THEOLOGY

Unit 1

I . BASIC TERMINOLOGY

1. Agnostic – In the Greek, the alpha letter was at times attached to a word to mean “without or not.” Gnostic comes from the Greek word gnosis, which means knowledge. Thus, an agnostic is someone who believes persons do not have access to certain knowledge, especially in relation to theology and other spiritual questions.

2. Atheism – Atheism technically refers to someone who is without god or who does not believe in god.

3. Cosmology – This term is made up of two words (cosmos – universe; logia – word or reason). As a result, this term refers to the study of the universe, especially matters dealing with its origin.

I. BASIC TERMINOLOGY

4. Monotheism – This term is made up of two words (mono – one; theism – belief about God). Consequently, monotheism is the belief is one God.

5. Pantheism – This term is made up of two words (pan – all, everything; theism – belief about God). For this reason, pantheism refers to the belief that everything is god.

6. Polytheism – This term is made up of two words (poly – many; theism – belief about God). Thus, polytheism refers to the belief in many gods.

I. BASIC TERMINOLOGY

7. Teleology - the study of design or purpose in nature.

8. Theology – This term is made up of two Greek words (theos – God; logia – word or reason). Consequently, theology refers to the study of God

LEARNING ACTIVITY1. ______ – The belief is one God.

2. _______ - the study of design or purpose in nature.

3. _______ – This term refers to the study of God

4. _______ – This term refers to the belief that everything is god.

5. _______ – Someone who believes persons do not have access to certain

knowledge, especially in relation to theology and other spiritual questions.

6. ______ – Atheism technically refers to someone who is without god or who

does not believe in god.

7. _______ – This term refers to the study of the universe, especially matters

dealing with its origin.

8. _______ – This term refers to the belief in many gods

HOMEWORK QUESTIONS

Questions 13

Skeptical Children's Book

HOMEWORK QUESTIONS

Questions 14 "I now believe that the universe was brought into existence by an infinite Intelligence. I believe that this universe's intricate laws manifest what scientists have called the Mind of God. I believe that life and reproduction originate in a divine Source . . . Why do I believe this, given that I expounded and defended

atheism for more than a half century? The short answer is this: this is the world picture, as I see it, that has emerged from modern science. Science

spotlights three dimensions of nature that point to God. The first is the fact that nature obeys laws. The second is the dimension of life, of intelligently

organized and purpose-driven beings, which arose from matter. The third is the very existence of nature. But it is not science alone that has guided me. I have

also been helped by a renewed study of the classical philosophical arguments . . . I must stress that my discovery of the Divine has proceeded on a purely

natural level, without any reference to supernatural phenomena. It has been an exercise in what is traditionally called natural theology. In short, my discovery

of the Divine has been a pilgrimage of reason and not of faith."Anthony Flew

(There is a God: How the World’s Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind)

HOMEWORK QUESTIONS

Questions 18“Religion is the sigh of the oppressed, the sentiment of a heartless world, as it is the spirit of spiritless conditions. It is the opium of the people.”

HOMEWORK QUESTIONS

Questions 21-22

OUT ON A LIMB

HOMEWORK QUESTIONS

Questions 28

II. THEOLOGIES

Christianity1. Christians adhere to Trinitarian Monotheism – the belief that one God exists in three persons.2. Christians believe that God reveals Himself via general revelation and special revelation.3. The Bible is the main source of influence for Christians.

J.C. Ryle – “Let us receive nothing, believe nothing, follow nothing

which is not in the Bible, nor can be proved by the Bible.”

II. THEOLOGIES

Christianity – The Formation of the Trinity• Normative Christians embrace the

Trinity because the Bible upholds the following three affirmations:• 1 – The Oneness of God• 2 – Diversity in Unity• 3 – Three Distinct Persons Partake

of the Divine.

II. THEOLOGIES1) The Oneness of God

• The Israelites were adamant on avoiding the polytheism of their pagan neighbors.• Deut 6:4 – Hear, O Israel: The Lord

our God, the Lord is one.• Is. 45:5 – I am the Lord, and there is

no other; There is none besides me. • Monotheism is also upheld in the New

Testament.• 1 Tim. 2:5 – For there is one God and

one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus

II. THEOLOGIES2) Diversity within Unity

• Does the concept of oneness rule out Trinitarianism? When we look at Scripture, this is not the case; many times oneness includes, or even requires, multiplicity. • Example

• When a couple marries, the two become “one flesh” (Gen. 2:24). This oneness does not exclude but actually requires two distinct persons. Also, the same word for “one” is use in Deut. 6:4.

• Israel’s one tabernacle was composed of many parts (10 curtains, fifty loops, etc.).

II. THEOLOGIES2) Diversity within Unity

• Gen 1:26 – God said, “Let Us make man in our image.” • It is very unlikely that the Us refers to angelic hosts

because only man was created in the imago dei. Thus, this is referring to the triune Godhead.

• Ps. 110:1 – The Lord says to my Lord; sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.

• Matt. 28:19 – baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit. • Name = Singular• Father, Son, and Holy Spirit = plural

• John 1:1 – The Word was with God, and the Word was God.

II. THEOLOGIES3) Three Distinct Persons Partake of the Divine.

• Father – undisputed• Son

• Mark 2 – Jesus claimed to be able to forgive sins• John 1:1 – The Word was with God, and the Word was God.• John 8:58 – Before Abraham was born, I am.

• Holy Spirit• Equal with God - Acts 5:3-4 - But Peter said, Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the

Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land? While it remained, was it not your own? and after it was sold, was it not in your own power? why have you conceived this thing in your heart? you have not lied unto men, but unto God (also see 1 Cor. 6:19)

• Personal – • 1) The Holy Spirit has intellect..

• 1 Corinthians 2:10 - But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

• 2) The Holy Spirit has knowledge. • 1 Corinthians 2:11 - even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

• 3) The Holy Spirit has emotions. • Ephesians 4:30 - And grieve (to make sad or sorrowful, heavy of heart) not the holy Spirit of God, whereby

ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.• 4) The Holy Spirit has his own will and he makes decisions.

• Acts 16:6 - Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia (pronounced froog-ee'-ah) and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,

• 5) The Holy Spirit Loves. • Romans 15:30 - Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the

Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me;

II. THEOLOGIES

Question: Is the Trinity a contradiction or a mystery?

• Law of non-contradiction – something cannot be x and non-x at the same time in the same way.

• Mystery - anything that is kept secret or that cannot be fully explained.

II. THEOLOGIESPractical Applications

• 1) God is internally a relational God, but the fellowship within the Trinity is absolutely pure. We ought to avoid isolation, and we should pursue pure fellowship with others.

• 2) The being of God demonstrates holy diversity. Our churches and lives ought to strive for various expressions of biblical truth. Also, we ought to be multi-cultural insofar as the cultural practices conform to Scripture.

• 3) Each person within the Trinity is equally divine, yet they perform various roles. Christians ought to encourage each member of the body of Christ to use his or her gifts to the glory of God.

II. THEOLOGIES Islam

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp72RTyCad8http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M27spDwM7zY

1. The word Islam means “submission.”2. Muslims believe in Unitarian Monotheism - the belief that one God exists in one person.3. The Pillars of Islam

• a. The Confession – There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet• b. Prayer – Muslims are commissioned to pray 5 times, facing Mecca. • c. Ramadan – During this period, Muslims are expected to fast food, smoking, and sex

during daylight hours.• d. Almsgiving – Muslims are expected to give 2.5% of their annual income to the poor. • e. Pilgrimage – Every Islamic believer is obligated to travel to Mecca at least one time in his

or her lifetime.

II. THEOLOGIES4. There are three prime sources that Influence Islamic thought.

• a. Qur’an • b. Hadith • c. Sunna •

5. The Concept of Jihad• Jihad - means holy war. This concept is primarily

used in two ways.

II. THEOLOGIES Marxism

1. Marxists embrace atheism. The idea of God is an enemy to progress.2. The Communist Manifesto (1848) is the Bible of the Marxists. It was written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.  *Ludwig Feuerbach – “It is clear as the sun and evident as the day that there is no God; and still more, that there can be no God.”

*Frederick Engels – “We have once and for all declared war on religion and religious ideas and care little whether we are called atheists or anything else.”

*V.I. Lenin – “Religion is opium for the people. Religion is a sort of spiritual booze …”

II. THEOLOGIES

Secular Humanists1. Secular Humanists embrace atheism. 2. Participants in this camp are humanists. Humanism is the belief that humans are the highest of all beings; thus, science and rationality are the best sources to utilize in one’s quest for truth. 3. This view has been greatly influenced by the Humanist Manifestos (1933, 1973, and 2000).

• Humanist Manifesto I - “The time has passed for theism.” • Humanist Manifesto II - “We find insufficient evidence for belief in the existence of a

supernatural; it is either meaningless or irrelevant to the question of the survival and fulfillment of the human race. As non-theists, we begin with humans not God, nature not deity . . . No deity will save us; we must save ourselves.”

4. A current Secular Humanist voice is the Free Inquiry, a magazine for skeptics and non-theists.

II. THEOLOGIES

Postmodernists1. Postmodernists are practical atheists.

2. Because Postmodernists reject universal truth-claims, they embrace religious pluralism.

II. THEOLOGIES

Pre-Modern Era-Most individuals in this era believed that the ultimate sources of truth to describe reality are the Bible and the Church.

Modern Era-Many persons in this era believed that the ultimate sources of truth to describe reality are reason and science. These individuals believe that you cannot make truth-claims about religion, but you can make truth-statements about science.

Postmodern Era-Many persons in this camp believe that revelation, science, and reason are all fallible sources. They do not believe you can make truth-claims in any field of study.

3. The Evolution of Postmodernism

4. Postmodernists believe that theological expressions should be expressed in communities, but they reject all metanarrative claims. 5. Postmodernists are deconstructionists. Desconstruction is a fairly recent interpretive method; this method allows the reader to determine the meaning of any given text (window versus mirror).

II. THEOLOGIES

II. THEOLOGIES Cosmic Humanism

1. Cosmic Humanists embrace pantheism. They believe that everything is god, and god is everything.2. This worldview is also referred to as the New Age movement.

• Kevin Ryerson – “What is God? God is the interlinking of yourself with the whole.”

• David Spangler – “We can take all the scriptures, and all the teachings, and all the tablets, and all the laws, and all the marshmallows and have a jolly good bonfire and marshmallow roast, because that is all they are worth.”

• John White – “Sooner or later every human being will feel a call from the cosmos to ascend to godhood.”

• George Lucas, produce of Star Wars, said the following in an interview: “With Star Wars, I consciously set about to re-create myths and the classic mythological motifs. I wanted to use those motifs to deal with issues that exist today … I see Star Wars as taking all the issues that religion represents and trying to distill them down into a more modern and easily accessible construct … I’m telling an old myth in a new way.”