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Religious Beliefs

Task One

In groups, identify as many religious beliefs as you can.

Make a written note of these beliefs.

Below are the main religious beliefs:

A belief in God

A belief in the soul

A belief in life after death

A belief in right and wrong

A belief in heaven and hell

Task Two

In groups, think of questions that you could ask a person

about these beliefs. Make a list of your questions. Think of

people you could interview with your questions. Invite

them for an interview and make a written record of their

responses.

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God

All the world religions (apart from Buddhism) say that

God exists. Each world religion says that God created the

universe. This means that God is all-powerful. Each world

religion also says that God is all-knowing and all-loving.

Descriptions of God can be very detailed. Islam has 99

names for God. Two of these are the Gracious and the

Sublime. One Sikh holy book lists 950 names for God.

Some of these are borrowed from Islam. Two of the most

important Sikh names for God are the Timeless and the

True.

All religions say that God is vast and sometimes

mysterious. God is often described as beyond the

imagination. This is why some religions do not show what

God is like in a picture or statue. Religions that do not have

images of God are Islam, Sikhism and Judaism. Protestant

Christians do not have images of God but Roman Catholic

Christians do. Orthodox Christians also have many

pictures of God. These religious images are called icons.

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Task Three

1) Copy out the following cloze passage. Then use the

Word Bank at the bottom of the page to complete the

passage.

Most world _________________ claim that God _____________ .

They also say that he is _____ ___________________ and _____

__________________ . God is often given names. For example,

Sikhs call God the _________________ and the _________________ .

Muslims say that God is _________________ and ______________ .

God: Word Bank~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

all-powerful Gracious Sublime True

Timeless exists all-loving religions

2) Why do some religions never have pictures of God?

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the sentence and

sentence stem: There are several reasons why some

religions do not have pictures of God. For example, .…

Icons4

Religions that use icons do so for many reasons. For

example, an icon can provide comfort. Many people keep

icons in their homes. They often treat them like a family

member. An icon can also give inspiration. Icons can also

be a source of knowledge. Icons often contain messages

about the beliefs and values of a religion. Many icons are

amongst the greatest works of art.

The religion that uses the most images for God is

Hinduism. Hindus believe that Brahman (God) is a

formless power. This power appears in many ways. These

appearances of God are called ‘avatara’. An avatar can be a

male or female or even an animal. An avatar has a

particular skill. For example, the god Shiva can be a

destroyer whereas the goddess Sarasvati is a creator.

People that believe that God exists are called theists. For

theists, the existence of God answers questions such as:

1) Where did the universe come from? 2) Is there an

intelligence that controls nature? 3) Are humans alone in

the universe?

Icons of God in Hinduism

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Icons in Christianity

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Jesus and Mary

Christ Pantocrator

Task Four

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Copy out the following cloze passage. Then use the Word

Bank at the bottom of the page to complete the passage.

Icons are used for many ____________ . They can be kept in

the __________ or else _______________ buildings. The religion

with the most icons is ___________________ . For _____________

God can _____________ in many ways. These appearances are

called ______________ . All icons contain important

information about the _____________ and _______________ of a

religion.

Word Bank

avatara home Hindus reasons values

Hinduism appear beliefs religious

Task Five

You can do a worksheet and icon on either 1) The Hindu

Goddess Maha Kali or 2) Christianity: (a) Christ

Pantocrator or (b) Jesus and the Virgin Mary (The

Hodegetria).

God as a Symbol8

Some religious people do not believe in a literal God. They

do not believe that God exists somewhere ‘out there’.

Rather, they think of God as a symbol.

The symbol of God tries to show what is most important to

us. Human beings value love and family life. For some

people this explains why God is often described as a

mother and sometimes as a father. In this way of thinking,

God personifies two things. As a mother, God represents

the natural process that gives birth to everything. God also

represents our need to be loved and nurtured. As a father,

God represents an authority figure that offers guidance

and protection.

Task Six

Copy out the following cloze passage. Then use the Word

Bank at the bottom of the page to complete the passage.

Some ________________ people think of God as a _____________ .

This means that God ____________________ what is most

important to us. Human beings need __________________ and

___________________ . This is why God is often thought of as a

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___________________ . Human beings also need to be

__________________ . This is why God is often __________________

as a mother. God as a mother and father symbolise our

first and most basic ______________ .

Word Bank

needs guidance religious protection

father imagined symbol represents nurtured

2) Using a dictionary, look up the words: (a) personify and

(b) personification. Write the meaning of these words into

your jotter.

The Soul

All world religions (except Buddhism) say that we have a

soul. The soul is not physical like our body. The soul is

spiritual. The soul is the life force behind our thoughts and

emotions. The soul enters the body at conception and

leaves at the moment of death.

Is the Brain Like a Computer?

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The ancient Greek word for the soul is ‘psyche’. The word

‘psyche’ provides us with the word ‘psychology’.

Psychology is the science of mind and behaviour.

Many psychologists think that our thoughts and emotions

come from our brain. They compare our brain to a CPU

(central processing unit) of a computer and our genes to a

computer program. Just as electricity allows a computer to

operate, the energy content of food allows human beings

to live. Just as a computer stops working properly when it

has a virus, human beings can contract a disease and

become sick. Just as a computer needs rebooting, a human

being needs to get better. Just as a computer eventually

becomes burned out, a human being becomes old and dies.

Task Seven

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Answer the following questions in as much detail as

possible.

1) What is the soul and what does it do?

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the stem: The

soul is ….

2) Do you believe that the soul exists or not? Give reasons

for your answer.

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the stem: I believe

that ….

3) Complete the following table of comparisons between a

human being and a computer:

A Human Being A Computer

Computer CPU

Genes

Electricity

Sickness and Disease

Burnout

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4) Although human beings and computers can be

compared to each other, what, if any, are the major

differences between them?

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the sentence and

sentence stem: Humans and computers are different in a

number of ways. For example, …

Life after Death

All world religions say there is life after death. Although

Buddhism claims there is no soul, it does say there is a

stream of consciousness that connects one life to the next.

For those religions that believe it exists, the soul is the

immortal essence of our personality. It survives death and

continues to exist. Even people who do not belong to a

religion sometimes believe in the soul. A person who

believes the soul exists could be called a spiritualist or a

mentalist.

The table below shows how two groups of religions have

different ideas about life after death.

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Life After Death in the World Religions

World Religions: Reincarnation:

Hinduism

Buddhism

Sikhism

A person is reborn either as

another person, animal or

spirit. Spirits can be ghosts

or gods.

World Religions: Resurrection:

Judaism

Christianity

Islam

A person is raised from the

dead to live again as

themselves in the

resurrected body of the

afterlife.

Resurrection and Reincarnation

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Many people claim there is evidence for reincarnation.

There are numerous stories of people who claim to

remember being someone else in the past. Alternatively,

where is the evidence for resurrection?

Task Eight

With the rest of the class, look at some cases of people

who claim to have been reincarnated. Assess the claims

made in these stories. Assess the claims of those who

believe in resurrection. Make some notes on what you

think is the basis of each type of claim.

1) Using a whole page of your jotter, copy out the above

table on ‘Life After Death in the World Religions’.

Answer the following questions in as much detail as

possible:

1) Why do some people claim to be reincarnated?

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the sentence and

stem: People claim to be reincarnated for many reasons.

For example, ….

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2) Why do some people believe in reincarnation?

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the sentence and

stem: People believe in reincarnation for many reasons.

For example, ….

3) Why do some people believe in resurrection?

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the stem: people

believe in resurrection because ….

Right and Wrong

All the world religions say there is a difference between

right and wrong. It is usually God who has told people the

difference between right and wrong. Every religion has

rules. Religious people believe that good consequences

come from sticking to the rules. They also believe that bad

consequences come from breaking the rules. The following

table explains these beliefs:

Heaven and Hell

World Religions: Beliefs about Heaven and Hell

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Judaism

Christianity

Islam

People who practise these religions

believe that when they die they will

be resurrected. They will then live

forever in either heaven or hell. If a

person has lived by religious rules

they will go to heaven. If a person

has broken religious rules they will

go to hell.

World Religions: Beliefs about Heaven and Hell

Hinduism

Buddhism

Sikhism

People who practise these religions

believe that heaven and hell are just

two of many places in which it is

possible to be reborn. For example, a

person in the human realm could die

and be reincarnated as a god in a

heaven realm. They could then die

and be reborn as a spirit in a hell

realm. Release from this continuous

process is known as moksha or

freedom from rebirth. This freedom

is caused by following religious

rules.

Task Nine

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1) Complete the following table in your jotter identifying

as many examples as you can:

Things my parents have told me …

… are wrong to do … are right to do

2) From the above table, choose the best piece of advice

your parents have given to you. Write it down and then

explain why it is the best piece of advice you have been

given.

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the stem: The

best piece of advice my parents have given me is …

Humanism and Religious Beliefs: God

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Some Humanists say that God is a delusion. A delusion is a

belief for which there is no evidence. Some Humanists

compare the belief in God to a belief in Father Christmas.

Others compare God to an invisible friend or a police

officer in the sky. They say that God simply does not exist.

People who say that God does not exist are atheists.

Some Humanists are agnostics. An agnostic thinks that

there isn’t enough evidence to prove that God exists or

does not exist. Agnostics say they do not know whether

God exists or not. Buddhism is an agnostic religion.

Buddhists are not concerned about whether God exists or

not. For Buddhists, God is irrelevant to what is important

about life.

Many Humanists are sceptics. A sceptic is someone who

exercises doubt. For example, a sceptic would doubt that

God exists. Theists claim that God is all-loving. However, a

sceptic would ask: then why do bad things happen to

people?

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Since bad things do happen to people a sceptic thinks that

God probably does not exist. Considerations like these

make some people very doubtful that God exists.

Humanism and Religious Beliefs: Life After

Death

Many Humanists believe that what happens after death is

a mystery. They claim that we cannot prove whether there

is life after death or not. These people are agnostics and

the position they hold is called agnosticism.

A sceptic seriously doubts there is life after death. They

might claim there is no evidence for resurrection. They

would point out that anyone who has been 100%

conclusively dead for a long time has never come back to

life. Although there appears to be some evidence for

reincarnation, a sceptic would ask why there are only a

few isolated cases of people remembering who they were

in the past. There are hundreds of millions of people in the

world but only a few that claim to remember a previous

life.

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Many Humanists who are influenced by modern science

believe that the physical body causes consciousness. They

believe that thoughts are products of the brain. These

people are called physicalists and the position they hold is

known as physicalism. Physicalists think that when a

person dies they are totally annihilated. Since physicalists

believe in the annihilation of a person at death they are

also known as nihilists. The position they hold is called

nihilism. Physicalists and nihilists believe the opposite of

mentalists or spiritualists. Mentalists or spiritualists

believe that the soul or mind is different than the body.

They believe it is indestructible and lives on after the

death of the body.

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Task Ten

Copy out and complete the cloze passage below. Use

information from pages 19, 20 and 21 to enable you to

complete this task. Do it in a pair or in in a group.

A _______________ believes in God. However, a _________________

does not believe in God. Some people think that in

religious matters knowledge is most important. They say

that they do not know whether God exists or not. These

people are called _________________ . They also claim it is

impossible to know if there is ___________ after ______________ .

A sceptic is inclined to _____________ the existence of God or

____________ after ______________ . People that believe thoughts

are caused by the brain are called ______________________ .

They think that when a person dies they are completely

destroyed. This position is known as ______________________ .

People that believe that the mind is different from the

body are called ______________________ or ______________________ .

These people also believe in life after death.

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Humanism and Religious Beliefs: Right and

Wrong

Humanists believe that evolution has provided people

with a conscience. A conscience leads people to believe

that there is a difference between right and wrong or good

and evil.

Task Eleven

1) What do you believe happens after death? Give reasons

for your answer.

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the sentence

stem: I believe that after death …

2) What do you think about the existence of God? Which

philosophical position do you think is compatible with

your own point of view? Give reasons for your answer.

Literacy advice: begin your answer with the sentence

stem: I believe that God ...

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Religious Beliefs Crossword:

Specialist Vocabulary

Clues

Down:

1) The opposite of good.

2) Someone who believes in life after death.

3) To return from death as another person, animal or

spirit.

4) The opposite of bad.

5) I say: ‘Once you’re dead, you’re dead.’

6) Supreme being.

7) I believe God is an invisible police man in the sky – in

other words, I do not believe he exists.

8) She doesn’t believe in everything she sees or hears.

9) Tells us what we should or should not do.

10) The worst anyone could possibly be.

11) The Ancient Greek word for knowledge.

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Across:

1) Raised from the dead to live again.

2) The reward for a life well-lived.

3) I believe your mind is a product of your brain.

4) A religious picture.

5) The place where people are supposed to burn and

suffer for ever!

6) The Cross, the Khanda and the Star of David etc.

7) Someone who believes that God exists.

8) The indestructible essence of a person.

9) Someone who sees insufficient evidence for and

insufficient evidence against a belief or position.

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