The Existence of God Past exam Questions

Transcription

1 ! The Existence of God Past exam Questions Read the passage below, which describes a religious experience. One dark autumn afternoon I was sitting alone. I suddenly became aware of a holy presence in the room. I heard the words, Follow me.. I knew that this was God calling me. (a) Explain briefly how an atheist might explain the experience described above. (2 marks) (b) Religious experiences prove that God exists. (3 marks) (c) Explain the First Cause argument for the existence of God. (4 marks) (d) Explain the arguments against the idea that God is the First Cause of the universe. (3 marks) (e) The design of the world shows that God created it. Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer, showing that you have thought about more than one point of view. Refer to religious arguments in your answer. (6 marks) 2 Look at the drawings below and read the words in the speech bubbles. (a) Explain the argument from morality for God s existence. (3 marks) (b) Give two reasons why some people disagree with the argument from morality. (2 marks) (c) God must exist because so many people have experienced God. (3 marks) (d) Explain why some people do not believe in God. (4 marks) (e) God is the First Cause of the universe. Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer, showing that you have thought about more than one point of view. Refer to religious arguments in your answer. (6 marks)

2 ! 3 Look at the photograph below. (a) Explain the design (teleological) argument for God s existence. (4 marks) (b) Explain why some people say the world is not well-designed. (3 marks) (c) Miracles prove that God exists. (3 marks) (d) Explain briefly one example of religious experience. (2 marks) (e) The fact that people have a sense of right and wrong (morality) proves that God exists. Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer, showing that you have thought about more one point of view. Refer to religious arguments in your answer. (6 marks)

3 Existence of God Mark Scheme 1(a) Explain briefly how an atheist might explain the experience described above. Target: Understanding of an atheist s criticism of religious experience Atheist does not believe in God, therefore it could not be God calling the person / could be imagination / thought they heard a voice but in the mind / no proof of what happened / no witnesses to experience. Accept explanations that the atheist was converted by the experience. 1 mark for a superficial comment or a single point. 2 marks for a developed answer or more than one point. (2 marks) AO1 1(b) Religious experiences prove that God exists. Target: Evaluation of whether or not religious experiences prove that God exists 0 Unsupported opinion or no relevant evaluation. 0 marks Level 1 Opinion supported by simple reason. 1 mark Level 2 Opinion supported by one developed reason or two simple reasons. 2 marks Level 3 Opinion supported by one well developed reason or several simple reasons. 3 marks Religious experiences are subjective / difficult to prove / could be made up / mistaken / publicity seeking / have no witnesses / unreliable / wishful thinking / illusions, etc. therefore cannot prove to anyone that God exists / is the cause of these experiences. Religious experiences / dreams / visions / miracles are convincing to the person who experiences them / thousands of people have had such experiences so not all can be wrong / lying / deluded / people claim to experience God in worship / prayer / healing miracles / remarkable recoveries put down to faith in God / sometimes effect a total change in person s life / no other explanation for some miracles than divine intervention, therefore prove / give strong evidence for God s existence. (3 marks) AO2 1(c) Explain the First Cause argument for the existence of God. Target: Knowledge of the First Cause argument for God s existence Level 4 A clear knowledge and understanding with some development and / or analysis. 4 marks The universe itself is the best evidence for God / everything that exists has a cause / the universe exists, so it too must have a cause / there had to be something eternal (without beginning or end) that was not caused by anything / that eternal first cause is God / therefore God exists. Accept arguments that God caused the Big Bang. (4 marks) AO1

4 1(d) Explain the arguments against the idea that God is the First Cause of the universe Target: Understanding of the arguments against the First Cause argument for God s existence No evidence God caused the universe / God cannot be produced as proof / if everything has a cause then God too must have a cause / who made God? / if you say God is eternal, then the universe might be eternal / just because other things have causes does not mean the universe itself has to have a cause / the big bang caused the universe, not God / science provides a better explanation for the cause of the universe than the Bible / holy books. (3 marks) AO1 1(e) The design of the world shows that God created it. Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer, showing that you have thought about more than one point of view. Refer to religious arguments in your answer. Target: Evaluation of whether or not the design of the world shows that God created it

5 Agree Design shows there must be a designer / beauty and complexity of nature / could not have happened by random chance / Paley s argument about watch / Newton s thumb / Anthropic Principle (if things had been a tiny bit different at the Big Bang, life would not exist, so shows deliberate creation by God) / accept examples of beautiful design to support argument. Other views Evolution shows how things appear orderly but needed for survival / cruelty in animal kingdom / natural disasters show poor design / beauty is relative / even if design is accepted, it does not prove that God was the designer. (6 marks) AO2 2(a) Explain the argument from morality for God s existence. Target: Knowledge and understanding of the argument from morality for God s existence People have a powerful sense of right and wrong / an inbuilt sense of morality. This sense comes from a source outside themselves / higher authority, i.e. God. Therefore God exists. Credit explanations of morality : a system of ethics which distinguishes between right and wrong. Also credit developmental statements, e.g. moral behaviour takes priority even when people would prefer to do something else / appears to be a command from a higher / ultimate authority that must be obeyed / is not created by society, like the law, because laws are sometimes immoral (e.g. slavery). (3 marks) AO1 2(b) Give two reasons why some people disagree with the argument from morality. Target: Knowledge of problems with the argument from morality Morality is hard to prove / may just be rules made up to control people / derived from evolution not God / people who cooperate survive better than groups who do not / guilt feelings not from God / guilt arises from breaking society s rules / going against upbringing / not everyone feels guilt / no afterlife so no reward / punishment of moral / immoral behaviour/ morals are culturally determined/ non-religious people may have a strong sense of morality/ different people have different morals, so why would God give different messages to the world? N.B. The fact that people choose to do wrong is not an argument against having a powerful moral sense. People can go against their conscience. 1 mark for each valid reason. (2 marks) AO1 2(c) God must exist because so many people have experienced God. Target: Evaluation of whether God must exist because so many people have experienced God (the argument from religious experience for God s existence) 0 Unsupported opinion or no relevant evaluation. 0 marks Level 1 Opinion supported by simple reason. 1 mark Level 2 Opinion supported by one developed reason or two simple reasons. 2 marks Level 3 Opinion supported by one well developed reason or several simple reasons. 3 marks

6 Millions of people claim to have experienced God through nature / prayer / meditation / worship / conversion / miracles / so many people cannot be wrong / lying / religious experiences have changed people s lives / made them willing to die for their faith / personal experience of God is most convincing evidence / many religions are founded upon the religious experiences of their founders / leaders. Credit examples of these. Religious experiences do not convince those who have not had one / cannot be trusted / are difficult to prove as genuine / could be wishful thinking / deliberate deception / mistaken / even if true do not prove their source was God/ could have other explanations. (3 marks) AO2 2(d) Explain why some people do not believe in God. Target: Knowledge and understanding of reasons for atheism Level 4 A clear knowledge and understanding with some development and / or analysis. 4 marks Upbringing / evil / suffering in world / science makes more sense / illogical / faults in particular arguments for God s existence / never met God / prayers unanswered / good things happening to bad people / God as an explanation for natural events, e.g. thunderstorms, no longer needed. (4 marks) AO1 2(e) God is the First Cause of the universe. Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer, showing that you have thought about more than one point of view. Refer to religious arguments in your answer. Target: Evaluation of whether or not God is the First Cause of the universe See levels chart for question 1(e) Agree The universe itself is the best evidence for God / everything that exists has a cause / the universe exists, so it too must have a cause / there had to be something eternal (without beginning or end) that was not caused by anything / that eternal first cause is God / therefore God exists / Big Bang explains how the universe came to be, but what caused the Big Bang? / the measurement of time suggests there was a starting point to the universe / a beginning caused by God / no proof of any other cause. Other views If everything has a cause, then who or what caused God? / no proof of God s existence / universe could be eternal / even if universe had a beginning, no proof that God caused that beginning / scientific explanations (Big Bang) more plausible. (6 marks) AO2 3(a) Explain the design (teleological) argument for God s existence. Target: Knowledge and understanding of the design (teleological) argument for God s existence Level 4 A clear knowledge and understanding with some development and / or analysis. 4 marks

7 The intricacy / complexity / interdependence / order / beauty of the natural world / human body / the fact that if any of the physical constants in the universe had been different, life would have been impossible all / give evidence of design. Credit examples of a camera / human eye, etc. Credit use of the arguments of William Paley / Isaac Newton / Aquinas / Swinburne. William Paley argued that if you were walking in a deserted place and found a stone, you might conclude it had always been there or was natural to that place. But if you came across a watch, even if you had never seen one before, its inner workings (cogs, wheels and springs) would convince you that someone had designed it. Even if the watch was broken, its structure would make you conclude that the intricate pieces could not have come together by themselves. Paley said that the universe is even more complicated than the watch. The human eye, for example, is far more complex than a human-made telescope, which can only help the eye. Therefore the universe, like the watch, must have had a designer. The only designer able to design such a complex and intricate universe is God. Isaac Newton argued that the design of the thumb was so clever and unique to each person that it must have been designed. Even if it was the only proof that God existed, the thumb alone would convince him that there was a Designer of the universe. Students do not need to use all of these arguments in order to gain full marks if they have answered comprehensively about one of them. Students who use two or more traditional arguments (Paley, Newton, Tennant and Aquinas, for example) should be credited. (4 marks) AO1 3(b) Explain why some people say the world is not well-designed. Target: Knowledge of problems with the design argument Flaws in the design of the natural world, e.g. earthquakes / problem of suffering / problem of evil / cruelty within nature / evolution entirely natural / no need for a designer / evolution (through natural selection / survival of the fittest) gives appearance of design / order is necessary to support life / any universe would need its parts to be adapted to one another to a certain extent for life to exist. (3 marks) AO1 3(c) Miracles prove that God exists. Target: Evaluation of the argument from miracles for God s existence 0 Unsupported opinion or no relevant evaluation. 0 marks Level 1 Opinion supported by simple reason. 1 mark Level 2 Opinion supported by one developed reason or two simple reasons. 2 marks Level 3 Opinion supported by one well developed reason or several simple reasons. 3 marks Millions of people believe in miracles (e.g. Jesus resurrection / the giving of the Qur an, etc.) / so many people cannot be wrong / lying / some miracles have changed people s lives / made them willing to die for their faith / miracles may have no other scientific explanation than that God performed them / unexplained miracles must have been caused by something outside nature / only God is outside nature / therefore God exists. Credit examples of miracles. Miracles do not convince those who have not experienced one / are difficult to prove as genuine / could be coincidences / a cure could be mind over matter / natural / misdiagnosed illness / some reported miracles could be the result of deliberate deception / people wanting fame / money / people can be mistaken / even if true miracles do not prove their source was God / science might one day explain the event. (3 marks) AO2

8 3(d) Explain briefly one example of religious experience. Target: Knowledge and understanding of one kind of religious experience Examples include prayer / meditation / worship / sacraments / nature / conversion / conscience / scripture / religious leaders / religious people / working for others / vision / dream / Near Death Experiences / mystical experiences / miracles. Explanations may include what such examples do for people, i.e. help people to experience God / inspire / create feelings of awe and wonder / help people live a moral life, etc. They may also include further explanation of what the example is, e.g. sacraments are outward signs of God s grace / Near Death Experiences involve seeing a light at the end of a tunnel / heavenly images, etc. Accept specific examples such as Moses and the burning bush / Paul on the Damascus road. 1 mark for an example of religious experience / superficial comment / single point. 2 marks for an explanation of the example / developed answer / more than one point. (2 marks) AO1 3(e) The fact that people have a sense of right and wrong (morality) proves that God exists. Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer, showing that you have thought about more than one point of view. Refer to religious arguments in your answer. Target: Evaluation of whether or not morality proves that God exists See levels chart for question 1(e) Agree People have an inbuilt sense of morality / know right from wrong / everyone has a conscience even if he or she does not follow it / some theists argue that conscience is the voice of God / this sense of morality comes from a source outside of individuals / theists say it is built in by God / people follow moral principles even when they would prefer to do something else / being moral deserves justice, but not everyone who acts morally has a happy life / therefore God must exist to reward people for living a good life / morality is a command that must be obeyed / it comes from an ultimate authority / theists say this authority is God. Other Views Morality itself cannot easily be proved to exist / morality is socially defined rules / laws / developed to control people / morality is part of evolution / survival depends on cooperation with others / guilty feelings are not from God / guilt occurs when people go against their upbringing / society / family / religion / not everyone feels guilty / some people seem not to have a conscience / atheists question why being good should be rewarded by a happy life / no such link between the two / there is no afterlife so no reward for a moral life. (6 marks) AO2