bullet summary: christian moral principles

theonomous christian ethics and practices

the bible as the only authority

• ‘all scripture is inspired by God, and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.’
• this quote is often cited by biblicists and supports the view that scripture is inspired by god
• therefore it alone has the authority to be used for moral instruction
• from the point of view that god is the author of the bible, it is infallible, and if we misinterpret it that is our fault
• a strength of this is that the bible teaches through examples, such as that of david and bathsheba, to show moral life
• the stories should also be read in the context of a covenant with god which is expressed through jesus
• the important examples are the ten commandments, which summarises the idea of ethics being personal and social
• also jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, the focal point of moral teaching, reforming biblical teachings in the old testament.

literalism and interpretation

• no one can read the bible at face value, shown in the example of the teaching ‘if your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.’
• this is not telling you to literally maim yourself, but a metaphor for changing the way one sees things
• Karl Barth reminds christians that literalism can lead to what he calls ‘bibliolatry‘, worship of the bible, by giving it divine status
• the bible is god’s word, but worked over a long period of time through many writers
• it is a supreme source of christian knowledge, but it must be read as inspiration alone
• biblicists must be careful to take into account the type of literature a passage may be, how it fits into the themes as a whole, and whether it is symbolic, metaphorical or literal

dealing with contradiction

• what happens when the bible contradicts itself?
• example of this is the bible’s perspective of whether violence is condoned
• the OT permits war and retributive justice through the phrase ‘an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth’.
• capital punishment is used by god for blasphemy, adultery, dishonouring parents and more
• deuteronomy also sets out the rules for war
• in the NT in jesus’ sermon on the mount these laws of retribution are replaced by reconciliation and love of enemies
• some argue jesus’ teachings stress the future ideals of the kingdom of god, and that war and violence are a necessary evil for now
• this view can be attributed to Augustine, Luther and conservative views
• others argue that it promotes pacifism and non-violence and this must be followed on jesus’ authority.
• these problems seem to suggest that a narrow view of the bible is not sufficient
• there must be more than the bible involved if a clear answer or solution is to be reached

heteronomous christian ethics and practices

roman catholic

• in Roman Catholic tradition, ethics are not only biblical, but accesible through reason, the world, conscience and church authority
• combined, these are known as Natural Law
• this has biblical precedence as Saint Paul says men must act according to conscience, and the ‘law written on their hearts.’

natural law, revelation and reason

• NL is based on the theological idea that god is the creator, giving the world order and purpose
• it is god’s will that things reach their potential and flourish. Thomas Aquinas‘ version of this theory is the one with the most influence on the catholic church
• he says that reason distinguishes us from animals and allows us to know god’s eternal law

magisterium

• in addition to divine and natural law, church authority has a place on informing catholics of their morality
• every so often the church leaders meet and publish a papal encyclical on modern issues
• these express the magisterium, or official church teachings
• it has authority and it is expected that it will be followed in ordinary circumstances
• it has authority because the catechism says, ‘the church…has received this solemn command of christ from the apostles to announce the saving truth…’
• documents such as the Veritatis Splendor reaffirm that moral law is knowable by all people and that some things are intrinsically wrong or right

liberation theology

• since the 1960s a radical strand of catholics has developed liberation theology
• it is controversial for two main reasons: it has placed the bible at the centre of moral ethics, and has questioned the church structure
• they are inspired by the liberation of moses and the role of jesus as a liberator among other examples
• some have even promoted the use of Marxism to question who has power and how they use it to benefit themselves
• however, this is an atheist theory which actually blames religion a large amount

protestant

bible, reason, conscience and church traditions

• Anglican Richard Hooker and protestant Hugo Grotius are both natural law theologians, but protestant tradition tends to place the bible at the heart of authority
• modern anglicans view the bible not as a single document, but a slowly developed set of books that reflects its own time and contemporary traditions
• ethics must come from a mixture of guidance from reason, conscience, biblical teaching and church traditions
• this is similar to roman catholics but without the authority of the magisterium

stanley hauerwas

• an example of a highly influential but controversial theologian who argued that christian ethics can only be carried out in the christian community is Stanley Hauerwas
• he says that the biblical teachings should be adapted by the community for the best outcome
• he says the sermon on the mount is aimed at communities, not individuals, who must see it as a set of value for the community to respond to: siding with the poor, comforting those who mourn, being generous with the hungry, showing mercy to the merciful
• the community must adopt these value when faced with issues such as legal disputes, sexual attitudes, marriage and divorce, promises, and revenge/treatment of enemies

problem of sources

• two main problems exist when considering the range and authority of different sources
• what are legitimate sources? are some alien to christian teachings, like marxism?
• do some have greater authority than others? if so, how does one define the hierarchy?

autonomous christian ethics and practices

• for some christians, ethics not christian but ethics done by christians. this is autonomous christian ethics
• here the bible is not a revealed document but just a christian book

love as only principle

• most autonomous christians consider that the one guiding principle of the christians mind-set is jesus’ command to love
• this love, or agape in its distinct christian form, is summarised in jesus’ life and sacrifice, and his teaching on being outwardly, not inwardly, focused
• love is a motivating factor which humans must use with their reason on how best to apply it.

roman catholic

• Hans Küng is an influential liberal Catholic who advocates a greater autonomy in ethical decision-making
• he says Catholic ethics has nothing that cannot be found by any person of good will
• he advocated for a global ethic which will enable us to solve problems with the environment and save humanity, and this is a christians problem as they must love their neighbour, which makes up the global community
• Küng says euthanasia, for example, is against offical catholic teachings, but it is not against catholic reasoning and conscience
• the model for this kind of thought is in jesus, who encouraged his followers to challenge rule based ethics and follow their own judgement

protestant

• for radical protestants, such as Joseph Fletcher, goodness is not revealed by gods or intrinsic as it is in natural law, but a condition of being human
• christianity simply highlights the importance of love (agape)
• Fletcher is most influential for his theory of situation ethics which is guided by four working principles:
  • pragmatism: what should be done to be most loving. each moral issue is judged against the command of love.
  • relativism: there are no absolute duties which make people less important than rules. relativism only comes into play when it is ‘relative to something’ and that something is love.
  • positivism: the idea that religious laws are not god-given, but human.
  • personalism: considers that humans should be treated as people because god is personal and people are made in his image. they should never be means to an end.

sufficiency of love

• some christians argue that jesus’ teachings promote more than love alone. the sermon on the mount does not dispense law, but guide us on how to fulfil it
• it is not enough to summarise christian values as love, because they have to be grounded in the narrative that considers human nature, forgiveness, redemption, the afterlife and the community