HL 2008 Unit 1: Section A | Sample answer
Describe the understanding of divine revelation found in
two major world religions you have studied.
Divine revelation is the way in which God acts to reveal himself to humanity beyond the
ordinary course of nature. It begins when God reveals himself to a rational being. The
revelation is successful when the rational being responds to the revelation and as a result
understands God better. There are universal revelations i.e. sunset and historical revelations
e.g. Moses and the Burning Bush. I will be describing the understanding of divine revelation in
the two world religions of Islam and Christianity.
Christians hold that the divine is revealed in a variety of ways – by looking to scripture, to the
community, to authority. They believe that Jesus was the manifestation of God on earth. The
life death and resurrection of Jesus is the high point of God’s involvement in human history
and God’s most complete self-communication to humanity. God became man in Jesus Christ
for the eternal salvation of all men. The Vatican II document The Church in the Modern World
highlights the importance of this revelation by stating ‘The Lord Jesus Christ is the goal of
human history’. However, God has not yet completely revealed himself. This complete, final
and ultimate revelation will happen in the future at the end of time when it will reach its
fulfilment.
HL 2008 Unit 1: Section A | Sample answer
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The Bible contains the teachings of God as it was inspired by Jesus’ lessons and life. It helps
Christians understand God better so that they can gain access to Paradise by following how
Jesus Christ acted on earth. The Old Testament is a rich source of divine revelation. One
example of how divine revelation has influenced Christian practices is the Last Supper, which
was the first Eucharist. During Eucharist Christians re-enact this historic event by drinking wine
and eating bread.
All the three major world religions believe God revealed himself to Ibrahim, Musa and many of
the other prophets in Hebrew Scriptures. The Divinity of Christ is utterly rejected as it is
deemed polytheistic, however Jesus is a respected prophet in Islam. Muhammad is regarded
as the most important prophet as he was ‘the Seal of the Prophet’s. Muslims hold the belief
that Islam has always existed but the last and most complete revelation of God’s will was
made to the Prophet Muhammad in 610CE on Mount Hira. On the so-called ‘The Night of
Power and Excellence’ God revealed himself to Muhammad through the Angel Gabriel and
declared that there was no God but Allah and Muhammad is his chosen messenger – now the
first pillar of Islam (Shahada). The ultimate sin in Islam is to worship more than one God.
Muhammad continued to receive divine revelations throughout his life. Muhammad was
illiterate but his followers compiled the messages Muhammad received through divine
revelation and produced the Qu’ran. Hence why Muslims consider the Qu’ran a verbatim
incarnation of God’s word. Therefore the Qu’ran cannot be changed or modernised because it
HL 2008 Unit 1: Section A | Sample answer
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is the eternal will of God. In Christianity the Bible is divinely inspired but only fundamental
Christians consider it to be the word of God. The equivalent to the Qu’ran in Christianity
would be Jesus. The equivalent to the Bible would be Muhammad as he is known through the
Hadith (Sunnah). Therefore burning the Qu’ran is like crucifying Christ. Muslims believe the 6th
Century was the last time God revealed himself and the Qu’ran is the final particular revelation
to humanity. This ultimate revelation is regarded as the complete and final guidance for
humanity. The revelations given to Muhammad in the 6th Century have formed the Five Pillars
of Islam that all Muslims practice. Divine revelation gives human beings a better
understanding of God. It does not mean that human beings will eventually know and
understand God fully, but instead can strive to come closer to understanding God’s nature and
will. Divine revelation can take the form of universal, general, particular or historical. All
religions believe God’s final revelation was to followers of their faith, creating a sense they are
special. Revelation is important in all of the major religions as it teaches its followers how to
gain access to Jannah/Paradise. All major religions also believe that God will fully reveal
himself to humanity on the Day of Judgement.
HL 2008 Unit 1: Section A | Sample answer
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