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More handpicked essays just for you.
The relationship between morality, ethics and religion
The role of religion in a society
Ethical teachings of Christianity
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Moral Responsibility and Its Impact Upon Community
In every religion there is a distinctive understanding of value and duty, of right and wrong, and of good and bad. Modern Christianity is no exception and believes in each of these things. Christians know there is only one God and he created and rules over all things. They know that it is through Gods grace and love that we may have eternal life. That love and grace does not come without a price. The price is a life that is lived for God. It carries with it certain ethical and moral responsibilities to the community and all mankind. Those moral and ethical responsibilities are the backbone for society.
In Christianity, Christ is central in atoning for the sins of mankind. He is the Son of God and gave his life so that we may live. The Christian operates on the basis of love and it is this love that determines social policy. Love creates and preserves the community. It is that community that gives us values. Our morals and values are what direct our natural impulses. God created man and gave him free will. He bestowed unto man the ability to take into consideration the motives as well as the consequences of his actions. Man has the ability to reason as apposed to acting from natural instincts or compulsions. Reasoning is a gift from God and must be used to make sound moral decisions. Reason cannot be used alone it must be used in conjunction with faith in God and his will. In all of life there is probably no area that perception plays a larger impact than in the realm of faith. How we see the world, our place in it, and our God dramatically affects how we feel, and how we think. This then determines how we behave, what we believe and who we become. Th...
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...have presented to the world and for a large extent lived by it. Despite being subjected to persecutions, we as a people, maintained a level of humanity and caring that usually far exceeded the surrounding civilizations. It is the Christians job to go out in to the community and present the gospel. This being said, the moral responsibilities and values set fourth by Christians are a building block for the community and the world. Once these things are established it becomes a giant circle. The people have direct impact upon the community and that community is what bonds the people. Moral responsibility and community are in many ways one in the same, they work together to unite, and activate the citizens of faith so that they can positively impact the political process, influence public policy and define the heritage of Christian values, principals, and morals.
...lvation is achieved differs significantly among the various Christian groups, for example, the Catholic Church believes that salvation is attained through good works such as acts of charity and almsgiving, while the Anglican Church as a deeper focus on personal faith and acceptance of Jesus as the Savior. The concept of salvation is a driving factor in the formation of ethics and morals in the Christian faith, as individual desire to receive eternal life in heaven underpins many actions and choices that they make, such as the choice to attend church or participate in aiding the poor and helpless.
...se they do carry a great responsibility to care for others. As the author declares it, they are the ones who keep watch over the souls of the believers in the faith community, exercise leadership in light of the final Day and will give an account to the Lord for their shepherding. Also, they will be unprofitable, if they do not do it with the joy of the Lord. Rhee as well as the author of this article wants us to see the full responsibility of a leader over a faith community and the qualities he or she must carry in order to lead others to Christ and to the final day of our Lord’s return.
Many people believe that today’s Christians are too sheltered and oblivious to the real world around them. When asked, many outsiders compared today’s Christians to “The Titanic - a ship about to sink, but unaware of its fate” or “a hobby that diverts people’s attention” (Kinnaman 120). It is important Christians to not just stay secluded in one group (church group), but to be talking to others (outsiders) so we are aware of the problems and thing that are going on in the world around us. As Christians we are called to be disciples of Jesus by reaching out to those in need, praying for those around us, and calling people to become the church. In “Unchristian” David Kinnaman outlines three main things we as Christians should include in our lives: accepting responsibility, not being fearful, helping the desperate, being prepared, and keeping a balance.
The Christian religions do however present much more of an appealing atmosphere than such other religions which are as large as the Christian. The Christian religion is one of few religions where punishments for sins are not severe. In the Christian religion, even if you have lived a life of sin, so long as you repent in the end, you will be saved and given eternal life. This is not so in other religions. Such religions as Hinduism for instance do not believe this. For everything you do wrong you will be punished. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction, if not in this life, then the next. Hindu's also believe that punishing the body is part of the path to salvation. Christianity is nothing like this. Many Christians live in high class society. Christianity is one of the most appealing in that any sins may easily be corrected and that Christians may live comfortable, if not wealthy lives without guilt.
In this essay I shall explore the question of moral responsibility and free will, by looking at, and comparing, ideas that stem from a Kantian philosophical position, and those that stem from a naturalist philosophical position. I will also consider the implications that follow from each position, when considering the issue of punishment. Furthermore, I will show that although Kantian and naturalist philosophers typically differ in some aspects, such as their concept of the source of free will, they find themselves in much the same position when it comes to determining when moral responsibility is applicable. However, when we turn to applying moral philosophy to the important practical issue of punishment, the Kantian position becomes incoherent as soon as we consider the possibility that free will does not exist. Conversely, a naturalist position, particularly one of the consequentialist tradition, remains capable of answering such an important normative question, regardless of whether its notion of free will turns out to be correct or incorrect. Ultimately then, I will suggest that it is the naturalist philosopher who is in the better position to tackle the normative question of punishment, that arises in applied moral philosophy.
There are several aspects to consider when exploring the Christian worldview. There are many facets or denominations and they each have their own distinct beliefs and practices, but they all share the same fundamental beliefs. In this Paper we will explore the character of God, His creation, humanity and its nature, Jesus’ significance to the world, and the restoration of humanity, as well as my beliefs and the way that I interact with Christianity and my personal worldview.
Hence, as a Christian adherent, it is essential they follow the words of the Lord and express their faith in the correct manner. Individuals can do this by following the steps of Paul of Tarsus, in his attempt to spread Christianity worldwide, abide by the ethical teachings set by the church such as euthanasia and participate in Saturday/Sunday Worship.
They believe in one god and have most of their laws made by him. They believe all humans are equal and that they should live moral lives. They also follow the bible. That’s where most of Christianity is located, and that’s the most resourceful thing about it. Everybody is born with worth and dignity since they were created by God. Everyone has the right to choose between doing good and doing wrong. Every person has the responsibility to help others in need and the community.
The rise of Christianity in western civilization is arguably among the most important memories in history. There is no denying what the spread of Christianity has done for the world, for better or worse. Its impact on western civilizations is unrivaled and unprecedented. Christianity slowly became something for many individuals to turn to; in times of hurt it provided comfort, in times of pleasure it gave thanks. The will and belief for salvation has driven individuals to be better, and to have a reference while in need.
Christianity propagated charity as one of the necessary acts that a good Christian should follow. Graham Gordon believes that in Christianity, "Charity is considered chief of the Christian virtues," and that "Charity is commended by St. Paul for being the true way to the end which religious practices seek"(10). We can see that in being a chief virtue, charity is highly encouraged in the sense that helping others is considered to be a great deed of good doing. Therefore, we can draw the notion that those who wish to follow the "true way to the end," are those that contribute the most to the poor, as opposed to those mentioned by Walsh who see themselves as "not responsible for the welfare of human beings.
A value Christians must follow is to not be self-righteous yet that is what the majority of Christian religions do. They do their best and try and get people in the church while young claiming that is the best and only real religion that should be followed. There is no argument as to which church is better and there should not be such an argument as religion should not be involved in such foolery, yet people of Christian faith still take part in this act despite it being the opposite of what Jesus had put forward. People of the catholic religion believe sin causes spiritual penalties, and not all of these penalties are removed even if the guilt of a sin has been forgiven yet this is the exact opposite of what Jesus preaches. Jesus says that once one apologises for his sins and stops that of which he sinned, he is forgiven.
The matter of religion in relation to law is an age old question that many generations of people have had to face. In fact, in some ancient civilizations, religion was as much a part of the law, as water is a basic human necessity. Leaders were often worshiped as messengers or children of gods, and sometimes even as gods themselves. Religion has shaped the backbone of many a community, and still today, in some parts of the world, it is a force to be reckoned with. However, it is in my belief, that the religious and moral values of an area should not influence the laws that people are meant to abide by. Not only because many people do not share the same religious beliefs (or even have a religion for that matter), but because in doing so, it allows for the possibility that people will try to take advantage of the system and commit acts that are morally unjust, in the name of their religion.
Secularised ethics can be defined as “The basic principles of right action, especially with reference to a particular person, profession etc.” Christian ethics however cannot be as simply defined. Ethical values of Christians cannot be reduced to a set of rules that can be easily followed and obeyed. A definition that gives an idea of Christian Ethics can be given in this form,
I have found that people who consider themselves Christian do not follow the Christian “Code of Morals,” the “Ten Commandments” and “The Seven Deadly Sins.” Envy, gluttony, and greed are among the sins listed in the “Seven Deadly Sins” but are the most obvious committed by Christians. People always want the biggest and best possessions and seem to be in a competition with their neighbors. They find pride in owning the largest, most expensive televisions and flaunt their 2016 cars like toys. The flaunters have no sense of empathy when it comes to less fortunate. Several times I have seen people speed past the Shriners men in their new cars simply because they have too much pride to donate any change to people in need. We westerners do not always appreciate what we have. We always seem to have the money for the newest iPhones but cannot donate a simple dollar to the third world countries.
Focusing only on the hard cases makes moral theology to become an abstract phenomenon detached from the social experience of individuals living under different social context. From the author’s perspective, morality should be “an everyday practice… the practice of appraising ourselves and others against notions of the good, or the right, or the fitting” (p. 7). For moral theology to shape everyday ethics, it needs to engage with the human element—understand what it means to be human, it can only do so in the realm of social anthropology. Moral theology failure to engage in the mundane is what turned it into a confession of sins profession. With confession, Christian ethics essentially became more about punishment, depending on the severity of the sin committed, than on