Religion and Morality

Question 1

What are the three key questions regarding religion and morality?

Answer 1

1) What is the origin of morality? (does it depend upon God?)
2) Is religion moral itself?
3) Can morality prove God’s existence?

Question 2

What is Divine Command Theory?

Answer 2

The claim that something can be good because God commands it, and all moral truths are God-given (it is also unchanging, like God’s nature)

Question 3

Are there any problems arising for Divine Command Theory?

Answer 3

• How can moral truths be unchanging if different religious communities disagree on what they are?
• Non-theists would have no commands to follow (therefore no moral accountability)
• The divine commands seem outdated/arbitrary

Question 4

What are the origins of the Euthyphro Dilemma?

Answer 4

• Plato wrote down evidence of the debate
• Took place in Ancient Greece, on the steps of the townhall
• Euthyphro believed in God’s commandments, which provide a sense of morality
• However, Socrates claimed that Euthyphro’s beliefs are far-fetched

Question 5

Socrates comes up with two horns to this dilemma. What are these questions?

Answer 5

1) Is x good because God commands it?
2) Does God command x because it is good?

Question 6

What are the implications of the first horn?

Answer 6

• God’s commands could go against our moral intuition (e.g., Abraham) so God is not the only source of moral judgement
• God’s commands are ARBITRARY (no choice to choose one or another easily)

Question 7

What are the implications of the second horn?

Answer 7

• God has to appeal to a higher moral authority before commanding (losing his omnipotence)
• God becomes redundant in moral decision-making

Question 8

Overall, what is conscience considered to be generally?

Answer 8

The intuitive sense of what is morally good (can be viewed as an external voice that can help with decision-making)

Question 9

Although people may choose to ignore their conscience, why can it tell us to be moral as well?

Answer 9

• Intuitive (innate sense)
• Overrides our rational decisions, as if it’s the ‘voice’ of another person
• It can also be learned through experience.

Question 10

Define these key terms:
- Morality
- Innate
- Intuition
- Rationality/reason

Answer 10

• Morality: understanding of good or bad
• Innate: existing within us from birth (‘born into you’)
• Intuition: a non-rational “gut-feeling” or “sixth sense”
• Rationality/reason: the ability to deliberately think about a problem or decision

Question 11

What are some of the common strands regarding conscience?

Answer 11

• Voice of God (Newman, Butler)
• Learned (Durkheim, Freud)
• Dependent upon reason (Newman, Aquinas)
• Effective with grace (Augustine, Jerome)

Question 12

Why does Nietzsche claim that “God is dead”?

Answer 12

• Modern society would have no use to these outdated commandments
• No difference between presence/absence of God in everyday life

Question 13

What does Nietzsche say we should do instead of relying on God’sc commandments?

Answer 13

Create our own norms and morals instead of relying on someone else [post modernism ~ individual chooses how to see the world, including a moral framework] [having the “will to power”]

Question 14

Why does Nietzsche argue that Christianity is slave morality?

Answer 14

• Believers who follow the commandments are known to be “self-denying”
• Sins can limited expression of oneself
• Priests exercise their own master morality onto their followers

Question 15

Provide some criticisms regarding Nietzsche’s views on religion.

Answer 15

• Christians can apply teachings from Gospels to their own moral framework
• Ubermensch is flawed, not everyone can exercise their own will to power (i.e., dictatorship)
• Some biblical teachings are useful