Rights And Responsibilities Flashcards
Different views on the Bible
- Some believe is it literal word of God (fundamentalists)
- Some believe it is interpreted through the Church
- Some believe it was inspired by God and contains spiritual truths
- Some believe it was written by people influenced by God and should be interpreted to modern day society
Why do Christians believe the bible is a source of authority?
- If is the word of God
- It contains moral advice from St Peter and Paul
- It contains the laws of God
- It contains teachings of Jesus
How do Christians use the Church’s teachings as a source of moral guidance?
- RCC Pope and Council of Bishops offer guidance on contraception- these are published in Catechism and Encyclicals
- Pope can give infallible guidance to Catholics and he will speak ‘ex cathedra’
- CofE, Archbishop of Canterbury and general synod make decisions on homosexual clergy and women bishops
Why do Christians think Church’s teachings are the best source of moral guidance?
- God continues to speak in the world today- Pope is directly appointed by God
- Church is the body of christ and the church’s teachings are Christ’s teachings (Ephesians)
- The Church is a community of believers and can help each other
- Modern day dilemmas can be solved by the Church without the Bible
- Problems with the bible, conscience and situation ethics
Christians on conscience
- God given
- Helps judge moral actions
- Should look to Bible/Church first then conscience
Quotes for Christians on conscience
- Catechism of the Catholic Church says ‘a human being must always obey the certain judgement of their conscience’
- ‘We are sure that we have a clear conscience in every way’- Hebrews 13:18
Cardinal Newman on conscience
- people know more than can be proven
- people rely on science math and logic for knowledge
- rational skills won’t determine wrong and right or existence of God
- inner sense responsible for guilt and personal decisions
- God given
- following it is following God and leads us to him
Sidmund Freud on conscience
conscience is feeling of guilt, superego is part of personality, superego holds onto experience or guilt and shame, right/wrong isn’t about God, not God given, ego= ‘front’ we show to people
Joseph Butler on conscience
- God given, not the ‘voice of God’, decision is benevolence vs self love, based on moral reason, moral reason is god given, human nature, intuition assists
Piaget on conscience
quality acquired growing up, morality we learn from others, come with cognitive development, moral compass complete my 10, morality is progressive and development
Christians on situation ethics
- Put forward by Joseph Fletcher 1960
- Way of approaching moral issues
- Must obey teaching of Church and Bible
- Love should be the only principle uon which we make moral decisions, a good action is the most living thing to do
- Some say it has weaknesses
Quotes on situation ethics
- ‘Love on another as I have loved you’- John 15:12
2. ‘Love your neighbour as you love yourself.’- There is no more commandment more important than these’ - mark 12:31
Benefits to situation ethics
- people would be more affectionate
- actions positively motivated
- more optimism
- better equality and more respect for one another
- Christians following in steps if Jesus
- Personal ethics
Disadvantages to situation ethics
- different concepts of love
- excuse to do wrong things
- laws break and society falls apart
- relative morality
- consequences are impossible to predict
- when someone benefits, another suffers
Human rights
Universal declaration of Human Rights are the rights which, worldwide, everyone is entitled to (eg equality+freedom)
30 mains points