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The Four Key areas of Christian Authority - Coggle Diagram
The Four Key areas of Christian Authority
Jesus' Ethics
Paul's Ethics
Influenced by Greek philosophy, Jewish and Roman law, Jesus. Saw Jesus as the
Messiah. Imitate Jesus’ lifestyle – love, kindness, generosity.
The body of Christ:
Christians the body, Jesus the head.
Eucharistic
Gifts of the spirit
Faith, hope and love
Division restored by love of the Holy Spirit
Agape – communal love.
Coming of the kingdom – Paul’s teaching must be taken in the context of his belief that the end of the world was coming in his lifetime.
Divine Command Theory
Coming of the kingdom – Paul’s teaching must be taken in the context of his belief that the end of the world was coming in his lifetime.
Christians must obey the commands of a perfect God.
Strengths:
fits in with divine sovereignty
fits in with idea of creator
objective
stresses obedience.
Situation Ethics
Joseph Fletcher – inspired
by Jesus’ ethic of love (agape). Spoke against legalism and anti-nomianism, put forward his own situationism.
4 working principles:
personalism
positivism
pragmatism
relativism
6 fundamental principles:
Love = the only good
Love = the only norm
Love & Justice are the same
Love is not the same as liking
Love justifies the means
Love decides there and then
“In resolving any situation, the primary motive must be love.”
John Robinson – supported situation ethics.
Other Sources of Authority
The Bible – fundamentalist view; salvation history (GRAF & WELLHAUSEN); for Protestants focal point of authority: Luther – per sola fide and per sola scriptura; synods.
Reason – God created reason; Aquinas and Natural Law; allows Christians to reevaluate old problems like slavery, contraception.
Magisterium – seat of authority for RC Church, led by Pope: encyclicals, sermons, letters, statements ex cathedra.
The Inner Self – private prayer, conscience