1. God talk LO: I will further explore different meanings behind the term ‘God’.

2. STARTER 1. What is meant by the word ‘God’? 2. Compare your answer with the person next to you. 3. If someone who has never heard anything about religion asked you to explain what the word ‘God’ means how would you do it?

3. THINKING ABOUT GOD What can you learn about the ways in which people have traditionally thought about God from the images below?

4. SONGS ABOUT GOD Study the extract from a traditional Christian hymn. What do you learn about God’s nature from it? ‘Immortal, invisible God only wise, In light inaccessible hid from our eyes, Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days, Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.’ W. Chalmers Smith (1825-1908)

5. E XTENDED READING FOR COMPREHENSION Read through the chapter entitled ‘The Aardvark in the Artichokes.’ Whilst reading Record 5 things said, include The One Thing which stood out. Anything to challenge or disagree with Any questions it leaves you asking Focus on 1. What is said regarding the use of words/language 2. Different understandings of what God is like You may use mobile phones to look up any new words.

6. SO WHAT ARE THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD? Pg 73 of A2 textbook Religious believers are aware that the idea of God may be slightly paradoxical. There is a tension in asserting that God is both transcendent and immanent. However, many would argue that this is due to our human limitations. We are not able to accurately reason regarding the nature of God.

7. THOUGHT POINT Dr Martyn Lloyd Jones had a few things to say about the place of philosophy and reason when it came to talking about God. Analyse the quotes from the following slide, and work out your responses to him.

8. REASON AND GOD – QUOTES FROM DR MARTYN LLOYD JONES (1899 – 1981) ‘We are all born philosophers, and the trouble with philosophers is that they claim they can understand everything. That is why philosophy, let me emphasise it again, in New Testament terms, is always the greatest enemy of revelation and Christian truth.’ ‘Philosophy has always been the cause of the church going astray, for philosophy means, ultimately, a trusting to human reason and human understanding.’ ‘This is the trouble with the philosophers. They say that they do not understand how God can do this or that, they want to explain the mind of the almighty God with their pygmy mind and it cannot be done. And that is why the philosophers find it so difficult to become Christians.’

9. PLENARY 3-3-1 LO: I will further explore different meanings behind the term ‘God’.