Matters of life and death

• Abortion

  Ending a pregnancy by deliberately removing a foetus by surgical or medical means
• Big Bang theory

  A scientific theory about the origin of the universe which suggests that the universe is expanding away from a single point, a process which started around 13.7 billion years ago
• Commodity


  A useful or valuable thing which satisfies particular wants or needs
• Conception

  The moment when a sperm fertilises an egg, creating an embryo that can develop into a baby
• Environment


  The surroundings in which plants and animals live and on which they depend for life
• Euthanasia


  The deliberate administering of life-ending medication by a third party
• Evolution


  The process by which different species have developed from earlier forms
• General Synod


  The national group within the Church of England that debates issues relating to Christian belief and practice
• Hospice


  A place which provides care for people with a serious, terminal, or incurable illness
• Natural law

  A set of moral principles based on the idea that people should choose good actions that comply with God's wishes
• Paranormal


  Experiences which suggest that there may be a non-visible, spirit world, such as ghosts and communications through mediums
• Pro-choice

  Holding the belief that the mother should be able to choose whether to have an abortion
• Pro-life

  Holding the belief that the foetus has a right to life
• Quality of life


  The value given to a life depending on how far a person can find enjoyment and pleasure from it
• Resurrection

  Rising from the dead; also the view that after death God recreates a new body in a heavenly place
• Sanctity of Life

  The belief that life is created by God and made holy by him
• Situation Ethics

  Ethical decisions made according to the specific context; in any situation do the most loving action
• Spiritualist

  Someone who believes that the spirits of dead people can communicate with living people
• Stewardship

  Looking after something so it can be passed onto the next generation
• Survival of the fittest

  The idea that members of a species that are best suited to an environment survive
• Utilitarianism


  The belief that the right course of action is the one that will produce the greatest happiness of the greatest number of people