Archive for category Divine command theory
Kantian Ethics – “Good vs Evil”
Posted by admin in Divine command theory on August 15, 2011
Kantian ethics, or “It’s Your Duty,” as Wilkens states, is centered on one’s duty for the good of the cause and utilizing reason as a means to an end. I liked the example of the courtroom in Wilkens text, where he talks about a juror who has to make the choice to vote “not-guilty” in a trial, because there is not enough evidence to support the verdict. Kantian ethics supports looking at “the best choice” instead of one’s own choice or personal opinion as the highest tally mark.
Wilken’s goes on to state that many people who are into Kantian ethics make a comparison that it is similar to Christianity. Although this is true to some extent, here’s how it differs: Kantian ethics do not have to, nor do they support, belief in God. The just of this theory is based upon If I make a correct choice, I am good. Where the theory gets kind of crazy though, happens when you take out God. Good choices cannot be the reason for living, and what about, as the author states, those choices like: “do I lie when a murderer comes in the room and asks where my brother is?” Of course, in my head, I’m thinking-”Don’t tell him the truth, make up a story or something!” Pure Kantian ethics may state: “tell the truth at any cost.” That, in the murderer scenario, would result in death and disaster. Read the rest of this entry »
Divine Command Theory Explored; Part 1 in the Series on Ethical Theories
Posted by admin in Divine command theory on August 15, 2011
Divine Command Theory is perhaps one of the easiest moral theories to understand and one that we are all surely familiar with. Put quite simply Divine Command Theory states that an action is morally right if it is divinely commanded. The reverse side of that coin is that if an action is divinely prohibited it is morally wrong.
Simple right? Well, not quite. Divine Command Theory works really well for deciding if your actions are right or wrong if you happen to be in constant, clear, and direct communication with divinity. Very few people believe they have that kind of connection. This is a sort of Divine Command Theory taken to the extreme.
More commonly, Divine Command Theorist use an accepted set of divinely inspired or written texts to determine right from wrong. The Ten Commandments are a perfect example of this. I’ll call this “Divine Scripture Theory.” Divine Scripture Theory can and at times has worked very well for conflict resolution. There are stipulations however, all parties must believe in the same god and the same scriptures. However this problem can be almost completely dismissed in ranking the theory’s effectiveness because most if not all theories need to find common ground in conflict resolution. I’ll call this the “Common Ground Problem.”
What if the scriptures do not directly address a particular issue? Well some adherents dismiss this outright saying that the scripture will address every issue if you study it enough or properly. Others however say that rather than relying solely on direct commands or scripture one should look for the principles that the divinity set forth in the scriptures or in past commands. Read the rest of this entry »