Catholic Christianity: Matters of Life and Death | Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B (1RB0)
Catholic Christianity: Matters of Life and Death
- 95 questions
- 8 subtopics
- Catholic Christianity, one religion of seven
- Paper 1
Catholic Christianity: Matters of Life and Death is examined in Paper 1, Area of Study 1: Religion and Ethics, if Catholic Christianity is the religion studied for that area.
A student who studies Catholic Christianity may not study Christianity in their other area. It covers Catholic responses to the origins and value of the universe, the sanctity of life in Catholic teaching, Catholic responses to evolution and survival of the fittest, Catholic teaching on abortion, Catholic arguments for life after death, Catholic responses to arguments against life after death, Catholic teaching on euthanasia and hospice care and Catholic responses to the environment and animal rights.
Sample questions from Catholic Christianity: Matters of Life and Death
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Catholic responses to the origins and value of the universe
Why did Lemaître not want the Big Bang used as proof of creation?
Show the answer
Lemaître believed science and faith answer different kinds of question. Lemaître was uneasy when Pope Pius XII linked the theory to creation in 1951. -
The sanctity of life in Catholic teaching
What does the Fifth Commandment teach about human life?
Show the answer
The Fifth Commandment says, “You shall not kill”. Catholics understand it to forbid the deliberate killing of innocent human life. -
Catholic responses to evolution and survival of the fittest
What did Pope Francis say about the Big Bang in his 2014 address?
Show the answer
Pope Francis said the Big Bang does not contradict the intervention of a divine creator but requires it. -
Catholic teaching on abortion
What is the principle of double effect, and how does it apply to pregnancy?
Show the answer
Double effect allows an action with a good aim even if a bad side effect is foreseen but not intended. Removal of a cancerous womb to save the mother is allowed, even though the unborn child dies. -
Catholic arguments for life after death
What are remembered lives, and how do Catholics respond to them?
Show the answer
Remembered lives are claims that people, often children, recall details of a past life. Catholics reject reincarnation, believing each person lives and dies only once (Hebrews 9:27). -
Catholic responses to arguments against life after death
What is the argument from fraudulent accounts against life after death?
Show the answer
Critics point out that many mediums and psychics have been exposed as frauds. Near-death experiences may be explained by a lack of oxygen to the brain. -
Catholic teaching on euthanasia and hospice care
What does the Catechism (2276–2277) teach about euthanasia?
Show the answer
The Catechism says sick and disabled people deserve special respect and help to live as normally as possible. Direct euthanasia is morally unacceptable, whatever the motive. -
Catholic responses to the environment and animal rights
What does humanity's role as stewards mean for how Catholics respond to threats to the environment?
Show the answer
Catholics must treat the earth as God's property, held in trust rather than owned. Catholics have a duty to protect creation for those who come after.
The 8 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Catholic responses to the origins and value of the universe | The Big Bang and Georges Lemaître, science and faith, the Vatican Observatory, Laudato Si' on the value of creation, and the view that the universe is a commodity to be used for profit. | 11 |
| The sanctity of life in Catholic teaching | Life as holy, the image of God and the breath of life in Genesis 2:7, the Fifth Commandment, Psalm 139, 1 Corinthians 6:19 on the body, Catechism 2258, and sanctity versus quality of life. | 12 |
| Catholic responses to evolution and survival of the fittest | Darwin and survival of the fittest, Pope Francis's 2014 address and a God who is no magician, Humani Generis (1950), John Paul II in 1996, and whether evolution makes humans no different from animals. | 12 |
| Catholic teaching on abortion | The law in Great Britain, Church teaching and Humanae Vitae, the principle of double effect, pro-life and pro-choice arguments, situation ethics, and Catholic support for crisis pregnancies. | 12 |
| Catholic arguments for life after death | The resurrection, Ephesians 2 on new life and the ages to come, Jesus's promise to the criminal, remembered lives and the paranormal, mediums, and the logical, reward, comfort and reunion arguments. | 12 |
| Catholic responses to arguments against life after death | The comfort, lack of evidence, fraudulent accounts and social control arguments, each with a Catholic reply, and 1 Peter 3:18 to 22 on Christ's death, what happened after it, and baptism. | 12 |
| Catholic teaching on euthanasia and hospice care | Voluntary, non-voluntary, active and passive euthanasia, assisted suicide in English law, Catechism 2276 to 2279 on treatment and painkillers, hospice care, and Humanist, Christian and situation ethics arguments. | 12 |
| Catholic responses to the environment and animal rights | Pollution, global warming in Laudato Si', natural resources, ecological conversion, Catechism 2415 to 2418 on dominion, food, experiments and cruelty, meat-eating, and utilitarian views of animal testing. | 12 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
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Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
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Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
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Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B Active Recall Guide
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