RS - Life and death (GCSE)

• Jesus rose from the dead
• The bible says that there is life after death
• The churches teach that there is life after death
• The creeds say there is life after death
• There is evidence of life after death from such things as near-death experiences and the paranormal
• They believe that life after death gives life meaning and purpose

Many Protestant Christians

• Believe that after death the body will stay in the grave, but the soul will go straight to God for judgement. There is a difference of opinion about what will happen to those who do not go to Heaven, and some believe that there is no such place as Hell. 
• Why? Jesus told a theif on the cross that he ouwld be in Heaven that day. Jesus said his father's house had many rooms that Jesus was preparing for his followers. The teaching of the Church is that there can be a communion of the saints (communication between dead and living Christians). Evidence of the paranormal such as ghosts and mediums.

Other Evangelical Protestant Christians

• Believe that after death the body and soul stay in the grave until the end of the world, at this time a Christian will be judged. The good will go to Heaven and sinners who have not repented will go to Hell. 
• Why? Jesus's body was raised from the dead. They taught to believe in the resurrection of the body and everlasting life. St Paul teaches this belief in 1 Corinthians.

Roman Catholic Christians

• Believe in both the resurrection of the body and immortality of the soul. They believe that the soul of a christian who has not sinned since their last confession will go straight to Heaven. The soul of a Christian that has sinned will go to Purgatory for their souls to be cleansed . The souls who do not believe in God or have committed unforgivable sins will go to Hell. After this, Jesus will come back to Earth to raise the dead and reunite their bodies and souls in Purgatory will go to Heaven and the couls from Hell will return to Hell.
• Why? The resurrection of Jesus. The teachings of the New Testament. The teaching in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. They believe that Jesus is seated on the right hand of the father and will come again to judge the living the dead. 

• Christians believe they will be judged by God after death, so they live within the guidelines given in the Bible and the church. This affects how they live their lives and how they treat others. 
• Jesus' resurrection gives them hope that they also will rise, and that they will be rewarded in the afterlife for their time in Earth.
• The promise of the afterlife means forgiveness for some who have repented for committing sins.
• It offers comfort to those whose loved ones have died.

• Near-death experiences - This event normally happens to patients who have been pronounced dead for a very small amount of time. They discribe leaving their bodies and seening themskeves outside their bodies. Some report seeing loved ones who have already died or a bright light they travek towards. 
• Ghosts - These are thought to be the spirits of dead people who have not moved on to 'the next place'. Some ghosts haunt the living whilst others look after loved ones or try to contact the living. 
• Contacting the dead - People such as mediums claim to be able to make contact with the dead. These people claim to have paranormal abilities.
• Reincarnation - The belief that a person's soul is reborn into another body when they die because of deja vu or memories from past lives.

• If death is the end, how can there be more?
• There is no evidence for an afterlife.
• Mediums could be tricking people.
• We should not believe in things that are unscientific, as science can explain the world.
• Religion offers no good reasons to believe in an afterlife.
• Ideas of heaven and hell could be made up.
• When a person dies their body decays - how can they live again?
• Life after death is impossible - we are either alive or dead.