Christian Denominations

- Methodist
- Anglican
- Catholic
- Eastern Orthodox
- Baptist
- Orthodox
- Protestant
- Mormons

Similarities of different traditions

- God exists ad created the world and looks after it

- God’s creation is good
- People have been given free will to make their own choices
- Free will was abused bringing sin into the world
- Jesus by his example and sacrificial death provides a way to salvation
- The bible is in some respect the ‘word of God’
- The world will end, and God will judge it

The Bible

- Main source of Christian ethics

- Includes New and Old Testament
- Old Testament consists of the Torah, Histories and Prophets
- New Testament consists of Gospels, Epistles and Revelation
- The Bible was originally written in Greek

Three Main ways of Interpreting Scripture

1. Fundamentalist: The Bible is literally true, and it contains no error; it is the only viable source
of authority for Christians
2. Conservative: The Bible is written by humans, but inspired by God, it is truthful about Jesus
and ethics, but it may have been influenced by its time
3. Liberal: The Bible is written by humans who may provide insight into God, there could be
errors in the Bible, and some texts are outdated

How do Christians use the Bible?

- Sermons
- Personal Use
- Private Meditation
- Readings in Services
- In Groups

Authority in the Church of England

- Moral decisions are decided by: Scripture, Reason and Tradition

- Authoritative figures in the Church of England use their reason to interpret Bible Scripture
and Tradition
 Conscience

- Our gut feeling, innate sense of right or wrong

- Can be influenced by our emotions
- Christians believe our conscience comes from God, and is the ‘law written on our hearts’
- Imago Dei, Genesis 1:27
- The Roman Catholic Church believes that it is our moral duty to perform our conscience
- Sigmund Freud believed that conscience is not from God, and suggested three structures of
our human mind: the Super Ego, the Ego, and the Id
- Freud believed that our conscience develops overtime, and its guilt feeling comes from the
super ego
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer believed that conscience pretends to be the voice of God, and we
should not follow itS

Ordained Ministry

- Ordination is the trainings and ceremonies a person must go through to become a religious
leader
- Sacraments are the Christian rites of passage which infer some blessing or grace on the
believer
- Roman Catholics believe that only men can be ordained, Priests cannot marry, there is a
hierarchy of Bishops, Priests and Deacons, and that these people have been chose by God to
perform the seven Sacraments
- Protestants believe that both men and women can be ordained, and Clergies can marry;
they reject the office of Bishops (as it is non-biblical)
- Protestants also allow lay people to play an active role in worship, whereas Roman Catholics
believe that lay people have little say in its running\

Roles of Religious Leaders in the Community

- Lead communities between Christians and non-Christians

- Perform Charitable Endeavours (e.g., Food banks, homeless shelters)
- Hold wedding, funerals, and baptisms
- Hold positions in local councils, or are the governors of schools