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Northern IrelandReligious Studies

A2 8: Themes in the Philosophy of Religion

4 dot points across 4 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

Is there life after death, what survives, and how do dualism, materialism and the resurrection of the body answer the question?

Life after death: the body and soul debate (dualism and materialism), the immortality of the soul and the resurrection of the body, reincarnation, and arguments for and against survival.
A CCEA A2 8 guide to life after death. Covers the body and soul debate (Plato's dualism, Aristotle and materialism), the immortality of the soul and the Christian resurrection of the body, reincarnation, and the main arguments for and against survival of death.
15 min answer →

What is a miracle, can miracles happen, and do Hume's arguments and the problem of competing claims undermine belief in them?

Miracles: definitions of miracle (Aquinas, Hume), Hume's arguments against miracles, the contradictory-claims objection, and responses defending miracles as evidence for God.
A CCEA A2 8 guide to miracles. Covers definitions of miracle (Aquinas and Hume), Hume's arguments against believing in miracles, the objection from contradictory religious claims, and responses that defend miracles and their value as evidence for God.
15 min answer →

How does the ontological argument try to prove God's existence from the concept of God alone, and do Gaunilo and Kant refute it?

The ontological argument: Anselm's two forms, Descartes's version, the a priori method, and the criticisms of Gaunilo and Kant that existence is not a predicate.
A CCEA A2 8 guide to the ontological argument. Covers Anselm's two forms of the argument, Descartes's version, the a priori method, and the criticisms of Gaunilo (the perfect island) and Kant (that existence is not a predicate), with modern restatements.
15 min answer →

Can language about God be meaningful, and how do verification, falsification, the via negativa, analogy and symbol address the problem?

Religious language: the verification and falsification challenges, the via negativa, analogy (Aquinas), symbol (Tillich), and language games (Wittgenstein), as responses to whether talk of God is meaningful.
A CCEA A2 8 guide to religious language. Covers the verification principle and the falsification challenge, and the main responses: the via negativa, analogy (Aquinas), symbol (Tillich) and language games (Wittgenstein), as ways of asking whether talk about God is meaningful.
15 min answer →