Christianity Beliefs and Teachings

• When analysing markets, a range of assumptions are made about the rationality of economic agents involved in the transactions
• The Wealth of Nations was written

  1776
• Rational


  (in classical economic theory) economic agents are able to consider the outcome of their choices and recognise the net benefits of each one
• Rational agents will select the choice which presents the highest benefits
• Consumers act rationally by


  Maximising their utility
• Producers act rationally by


  Selling goods/services in a way that maximises their profits
• Workers act rationally by


  Balancing welfare at work with consideration of both pay and benefits
• Governments act rationally by


  Placing the interests of the people they serve first in order to maximise their welfare
• Rationality in classical economic theory is a flawed assumption as people usually don't act rationally
• Marginal utility


  The additional utility (satisfaction) gained from the consumption of an additional product
• If you add up marginal utility for each unit you get total utility
• ng if he was on the benevolent if he was all loving surely he'd want to do that you know he'd have compassion he wouldn't want people to be suffering so we've got a problem based on the evidential problem that we can see but also this logical problem if we just think about it logically
• so how do Christians respond because of course 2.4 billion people are still Christian in the world today so clearly they have found a way of reconciling their beliefs about the nature of God with the existence of evil and suffering
• Theodicy


  A defense of God
• we're going to look today very quickly at three different Theodore Thief um which attempt to explain why evil and suffering exist in a world created by an omnipotent omnibenefolent God
• Paul: 'When Adam sins, sin entered the world and death through sin, and so death spread to all people because all sinned'
• Paul: 'Suffering produces perseverance'
• Saint Augustine: 'A runaway horse is better than a stone'
• Catechism of the Catholic Church: 'Suffering is the result of original sin'
• Free Will defense


  • Moral evil is caused by humans, not God
  • God gave humans free will, knowing some would misuse it
  • A world with free will is better than one without
• Original sin


  • Evil and suffering are caused by Adam and Eve's disobedience
  • All people are born sinful due to the Fall
  • The world is in a state of disarray and disharmony because of the Fall
• Soul-making theodicy


  • Evil and suffering are part of God's plan
  • They are needed for humans to grow and develop moral virtues
  • Without evil and suffering, humans could not show their worthiness for heaven
• The Trinity is the central belief of Christianity, underpinning every other Christian belief
• Trinity


  The three parts of God - the Father, the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit
• The Trinity shows that God is one, despite being known through three distinct persons
• The Trinity can be a model for human relationships, showing unity in diversity
• Belief in the Trinity affirms the importance of faith, as God is ultimately a mystery that cannot be fully understood logically
• Jesus: 'Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit'
• Genesis 1:1: 'In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth'
• Jesus: 'I and the Father are one'
• Jesus: 'The Father will send the Holy Spirit in my name, who will teach you all things'
• God the Father Almighty


  Powerful Creator
• Jesus Christ


  God's only son, important because of his incarnation and act of atonement on the cross
• Holy Spirit


  Invisible power, The Giver of Life, source of inspiration
• Genesis 1:1: 'In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth'
• John 10:30: 'I and the Father are one'
• John 14:26: 'The Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you'
• Matthew 28: 'Jesus gives the Great Commission to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit'
• Creation ex nihilo


  The belief that God created everything out of nothing due to his omnipotence
• The spirit of God was hovering over the waters at creation