1.6 The abortion debate

The video below is a very good summary with some incredible information in. However it is made for a different exam board and therefore the question examples are incorrect. For example questions see the red zone at the bottom of the page.

• legalised in Britain in 1967
• Those against abortion think it is morally unacceptable to kill unborn babies
• Others argue if a baby is going to be born with a severe illness or disability it would be kinder to permit an abortion.

A key question in the debate is ‘when does a person become a person?’

• some argue from the moment of conception therefore terminating a pregnancy is the same as murder.
• others argue a person only ‘begins’ when they are first aware of their own existence or when independent life is possible. Therefore terminating a pregnancy is not the same as murder

There are broadly two camps – pro life and pro choice.

CATHOLIC CHURCH AND ABORTION

G CAMERAS

TASK – memorise the below:

G – God – It is God who gives life at this moment and it is the start of a human beings relationship with GodA – Against – The Catholic Church is against abortion in all circumstances

C – Conception -The Catholic Church teaches that life begins at conception

A – Against – The Catholic Church is against abortion in all circumstances

M – Murder – Abortion is therefore seen as murder, a great moral evil, which is against one of the Ten Commandments ‘Do not murder’

E – Effect / Double Effect – If a mother’s life is in danger during the pregnancy (for example ectopic pregnancy) then action to save the life of the mother even if it threatens or destroys the life of the unborn child is acceptable. The intention is to save the mother, the effect on the child is not directly intended but is a side effect. This is known as the Principle of Double Effect.

R – Right to Life – The foetus has a right to life and termination is a great moral evil.

A – Adoption – Instead of having an abortion the Church would encourage those in this situation to give a child up for adoption

S – Sacred – Catholics believe human life is sacred

 

OTHER CHRISTIANS VIEWS ON ABORTION

• No single view
• Fundamentalists believe it is never acceptable
• Most Christians agree that it is not a good thing
• Sometimes it is seen as the ‘lesser of two evils:
  • If the pregnancy is the results of rape, an abortion might be the best option for the quality of life of the mother
  • If continuing with the pregnancy might be dangerous to the soman’s physical or mental health, then abortion should be allowed.
  • If the child is likely to be severely disabled and so effect its quality of life

 

RED ZONE

Explain the Catholic approach to abortion

Explain why some Christians think abortion is ‘the lesser of two evils’

Explain the difference between pro choice and pro life

‘A Christian would always think abortion is wrong’ – Discuss this statement including different perspectives

 

1.5 Sanctity of Life

Decide whether the life should be SAVED or allowed to DIE and explain why you think this.

“Baby Theresa,” was born in Florida in 1992. She effectively had “no brain”, and doctors predicted that she would die within two weeks. Her parents asked the doctors to use her organs to save other lives if possible.

The doctors were prevented from taking organs from Baby Theresa by Florida law. Doing so would involve killing Baby Theresa, which would be illegal. Baby Theresa died at 9 days old. By this stage, her organs were no longer of any use.

Sian is 18, and is working. She has done well since leaving school. She hopes to continue and get promotion. She has a steady boy friend, David. They hope one day to marry. David is at university. He is studying religion and hopes to be a teacher. She is pregnant and thinks she should have an abortion.

Jodie and Mary were conjoined twins, born in Manchester in 2000. Doctors predicted that, if no intervention occurred, Jodie and Mary would both die in around three months. They also said that if you separated them, one of the twins would certainly die, while the other twin would probably live.

Diane Pretty was a terminally ill British woman who fought a legal battle to allow her husband to help her commit suicide

A man has killed several people and been found guilty. He is on death row in Texas. There is possible evidence which would prove his innocence.

 

SANCTITY OF LIFE

TASK – memorise the following:

• Most people – religious or not – would accept that human life is special and should be cared for
• Catholics believe each person is unique because God made them
• Creation of humans was unlike the rest of creation because humans were made in the image of God – imago Dei
• Catholic Church teaches all human life is sacred and that everyone has a right to life which should be protected and valued at every stage.

Special

Unique

Made by God

Sacred

Imago Dei

Right to Life

 

SAINT CATHERINE OF SIENA – THE IMAGE OF GOD (IMAGO DEI)

“Her dignity is that of her creation, seeing that she is the image of God, and this has been given her by grace, and not as her due. In that same mirror of the goodness of God, the soul knows her own indignity, which is the consequence of her own fault.

What made you establish man in so great a dignity? Certainly the incalculable love by which you have looked on your creature in yourself! You are taken with love for her; for by love indeed you created her, by love you have given her a being capable of
tasting your eternal Good.”

TWO IMPORTANT MESSAGES FROM HER WRITING ABOVE:

• Humans come from God in the same way that children come from their parents or your reflection in the mirror shows you
• Love – God creates out of live. Humans being made with dignity and in God’s image shows how much he loves them.

 

Red Zone

What is the meaning of image Dei

Explain what St Catherine of Siena’s writings say about the idea of imago Dei

1.4 The theory of evolution and Catholic beliefs about creation

Scientific theories of evolution

Charles Darwin proposed this.

• Animals or organisms gradually change and develop into new species by a process known as ‘natural selection’
• Develop skills to survive. Certain characteristics help animals to survive. As they breed and pass these traits on over generations, it leads to a new species developing.
• Altered DNA. DNA research shows that there are many similarities between species and supports the idea of slight changes to survive.
• Physical traits are visible between species
• Transformation takes place through the generations. Each offspring slowly mutates.
• According to Science life came about as a result of a process known as evolution
• Takes millions or billions of years – supported by fossil record, which reveals that a large number of species have died out
• It never stops
• Organisms multiple
• New environment triggers occur

TASK – ADAPTATION – What does each letter stand for?

Richard Dawkins

• A modern supporter of evolution
• Dawkins is an atheist and believes evolution does away with the need for God and the belief that humans have souls.
• Dawkins argues that each living organism’s body is just a survival machine for its genes and does not serve any other purpose
• Humans are just a genetic mutation and are just advanced animals.

 

THE CATHOLIC VIEW OF EVOLUTION

• Some Christians do not accept the theory of evolution; they see it is an attack of their faith, especially if they read the Bible literally.
• Catholics do not interpret the Bible literally. Genesis needs to be understood symbolically
• Pope John Paul II – there is no conflict between evolution and the teaching of the Christian faith.
• What is important to Catholics is not if God chose to create through a process of evolution over millions of years but that in Genesis, God created with purpose and so everything that exists is part of his loving plan.
• Not how it happened but why

 

Red Zone

Describe the process of evolution

Describe Catholic attitudes towards evolution

Explain how Richard Dawkin’s views challenge Catholic beliefs

Evolution supports Catholic beliefs about creation – discuss this statement including at least 2 different arguments

1.3 The origin of the universe

The Big Bang Theory

 

TASK – Memorise the below:

• All matter was originally concentrated into a tiny point
• There was a massive explosion 13 billion years ago
• This tiny point expanded as a result of this explosion and formed the universe – which is still expanding today.
• This explosion was the Big Bang
• The Big Bang caused particles and atoms to be formed leading to the formation of the stars and the planets.
• Powerful telescopes can detect evidence of background radiation which is thought to be left over from the initial expansion at the start of the universe.

 

EVIDENCE THAT GOD DOES NOT EXIST

This theory has led some people, such as Stephen Hawking, to doubt the existence of God completely, saying that we can explain the origins of the world without the need for a creator God

THE CATHOLIC VIEW OF THE BIG BANG THEORY

TASK – Memorise the below:

• Catholics are happy to accept the Big Bang as this theory supports their belief that God created the universe out of nothing.
• Many Christians accept the scientific explanations but say that we must understand Genesis symbolically, not as a scientific explanation of the beginning of the world, but as a theological statement about the world’s relationship to God.
• In fact, the Big Bang theory was put forward by a Catholic priest, Father George Lemaitre
• Science explains how the universe came about and Genesis explains why the universe began.

“If Methodical Investigation within every branch of learning is carried out in a genuinely scientific manner and in accord with moral norms it never truly conflicts with faith, for earthly matters and the concerns of faith derive from the same God”                   Guadium et Spes

 

Is there a conflict between Science and Religion?

TASK – Memorise the below 

• Many think there is a conflict 
• This is not the case
• There is a problem if you interpret the Bible literally but Catholics can’t do this
• Creationists are very critical of scientific ideas because these ideas contradict the idea that God formed all life through his own power
• Even if science is completely correct it addresses how the universe began but not why.
• Where does this universe come from? It is reasonable to ask what caused the big bang
• Christians would argue that this is God

Memory tip – all the C’s

RED ZONE

What is the Big Bang?

Explain Catholic views on the Big Bang.

Explain why a creationist might have a problem with the Big Bang.

The Big Bang proves God does not exist – discuss this statement including arguments for and against

 

1.2 Catholic Beliefs about Creation

• God bringing the universe into being is creation.
• Nothing existed before God created it.
• Only God creates, he is omnipotent (all powerful)

St Augustine said –

St Augustine Confessions XII, 7

… you, O Lord… made something in the Beginning, which is of yourself, in
your Wisdom, which is born of your own substance, and you created this
thing out of nothing. You created heaven and earth but you did not make
them of your own substance. If you had done so, they would have been
equal to your only-begotten Son, and therefore to yourself, and justice
could in no way admit that what was not of your own substance should be
equal to you

MEMORISE – “you created this thing out of nothing” St Augustine Confessions XII, 7

(You can use this quote to support your answer to questions in your GCSE)

 

Differing Christian attitudes to the creation story

• written thousands of years ago before modern Science
• Christians understand the story in different ways depending on whether they think the bible is literal or not

TASK – watch and make notes. What are the 5 most important things in this video?

CREATIONALISTS

• fundamentalist approach.
• The account of creation in Genesis is what actually happened word for word.
• It took place on six calendar days exactly as it says in Genesis
• The Bible is the inspire word of God

GENESIS CREATION MYTHS

• The creation story is not meant to be taken literally
• Scientific and Bible accounts can be harmonised and brought closer together.
• Each day of creations is billions of years.

 

TASK – Learn the days of creation from Genesis 1

 

TASK – based on these quotations from the Bible can you answer the questions in the Question and answer column?

Quote	Question and answer
…the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep	Describe the status of things before creation.         What do we learn about God from this one line of how things were before creation?
And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”  So God made the dome…	In this one command from God, what do we learn about His nature?
Then God said, “Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.”	In this one quote here what do we learn about God’s plan for creation?
So God created…every living creature that moves…God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”	In this second quote here what do we learn about God’s plan for creation?
Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness…”	What do we learn about God here?             What do we learn about humans here?
let them (humans) have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth”	What responsibility has God given to humans here?         Do you think it is a fair responsibility and why?
Male and female he created them… God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it…”	What does this passage reveal to us about relationships?             Are there any modern day issues that we can link this quote to? What? Explain your thinking
God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good	God declared at creation that the world is ‘good’. Is it still ‘good’ in your opinion? Why so or why not?

 

RED ZONE QUESTIONS

What is meant by creation ex nihilo?

word for word definition

Describe the beliefs of a creationist.

What do they believe? Why do they believe it? How is it different to others?

Explain how creationists and Catholics differ in their ideas about the creation of the world.

 

“Creation took 7 days” – Discuss different arguments to this statement.

5 – Judaism Key Concepts

 

Link – These words are essential for your GCSE RS Studies. They link different ideas and come up often. They may even for the words in questions on the exam so you must know what they mean!

THE TASK: Memorise

 

HOW do you effectively complete the task?

Look at the word and definition

Cover it up

Say the word and the definition out loud

Check if you were right

Do this for one word, then two, then three, then four etc until you can do it for all 8 words – WORD FOR WORD

 

Judaism Key Concepts:

Synagogue	house of assembly; building for Jewish public prayer, study and assembly
Shekinhah	the place where God’s presence rests and can be felt
Shabbat	day of spiritual renewal and rest. Beginning at sunset on Friday and closing at nightfall on Saturday
Kosher	(‘fit’ or ‘proper’) Foods that are permitted to be eaten according to Leviticus Chapter 11. It is also used to refer to the purity of ritual objects such as Torah scrolls
Torah	the five books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy). Regarded as the holiest books of the Tenakh
Mitzvoth	the term has a mix of meanings. It is often used to refer to duties (such as the 613 in the Torah) and good deeds
Messiah	the anointed one who Jews believe will bring in a new era or age for humankind. This will include rebuilding the Temple and bringing in an age of universal peace
Covenant	a promise or agreement between two parties . Covenants were made between God with Noah, Abraham and Moses

2.1 – Good and Evil Key Concepts

Link – These words are essential for your GCSE RS Studies. They link different ideas and come up often. They may even for the words in questions on the exam so you must know what they mean!

THE TASK: Memorise

 

HOW do you effectively complete the task?

Look at the word and definition

Cover it up

Say the word and the definition out loud

Check if you were right

Do this for one word, then two, then three, then four etc until you can do it for all 8 words – WORD FOR WORD

 

Good and Evil Key Concepts:

 

 

Conscience	Human reason making moral decisions. The knowledge we have of what is right and wrong and the God-given compulsion within all human beings to do what is right and to avoid what is evil.
Evil	the absence of good and the impulse to seek our own desires at the expense of the good of others which often results in suffering
Free-will	the decision making part of a person’s mind is called the will. A will is free if a person is able to choose right from wrong without being controlled by other forces
Goodness	the quality of being like God: seeking the well-being of others selflessly
Incarnation	“Made flesh” The Christian belief that God became man in the person of Jesus, fully human and fully divine
Natural Law	the moral laws of right and wrong which are universal and not dependent on human laws. The belief in natural law is the belief that the moral law is discoverable by every human being and is the same for all human beings in all places at all times
Privation	the loss or absence of a quality or something that is normally present. Evil is a privation of good. Suffering pain or loss which harms human beings. Some suffering is caused by other human beings (often called moral evil); some is not (often called natural evil).

1.1 – Origins and Meanings Key Concepts

Link – These words are essential for your GCSE RS Studies. They link different ideas and come up often. They may even for the words in questions on the exam so you must know what they mean!

THE TASK: Memorise

 

HOW do you effectively complete the task?

Look at the word and definition

Cover it up

Say the word and the definition out loud

Check if you were right

Do this for one word, then two, then three, then four etc until you can do it for all 8 words – WORD FOR WORD

 

Origins and Meanings Key Concepts:

Creation ex nihilo	“creation out of nothing”. Before God created the universe, nothing existed. Only God can create out of nothing.
Evolution	the process of mutation and natural selection which leads to changes in species over time to suit particular environments.
Imago Dei	in the image of God. The belief that human beings are uniquely a reflection of God’s personhood. Unlike the other animals, human beings are rational, free and moral.
Inspiration	“God breathed” The belief that the Spirit of God guides an individual to act or write what is good and true.
Omnipotence	the belief that God is all powerful.
Revelation	the word used to describe all of the ways in which God makes himself known to human beings. Christians believe that God does this finally and fully in the person of Jesus Christ.
Stewardship	the duty to care for creation responsibly, as stewards rather than consumers, and to protect it for future generations.
Transcendence	existing outside of space and time; God exists in a way that makes him nothing like anything else that exists, above and beyond creation.

Judaism Practices Revision Mind Map

 

Judaism Beliefs mind map