Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies

Unit 8.1 - Religion, Rights

and Responsibility

Key Words
Bible: The Holy Book of Christianity made up of the 66 books of the
Old and the New Testament (also known as Scripture).
Church: The community of Christian believers (small c refers to the
building).
Conscience: An inner feeling of what is right or wrong.
Situation Ethics: The idea that Christians should base moral decisions
on what is the most loving thing to do.
Electoral Processes: The ways in which voting is organised.
Democratic Processes: The ways in which local citizens can take part in
government.
Political Party: A group which tries to be elected into power based on
its policies.
Pressure Group: Groups formed to influence government policies on
particular issues.
Social Change: The way in which society has changed and is
changing.
Human Rights: The rights and freedoms to which everyone is entitled.
Decalogue: The Ten Commandments.

Sources of Authority
When making moral decisions, the Christian wants to
know what their God would want them to do. To find
this out they turn to trusted sources that they
believe have some authority [credibility] to help
guide their decisions. These will include...

The Bible
The Church
Conscience

The Holy Spirit

Reason & Logic
Love

Sources of Authority: The Bible

2 Timothy 3:16

The Decalogue
The Prophets
Jesus Teaching
- Sermon on
Mount
- Parables
- Kingdom of
God
Apostles

All scripture is
God-breathed
and is useful for
teaching and
training in
righteousness.
These are in the Bible &
Xians use them to guide
decisions.

66 books (73 for

Catholics).
Written over a
period of 1000
years.
40 different
authors.
OT compiled
around 300BCE.
NT compiled and

Did You Know...?

God-breathed
in this passage
has the same
idea in both
Greek and
Hebrew as when
God breathed
life into Adam in
Genesis 2 at
creation. In
other words,
what is in the
bible gets its
life from God.

The Word of God?

Most Christians refer to the Bible as the Word of God,
however, not all agree what this means:
The Words of God:
Some Xians,
mainly
fundamentalists,
believe the Bible
contains the
actual words of
God. These
people are called
literalists as they
believe every
word is literally
as God wanted it
to be. As such,
the bible has
total authority in

Words inspired by God: Other Xians feel

the Bible was written by humans but
inspired by God. Although it has
Gods authority, it needs interpreting
in light of its day when considering
an application for today.
Words about God: Some
Xians see the bible as
written by people who
genuinely loved God, but
the words do not have
Gods direct authority.
They may use
conscience, reason and
logic to interpret its
meaning for them.

Not every
issue in our
post-modern
world
is covered in
the Bible or
was
discussed by
the early
Christian
leaders. And
so, inevitably,
Christians will
need to
consider their
primary sources

Exegesis: This is the skill of

being able to consider a
passage in its Sitz im Leben
[Setting in Life] i.e. the
context of its social setting,
time and the history of its
author and intended readers.
Hermeneutics: Is
the skill of
considering the exegesis and
then interpreting the passage
in the light of todays Sitz im
Leben i.e. the context of its
modern day reader and their
situations.

Christian Church Family Tree

At first the
In 1517 a
Free/House Church
Christian
priest called
Church had Salvation Army
Martin Luther
Quakers
identical
objected to
In 312
beliefs.
how the
the
Methodist
Catholic
Emperor
Church of England
He listed
95
Church
ran the
Constantine
objections
he
Baptist
Lutheran
religion.
became a
had.
Since
then
Christian
different
1517 Reformation
and so
groups
Eastern
Rome
(denomination
Roman Catholic
Orthodox
helped
the
1000
years
s)
1378 Great Schism
spread
of
later a split
felt the
312 Constantine
Christianity.
happened
need to
between
worship god in
Apostles
East and
different
Jesus
These are just some of the

Authority of the Church

Rome

Constantinople
Athens
Antioch

Carthage
Jerusalem
Alexandria

The Apostles
established small
communities of converts
across the region.
Trusted and trained
leaders helped growth
and prevent heresies.

As matters arose requiring clarification key leaders

(Bishops) gathered together (councils) to discuss and
agree a consensus of opinion as to what theologies were
correct or incorrect.

The church
was Jesus,
St Peters
and St Pauls
chosen
structure.

The Church has been shown to

be the best forum for deciding
the meaning of scripture
formulating considered
theological responses to
modern situations and issues.

Catholics
believe God
reveals to the
Pope and
bishops the true
meaning of

Sources of Authority: The Church

Catholic
Church

Anglican
Church

Independent
Churches

In
Catholicism
the Pope has
supreme
authority
from God
and is
infallible.
A Council of
Bishops
help
formulate
doctrine and
the Vatican

Church of
England has
560 Bishops,
vicars and
laity forming
the General
Synod.
Smaller
more
specialised
groups
advise on
decisions for
the Synod to

Assemblies
(gatherings
of church
leaders)
agree a
biblical
response to
theological
and moral
issues.
Some agree
beliefs on a
church-bychurch basis.

Conscience
St Paul & St Thomas Aquinas both taught that Christians should use
their conscience as the final part of moral decision making. Individuals
are accountable and have a moral responsibility.
Pangs of conscience help guide but can go wrong e.g. Some Christians
have murdered abortionists in the name of God.

Holy Spirit
When Jesus rose to heaven he said he will be with his people always by
this he meant in the form of the Holy Spirit. Every bit part of God, but
distinct in that it is the power of God within the Christian to be able to
live the Christian life and discern Gods will.
Christians believe Gods presence is with them in the Holy Spirit.

Reason & Logic

St Thomas Aquinas and Immanuel Kant believed in something called
Natural Law. Part of this meant being able to naturally discern what is
right and wrong because we are created by God in His image.
Using reason and logic (thought-out judgements) we should be able to
know what God would naturally want us to do.

Situation Ethics

Situation Ethics: The idea that Christians should

base moral decisions on what is the most loving
thing
do.
JosephtoFletcher
was a Christian ethicist
who wrote the book Situation Ethics in
1966.
Fletcher proposed that Biblical rules
should be taken in consideration only
with other, greater rules, in mind.
Fletcher referred to these as greater rules because
he believed a Christian will one day be personally
responsible for the choices they make and so,
their conscience should be their final guide. He also
believed that his greater rules reflected the
teaching of Jesus that Christian Love over rules
Religious Laws E.g. Jesus healing on the Sabbath.

Fletchers 4 Greater Rules

1
2
Some truths should be accepted as self evident. Each person
3 knows intrinsically what the right thing to do is.
It is the person who is the centre of concern. The person at the
4 centre of the situation is more important than the

Ethics is about decision making in REAL situations. Strict religious

rules dont take into consideration that every situation is
different.
Decisions made do not offer universal guidelines. A decision made
about one situation does not then become the rule for all.

religious rules.

Fletcher believed the primary motivation should be

love for the individual, and recognition that the most
loving way out of a situation should be the ultimate
motive.
In resolving any situation the primary motive
must be love.

Situation Ethics

Joseph Fletcher would say that Situation Ethics

should come before the Biblical rules, so does
this make it unbiblical? Not at all, as these
Jesus
examples
show.
Jesus spoke
spoke to
to
Jesus
healed
Jesus healed
people
people on
on the
the
Sabbath
Sabbath when
when it
it
was
was forbidden
forbidden by
by
Jewish
Jewish religious
religious
law
law to
to work.
work. Jesus
Jesus
concern
concern for
for the
the
person
person overruled
overruled
the
the religious
religious Law.
Law.

women
women about
about
religious
religious issues
issues
and
and stood
stood up
up for
for aa
woman
woman found
found
guilty
guilty of
of adultery,
adultery,
both
both these
these things
things
were
were against
against
Jewish
Jewish cultural
cultural and
and
religious
religious laws
laws

Jesus,
Jesus, St
St Peter
Peter and
and
St
St Paul
Paul all
all spent
spent
time
time with
with people
people
who
who the
the religious
religious
laws
laws declared
declared
unclean
unclean and
and so
so
banned
banned any
any
association
association with.
with.

Some Christians believe if a twelve year old girl

was raped she should not be allowed an
abortion. However, Fletcher would say it would
be the most loving thing to do for her, so would
allow it.

Strengths

Situation Ethics

1) Situation ethics is concerned about the

individual not the rule.
2) Situation Ethics considers each person and
their situation individually.
3) The basic is principle is to seek what is best
for the individual concerned, based on the
premise
of love.
Weaknesses
1) Fletcher believed the end justified the
means, this is not true in every situation.
2) It ignores clear biblical teaching on certain
issues relegating that teaching to mere
suggestions
for life.
3) Situation Ethics
does not consider what is
the most loving thing to do for all, only the

Making a Moral Decision

Odd Biblical Laws

You must not
wear clothes
made from two
different types of
fabrics.
You must not
plant two
different crops in
the same field.
If a child swears
at his parents or
disobeys them he
should be put to
death,
Shellfish are
banned as food
and must not be
eaten.
If a person
commits adultery
they should be

Although the Bible may be the first place

Christians turn to for guidance, most feel
the Bible needs interpreting in light of
modern day issues as not all laws may be
relevant to todays cultures. Therefore, most
Christians believe they should use a number
of sources to help them make the right
moral decisions.

The Bible

The Church

Conscience
Situation
Ethics

The Holy
Spirit
Reason & Logic

Government
The government is responsible for managing a wide range of issues
including:
It costs around
Employment
550bn a year to
Health
run the country
Education
(thats about 10 x
Housing
the value of Bill
Environment
Gates). Where
Economy
does it get the
Foreign Affairs
money from? You.
Law and Order
What is it spent
Defence
on? You. Who
Social Services
decides who gets
Human Rights
to spend it? You.
The government is simply
a political party who made promises
(in a manifesto) to the country, and
on the basis of that, were voted into
power by the citizens of that country.

Voting System
The UK is divided up into 659
voting areas known as
constituencies. Each area is
supposed to have roughly the
same number of voters
about 70,000 in each. In a
general election voters can
vote for one of a number of
candidates (usually from each
of the main political parties
and a few others).
Whoever gets
the
most
votes wins
&
becomes an
MP. Whoever
has the most
MPs,
becomes
the
government.

In Britain we vote on who will

represent us in three main areas.
Local Council (Councillors)
UK Parliament (MPs)
European Parliament (MEPs)
All of these people make
decisions that affect the whole or
our community.
Pressure Groups
Besides voting you can
influence government
decisions on issues you feel
are important. Pressure groups
representing thousands of
citizens speak to the
government and let them
know what their members
want. E.g. Civil Rights, War in

The Electoral & Democratic process

Many people feel that as a citizen of a country you not only have a
right to have your say, but you have a responsibility to take part in
the electoral process (voting) and the democratic process (citizens
choosing and influencing Parliament). They think this because...

In the past, people died

National
It gives you more
fighting for our right to
government sets
control over local
choose those who govern
our taxes to raise
issues that affect
us. We owe it to these men
money and chooses
you on a day to
and women to use these
how our money is
day basis.
National
rights.
then spent.
Decisions in Europe
How can you
government make
affect UK laws. We
complain if you
new laws that
need to elect
dont use your
affect your life. You
people who will
right to have
have a say in these
speak out for us.
your say?
National laws.
government are
The term
responsible for
Not all countries have a
democracy means
many things. You
democracy, their citizens
a government of
have a say in the
have no say over how
the people, by the
decisions made.
the country is run or who
people, for the
will lead them.
people .

Religion and The Democratic Process

William Wilberforce (led
William Booth
the parliamentary
(famed for
campaign against
establishing homes
slavery).
for societys
outcasts through the
Lord Shaftsbury
Salvation Army).
(stood against
child labour and
fought for child
education).
Dr Thomas
These people became
Barnardo
involved with the
(established
democratic process because they
housing and
believed their religion compelled
training for
them to stand up for human
It still happens Today:
destitute children). rights.
Gordon Brown,
organised the
governments policy
on dropping third
world debt because
of his Christian

Muslimyouth.net and the Oasis Trust are

both religious organisations that
involve young Muslims and Christians
in social action and human rights
activities, and in lobbying the
government for these concerns.

The Christian Motivation for Social

The Decalogue.
Many
of the reformers and politicians who
Change

(Exodus 20) Six of the

worked to establish social change for the
Ten Commandments
better, were Christians.
are based on how we
The
The Parable
Parable of
of the
the
treat others. Human
Sheep
Sheep and
and the
the Goats.
Goats.
rights
(Matt
(Matt 25:31-46)
25:31-46)
and social change for
Whatever
Whatever you
you did
did not
not do
do
good is a
for
for the
the least
least of
of my
my
fundamental part of
people
people you
you did
did not
not do
do for
for
the Biblical & Church
Faith
Faith and
and Deeds.
Deeds. (James
(James
me.
me.

teaching. The
The Greatest
Greatest
2:26)
2:26) As
As the
the body
body
Commandment.
Commandment.
without
without the
the spirit
spirit is
is dead,
dead,
(Matthew
(Matthew 22:36-40)
22:36-40)
so
so faith
faith without
without deeds
deeds is
is
Love
Love God
God and
and love
love your
your
dead.
dead.
neighbour,
whole
of
neighbour, the
the
whole
of
The
The Golden
Golden Rule.
Rule. (Matt
(Matt
the
the Law
Law and
and Prophets
Prophets
7:12)
7:12)
hinge
hinge on
on
So
So in
in everything,
everything, do
do to
to
these
these two
two
others
others as
as you
you would
would have
have
commands.
commands.
them
them do
do to
to you,
you, for
for this
this sums
sums

A Summary of the Human Rights Act 1998

All these rights are
declared to be for all
people for all time.

The right to life.

No one has the right to end your
life.
Freedom from inhuman treatment.
Torture is banned.
Freedom from slavery.
Forced labour is outlawed.
Right to liberty.
Everyone has the right to do
what
they want if it is not against the
law.
Right to a fair trial.
Under UK law.
Retrospective penalties.
You cannot be charged with a
crime if

Freedom of conscience & religion.

Hold the opinions and beliefs
you
want to without persecution.
Freedom of expression.
Express your views so long as
it
doesnt break the law.
Freedom of assembly.
To gather with others and if
necessary to demonstrate.
Marriage and family.
To get married and have a
family
(within the rules of the law).
Freedom from discrimination.
Not to be discriminated
against for
an reason.
The First Protocol (Civil Liberties).

Human Rights in the UK

Human Rights: The rights and freedoms to which
everyone is entitled.
In 1998 the UK passed the Human Rights Act giving UK citizens by
law, the fundamental rights already laid out in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and the European Union Charter of Fundamental
Rights.
However, the Act can cause
Christians believe human
problems for religious
rights are important
people.
because:
They believe
in the Sanctity of
Xians could break the Act if
Life as all are made in Gods
image.
It is in line with Biblical
teaching on how we should
treat others.
It allows for the freedom to
have a religion and meet
together.

It outlaws discrimination
against Christians and others.

they refuse to support gay

marriage.
The Catholic church
discriminates against women
as priests.
Some Christians feel
homosexuals should not adopt
children.
Xian groups could break the
Act by refusing to give a nonXian a job.

GENETIC ENGINEERING & CLONING

Genetic Engineering: The deliberate alteration of a person
by manipulating its genetic framework in order to cure
or prevent diseases and disabilities in human beings.
Most genetic research is based on two methods:
Gene Therapy: This enables
changes to be made to cells that
pass on defective information
from one generation to the next,
allowing permanent changes to
be made.
Stem Cell Research is the most recent
form of genetic research. Stem cells
are the building blocks of life and
can be used to create (clone) new
organs or cells to replace diseased
ones. They are harvested from either
embryos created by in-vitro
fertilisation (IVF) , bone marrow or

PGD: Pre-implantation Genetic

Diagnosis. This removes
defective genes from embryos so
women at risk of passing on
diseases can produce healthy
babies.
Some people believe this
will eventually lead to us
picking and choosing any
characteristic of a child
including gender, eye
and hair colour, even
their sexual orientation.

The Human Genome Project plans to map

out the complete human genetic outline.
It is believed if we can identify every
human gene, then we can remove the
defective ones, replace them with healthy
ones, and eradicate illnesses completely.
Stem cell research is illegal in the United States of America.
However, it has been legal in the UK since February 2001 under certain
conditions, regulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
In May 2008 the UK
government made it
possible for scientist to
use cybrids for
research. That is; a
human nucleus (the
inside of a human
embryo) implanted in to
an animal egg, to create
a new embryo for DNA

From this research, scientist have found out

how to reproduce human organs. They
believe that they will eventually be able to
recreate all human tissue
and organs to help replace
diseased kidneys, livers,
lungs and even hearts.
It may one day be possible
to recreate a complete human being.

SECULAR ARGUMENTS
FOR

Stem cell research, genetic

engineering and cloning, offer the
prospect of cures for currently
incurable diseases.
It is available in some countries
and so is only available to the rich
who can afford to travel and pay
medical bills.
Cloning has been used to grow
healthy cells to replace
malfunctioning ones.
Genetic research is a vital tool in
medical science, it would
be wrong to ignore the
advantages genetic
engineering can bring.
The laws on what can
be done are strictly
monitored to protect

AGAINST

Genetic engineering treats the

human body as a commodity to be
manipulated no different to plants.
Once started there is no going
back, scientist will be able to
reproduce scientifically created
human beings.
There is no information about the
long term consequences.
The process is irreversible so if
anything went wrong it would be
permanent.
It opens the way
for genetic
screening where
people could be
checked for likely
illnesses before

RELIGIOUS ARGUMENTS
FOR

Jesus was a healer who encouraged

his followers to cure the sick.
Being responsible stewards of
creation includes improving the
lives of others with the scientific
knowledge God has allowed us to
gain (or given to us).
Creating cells is not working
against God rather it is working
with God.
An embryo is not considered
regarded as a potential life until it is
14 days old.
Liberal Christians will
accept most of the secular
arguments for genetic
engineering.
Genetic engineering is
another form of medical

AGAINST

Life begins at conception, be it in

the womb or a glass dish.
Killing an embryo is taking a
human life which is banned by in
the Bible and by the Church.
God has created the genetic makeup of a child for people to overrule
that would be to interfere with
Gods plans.
Cloning or creating a life is taking
the role of Creator which is Gods
role.
Cloning another
human being
devalues both
people as
individuals made by
God.
A child should be

Revision Checklist
The Bible as a source of authority.
The Church as a source of authority.
The conscience as a guide for making moral decisions.
Joseph Fletcher and Situation Ethics.
Christians using a variety of sources for making moral decisions.
The role of government and the electoral system.
voting and the democratic process.
Religion and the democratic process.
Christian motivation for moral duties and responsibility for social change.
The Human Rights Act in the UK.
Religion and human rights.
Genetic engineering and cloning.
Secular arguments surrounding genetic engineering and cloning.
Religious arguments surrounding genetic engineering and cloning.

Notes, Quotes & Other Key Terms

 Phillip Allen