Eduqas GCSE Religious Studies Study of Christianity Practices: a complete C120 overview

What this module demands

The Study of Christianity, Practices is the second half of Eduqas Component 2. It asks you to explain how Christians live out their faith in worship, the sacraments, the festivals and service, and to evaluate these practices, always supported by sources of wisdom and authority. Where the beliefs module is about what Christians believe, this module is about what they do and why, and the traditions differ a great deal. This overview ties the dot-point pages together.

Worship, prayer and the sacraments

Christians worship in liturgical (set, formal) ways, non-liturgical (flexible, sermon-centred) ways, charismatic (spontaneous) ways and privately at home. Prayer is communication with God, set (the Lord's Prayer, Matthew 6:9 to 13) or extempore (spontaneous). A sacrament is an outward sign of inward grace: Catholics and Orthodox keep seven, most Protestants keep two (baptism and the Eucharist), and some groups keep none. The belief that Christians should gather is grounded in "where two or three gather in my name, there am I" (Matthew 18:20).

Baptism and the Eucharist

Baptism uses water to mark entry into the Church, washing away sin and giving new life; it is practised as infant baptism (with parents and godparents) or believers' baptism by full immersion, grounded in Matthew 28:19. The Eucharist (Holy Communion, Mass) re-enacts the Last Supper with bread and wine. Christians differ over what happens: Catholics believe in transubstantiation (the elements truly become Christ's body and blood), many Protestants hold a memorial view, and others a real presence without a physical change.

Pilgrimage and celebrations

A pilgrimage is a journey to a holy place for a religious purpose: Lourdes (healing), Iona (retreat) and Jerusalem are popular sites, valued especially by Catholics and Orthodox. Christians keep festivals that re-live the story of Jesus: Christmas celebrates his birth (the incarnation), and Easter, the most important, celebrates his resurrection after Holy Week. Festivals renew faith, build community and pass on the story, while many Protestants see no place as specially holy (John 4:24).

The local church and service

The local church is both a place of worship and a centre of care. It runs food banks, supports street pastors, provides groups and pastoral care, and offers the rites of baptism, marriage and funerals. This service is obeying Jesus' command to "love your neighbour" (Mark 12:31) and the parable of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:40), where Christians meet Christ in the needy.

The worldwide church and mission

Mission is the church's task of spreading the message and serving the world; evangelism is sharing the faith, following the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19). The worldwide church (the body of Christ) and ecumenism (Christian unity, John 17:21) support this, and reconciliation makes Christians peacemakers. Aid charities Christian Aid (Protestant) and CAFOD (Catholic) give emergency relief and fund long-term development to tackle poverty.

Check your knowledge

A mix of recall questions covering the whole module. Attempt them, then check the solutions.

1. What is liturgical worship? (2 marks)
2. Name the prayer Jesus taught his followers. (2 marks)
3. How many sacraments do most Protestants keep? (2 marks)
4. Name the two main forms of baptism. (2 marks)
5. What is transubstantiation? (2 marks)
6. Which festival is the most important in the Christian year? (2 marks)
7. Name two ways the local church serves its community. (2 marks)
8. What is the Great Commission? (2 marks)