Why are laws so important to our society

1
Why are laws so important to our society?
2
Why do you think that laws are important in
society?

• Who do you think makes laws? In other words who
  decides what is legal and what is illegal? What
  would happen if we had no laws?
• Are some laws more important than others? Write
  down an example of a law you consider to be
  important and a law you consider to be trivial
  (not important)

3
What are laws?

• Laws are very important in each society. In this
  country local laws are called bye-laws. Bye-laws
  include where people can park. Breaking these
  rules rarely result in a criminal record.
• The most important laws are those passed by
  parliament. Laws passed by Parliament have to be
  obeyed by everybody in the country. Breaking
  these laws is an offence and can lead to criminal
  convictions and sanctions

4
Keywords to learn and use

• Crime an offence against the laws of a country
• Justice the administration of the law and its
  punishments
• Law the rules of a community or a state
• Sin an offence against God and His laws

5
What are offences?

• Offences can be divided into non-indictable (less
  serious) and indictable (those responsible are
  liable to be charged with a crime). Only the most
  serious are tried in front of a judge and jury.

6
What does religion have to do with our laws?

• The UK is a democracy with a Christian
  background.
• Most of its laws reflect this.
• The Laws exist to protect the most vulnerable
  members of society
• Why would protecting the vulnerable be considered
  a Christian action?

7
What does the Bible say about following the law?

• Remember you need to know scripture to back up
  your arguments in examination

8

• Rulers are not to be feared by those who do good,
  but by those who do evil . Would you like to be
  unafraid of those in authority? Then do what is
  good and they will praise you, because they are
  Gods servants working for your own good. But if
  you do evil, then be afraid of them, because
  their power to punish is real. They are Gods
  servants and carry out Gods punishment on those
  who do evil. For this reason you must obey the
  authorities.
• Romans 133-5

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• What does this mean?
• Does this passage teach us to follow laws?
• Can you see any problems that may occur from this
  teaching?

10

• What does this mean?
• Does this passage teach us to follow laws?
• Can you see any problems that may occur from this
  teaching?
• (tip consider how Martin Luther King or Nelson
  Mandela would have felt about this teaching)

11

• When Jesus was asked whether the Jews should pay
  taxes to the occupying Roman Government he said,
• pay the Emperor what belongs to the Emperor and
  pay to God what belongs to God
• Mark 1217

12

• What does this mean?
• Does this passage teach us to follow laws?
• Can you see any problems that may occur from this
  teaching?

13
What would you do?

• If you had the opportunity to pass 3 laws to make
  this country a better place for everyone what
  would they be?
• If you could abolish (get rid of) 3 laws that we
  have in this country what would they be and why
  do you think we would be better without them.