Studies of Religion



1 Unit Studies of Religion HSC Course

Christianity Depth Study Pre-Test

Name: ___________________________

Origins

1. Christianity grew out of J___________________. First century Palestine was Roman occupied territory. Local puppet rulers were dominated by the Roman Governor. This land had been occupied by previous conquers Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians then Greeks. Hellenism, Greek philosophy and culture maintained some influence at the time. Judaism was divided and different to other religions. It was m______________________ believing in one God with whom they shared a c ____________________. Some of the opposing groups included the Pharisees who emphasised strict observance of the Torah, the Zealots who were plotting armed rebellion against the Romans. There was a building expectation of a M_______________

who would liberate the Jews and bring about the Reign of God. The Temple in Jerusalem was the centre of Jewish worship. Palestine at the time of Jesus was filled with structural injustice and social division.

2. The main source of information about Jesus are the four G______________. Jesus was a Jew born in Palestine, probably in 4 BCE, and grew up in Nazareth. In his early thirties he had a short public career as a Teacher/Rabbi and healer. He was reputed to have performed a number of miracles. After two or three years he was arrested and put to death as a subversive. His followers believed he was raised from the dead and ascended into Heaven.

3. Jesus is the model of Christian life. Jesus’ message was that the K________________ of God is breaking through and the good news is sent for all, in particular, the poor and oppressed. Jesus showed what God is like. Jesus modelled radical faithfulness and openness to the g___________ of God. Christians are called to follow Jesus through death into life.

4. Christianity began in J______________________ and experienced strong resistance from the Jewish community. One of the leading oppressors was a Pharisee named S___________ of Tarsus. He had a radical conversion experience and gained a new name Paul. Paul became a leading missionary converting many believers to the new movement initially know by names including ‘The Way’. Peter was the leader of the Church. He moved from Jerusalem to A________________ and then to Rome where he was killed. Paul wrote letters or e___________________ to Church communities he established during three missionary journeys.

5. Christianity can be categorised into five branches: __________________, ___________________, _______________________, ____________________ and _____________________.

Principal Beliefs

1. Christianity believes that Jesus was fully h_________________ and fully d_______________. The Christian doctrine of the I______________________ is that Jesus was G_______ but became human. The Council of N____________ in 325 CE provided the agreed form of words to express the Church’s understanding of G____________, J_____________ and the T___________. There is significant h___________________ evidence beyond the Bible supporting existence of J_________. The story of Jesus is retold in the four G________ accepted as part of the C____________________ scriptures.

2. The death and r_____________________ of Jesus highlight the importance of the Gospel call to faithful l___________ and openness to G___________. From the beginning of the C___________ Christians believed in the resurrection of the b___________ where each believer would be t_______________________ and united with God for all e______________________.

3. Christians believe that God is C____________ and author of all life. Christianity is u__________ in believing that God has three p___________: Creator or F____________, Jesus the R___________ or Son of God, and the Holy S____________ or Sanctifier. When one Person of the T___________ acts so do the other two. The Trinity emphasises unity and community t____________ in one. Trinity is like a divine flow of love. Christians are called to s____________________ to this d________________ flow of love.

4. R__________________________ is the transmission of knowledge from the d________________ to the human. Revelation is a word with Latin origins meaning “taking away the v____________”. Revelation is knowledge given by God that was previously u________________ or only partly hidden. Revelation is not confined to h_______________ but continues. God continues to reveal through life and events as well as Christianity and world religions. Christians are called to be attentive to the g__________ of God in their daily lives.

5. S_______________________ comes from the Latin word meaning “making s__________” or “rescuing”. Salvation means being delivered by God from the power of s________ and darkness. Salvation has both a collective and i_______________ dimension. It is both ‘here and n________’ and ‘not yet fully r_______________’. People are made in the i______________ and likeness of God. Salvation is a g_______ of God. There are some differences amongst Christian about their views on salvation. Some believe that salvation is r__________________ to Church members. This is not taught by the C_________________ variant of Christianity.

Sacred Texts and Writings

Extracts from the Bible that demonstrate the principal beliefs of Christianity

The d________________ and h________________ of Jesus Christ

Matthew 16:13-20 - Jesus is the Son of God and therefore Jesus is fully divine.

John 1:1-14 - Jesus is fully human as well as being co-eternal with the Father, in that he existed alongside God throughout all of eternity.

Hebrews 4:14-16 - Jesus is fully human and is thus able to understand the exact nature of the human condition. Yet, he is also fully divine and thus able to intercede for human kind. In other words, he has both the power to save and the compassion to empathise with human need.

The nature of G________ and the T_____________

Luke 3:21-22 - Luke's description is testimony to the three persons of the trinity in relationship at the time of the baptism of Jesus.

John 16:5-16 - This segment of Jesus' prayer focuses on the interrelationship between the three persons in the Trinity, especially the subsequent coming of the Spirit following Jesus' departure.

John 5:1-12 - This passage speaks of the interrelationship between the three persons of the Trinity. Firstly, there is a close relationship between the believer through the Holy Spirit that flows from the Father and the Son and secondly the Holy Spirit gives testimony to the truth of Jesus.

R___________________

John 20:30-31 - The Scripture is recognised as a key vehicle of revelation, in reflecting the faith of the early Church community and inviting the audience to embrace the same faith

2 Timothy 3:15-16 - The scriptures are a source of wisdom and lead us to have faith in Jesus who brings us the gift of salvation. Scripture is inspired by God

2 Peter 1:20-21 - The Holy Spirit inspires people to write the Scriptures with the intent of encouraging faith and not necessarily to provide historical and scientific evidence of God

S________________

Matthew 25:26-31 - Eternal salvation is integrally connected to the treatment of others especially those who have the greatest need.

John 3:16-17 - This verse highlights the fundamental Christian belief that salvation comes through Jesus.

Rom 5:1-11 - Salvation comes through faith in Jesus, whose death reflects God's saving action and hence God's love of humankind.

Core Ethical Teachings

1. The _________ Commandments or ___________________________ are found in the ___________________________ Scriptures and along with the ___________ Testament they form the foundation of __________________________ ethical teaching. For Christians, ethical observance of the Decalogue is based on _________ not fear. The Ten _______________________ provide ‘boundary markers’ calling Christians to love ________ and their _____________________.

2. Jesus and those to whom he was preaching understood the Decalogue. Jesus described his mission as fulfilling the law not _____________________ the law. Two __________________ record Jesus’ ethical teaching in sayings that have become know as the ___________________________ (Latin ‘blessed’). Matthew Chapter 5 reports The Sermon on the ___________ and Luke Chapter 6 The Sermon on the ____________________.

3. At the heart of the ethical teaching of ____________________ is the commandment to ____________ God and _______________ your neighbour as you love yourself. Jesus preached a message of _____________________ of ______________, mind and behaviour. Living a life of love helped bring about the ___________________ of __________________ and involves ________________________. The message of Jesus is ___________________ and Christians are ___________________ to apply this teaching and live ________________.

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