In this course we will cover: Why believe in God? What do Catholics believe about God What is the source of these beliefs What do others believe about God
How we will learn it Follow the course of Old Testament and the New Testament to see what that reveals about our understanding of God.
Not important to me as far as this course is concerned We need to learn what the Catholic perspective is to understand how this is to affect our lives Many misconceptions are out in the world Eradication of myths and misunderstandings
First Do you believe in a God? If asked people will fall somewhere on this spectrum ____________________________________ 100% convinced 100% deny existence Most people would fall somewhere in here
DDo you believe God is equivalent to believing in this guy?
WWhat form does this God take? IIs it like this? aa traditional view of the appearance and nature of God
Science explains everything to us Nothing to fear in the world Hasn’t done anything for me lately No proof I have something else to believe in
People who believe in God do bad things The God Delusion Richard Dawkins #
Atheists can be happy, balanced, moral, and intellectually fulfilled. Natural selection and similar scientific theories are superior to a "God hypothesis"—the illusion of intelligent design—in explaining the living world and the cosmos. Children should not be labelled by their parents' religion. Terms like "Catholic child" or "Muslim child" should make people cringe. Atheists should be proud, not apologetic, because atheism is evidence of a healthy, independent mind.
Miracles are improbable build a case that there is almost certainly no God Dawkins quotes Adams' Last Chance to See: "Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?".
Often today “science people” use un-scientific rationale to justify a position Abortion debate My position vs. my friends position
Galileo and Church Stem cell research and church Flat earth v round earth Rationalism vs religious belief Scripture v scientific inquiry
Creation vs logic Theology: Science of religion dealing with knowledge of God as gained from his works by light of nature and reason
Did God really make the world in seven days?
For example: Book of Genesis (chapters 6-9) To find what is true in the world.
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Objective Truths: reality as it exists independent of observer ex.) Earth’s existence Aka Knowable Truths or Absolute truths Subjective Truths: mental representation/ model that we build of the objective world Aka Experiences or relativism Does not equal opinion
GOD is… ◦ Love ◦ Justice ◦ TRUTH ◦ If morality is based on truth then morality is objective/absolute NOT subjective ◦ Truth comes from God therefore it cannot be changed
Validity: How accurate your experience is to the knowable truth Your world view is your subjective truth. My morality vs ‘others’ morality
Ex. 500 years ago I could I said the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. But you say the sun isn’t moving but the earth is moving and the sun is fixed. Based on my experience and knowledge what you say is difficult to understand yet you may be right. Now we know that the sun being fixed is indeed correct but my theory appeared to be correct based on my experience (subjective reality) Therefore, the truth (objective reality) did not change but our perspective (validity) changed.
Is it wrong always and forever? Is it wrong but under these circumstances it may be justified or required. Is there a problem with either stand?