Divine Command -Explanation -Two opposing viewpoints -Interpretations -Valid Moral basis?

Divine Command EXPLANATION: Divine Command is...?

Divine Command What is it? Divine Command is looking at the will of God for moral direction (don’t steal because God said so...)

Divine Command How do we know the will of God? Commands from God in the Scriptures. Example: Exodus 20, the Ten Commandments

Divine Command How do we know the will of God? Don’t focus merely on the imperative commands found in the Bible But look at historical narratives, parables, prayers, letters, etc... Example: Samuel II, 12

Divine Command How do we know the will of God? The moral relevance of the divine commandments found in the Scriptures can only be understood by viewing them in their interrelatedness with these other types of writings. Divine commandments must be interpreted in this larger context.

Divine Command How important is the faith commitment and how can it effect how personnel lead their lives?

Divine Command TWO OPPOSING VIEWPOINTS: “PreHuman” Submission -vs- ’alternative’

Divine Command What is “Prehuman” Submission” Pre-Human Submission is where individuals submit to some external authority, thereby sacrificing their own individuality (and thus this is intrinsically bad).

Divine Command And the alternative? The individual engages in a “spontaneous relationship to man and nature” in such a way that individuality is kept intact. (i.e. not following ‘divine commands’)

Divine Command Is Divine Command “Prehuman” Submission? Fromm and Marx: “In religion the spontaneous activity of the human imagination, of the human brain and the human heart, operates independently of the individual,” which results in “the loss of self.” YES...

Divine Command Is Divine Command “Prehuman” Submission? Fromm and Marx: Acting against God’s orders means freeing himself from coercion, emerging from the unconscious existence of pre- human life to the level of man. Acting against the command of authority, committing a sin, is in its positive human aspect the first act of freedom, that is, the first human act. In the myth the sin in its formal aspect is the eating of the tree of knowledge. The act of disobedience as an act of freedom is the beginning of reason. YES...

Divine Command Is Divine Command “Prehuman” Submission? Why can’t one’s “spontaneous relationship between man and nature” be to obey the will of God? In this interpretation, man keeps his individuality while choosing to obey god. NO...

Divine Command Is Divine Command “Prehuman” Submission? Obedience to divine commands can be understood as another way of engaging in the ‘spontaneous’ patterns of relationship which Fromm cherishes; it is another way of avoiding the ‘loss of self’ which Marx fears NO...

Divine Command Is Divine Command “Prehuman” Submission? Geach: We ought to submit to the will of God because God has the power to destroy us if we do not. Thus we submit to God’s power out of a fear of being destroyed by that power. YES, BUT WHO CARES?

Divine Command Is Divine Command “Prehuman” Submission? Geach: It may seem insane to defy a supreme power. But, it is not immoral to do so. We are not inclined to despise someone who resists the will of a perverse human despot, even though this person knows he will be killed for his resistance. YES, BUT WHO CARES?

Divine Command So, are we nothing more than the property of God? Yes, If God is a despot No, if God is a loving Creator

Divine Command So, are we nothing more than the property of God? Yes, a life dedicated to the proving of one’s allegedly sovereign mastery over others is a life of fearful bondage No, the ability to obey when that is the proper response, to engage in selfless service when that is required of us, to recognize authority and expertise when that is evident - is liberation; And realizes new dimensions of selfhood

Divine Command Not property of God, but part of God... God is “inherent” in all of us. The relationship is one of interpersonal intimacy. When God commands, he does so with an intimate knowledge of of our condition, having suffered in the same ways that we suffer [through Jesus]. Thus...

Divine Command Not property of God, but part of God... Obeying God is not being a blind puppet of God, but listening to the one true “moral expert.”

Divine Command INTERPRETATIONS: Everything mentioned so far relates to Christianity, but what about other religions?

Divine Command Inherent Conflict: Divine command defines morals, but there are a multitude of religions with different divine commands

Divine Command Christian: EXODUS 20 You shall have no other gods before me You shall not murder Thou shall love they neighbor

Divine Command Hinduism: It is far more beneficial to the ultimate good to perform one’s own birth-determined duties, even ineptly than to perform the duties of another, however well. If it is your duty to fight, it’s O.K. because you cannot slay souls, only bodies

Divine Command Islam: A Muslim is one who submits their services to God (“prehuman submission is intrinsically good) The scripture is the actual word of God

Divine Command Shinto: Inherent love of land, country, and ancestral spirits 8 attitudes of warrior or Bushido code: Loyalty, Gratitude, Courage, Justice, Truthfulness, Politeness, Reserve, Honor

Divine Command So what does this all mean? Is Divine Command a valid moral basis? -assumes belief in a God -only way for universal moral basis is to believe in same God and interpret teachings similarly

Divine Command So what does this all mean? Is Divine Command a valid moral basis? -what about the problem of evil and suffering in the world? -evil and suffering brings God’s existence into doubt.

Divine Command So what have we discussed? Defined divine command Discussed how to determine “word of God” Talked about viewpoints on Divine Command Showed different examples from different religions Discussed validity

Divine Command Case Study: “Synopsis if the paradox of divine command in Plato’s Euthyphro.”

Just War Theory Reading Assignment: Ethics for the Military Leader Pages Fundamentals of Naval Leadership Chapter 12 Ethics and Reasoning for Military Leaders Lesson 20