Re Paper 1 Catholic Christianity

• The Trinity


  God is a Trinity of three persons in one God
• The Trinity


  • Three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit)
  • Each person is fully God
  • Each person is distinct from the other persons
• The Nicene Creed: 'Declares the belief in the Trinity'
• The Trinity features in baptism and the celebration of the Eucharist today
• The Nicene Creed is both an individual declaration of faith and a shared statement that unites Catholics as one body and Church
• Revelation


  Something that is revealed by God to humans
• The Trinity reveals something of the mystery of God to Catholics


  • Outside as Father and creator
  • Beside as Son and saviour
  • Inside as strengthening Holy Spirit
• The unity and oneness of God is an idea made clear in the Old Testament
• It is also part of the Great Commandment given by Jesus
• The Father is God


  Our father who art in heaven
• The Son is God


  The Word became flesh
• The Holy Spirit is God


  The Spirit of God descending like a dove
• Baptism ceremony


  Using water performed in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
• Eucharist sacrament


  1. Begins with sign of the Cross

  2. Eucharistic prayer gives thanks to God and makes Son present in the consecrated bread and wine through the Holy Spirit
• The student answer is currently worth 3 marks as it is a developed point plus a source of wisdom and authority
• John's Gospel makes it clear that the word was made flesh, which means that Jesus as the Son of God shows a clear oneness of these two aspects of the Trinity
• Doctrine


  A formal statement of belief held by the Church
• The doctrine of the Trinity


  • Found in the Creed
  • Revealed all persons of the Trinity in the same moment at the baptism of Jesus
  • Disagreement about Jesus' nature ended by the Council of Nicaea
  • Belief in the Holy Spirit as God affirmed by the Council of Constantinople
• Apostolic Tradition


  Teaching and doctrine passed on from the earliest times through the Catholic Church
• Creed


  A formal expression of what the Church believes
• History of the doctrine of the Trinity


  1. Old Testament - Teaching of One God

  2. Life of Jesus - Trinity revealed

  3. Arian controversy - Jesus claimed not to be God

  4. Early Church - Trinity lived experience

  5. Council of Nicaea - Nicene Creed written

  6. Council of Constantinople - Belief in Trinity affirmed
• Baptism of Jesus


  • The Spirit of God descending like a dove, and a voice from heaven saying "This is my beloved Son"
• The Trinity is the most essential belief about God
• The doctrine of the Trinity is found in the Creed
• Not everything was written down in the Bible, particularly about the early Church
• The Apostolic Tradition is the teaching and doctrine passed on from the earliest times through the Catholic Church
• A creed is a formal expression of what the Church believes
• Creeds were originally written to formally correct a mistake in teaching
• Accounts of Creation in Genesis


  • Genesis 1:1-2:3
  • Genesis 2:4-3:23
• Word (Logos)


  Role in the process of creation described in John's Prologue
• Catholics believe God created the universe and only God has the power to do this
• Creation in Genesis 1:1-2:3


  1. God created the universe in six days and rested on the seventh

  2. Day 1: Light, dark

  3. Day 2: Water, sky

  4. Day 3: Land, plants
• Creation in Genesis 2:4-3:23


  1. God said Adam and Eve could eat fruit from all trees but one

  2. God said if Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would have to leave the garden

  3. Adam and Eve were tempted by the snake to eat the fruit from the forbidden tree

  4. Adam and Eve became afraid and hid from God

  5. Adam and Eve had to leave the garden
• Divergent Christian interpretations of the Creation accounts

  • Literal interpretation
  • Metaphorical interpretation
• Literal interpretation


  • The Creation accounts are an exact retelling of how Creation occurred, a word for word truth
  • Genesis is a historical and scientific account
  • This view is often called Creationism
• Metaphorical interpretation


  • The Creation accounts are symbolic, sacred stories
  • Genesis is a meditation on the nature and purpose of the universe
  • This view incorporates modern science
• Most Catholics see the Creation stories as metaphorical and use science to help them understand the universe better
• Significance of the Creation account for Catholics


  • It reveals God as Creator
  • It reveals God as benevolent (loving and good)
  • It reveals God as omnipotent (all powerful)
  • It reveals God as eternal
• Catholics believe human beings alone are created in the image of God
• Imago Dei (in the image of God)


  Humans have a conscience and can relate to God