Origins and meaning

• Christians


  Believe God created the universe, but they often disagree about how and when this was done
• Genesis 1


  • Contains two creation stories
  • Genesis 1:1-2:3 explains how God created the universe over six days and then rested on the seventh
  • It stresses that God created humans in his image (Genesis 1:27)
  • Shows God creating by speaking, for example: "Let there be light," and "there was light"
• Genesis 2


  • Explains how God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed life into him
  • He creates animals as companions for man, but none are suitable
  • Finally, God creates woman from one of the man's rib bones
  • Some Christians believe these chapters are literal, but others believe they are more symbolic
• The Big Bang Theory


  • The universe began around 13.8 billion years ago as an explosion of high-density matter and energy
  • Everything in the universe was formed by the matter from the explosion
  • Stars and planets formed first
  • Supporters say the universe still seems to be expanding and we can detect background radiation left over from the Big Bang
• George Lemaitre, the man who first suggested the idea of the Big Bang Theory, was a Roman Catholic priest
• Sanctity of life


  The religious belief that life is sacred
• Sanctity of life


  • Many religious people agree with it because they believe God has given life and only he can take it away
  • It says that God decides when a person is born and dies - humans should not make those choices
• Quality of life


  The general enjoyment and wellbeing of a person
• Quality of life


  • Some people argue that if quality of life is low, then that life could be ended because it isn't worth living
  • Many religious people disagree and argue that every life is sacred and every moment in life is precious regardless of quality
• Evolution


  The process where all life began with simple cells and evolved over many millions of years by natural selection
• Evolution


  • Charles Darwin published On the Origin of the Species in 1859 and argued for this theory
  • Evolution happens when random mutations happen in species and the best adapted to their environment survive - 'survival of the fittest'
  • Darwin's theory says humans are part of the animal kingdom, not separate from it - human life developed from apes
• Christian and Jewish creation accounts

  The accounts found in Genesis 1-2 that describe how God created birds, fish, creatures, plants and humans
• Christian and Jewish creation accounts

  • The first story (Genesis 1-2:3) says God created humans on the sixth day of creation in his image (in imago dei)
  • The second story (Genesis 2:4-25) says God created a man from the dust of the ground, breathed life into him and then made a woman from one of his rib bones
• If we take the biblical account of creation literally

  It clashes with Darwin's theory of Evolution which says humans and other life developed from lower life forms over millions of years
• Biblical account of creation


  • It says humans were deliberately designed as the highest form of creation
  • In the first creation story, humans are created last - the pinnacle of creation
• Evolution


  • It says that humans evolved with no intention behind this evolution, which contrasts with the idea that humans are created imago dei (in the image of God)
• While some Christians and Jews choose to take the biblical accounts literally, many others take a spiritual message from Genesis and accept the scientific account of Evolution
• Theistic Evolution


  The belief that they accept evolution as fact, but they believe God set the whole process in motion
• Abortion


  The removal of a foetus (a human organism in the womb before birth) from the womb before it can survive
• Abortion in England, Scotland and Wales

  • Legal before the 24th week of pregnancy if two doctors agree that the pregnancy poses a mental or physical risk to the mother or child
• Non-religious perspectives on abortion

  • Many atheists support a woman's right to choose whether she has an abortion
  • Humanists stress that maintaining a person's quality of life is more important than protecting a potential life
• Arguments about the time limit for terminating pregnancies

  • The limit should be viability - when the foetus could survive outside of the womb (usually 22-24 weeks)
  • There shouldn't be a time limit on abortions
• Christian perspectives on abortion

  • Christians are not in favour of abortion
  • They believe in the sanctity of life - the idea that all life is created by God and so it is sacred
• Sanctity of life


  • An important Christian teaching, especially for Catholics
  • Only God can decide when life begins and ends because he created it and all life is sacred
  • Christians believe that God created humans in his image and so human life should be protected
• Genesis 1:27 NIV: ''So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.''
• Catholic belief on when life begins

  • Life begins at conception
  • The Catechism of the Catholic teaches that, from conception, the foetus (unborn child) has all the rights that we have as people
• CCC 2270: ''From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person - among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life.''
• Psalm 139:16 NIV: ''Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.''
• Jeremiah 1:4-5: ''The word of the Lord came to me, saying, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."''
• Catholic perspective on abortion

  Abortion is murder and unacceptable because they believe life begins at conception
• CCC 2270: ''Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception.''
• Doctrine of double effect

  Abortion is only permitted if a moral good (e.g. saving a mother's life) involves an evil side-effect (e.g. removing a foetus that is implanted outside the womb during an ectopic pregnancy, which would threaten the mother's life) and the side-effect was not directly intended
• Other Christian perspectives on abortion

  • The Church of England is opposed to abortion but believes it is acceptable in some situations, especially to save the mother's life or in the case of serious foetal disability
  • Many others would permit it if the pregnancy began with a rape
  • The Quakers believe that a woman's life should always be protected and valued ahead of the life of the foetus
• Two Christian concepts relating to the natural world

  • Dominion
  • Stewardship
• Natural revelation


  God has revealed his presence to believers through the world
• Dominion


  Christians believe God gave them authority over creation
• Genesis 1:26: ''So that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.''
• Stewardship


  The responsibility to look after God's creation
• Christian organisations promoting stewardship

  • Christian Aid
  • Operation Noah
  • CAFOD (Catholic Agency for Overseas Development)
• Christian perspectives on animal rights

  • God has given us the right to use animals as we please (dominion)
  • We are responsible for caring for the animal world (stewardship)