Religious and Philosophical Questions: overview of the SQA Higher RMPS area

Religious and Philosophical Questions is the third area of SQA Higher RMPS and is examined in Question Paper 2, worth 20 marks. It is the philosophy-of-religion strand: candidates study one or more big questions about God, the universe and human freedom, and learn to set out arguments and evaluate them. This page maps the topics and shows how to approach the area.

What you study

Religious and Philosophical Questions is the area that handles the big philosophical questions. Schools choose which topic or topics to teach. They are:

Origins

Religious creation accounts, scientific accounts (the Big Bang and evolution), and how science and religion relate (conflict, independence, dialogue).

The Existence of God

The cosmological, teleological (design), ontological and religious-experience arguments, their objections, and the case for atheism.

Miracles

Definitions of a miracle, their religious significance, and Hume's argument against believing miracle reports.

The Problem of Evil and Suffering

The logical and evidential problems, moral and natural evil, and theodicies (the free will defence, the soul-making theodicy).

Free Will and Determinism

Hard determinism, libertarianism and compatibilism, and what each means for moral responsibility.

Each topic is examined through both argument and counter-argument, with religious and non-religious viewpoints.

How the area is assessed

Religious and Philosophical Questions is Question Paper 2 (20 marks), sat separately from Question Paper 1. Questions come in two main types:

1. Knowledge and understanding ("describe", "explain"). These reward an accurate, developed account of an argument or position and the reasoning behind it.
2. Evaluation ("to what extent", "how convincing", "how successfully"). These reward a line of argument with reasons on both sides, the standard objections, and a supported judgement.

The 2024 course report records Origins as among the most popular topics and, as across the course, warns that candidates lose marks by failing to evaluate when asked.

How to study Religious and Philosophical Questions

1. Learn the arguments precisely. Be able to state each argument's premises and conclusion, not just its name.
2. Learn the objections. Each argument has standard objections (what caused God, evolution, Kant on existence, natural evil, Hume on testimony). The marks for evaluation depend on them.
3. Practise the evaluation move. Set out the argument, give the objections, weigh them, and reach a judgement you have argued for.
4. Bring in viewpoints. Include religious and non-religious responses, and show the range within each.
5. Practise SQA past papers. The question styles and marking instructions show exactly what examiners reward.

For the official course specification

The SQA (now Qualifications Scotland) publishes the full Higher RMPS course specification, specimen and past papers, marking instructions and course reports at sqa.org.uk. Always revise from the current specification and SQA past papers, because question style and content are board-specific.