians believe that everything God created is
good.
• Christians believe that they have been given the
special task of caring for the earth. This is called
‘Stewardship’
God and the Person in Christianity
• God wants us to care for the Earth. If it
matters to God how we treat the earth
well then we can see failure to do so as
being sinful.
God and the Person in Christianity
• In Christianity God is revealed in a very special
way through Jesus Christ.
• Up to this point God was present but invisible He became visible through Jesus Christ.
• The life of Jesus shows Christians how to live.
• He wanted a balanced world. Where there was
hatred he wanted love, war - peace, evil goodness, etc.
God and the Person in Christianity
• Jesus was loving, kind and this showed
us that God was loving and kind and all
Christians were called to live as Jesus
lived.
• God showed us that he loved everybody
through the death and resurrection of
Jesus Christ.
God and the Person in Islam
• Islam is one of the 3 major world religions
• Belief in the same God as Jews and
Christians
• God speaks directly to Muslims through
their holy book, The Qur’an. They believe
this to be the exact words of God (Allah)
• ‘God and the Person’ in Islam is wrapped
up in the 5 pillars.
God and the Person in Islam
• Muslims believe that God spoke directly to
the prophet Muhammad. Muhammad wrote
down God’s words in the Qur’an.
• A key belief in Islam is the first pillar - The
Shahada - ‘There is no God but Allah and
Muhammad is his messanger’
• Muslims believe in and worship this one true
God.
• There are strict rules against polytheism.
God and the Person in Islam
• Allah, in the Qur’an is described most often as
‘merciful’.
• Muslims believe that creation is Allah’s
greatest gift to humanity.
• Muslims believe that Allah provides for all his
people...
• ...and in return all people should respond with
reverence and gratitude.
• This attitude should prevail all life.
God and the Person in Islam
• Islam means ‘submission’ and muslims
believe that they should be submitting
their lives to God.
• An example of this submission is that
they must pray 5 times a day (Salat)
• This is profoundly symbolic of religious
belief in Islam
God and the Person in Islam
• The Qur’an (the word of Allah) warn
people from being arrogant and selfish.
• The Qur’an says that all Muslims need
to help the weak and the needy (Zakat)
• The five Pillars of Islam is Gods way of
leading Muslims to live the best life that
they can.
God and the Person in Islam
• The relationship between muslims and
Allah is a loving and merciful one.
• Muslims believe that they cannot have
the same ‘personal’ relationship that
Christians have with God.
• The relationship between Muslims and
Allah is lived out through the 5 pillars of
Islam.