Judaism: Matters of Life and Death | Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B (1RB0)
Judaism: Matters of Life and Death
- 97 questions
- 8 subtopics
- Judaism, one religion of seven
- Paper 1
Judaism: Matters of Life and Death is examined in Paper 1, Area of Study 1: Religion and Ethics, if Judaism is the religion studied for that area.
It covers Judaism, science and the origins of the universe, the value of life in the Tenakh, Jewish responses to evolution, Jewish attitudes to abortion, Jewish arguments for life after death, Jewish responses to arguments against life after death, Jewish attitudes to euthanasia and Judaism and the environment.
Sample questions from Judaism: Matters of Life and Death
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Judaism, science and the origins of the universe
How did Nachmanides describe the beginning of creation?
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The medieval rabbi Nachmanides wrote that God first created a tiny, formless substance from nothing. All matter then developed from that substance, which some Jews compare to the Big Bang. -
The value of life in the Tenakh
What does Genesis 3 show about the freedom and fragility of human life?
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Genesis 3 shows humans are free to choose, even to disobey God. God tells Adam he is dust and will return to dust, so human life is also fragile. -
Jewish responses to evolution
What non-religious conclusion do some atheists draw from evolution?
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Some atheists, such as Richard Dawkins, argue evolution shows that life needs no designer or God. Humans are then seen as highly developed animals. -
Jewish attitudes to abortion
What does Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5 teach, and how is it used in the abortion debate?
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Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5 teaches that destroying a single life is like destroying a whole world. Jews opposed to abortion use it to stress the value of every potential life. -
Jewish arguments for life after death
How can the hope of meeting loved ones support belief in life after death?
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The Torah says Abraham was “gathered to his people” when he died. Many Jews take comfort in hoping to be reunited with family in the world to come. -
Jewish responses to arguments against life after death
How might a Jew respond to the argument that there is no evidence for life after death?
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A Jew might say the afterlife is spiritual and cannot be tested by science. The Tenakh's teaching and trust in God's justice give reason enough. -
Jewish attitudes to euthanasia
When may Jewish law allow the removal of something that prolongs dying?
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Jewish law allows removing something that only holds back an inevitable death. A classic example is stopping a noise, like a woodchopper's, that keeps a dying person from passing. -
Judaism and the environment
How do Jews apply bal tashchit to pollution and the use of natural resources?
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Jews apply bal tashchit to wasting energy, water and food, and to polluting land and sea. Many synagogues recycle and use renewable energy.
The 8 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Judaism, science and the origins of the universe | Genesis 1 and the Big Bang, Orthodox readings of the six days, Nachmanides on the beginning of creation, Jonathan Sacks on science and religion, Genesis 2:15 on humanity's role, and the shmita year. | 12 |
| The value of life in the Tenakh | B'tselem Elohim in Genesis 1:27, Genesis 2:7 and life as a gift, the freedom and fragility shown in Genesis 3, infinite value, suicide, and the sanctity of life in medicine and violence. | 12 |
| Jewish responses to evolution | Natural selection and Genesis 1:26–31, Haredi rejection, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook's response, the claim that evolution disproves God, survival of the fittest and ranking human groups, and Reform views. | 12 |
| Jewish attitudes to abortion | When a fetus becomes a full person, Mishnah Ohalot 7:6 on a dangerous birth, Exodus 21:22, Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5, when Orthodox Jews permit it, abortion for convenience, and the right to choose. | 12 |
| Jewish arguments for life after death | Maimonides' Thirteen Principles, arguments from God's justice, logic, comfort and reunion with loved ones, Kabbalistic remembered lives, the Torah on mediums and Saul at Endor, and Orthodox and Reform views. | 12 |
| Jewish responses to arguments against life after death | The comfort argument, the evidence argument, fraudulent mediums and the social-control critique, a Jewish reply to each, and Isaiah 25:6–9 and its promise about death. | 11 |
| Jewish attitudes to euthanasia | Active and passive euthanasia and assisted suicide, the goses, removing what prolongs dying, Judges 9:51–57, Reform and Orthodox differences, pain relief for the dying, hospice care, and Humanist arguments. | 13 |
| Judaism and the environment | Psalm 24:1–3, stewardship and bal tashchit, the 1986 Jewish Declaration on Nature at Assisi, a midrash about Adam, global warming, tza'ar ba'alei chayim, eating animals, and animal experimentation. | 13 |
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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