Year 11Edexcel Unit J

Revision

J1- Beliefs and values

Christians believe in the trinity.

This means that they believe there are three persons in

the one God.

1.1 God as unity and trinityChristians believe in one God.

This is called monotheism.

God is the creator and therefore the father of everything that exists.

Jesus, who came down to earth and died on the cross to save people from sin, is

the Son of God..

The Holy Spirit is the presence of God on earth.

Meaning and importance of God as trinity.

• Christians believe that the trinity is a way of describing what God is like and the different powers he has. If you take away one of the three parts, then some of the essential part of God would be missing.

• For example, without “the son” Christians would have no means to have their sins forgiven. Without the Holy Spirit, God’s presence couldn’t be felt.

Why do Christians believe in the trinity?

There is evidence

of the trinity at work in the Old

Testament.

When Jesus was baptised, God the Father and the Holy spirit were present.

When Jesus commissioned the disciples he told them to go and baptise in the name of the

Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.

Official Teaching

The Trinity is the key teaching of the Church. All the creeds and the Catechism

speak of one God in three persons.

Old Testament

Jesus’ Baptism

Disciples Job description

EXAM QUESTION TIME!!!

Explain why Christians believe in the trinity. (8 marks)

Include:

•Old Testament•Baptism of Jesus•Catechism of the Church •Creeds•Jesus

1.2 God the Father

Jesus wanted his followers to see God as their Father, as someone who will always look after them. He taught them to pray to God using

these words....”Our Father, who art in heaven.....”.

“Right, let’s go from the top, all together now... Our Father, who art in heaven.....”

Our father..

Our father..

Our father.. Our

father..

Why God is important for Christians

Christians see God as their

Father because he created everyone.

Jesus said we should pray to God as

“Our Father.”

Christians also call God their Father because he treats people

the way a Father treats his children: caring, forgiving, rules

to guide us

Christians believe we are all brothers and sisters and members of God’s

family.

1.3 God the creator

• Creationists think that the story of creation in the Bible is literally true and that the world was created in 6 days less that 10,000 years ago.

• Most Catholics accept that theuniverse came into existence about 10 billion years ago but many think it came about as a result of a “big bang”. They still believe that God is the creator by setting off the “big bang”.

Did God create the world?

Give two reasons for your answer.

I think the universe was created by God because...

• Cause and effect argument:Everything that exists has been caused by something else

• Design argument:The world is so well designed and so beautiful. It must have been

designed by someone with great intelligence.

Why is God as creator important for Christians

Creation shows that God is all-powerful

(omnipotent)

He created people to be “stewards” of the earth, therefore we

should care for God’s creation.

God created everything and everyone for a special

purpose so therefore we should trust in God.

God created all life, it’s sacred and should be

respected.

God created humans in his image so they

are a particularly important part of

creation.

It states in the Apostles Creed that God is the creator of Heaven and earth.

1.4 & 1.5 Jesus, the Son of God

Jesus is God because his father is God. At the same time, he is human because his mother, Mary was human and she gave birth to Jesus in a

physical sense.

This is known as the incarnation.

It is essential for Christians that Jesus was the Son of God

because....

• It meant that when Jesus told people that their sins were forgiven, he hadthe authority to do that.

• It meant that Jesus’ teachings about how to live a good life came from God.• It gives meaning to Jesus’ death and resurrection. He had the power to come back from the dead, therefore it proved he was God’s son.

• It also means Jesus lives with us now and for eternity.

God showed love for the world, by allowing

His son to die.

Jesus died to save everyone from sin so all people have been

given salvation.

God alone has the power to rise from the

dead, so Jesus’ resurrection proves Jesus is God’s son..

Jesus rose from the dead therefore

Christians are given hope of life after death.

Jesus is present in the world today when

Christians celebrate the Eucharist.

40 days after Jesus’ resurrection, he took his apostles up onto a mountain and they watched as he

ascended to heaven. They were frightened at first, but Jesus promised that he would send the Holy

Spirit to guide them and give them courage.It is part of Christian belief that he now sits at the right hand of the Father and at the end of time, he will come again to judge the living and the dead.

Christians believethe Holy Spirit is

God acting in the world

today.

The Holy Spirit helps

make us better

people. We develop

qualities like love and kindness

Christians believe that they can call

upon the Holy Spirit

for guidance and

courage.

Catholicsbelieve the Holy

Spirit guides the leaders of the Church, so

they can look to the Church

when they want to know what

God wants them to do .

1.7 Salvation from sin

Sin is an action which is going against God’s rules. Catholics

believe that if we die without our sins being forgiven, we may go to

purgatory or even hell.

Purgatory is a temporary place of purification to which people with unforgiven sins go to.

Hell is a place of eternal punishment reserved for those who die having committed serious sins for which they have not shown repentance.

Salvation means being saved from sins. Jesus brought the possibility of salvation to humans by dying on the cross. We can now put things right

and ask God for forgiveness through the act of confession.

Salvation is important to Christians because...• they will have eternal life inheaven.

• It must be what God has planned for the world because He had hisown son suffer so that salvation was possible.

• It encourages Christians to livegood lives and behave in a loving way.

Why is loving God so important for Christians.

Jesus taught that loving God was the most

important commandment.

Through the love of God, Christians can hope

for eternal life.

Through the love of God, Christians can find

inspiration and strength to help others to make the

world a better place.

1.8 The importance of loving God

All the Christian Churches teach that love of God is

fundamental to the Christian faith

Through talking to him regularly through prayer

Through learning more about him by reading the Bible and

attending Church.

Through following the teachings of the Bible and the Church.

Through living their lives as God wants them to.

1.9 Christian teaching on loving others.

• Christians put loving others alongside loving God as the greatest of all the commandments.• Jesus taught what “loving others” means using examples such as The Good Samaritan and The sheep and the Goats.• Jesus demanded that his followers always think of others and help others.• Christians who show love for others will be rewarded by going to heaven.• Loving others is a way in which we can show love for God.

1.10 How religious communities express their love

of God.

Taize is a village in central France that is home to a community of monks. It began with Brother Roger in 1940. He helped many

refugees during and after the 2nd world war.

The rules for the communityincluded:1. Celibacy2. Sharing of

material goods

3. Obedience4. Silence at

meals.

Each year tens of thousands of young people, aged 17-30 go there to share

in their way of life.Worship, prayer

and reflection are at the heart of the Taize community.

J1 Keywords

Atonement Catechism

Trinity

Faith

Compassion

Salvation

Creeds

Unity

repentance

Virgin Birth

Monotheism

Incarnation

SAMPLE EXAM PAPER:

(a) What is monotheism? (2 marks)

(b) Should God be described as father?

(4 marks) Give two reasons for your answer.

(c) Explain why Christians believe in the trinity. (8 marks)

(d) “God created the world in six days”.

In your answer you should refer to Catholic Christianity.

(i) Do you agree? Give reasons for your opinion

(3 marks)

(ii) Give reasons why some people may disagree with you.

(3 marks)