Revelation
General & Special
Revelation – the ‘heart-beat’ of Christianity
l It is FUNDAMENTALLY important that you understand (whether you believe it or not) that revelation is FUNDAMENTAL to Christianity and to the Christian believer.
l Without revelation, Christian belief would be ‘empty’ and ‘dead’.
l But why? Because it is through the very belief that God has revealed himself to creation that gives Christianity its purpose and validity. Saying ‘revelation didn’t exist’, would practically be the same as saying ‘God doesn’t exist’ – as far as the theist (believer) is concerned.
Special Revelation
- Special revelation is when God reveals Himself directly to a person or group in the form of a dream, vision or a miracle.
- God has chosen those people ‘especially’ to communicate to them.
Examples of Special Revelation: St Paul
Saul had a vision of a bright light on his way to Damascus. A voice asked Saul why he was hunting down Christians. Saul was convinced that the light and voice were God. He changed his name to Paul and travelled the world telling people about Christianity. He wrote most of the books in the New Testament.
General Revelation
- General revelation is how people generally come to know about God and believe in God.
- They don’t have any special experience, but they gradually come to faith through a variety of experiences.
People learn about God through reading the Bible. It teaches them how God has acted in human history, the laws that God expects humans to follow and gives people comfort in times of trouble.
People learn about God through the lives and advice of religious leaders like the Pope who study the Bible and tell their followers how they feel God would want them to live today.
People learn about God through their response and appreciation of the wonders and beauty of the world around them. Nature is beautiful, clever and complicated. They feel that it is so awesome and wonderful that God must have created it.