scientific beliefs about the origins of the universe
big bang theory –> scientific theory that god caused the world to begin from a reaction amongst particles
2 religious beliefs about the origin of the universe
- symbolic —> may not be scientifically accurate
- literal —> god created the world in 6 days and 1 rest
positives of animal experimentation - christians
- humans have dominion over creation
- ‘they may rule over other creatures’
- medically allowed –> for the preservation of human life {thomas aquinas agrees}
- human life is seen more valuable as god made ‘man in his image’
negatives of animal experimentation
- ever living thing is gods creation —> ‘communities like yourselfs’
- stewardship –> humans are put on the planet to ‘work and take care of it’
- cosmetic testing is unnecessary
positives of animal experimentation - muslim view
- god created animals for humans to use {beneficial}
- medically allowed —> humans have dominion
positives of animal experimentation - jewish view
- only allowed if there is no unnecessary pain on the animal
negatives of animal experimentation - hindu view
- ahimsa!
- ‘in truth brahman is in all’
- if you break a virtue such as ahimsa you will get bad karma —> harder to reach moksha
- ‘oh lord ganapati you are brahman’ –> elephant deity, you shouldn’t harm other animals
origins of human life - christian quotes
- ‘god is the creator of all’
- ‘god formed a man from the dust of the ground’
christian belief of stewardship
- humans responsibility to look after the world
islam belief on stewardship
- humans are representatives of god, the world does not belong to them but should be cared for
christian belief on dominion
-god made humans superior to the rest
islam belief on dominion
- humans are gods successors
christian belief on responsibility
- the world should be looked after
- creation is wonderful, evokes aware and wonder amongst the christian community
islam belief on responsibility
- the world is a gift but ultimately belongs to god
sanctity of life meaning
- the belief that life is sacred because it was created by god
quality of life meaning
- standard of living
why sanctity of life is important?
- determines religious beliefs about moral issues e.g. abortion
- means theists unconditionally value human life
- influences theists to treat others certainly e.g. do not harm/kill
christian views on the sanctity of life
- life is a gift
- god is ‘sovereign over life’
- god breathed into him, the breath of life’
muslim views on the sanctity of life
- life is sacred
- god is ‘sovereign over life’
- all life is worthy
- ‘your body is a temple of the holy spirit’
pros of abortion - christian view
- most loving thing to do e.g. mothers life at risk or baby born with disability –> ‘clothe yourself in compassion’
- sanctity of mothers life
- an additional child may cause physical of mental health of existing children in family to go bad
pros of abortion - islam view
- lesser of two evils –> it is acceptable in certain circumstances
- may have bad quality of life, cruel to put that on a child
cons of abortion - catholic views
- life begins at conception, abortion is moral evil
- it is murder —> goes against 10 commandments
- sancity of life –>. ‘before i formed you in my womb i knew you’
pros of euthanasia - christian view
- most loving thing to do
- ‘clothe yourself in compassion’
pros of euthanasia - secular argument {non-religious}
-free will —> ‘over his body and mind, the individual is soverign’
