n Flashcards
What is the argument from morality?
The argument from morality is an argument for the existence of God, based on moral normativity or moral order, suggesting that God is the best or only explanation for moral aspects, thus concluding that God must exist.
What are moral arguments?
Moral arguments deal with issues such as the permissibility of actions like killing in certain circumstances and are found in normative and applied ethics.
What does the argument state about people’s sense of right and wrong?
The argument states that all people have an instinctive sense of what is right and wrong, including the most remote tribes with limited contact with the outside world.
What does the argument claim about the source of morality?
The argument claims that because all people have a sense of right and wrong, it must have come from someone or something outside us, suggesting that it must be God.
What is a counter-argument about the source of morality?
It can be argued that morality is learned from our parents, but the first people had to gain that sense from somewhere or someone outside themselves, i.e., God.
What is a weakness of the argument from morality regarding social conventions?
Those who reject the argument claim that morality is a social convention, learned through experience and upbringing.
What is the evidence against a universal moral code?
The evidence against a universal moral code includes the existence of murderers or rapists with no sense of morality, and the acceptance of bribery and corruption in some parts of the world while it is not acceptable in others.
What are alternative explanations for morality?
There are many alternative explanations for morality that have nothing to do with God, such as the conscience being entirely a product of the brain.
What does the moral argument suggest but not prove?
The moral argument might suggest the existence of some sort of lawgiver, but it cannot prove the existence of God as traditionally understood.
What is a noted observation about atheists and agnostics?
Not every believer in God, yet atheists and agnostics seem to understand the difference between right and wrong and live good lives.
What is an obligation?
A moral requirement to follow a certain course of action, to do or refrain from doing certain things.
What is the general meaning of obligation?
A duty to do or not to do something. In a legal sense, obligation is a civil law concept.
How can an obligation be created voluntarily?
An obligation can be created voluntarily through a contract, quasi-contract, or unilateral promise.
What is a quasi-contract?
A legal obligation, not a traditional contract, decided by a judge for one party to compensate the other.
What are duties and obligations in the context of morality?
Requirements of a special kind, considered the strongest normative statements in the language of morals.
