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Christian Moral Principles - Coggle Diagram
Christian Moral Principles
Theonomous ethics
Bible as the only authority for Christian ethical practices
Biblicists or fundamentalists
Bible is true and of the highest value as it is from God
Source of morality is in the Bible
Explicit, comprehensive guide, and the only authority
'Sola scripture' - scripture alone
Scholars
Mouw
Bible is given to humans directly from God, so it is the will of God and a form of revelation
If the command to love is the only Biblical command which has normative relevance to moral decision making, then much of the substance of Christian ethics could be established without reference to scripture
Moral decision making is the task of finding correlations between Biblical revelations and moral issues
Just because there is one Biblical commandment, a law of love, does not rule out the possibility of other commandments on other issues that also matter
Analogy / quote
'The Bible is not a book of timeless truths that we can simply apply to our situation in a vacuum; it is a story that invites us to be part of God's ongoing work in the world'
Bible gives us imperatives - even if something is not mentioned in the Bible, you apply principles directly - no interpretations as you follow it as it is
Argues that it makes sense that God would give us a true way to live
Calvin
The Bible is the revelation of God so can be trusted entirely
Analogy / quote
Scripture is a recording of what God has 'been pleased to consign his truth to perpetual remembrance'
The Bible is enduring memory and commemoration of God's deeds, commands, and the legacy of Jesus and disciples - these laws from God can be understood throughout time
'The word of God is the only foundation on which true religion rests'
God's commands are the ultimate source of morality - God's will determine what is right and wrong
By seeing everything through the lens of Christ the mediator, Calvin sees the Bible as a required component to understand God's work on earth
Divine Command Theory
Supports Augustine's idea that in our postlapsarian state, we are unable to reason
William Lane Craig - objective morality is grounded in God's commands, and without God, there would be no foundation for moral values and duties
Absolutist theory - manual of how to live your life
No morality without God, so follow the Bible without interpretation or discussion
Moral obligation requires obedience to God's commands
Weakness
Bible does not mention specific situations
Cannot be applied to modern issues like CSR and globalisation
Bible has contradictions - 'eye for an eye' but 'turn the other cheek' (overcoming - systematic theology means we look at the context rather than cherry picking, showing that laws changed)
Includes many different writing styles (gospels) which may seem to point towards human authorship, not directly from God
Different interpretations of the Bible (liberal vs literal), leading to subjectivity
Hensmen - 'We must use our reason to comprehend its meaning', as it could lead to situations like encouraging child soldiers through David and Goliath (overcoming - systematic theology)
Barth - theonomous approach is bibliolatry, false worship of the Bible, as the words of the Bible are a witness to God's word, not the 'word' itself, which is Jesus, so reason should be used
Calvin - sensus divinitatus allows us to be moral as we have 'conscience', meaning we don't need the Bible as a guide (overcoming - SD only tells us God exists, not moral laws)
Example
Alekseenko was imprisoned for refusing to serve in the military
Conscientious objector on the basis of his religion
Supports theonomous ethics as it shows how Bible is used in moral decision making
Heteronomous ethics
Uses multiple sources of authority for moral principles
Bible, Church, and reason
Church tradition is the expression of the Bible, which is 'prima scriptura' (principle source of authority)
We understand the Church / Bible through reason
Catholics give equal authority to the Church and the Bible
Scholars
Hays
The Church provides collective wisdom so gives a framework to understand the Bible
Our reason allows us to understand the context of the text
Analogy / quote
'The Bible is not a collection of texts that simply lie there inert; rather, the Bible is an agent of transformation, a powerful force'
The Bible is active in shaping our actions
Bible is the living word of God speaking to us today - present in the world today
Spohn
The Church provides a framework rooted in practices, traditions, and beliefs
Church and reason are complimentary approaches in interpreting the Bible
The Church acts as a communal, historical interpreter of the Bible - using reason or Church alone is not good as they can get it wrong eg. Church led to issues with Anabaptism
Church and reason play an important role in understanding the Bible
Analogy / quote
'Invites us to reflect on our lives and the world around us in new and transformative ways'
'The Bible is not a fixed object that can be studied like an artefact but is rather a living and dynamic text that engages us in ongoing dialogue'
Anglican tradition
Church communities and traditions are shaped by scripture and the people within these communities express the stories symbols, and moral convictions that shape the character of their members
Synod comes together to discuss issues of teaching or administration
Tradition is not a fixed entity, but a healthy debate as the living Church has sought throughout the ages to make sense of the context that it is in
The governing body of the Church which is key in decision making
Sharing the Gospel of Salvation - Bible doesn't tell us about how to act in multifaith societies, so we use reason to understand instead
Messer
Need to look at context and interpret using reason to decide what to do
Church tradition is a shared understanding within the Christian community as to how it's members ought to live their lives
There are different ways which can draw on the Bible, history, saga, law, biography, instruction, and warning, although they may not all be as easy to understand as 10 commandments
Catholic tradition
Sacred tradition in the Catholic Church therefore has equal authority to the Bible as the Church teaches it comes from Jesus
Tradition is how the Holy Spirit makes the Risen Lord present
In this view, tradition precedes the Bible - Pope and Church are constantly adding to it
Catechism summarises many of the decrees and declarations of the Church on various moral issues such as abortion, euthanasia, nuclear weapons, and other modern issues
The Church decided what was included in the Bible involving a process from the first disciples and the early writing of Jesus; followers
Aquinas
This knowledge enables humans to use their reason to determine, through careful reflection, on the facts of the world the morally correct way to act in line with divine law
Church is the vanguard (Rahner) declaring messages of Christianity to all
What makes humans different from all other creatures is our ability to know God eternal law through reason
Divine law - Bible and Natural law - reason
Weakness
Augustine argues that humans are flawed due to the fall
We have original sin and akrasia
We may make errors when using reason to interpret the Bible
Barth argues that although we have reason, we cannot fully understand God's will in the Bible, as 'the finite has no capacity for the infinite'
So cannot use reason alongside the Church and Bible to act morally
We have to treat the interpretation with a hermeneutics of suspicion - tradition cannot be trusted
Through the ages, we can see that Church tradition has got it wrong (overcoming - using reason alone will lead to issues)
Example
Pope Benedict says that condoms can be used to stop the spread of HIV
Supports heteronomous ethics as it was a collective use of the Bible, Church tradition, and reason
Autonomous ethics
Places authority on the individual on how to act in a situation
Places emphasis on agape (unconditional, sacrificial love)
Love is reiterated in the New Testament as the foundation of Christian ethics
'Love your neighbour as yourself'
Scholars
Fletcher
The Bible is too legalistic
Analogy / quote
'It alone is decisive, overriding the others'
Agape love is the most important
Love follows the actions of Jesus and can be applied to any situation
Situation ethics is based on the fundamental principle of love
Tillich
The individual should have the ultimate authority
3 ethics norms that should work together- justice, love, and wisdom
Agape is love centred and should be listened to
Love is the most important, love is guided by wisdom, and justice is the backbone
Love should inform our decisions
Analogy / quote
'Love... is the power of intelligent discrimination'
Deciding what is right and wrong based on love
Love is not just an emotion, but a powerful force that can unify and transform us
Love is the ultimate source of justice and ethics, and use this to guide our understanding of these concepts
Weakness
Charlotte and Peter Vardy argue that love is too individualistic
We decide what it looks like and then decide what we want to do, which is problematic
Situation ethics is open to abuse as it can be used to 'justify doing what people feel inclined to do, rather than what might be right' (overcoming - following Jesus' love example, not individualistic)
Mouw argues that the Bible is still needed so that we can apply its instructions to moral issues
Love isn't the only Biblical command - need the whole Bible (overcoming - Bible has contradictions, creating ambiguity, but love doesn't have this ambiguity)
Example
Savita Halappanavar, in Ireland, had her waters break at 17 weeks and her body failed to miscarry the foetus
Abortion was illegal so couldn't help her with the process, leading to an infection and death
In 2018, Ireland legalised abortion
Supports autonomous ethics as it shows that love should be the ultimate authority to make moral decisions
'And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love' (1 Corinthians 13:4)
'Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love' (1 John 4:8)