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E1 A Examine the challenges to the Divine Command Theory - Coggle Diagram
E1 A Examine the challenges to the Divine Command Theory
INTRO Divine Command Theory is a deontological, meta-ethical, normative, objective and absolutist theory
based on the Classical Theist conception of God as omnibenevolent, omniscient and omnipotent - orders the whole universe as creator - humans have a duty to obey
God is the origin and regulator of morality
right and wrong are objective truths based on God's will
moral goodness is achieved by complying with divine command
divine command as a requirement of God's omnipotence
divine command as an objective metaphysical foundation of morality
ISSUES of the DCT come to light through the Story of Jericho, for example - "they devoted the city to the LORD and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it-men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys"
PROBLEM 1 Euthryphro Dilemma (the two horns show that the DCT fails)
in one of Plato's first works, he tackles the problem of where moral value originates...
if it's 1. the Gods decide what is God and bad, which means they could command an act that would, by human standards, be wicked
if it's 2. moral value comes from an independent source completely separate from the gods, then gods are not omnipotent as they too can be judged and morality is independent of religion
PROBLEM 2 Arbitrariness problem
based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system
if morality is based solely on what God command then it is not an adequate basis for what is right or wrong
example - story of Abraham, Isaac, Joshua
PROBLEM 3 Pluralism Objection
different religions or branches within religions have different beliefs about Gods and what they commanded e.g. differing moral teaching about divorce, abortion, homosexuality...
leads to the question
which
divine command should be followed?