Divine Command Theory (DCT) Definition: moral actions are those actions which are in keeping with the commands of God. Something is morally wrong "because God says so." The most obvious problem with DCT is the problem of how one determines which religious tradition has it right. To "which God" and the related religious texts should I look? Allah‚ Yahweh‚ the Christian Trinity‚ Brahma? The Qur’an‚ the Torah‚ the Christian Bible‚ the Bhagavad Gita? How does one determine which "God" is the
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1. What are the key differences between utilitarianism‚ deontology‚ natural law ethics‚ and virtue theory? Utilitarianism Theory is the moral theory that argues that an action is right if and only if it conforms to the principle of utility. The desire for pleasure and happiness is universal. People seek to maximize their pleasure and minimize their pain. Thus‚ a morally correct action is one which results in the greatest possible pleasure within a given set of circumstances. The text highlights
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“Examine the key features of the divine command theory and identify its weaknesses.” (21) The view that moral rules are true by virtue of being commanded by God is called the divine command theory. It is a deontological theory and claims that sentences such as "charity is good" mean the same thing as sentences such as "God commands charity”. If you believe that moral actions are good or bad because they are commanded or forbidden‚ certain things must follow. First‚ if they had not been commanded
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While in utilitarianism an action is held to be good according to the amount of utility and happiness it can produce; divine command theory believes that an action is only morally good if it is the result of the action being commanded by God. With respect to the argument of whether killing someone is morally worse than letting someone die; an advocate of divine command theory would state that as humans‚ we do not have the right the dictate whether
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The theory can “provide sufficiently clear moral direction and an adequate sense of duty” (Cowan and Spiegel‚ 2009). This theory is based on the fact that God is the creator of the laws governing morality and that he commands them; in that he would be against abortion and considered Pro-Life. Cowan and Spiegel state that “an implicit divine command about the morality of abortion may be inferred from” the biblical scripture Exodus
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Ethics Comparison Anthony Phillips University of Phoenix Ethics 316 Aaron Rawls 10/13/2014 Ethics Comparison This paper will compare the similarities and differences between virtue theory‚ utilitarianism‚ and deontological ethics. This comparison will provide a description of the differences in how each theory addresses ethics and morality‚ and a personal experience to explain the relationship between virtue‚ values‚ and moral concepts as they relate to one of the three theories. Virtue theory states
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Student #: 14111505 Divine Command Theory is False According to the Divine Command Theory morality depends upon religion in the following sense: Morally right actions are morally right because God commands us to perform them‚ and morally wrong actions are morally wrong because God forbids us from performing them. In other words‚ the Divine command theory is the view that morality is somehow dependent upon God‚ and that moral obligation consists in obedience to God’s commands. My goal is to prove
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Money Jennifer Browning ETH 316 April 2‚ 2015 Professor Peter Fortuna When comparing virtue theory‚ utilitarianism and deontological ethics‚ you must look at the similarities and the differences. Each idea has many key points; virtue theory is defined as your personal behavioral characteristics. If you are a good person‚ your values will be good values. Utilitarianism believes that if your action is right‚ it will promote happiness and if it is a wrong action the reverse will
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In this essay I intend to give an account of the ‘Divine Command’ theory of morality‚ outline it’s main objections‚ in particular with regard to the ‘Euthyphro Dilemma’ and whether these objections can be answered. The ‘Divine Command’ theory‚ otherwise known as ‘Moral Transcendentalism’‚ is an ethical theory that holds the view that morality is dependent upon some form of transcendent being or God and that morality is ultimately based on the word of character of said God. Thus‚ according to this
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major ethical theories which we addressed are Kantian Ethics‚ Utilitarianism‚ and Virtue Ethics. A strong argument could be made for each theory‚ but one sticks out as the best and most reasonable theory of ethics. Kantian Ethics is the best universal theory of ethics‚ as it allows for individual rights and is specific enough to follow. Kantian ethics stresses individual rights‚ reason‚ and motivation for actions. Immanuel Kant believed that each person
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