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RE UNIT 3.2 - MATTERS OF LIFE AND DEATH (Why Catholics believe in life…
RE UNIT 3.2 - MATTERS OF LIFE AND DEATH
Why Catholics believe in life after death and how this affects their lives
Why they believe in life after death:
Resurrection - main Christian belief in Gospels + New Testament - proves life after death
St. Paul teaches people will have resurrection like Jesus
Creeds - teach Jesus rose from the dead + there will be life after death
Catechism - teaches there's life after death - teaching of Magisterium
Gives lives meaning + purpose
How beliefs about life after death affect the lives of Catholics:
If they live a good Catholic life they'll get to heaven - live good lives + follow teaching to be able to do this
Living a good Catholic life - means following 2 greatest commandments - lives affected by trying to love God, praying + attending mass
Sheep + goats - Catholics should feed hungry, clothe naked, befriend strangers, visit the sick + those in prison.
Taught in Good Samaritan loving your neighbour meant helping anyone in need - means some Catholics work for CAFOD etc.
Believe sin prevents people from going to heaven - those who die with unforgiven sins will go to purgatory. Catholics try to avoid committing sins so they'll go to heaven
How and why CAFOD is trying to remove the causes of world poverty
How CAFOD is trying to end world poverty
Development programs
Opening clinics + training health workers
Helping to give street children an education so they earn a living
Helping set up savings schemes + different farming projects so subsistence framers aren't wiped out by natural disasters
Disasters + emergencies
CAFOD has a disaster fund - send food, antibiotics + shelters to victims of natural disasters + war refugees
Raise public awareness of the causes of poverty
Speak out on behalf of the poor communities
Why CAFOD is trying to end world poverty
New Testament - riches must be used to help others - especially the poor
Parable of Sheep + Goats - feeding hungry + clothing the naked is like feeding + clothing Jesus himself - Catholics want to help Jesus so help the poor + suffering
Parable teaches helping the poor = way to heaven - Catholics want to get to heaven
Sermon on the Mount - Jesus said Christians should share time + money to help the poor
Catholic Church teaches Christians have a duty to help the poor - shown by Pope
Golden Rule = treat others the way you want to be treated - everyone would want to be helped if they were starving
The nature of abortion
By law - only allowed if 2 doctors agree:
Mother's life is at risk
Mother's physical or mental health is at risk
Child would be born severely handicapped
Would be serious effect on other children in the family
Can't be carried out after 24 weeks - unless mother's life at risk or child is severely handicapped
Controversial because:
Many believe life begins at contraception - abortion is taking a life
Many people believe life begins when foetus is able to live outside mother - abortion is not taking a life
Many non-religious people believe a woman should have the right to do what she wants with her body - might say an unwanted foetus is no different from an unwanted tumour
Many religious people believe the unborn child's right to life is greater than the mother's rights
Some argue the limit should be reduced to 18 or 20 weeks due to medical advances
Arguments about whether staff should have to carry out abortions
Non-religious reasons for believing in life after death
Near-death experiences
When someone is clinically dead for a time then comes back to life + remembers what happened
Research - 8% have them
Main features of an experience: floating above the body, peace, seeing a bright light, entering a heavenly place, seeing a dead relative
If these experiences are true - must be life after death
Evidence for a spirit world
Think ghosts + ouija boards are evidence for a spirit world - clearest evidence is from mediums
Medium = person who claims to be able to communicate w/ material + spirit world where spirits of the dead live
Mediums in all countries + religions
Claim religious like Jesus + Muhammad were in tough with the spirit world
Claim the spirit world gives people a 2nd chance at life
Contact people's dead relatives
If they can contact the dead - must be life after death
Evidence of reincarnation
Hindus, Sikhs + Buddhists believe in reincarnation - have evidence
If reincarnation is true - there's life after death
Why some people do not believe in life after death
If there's no God - no spirit world for life or after death to happen
Different religions contradict each other about life after death. If it was true - they'd all same the same
Evidence based on holy books - they contradict each other - no way of deciding which one is right
Evidence of near-death experiences, reincarnation + mediums has been questioned by scientists
Beliefs about life after death think mind or soul can exist without the body - science shows the mind can't live without the body - when brain dies - mind must also die
No place where life after death could take place - space journeys show heaven isn't above sky
People brought up by atheists won't believe in life after death
The nature of euthanasia
British laws say all forms of Euthanasia are murder - law now agrees passive euthanasia (stopping artificial feeding or not giving treatment) not euthanasia so is lawful
Many people want euthanasia to remain illegal because:
Likely to be doubt about whether it's really what they want
The disease might not have killed them - a cure could've become available
Job of doctors to save lives not end them. Would we trust doctors who've killed patients?
People might change their mind when it's too late
Who would check it was only people who really wanted + needed euthanasia who died?
Many people want euthanasia to be made legal because:
Discoveries in medicine mean people who would've died are being kept alive in agony + should have the right to die
Doctors have the right to switch off life support machines if they think the patient has not chance of recovering + allow people who have been in a coma for years to die so euthanasia is already legal
People have the right to commit suicide so why not give them the right to ask doctors to assist them if they can't do it alone
Doctors can now switch off life support machines so judges have said doctors can stop treatment
Christian attitudes to euthanasia
Catholics and many Liberal Protestants:
Assisted suicide, voluntary euthanasia + non-voluntary euthanasia are all wrong
Believe switching off life support and not giving treatment that could cause distress and giving dying people painkillers that may shorten their life are not euthanasia
Think this because:
Believe in sanctity of life - life is created by God so it's up to God not humans when people die
Regard euthanasia as murder which is forbidden in the 10 commandments
If doctors say someone is brain-dead they are already dead so switching off machines is accepting what God has decided
Double effect: if you give painkillers to a dying person in great pain + they kill the person it's not murder because your intention was to remove the pain not kill them
Some Christians:
Any form of euthanasia is wrong including switching off life support, the refusal of extraordinary treatment or giving large doses of painkillers
Think this because:
Take the Bible teachings literally + the Bible forbids suicide
Euthanasia includes switching off life support, the refusal of extraordinary treatment + large doses of painkillers -> life is being ended by humans not God
All forms of euthanasia are murder - banned by 10 commandments
Believe life should be sacred + only taken by God. Bible says life + death decisions belong to God alone
A few Christians accept euthanasia is certain circumstances because:
Medical advances means it's hard to know what God's wishes about someone's death are. God may want someone to die but doctors are keeping them alive
Teaching of Jesus on loving your neighbour can be used to justify assisted suicide - might be the most loving thing to do
Basic human right to have control over your body + what people do to it - people have a right to refuse medical treatment so why not a right to ask for euthanasia
How an issue from matters of life and death has been presented in one form of media
Holby City - Euthanasia
Why the issue was chosen
Outline of how the issue was presented
Whether the presentation treated religious beliefs fairly
Whether the presentation treated religious people fairly
The media and matters of life and death
Arguments that the media should not be free to criticise what religions say about matters of life and death
Some people say criticising what religions say on life and death are a form of stirring up religious hatred - banned by Racial+Religious Hatred Act 2007
Believers think the freedom of the media should be limited because of the offence criticism of religious attitudes can bring
Believers think criticising what religious leaders say about life and death is close to the crime of blasphemy
Some religious people feel religious statements are based on what God says + so are beyond human criticism
Arguments that the media should be free to criticise what religions say about matters of life and death
Freedom of expression is a basic human right - needed for democracy to work. Before people vote - need to know what's going on in own country. Need free media + if media have freedom of expression they must be free to criticise religious attitudes on life + death
If religious leaders use media to make statements about matters of life + death - must be prepared for media to criticise the statements
In multi-faith society - must be freedom of religious belief + expression so media must have the right to question + criticise religious beliefs
Life + death issues are important to everyone - people want to know the right view - would be difficult if religions were allowed to put forward ideas no one could criticise
Causes of world poverty
Natural disasters
Many LEDCs - situated in areas of the world where natural disasters can destroy thousands of homes + farmland on which people depend
Debt
Most LEDCs have to borrow money from banks of developed countries to survive + start to develop. Amount of interest they have to pay can make countries poorer
Wars
Many LEDCs - badly affected by wars. Wars destroy: homes, crops, schools + hospitals causing more poverty. Force people to leave homes + become refuges in other safer countries - neighbouring countries may have been developing but sudden arrival of refugees with no money or food can make country poor again
Unfair Trade
World trade - controlled by rich countries of the world - decide prices paid for products from LEDCs. Eg. Rich countries pay grants to own farmers to grow crops + put high taxes on imported crops from LEDCs so those products are more expensive
HIV/AIDS
Disease kills many people in LEDCs - loss of so many earners + the growing numbers of orphans are causing many poor countries to become poorer
Other Factors
Lack of education means young people in LEDCs have few or no skills
Lack of clean, fresh water leads to disease, short life expectancy + large families
Different Christian attitudes to abortion
Catholic Church - all abortion is wrong whatever the circumstances. Think this because:
Life belongs to God - only he has the right to end pregnancy
Life begins at conception so it's taking a life - banned in 10 Commandments
Follow Catechism - abortion = murder
Counselling, help + adoption - alternatives to abortion for women pregnant because of rape - good can come from evil in a new life
Other Christians/Liberal Protestants - disagree with abortion but think it must be allowed in some circumstances. Think this because:
Life doesn't begin at conception
Jesus's command to love your neighbour means it's the duty of Christians to remove suffering which abortion does
Sanctity of life can be broken in things like war so why not in abortion
If doctors have developed tests for certain medical conditions in unborn babies - parents should be allowed abortions if such tests show their baby would be born with serious medical problems