redemption

• Catholics should always follow conscience-AGREE

  • Voice of god guiding them in their heart and soul, therefore you follow god "there he is alone with god, whose voice echoes in his depths" gaudium et spes
  • Guided by natural law, instinctive understanding of good and evil because we are made in the "image of God" genesis so therefore our judgements are correct
• Catholics should always follow their conscience- DISAGREE

  • People should never go against teaching despite their conscience as "should not be set in opposition to the moral law or the church magesterium" as the church has been guided by the Holy Spirit for hundreds of years and so the church is correct
  • Your conscience needs education/development so to gain knowledge, read the Bible and follow this instead of youself "Love thy neighbour" "I was hungry and you fed me"
• Resurrection is most important event- AGREE

  • Made life after death possible by destroying ultimate power of sin and death so Christians can be with God forever, hopeful NOT fearful for death as reassured after life is real "render powerless [the devil] who had the power of death"- st paul
  • No christian faith otherwise "if christ has not been raised your faith is futile and you are still in your sins" corinthians showing how it is central importance of religion because it proves Jesus is the messiah and that our sins can be forgiven through faith
• Resurrection is most important event- DISAGREE

  • Death is more important because it shows Jesus obedience to God "Not my will but yours" restored humanity's relationship with God "curtain tore in two"
  • Birth and life are more important as without there would be no resurrection and Christians would not have Jesus teaching's to follow today "blessed are the peacemakers" so we would not know how to live Christian lives/ understand God
• Eucharistic Prayer is most important part of mass- DISAGREE

  • Readings from the Gospel are more important because Old testament can show Christians God's Love and Guidance for his people and New testament shows Jesus' teachings "Love thy neighbour"
  • Communion is more important because believers receive God's grace to give them strength and guidance to resist sin and follow Jesus by binding them to Christ "This is my body"
• Eucharistic prayer is most important part of mass- AGREE

  • Bread and wine become body and blood and without this change Jesus would not be offered to God the Father on the altar, so his sacrifice would not be present and his redemption would not be ongoing "Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world"
  • Reminds Christians of last supper "Do this in memory of me" allow christians to share in Jesus final suffering make event a reality- to remember Jesus obedience and love
• The crucifix is the best reminder- AGREE

  • Reminder of the suffering Jesus endured out of love for humanity "gave his live as a ransom for many" so Christians realise how much God loves them and this is comforting
  • Inspires people to find strength in their own suffering as we empathise with Jesus as fully man. Helps Christians through times of difficulty by remembering Jesus obedience to God's will.
• The crucifix is the best reminder- DISAGREE

  • A cross / risen Christ is better because they show an important christian belief that Jesus resurrected and ascended into heaven- inspiring Christians to follow his teachings to join him in heaven "if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins"
  • A fundamentalist christian would say a crucifix disobeys the second commandment "you must not make false idols" and that such a gory image, cannot capture the divinity of Jesus
• Salvation has been completed already- Disagree

  • Catholics = salvation is ongoing as Christians share in Jesus' repeated sacrifice on the altar at mass.The communion ( "this is my body" ) fills believers with the grace + strength to resist sin and choose salvation.
  • Catholics = salvation will be completed at the end of time when the KOG is established as sin and death will be completely destroyed. believers will share in God's glory "thy kingdom come" and the mass gives a brief foretaste of the heavenly banquet (hope)
• salvation has been completed already- Agree

  • Protestants believe that because Jesus defeated the power of sin and death and the barrier with humanity "tore the curtain in two" salvation is already complete.
  • Protestants believe no one can change their salvation by doing good deeds (unlike Catholics) and that it is pre-determined so they do not worry about it "through faith, and not by their actions" (paul)
• The bible shows redemption is an ongoing process-agree

  • People have to accept redemption themselves and to do this you should take part in the ongoing evangelism of the church. This helps to share in Jesus' redemption as Jesus expects us to spread his teachings to be witnesses to "the end of the earth"
  • On Pentecost the disciples were given courage and ability by the HOLY SPIRIT to go out into the world and teach people about Jesus so they would accept his redemption. This shows how God wants all to be with him, showing love
• The bible shows redemption is an ongoing process- disagree

  • Jesus has already restored humanity through the crucifixion as he "gave his life as a ransom for many" Therefore, by having faith in Jesus and his victory over sin and death, we are redeemed. Furthermore Jesus has already restored the relationship between God and humanity as the "curtain tore in two" so we already hopeful to spend eternity with God in heaven
• Metaphors are helpful to understand Jesus' role in salvation-AGREE

  • Parallels between events are made to simplify a hard concept. St Irenaeus 'tree of the cross' . Through his acceptance of God's will ("not my will but yours be done") he restored humanity's relationship with God that was destroyed by Adam and eve.
  • Represents the importance of Jesus sacrifice to atone for our sins through concepts we know about from history. St Anselm slavery metaphor ("to give his life as a ransom for many") helps Christians understand how Jesus' sacrifice freed them from being slaves to sin.
• Metaphors are helpful in understanding Jesus' role in salvation- DISAGREE

  • Irenaeus relies too heavily on Genesis, which Catholics believe are myths now so the metaphor is not applicable to modern day. "let there be light and there was light"
  • Anselm's metaphor is confusing, implying that there is a greater figure than God that the ransom must be paid to. This is disrespectful to God's omnipotence "everything that he had made ... very good"
• The Eucharist is the most important because it is the source and summit of christian life - Agree

  • Source- perfect way to "keep the sabbath day holy" by receiving God's grace through the actual body and blood of Jesus, giving us life and the strength to resist sin
  • summit- celebrates the most important event in Christianity. Memory of Jesus sacrifice on the cross "he gave his life as a ransom for many" so highest form of prayer to God
• The Eucharist is the most important because it is the source and summit of a christian life- DISAGREE

  • Quakers and the Salvation army do not celebrate the Eucharist. They believe instead Christ is present through the holy spirit in their prayers and actions, the only sacrament they practise is life for example showing "love thy neighbour"
  • Non-conformist Christians believe that the Eucharist is not the source and summit, but a memorial of the last supper instead of Jesus sacrifice on the cross "do this in memory of me"