Christians believe in one God who is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing), omnibenevolent (all-loving) and eternal. Most Christians believe God is a Trinity: Father, Son (Jesus) and Holy Spirit - three persons, one God. This is shown in the Nicene Creed, written in 325 CE at the Council of Nicaea to settle disputes about Jesus's nature.
Genesis 1 describes God creating the world in six days and resting on the seventh (the Sabbath). Christians disagree on how literally to read this: literalists (often evangelical Christians) take the six days as actual 24-hour days; liberal Christians read it as symbolic, compatible with the Big Bang and evolution. All agree God is the ultimate creator - a common mistake is thinking Christians must reject science entirely.
A key exam theme: if God is omnipotent and omnibenevolent, why does evil exist? Christians respond with theodicies. Augustine's theodicy says evil entered through the Fall (Adam and Eve's original sin) and is humanity's fault, not God's. Irenaeus's theodicy says suffering exists to help humans grow spiritually ('soul-making') and become more like God.
Exam tip: always link these events to what they mean for believers today (hope, salvation, forgiveness).
Salvation means being saved from sin. Catholics emphasise faith AND good works; most Protestants emphasise salvation through grace by faith alone (sola fide), a key idea from the Reformation. Atonement is the reconciliation between God and humans made possible by Jesus's death.
Christians believe in judgement after death, leading to Heaven or Hell. Some believe in a Second Coming (Parousia) when Christ returns to judge everyone.
Baptism welcomes a believer into the Church family.
Catholics usually baptise babies (infant baptism), using water poured on the head, promises made by godparents, and anointing with oil (chrism) as a sign of the Holy Spirit.
Baptists and other believers baptism churches baptise adults only, by full immersion in water, once the person can personally declare faith.
Key idea: infant baptism shows God's grace comes first (before the baby can choose); believers baptism shows a personal, informed choice to follow Christ.
Common mistake: don't say 'all Christians baptise babies' — this is a genuine denominational difference, always name Catholic vs Baptist practice.
Re-enacts the Last Supper, using bread and wine to remember Jesus' body and blood.
Catholics believe in transubstantiation — the bread and wine actually become the body and blood of Christ while keeping their appearance.
Most Protestants see it as symbolic/memorial, a reminder of Jesus' sacrifice, not a literal change.
Other names: Mass (Catholic), Lord's Supper, Holy Communion (Anglican/Protestant).
The Lord's Prayer (Our Father) is the model prayer taught by Jesus, used by all Christians.
Types: set/liturgical prayer (fixed words, e.g. in church services) and informal/extempore prayer (personal, spontaneous, own words).
Prayer builds a relationship with God and is used for worship, confession, thanksgiving and intercession (praying for others).
Liturgical worship follows a fixed structure/order of service, common in Catholic and Anglican churches.
Non-liturgical (informal) worship is flexible, common in Pentecostal/Charismatic churches, often with spontaneous prayer and lively music.
Charismatic worship includes gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and healing, and expressive praise.
Private worship happens alone (e.g. personal prayer, Bible reading at home), not just in church.
A journey to a holy place for religious reasons.
Key UK site: Iona (Scotland), linked to St Columba and Celtic Christianity.
Key international site: Lourdes (France), linked to healing miracles after Bernadette's vision of Mary.
Reasons: to deepen faith, seek healing, say thank you, feel closer to God, or as an act of penance.
Advent: the four weeks of preparation before Christmas.
Christmas: celebrates the birth (incarnation) of Jesus.
Holy Week: the week before Easter, including Maundy Thursday (Last Supper) and Good Friday (crucifixion).
Easter: the most important festival — celebrates the resurrection, showing victory over death and sin.
In the local community, the Church runs food banks, homeless shelters and support groups (practical Christian charity, agape love in action).
Worldwide, Christian mission and evangelism spread the faith, e.g. through mission trips and Bible translation.
Common mistake: link EVERY practice back to a belief (e.g. Eucharist links to belief in Jesus' sacrifice for sin) — exam questions often ask 'how does this practice show belief in...?'
Sunni Muslims often summarise belief around six key ideas: Tawhid (oneness of God), belief in angels, belief in holy books, belief in prophets, belief in the Day of Judgement, and belief in predestination (al-Qadar). Shi'a Muslims group beliefs differently under Usul ad-Din (roots of religion), which includes Tawhid, justice, prophethood, Imamate and the Day of Judgement. Know both lists and be ready to explain why Sunni and Shi'a differ on the Imamate.
Tawhid is the single most important belief in Islam: God is one, indivisible, with no partners or equals. Shirk (associating anything with God) is considered the greatest sin. Common mistake: students confuse Tawhid with just 'believing in one God' — it also means total submission and recognising God as the sole sustainer and judge of the universe.
Muslims describe God through 99 Names (Asma al-Husna), reflecting qualities such as Al-Rahman (the Compassionate), Al-Rahim (the Merciful), Al-Adl (the Just) and Al-Muqsit (the Equitable). Learn at least four names with meanings, and be able to link them to how Muslims live (mercy encourages forgiveness; justice encourages fair dealing).
Angels are made of light, sinless, and act as messengers. Key named angels: Jibril (Gabriel), who revealed the Qur'an to Muhammad; Mika'il (Michael), linked to sustenance and rewards; and Israfil, who will blow the trumpet on the Day of Judgement. Common mistake: don't confuse angels with jinn — jinn are made of smokeless fire and have free will, angels do not.
Muslims believe in four holy books: the Tawrat (Torah), Zabur (Psalms), Injil (Gospel) and the Qur'an, with the Qur'an as the final, uncorrupted word of God revealed over 23 years. There are 25 named prophets in the Qur'an; Muhammad is the 'Seal of the Prophets' — the last one. Adam, Ibrahim, Musa and Isa (Jesus) are all recognised prophets, but Isa is not divine in Islam.
Akhirah covers death, resurrection and judgement. On the Day of Judgement (Yawm al-Din), deeds are weighed and everyone crosses the bridge of As-Sirat to Jannah (Paradise) or Jahannam (Hell). Common mistake: predestination (al-Qadar) does not remove free will in mainstream Sunni teaching — Muslims still believe they are responsible for their choices.
The main historical split concerns leadership after Muhammad's death: Sunnis accept the first four caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali) as rightly guided; Shi'a Muslims believe leadership (Imamate) should have passed through Muhammad's family, starting with Ali. Around 85-90% of Muslims worldwide are Sunni.
Sunni Muslims follow Five Pillars: Shahadah (declaration of faith), Salah (prayer), Zakah (charity), Sawm (fasting), Hajj (pilgrimage). Shia Muslims group these differently under Roots of Religion and Branches of Religion, and add extra practices such as Khums (a 20 percent tax on surplus wealth).
The Shahadah states there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger. It is whispered into a newborn's ear and is the first pillar spoken to convert.
Salah is prayer performed five times a day: Fajr, Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha. Muslims face the Kabah in Makkah (the qiblah direction) and perform wudu, ritual washing, before praying. Friday noon prayer, Jummah, is performed communally at the mosque with a sermon (khutbah).
Zakah is the compulsory giving of 2.5 percent of savings above the nisab threshold each year to help the poor. This is different from Sadaqah, which is voluntary extra charity given at any time.
Sawm is fasting during the month of Ramadan, from dawn to sunset, abstaining from food, drink and sexual relations. It marks when the Qur'an was first revealed to Muhammad on Laylat al-Qadr, the Night of Power. Children, the sick, elderly, pregnant or breastfeeding women and travellers are exempt, though missed days should be made up later if possible.
Hajj is pilgrimage to Makkah, required once in a lifetime for Muslims who are physically and financially able. It takes place in the Islamic month of Dhul Hijjah and includes rituals such as wearing simple white ihram clothing, walking round the Kabah seven times (tawaf), and the symbolic stoning of the devil at Mina.
Jihad means struggle. The Greater Jihad is the personal, internal struggle to live as a good Muslim. The Lesser Jihad is external struggle, sometimes physical defence of Islam, governed by strict rules (only in self defence, no harm to civilians).
Id ul Fitr celebrates the end of Ramadan with prayers, gifts and feasting. Id ul Adha, the festival of sacrifice, remembers Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son and coincides with Hajj.
Don't muddle Zakah (compulsory, 2.5 percent) with Sadaqah (voluntary). Don't say Jihad only means holy war; the Greater Jihad is the primary meaning for most Muslims. Remember Shia Islam structures practices differently from the Sunni Five Pillars.
Marriage is a legal and often religious union between two people. In Christianity, marriage is a sacred covenant before God, based on 1 Corinthians 13 (love is patient, love is kind) and the vows taken in church. In Islam, marriage (nikah) is a strong contract (mithaqun ghalithun) not a sacrament, involving a marriage contract, a mahr (gift from groom to bride), and two witnesses. Both religions see marriage as the proper context for sexual relationships and raising a family.
Most Christians teach sex belongs within marriage, though views on contraception vary: the Catholic Church only permits natural family planning (rejecting artificial contraception per Humanae Vitae), while most Protestants accept contraception for responsible family planning. Muslims generally permit contraception within marriage if agreed by both spouses, but forbid permanent methods like sterilisation without strong medical reason.
Divorce is legally available in the UK, but religions differ on remarriage. The Catholic Church does not recognise divorce (marriage is indissoluble) - a Catholic must seek an annulment to remarry in church. The Church of England allows divorce and, since 2002, permits remarriage in church at the vicar's discretion. In Islam, divorce (talaq) is permitted as a last resort - it is called 'the most hated of permitted things' by the Prophet Muhammad - and can be initiated by either the husband (talaq) or wife (khula).
Both religions value the family as the basic unit of society for nurturing children and passing on faith. Traditional teaching gave complementary roles (husband as provider/protector, wife as homemaker), but liberal Christians and Muslims today largely support equality between spouses, citing Galatians 3:28 ('neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus') and the Qur'an's teaching that men and women are spiritual equals.
This is a key area of disagreement within and between religions. Liberal Christians support same-sex marriage (legal in UK churches like the Quakers and some Church of England provisions since 2014 civil law), citing love and equality. Conservative Christians and most Muslims teach homosexual acts are sinful, citing Leviticus 18:22 and Romans 1:26-27, or Qur'anic references to the story of Lot (Sodom and Gomorrah).
Punishment has four main aims: retribution (making the criminal pay for what they did), deterrence (putting people off committing crime, either the individual or society as a whole), reformation (changing a criminal's character so they don't offend again), and protection (keeping society safe from dangerous people). Different religions and thinkers emphasise these differently, so exam answers need to show you understand all four and can weigh them against each other.
Christianity teaches justice and fairness, drawing on the idea that everyone is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27) and so deserves fair treatment. Jesus taught forgiveness ('turn the other cheek', Matthew 5:39) but also respected the law and authority (Romans 13:1-2, 'be subject to governing authorities'). This creates tension: should Christians forgive, or should they support punishment? Most argue both are needed at different points.
Islam teaches justice ('adl) is a core principle, and Shari'ah law sets out fixed punishments (hudud) for specific serious crimes. The Qur'an also stresses mercy and the importance of reforming the offender where possible.
This is a classic 12-mark question. For: lex talionis ('an eye for an eye', Exodus 21:24) supports proportionate retribution; it permanently protects society; it can deter. Against: 'Thou shalt not kill' (Exodus 20:13); sanctity of life (life is God-given and only God should take it); risk of executing an innocent person, which cannot be undone; it removes any chance of reformation.
Christianity places huge weight on forgiveness - the Lord's Prayer asks God to 'forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.' Some Christians argue forgiveness should replace punishment; most argue forgiveness is about attitude of heart, not about ignoring justice - a criminal can be forgiven AND still serve a sentence.