Christian Ethics And Secular Ethical Systems Theology Religion Essay

Christian Ethics And Secular Ethical Systems Theology Religion EssayIn this essay, I will deem the differences between Christian and layperson moral philosophy. The role of theology on good decision making will be indicated, along with secular and divers(a) ghostlike stands on honorable discourses on spontaneous miscarriage and disassociate. Miscellaneous Christian views which include those of the Liberals, the Evangelicals and the Neo-orthodox will also be examined.Furthermore, I will explore the implications of the aforementioned ethical issues on inter cartel dialogue involving Buddhism and the Abrahamic faiths.DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CHRISTIAN AND SECULAR ETHICSEthics is a word that originated from the Greek words ethikos and ethos which respectively implies practise and character.1However, Collins dictionary defines ethics as a social, phantasmal, or civil code of behaviour considered correct, especially that of a particular group, profession, or individual.2I engraft a cl ear-cut definition of Christian ethics by Dr Harkness (a professor of applied theology) as the systematic study of the way of keep set forth by Jesus Christ applied to the daily de mands and decisions of tender-hearted existence.3It is the Christians code of conduct derived from the scriptures. While Christian ethics aim is to determine what con mental strains to Gods character and what does not it is more of a practical entity in comparison with theory oriented Christian theology.4Conversely, James Bernat in his book, Ethical issues in neurology defines secular ethics as the invention of human rational dialogue that assumes that mankind can create a comprehensive and world-wide structure of morality that is void of religious framework.5The master(prenominal) approaches to secular ethics ar predicated on reason, experience or moral sense.6Additionally, secular ethics consists of various models as utilitarianism, egoism or hedonism, emotivism and cultural relativism.7These model s form the framework for most ethical postulations. I will now examine the contrasts between Christian and secular ethics.A dissimilarity between Christian and secular ethics is that the latter serves as a basis for arriving at moral judgments as it appraises existing customs, while supporting the enactment of laws and policies. Secular ethics atomic number 18 utilise as a yardstick to evaluate religious doctrines by application of a determined set of moral principles.8Christian ethics ar founded on godly divine revelations.BASES FOR CHRISTIAN ETHICAL DECISIONSEvangelical Christians base moral ethical decisions on Gods revelation which is from nature itself (the general) or from the scriptures (the special). An example derived from the scriptures is the Ten Commandments in Exodus 21-23. Biblical scholars emphasize that the immanent law derived from nature itself is inherent in mankind and it is responsible for doing things unspoilt with disclose Biblical guidelines. This is ref erred to in the book of Romans 214-15, where Apostle Paul mentioned the clarity of the human conscience in the decision making mechanism.Similarly, Jesus Christ affirms the same principle when he said men should do unto another(prenominal)s what they will have done to themselves, (Matt 712). This particular view is upheld by renowned philosophers such as Immanuel Kant and Clive Lewis in their writings.9The application of moral decisions on ethical issues is subject to debate as will be indicated in subsequent paragraphs.SOME ETHICAL ISSUESThis range from abortion, dissociate, homosexuality, same sex unification, war, money, marriage, sexuality, death, forgiveness, euthanasia, business etc.I will be focusing on the ethical theme of abortion and fall apart within the secular, Christian and interfaith discourse.SECULAR VIEWS ON ABORTION spontaneous abortion is any artificial means to induce the loss of a pregnancy. An average pregnancy is for forty weeks or nine months. Pregnancy terminated due to natural causes during the first twenty weeks is called a miscarriage, while further than twenty weeks ar pre-term delivery.10Nonetheless, abortion involves the moral choice of the mother, as well as the ethical right of the baby to live. Abortion might be inevitable in rape, poverty, deformity of baby etc. Abortion supporters see it as a retroactive cautionary while those against it see it as a little less than prenatal infanticide.11It has been established that moral justification of abortion is common in the secular world. infra the United Kingdom law (Abortions act 1967) abortion is endorsed within the first 24 weeks of pregnancy as long as certain conditions are fulfilled. It moldiness be in an approved institution, the mother and childs health are considered, and decisions to be make with the consensus of two medical doctors.12CHRISTIANS ON ABORTIONThe Liberals are broadminded on abortion, as long as it is done legally and safely.13The woman has full rights over her own body when it involves the decision to abort or not.14The Liberals do not deliberate over ethical issues concerning the unborn baby, in contrast to evangelicals position.Evangelical Christians are on strict stand against abortion with scriptural arguments used to portray (babys) life in high esteem. They also support of all social aspects regarding pregnancy care and adoption issues.15The position of the Neo-orthodox Christians will be examined next.The Neo-Orthodoxy originated from Germany after the First adult male War when Karl Barth (a protestant theologian) advanced the theology of crisis. It was an era when people were disappointed from most tenets.16Neo-Orthodoxy assumes that the scripture can be a faulty human invention, although Gods revelation is continuously present under personal experience.17Nevertheless, abortion is not allowed except if carried out to protect the pregnant woman.The Christian ethics of divorce will be examined next.CHRISTIAN ETHICS ON D IVORCEJesus response to the permission given by Moses for the issuance of the bill of divorce to women was followed by the injunction that divorce is a direct covenant-breaking departure from Gods master plan for marriage, (Matt 196 Rom 72). Jesus also denounces divorce in the dialogue with his disciples in Mark 10 1-11, while arguments resulting from the exception clause (i.e. Condition for divorce) is interpreted by some scholars in the context to mean fornication established against the married woman during the betrothal phase of marriage according to Jewish tradition. Unfortunately, the biblical divorce law interpretation is diverse. approximately scholars argue that the exemption clause means adultery which is a leverage to institute divorce.However, a suitable rejoinder is the reaction of the disciples who concluded that it is not advantageous to marry this is interpreted by some Evangelicals as voiding the powers of the husband to divorce a wife under any circumstance, as t hey are expected to forgive their spouse.18The ethical issue applicable to the hoar Testament bill of divorce allowed by Moses is that the Bill is meant to protect the women from the frivolity of men, so that they can re-marry rather than be outcasts. some(prenominal) Evangelicals justified grounds for divorce to be desertion (by either spouse) and evidence of tangible abuse against the wife. there is also a Pauline privilege in (1st Corinthians 715) which allows a believe wife to be free from an unbelieving husband who wants a divorce. There are resultant Christian ethical debates concerning the modalities of the freedom, whether it allows re-marrying or remaining single manger death.Contrastingly, Liberal Christians see the scriptural dialogues on divorce as being applicable to the historical contexts of their various times, hence divorce is permitted according to the merit of each(prenominal) case. Marriage characterized with physical abuse is seen as a marriage pledge viola tion, whereby divorce is granted.19The American inception of no fault divorce regulation in the 1960s and 1970s weakened the marriage institution, as spouses obtained divorces against their partners wish. Similarly, despite independence from the secular laws of the day, liberal Christians amidst their objective application of divorce laws was criticized for being pro-secular because of contractual approaches used instead of covenant obligation by some Christians.20The Neo-orthodox view turned out to be permissive.Neo-Orthodox Christians are permissive due to their existential system which sees watchword precepts as only relevant to the culture of when they were admonished hence they could not be categorically applied to our times. Therefore they established no ethical grounds for fence divorce.21THE ABRAHAMIC FAITHS AND INTERFAITH DIALOGUEThe Abrahamic faith is used to make reference to Judaism, Christianity, Islam and other religions that trace their spiritual culture back to Abr aham.22The platform which religions and cultures meet to exchange views for die understanding of each other is called the interfaith dialogue. The dialogue was prompted by the WCC (World Council of Churches) in 1961, when fledgling Asian Churches needed to coexist with diverse Asian religions.23Fundamentally, the existence of diverse social issues such as universal poverty has prompted the study and use of ethical approaches to interfaith dialogues. Examples are medical and economic ethics.24The Medical ethical considerations are evoked in several issues like Euthanasia, Abortion, Ecology, DNA researches etc. I will be examining the Islamic laws on abortion the next.ISLAMIC FAITH ON ABORTION AND DIVORCEIslamic faith which is based on the Quran and the leadership of Prophet Mohammed is guided by five pillars of faith, of which two are faith in one God and at least one pilgrimage to Mecca. Other admonitions require taking care of orphans, prisoners and desisting from adultery, unfair business practices and unwarranted killings.25Some Muslims prohibit abortion. The area of ethical contention is the actual time soul is given to a formed foetus. This is termed ensoulment which some Muslims take as 16 weeks into the pregnancy.However, abortion performed prior to the completion of 16th week is accepted if the health of the mother is endangered or if the baby is under the threat of mental or physical malformation. Another consideration is if the well-being of the family is not going to be properly sustained because of the child.26The Islamic religion takes abortion as being immoral in view the revered value of life as indicated in Surah 1731 which states that Slay not your Children.killing of them is a great sin. Nevertheless, an Islamic consequentialism holds the mother soluble to the aborted child at judgement day this is supported by verses from Surah 81, verses 7-14.27Surah is a supportive reference in Islam. Abortion applied to pre-marital pregnancy is allowed because the sin of having a child out of wedlock is considered worse than abortion.28Concerning divorce, Islam encourages the termination of irreconcilable marriages in good faith rather than co-existence of spouses in bitterness.There is an injunction for settling differences finished relatives of spouses.Nevertheless, where this mediation fails then divorce can be instituted, (Quran 435). Mubarat is the term used to describe mutually divorce by couples without court proceedings. Procedures called fasakh or Khula are based on the initiation of divorce by the woman. However, talaq (meaning to separate) is used to denote the divorce instigated by the husband. This can be done without much official protocols alone must be verbalized or documented.29The traditional laws of the Jews will be examined next.JUDAISM ON ABORTION AND DIVORCEJudaism as practiced by the Jews precedes Christianity which became distinct in the first Century at the time when Apostle Paul and Peter had contention s with the Jews. The Bible book of Acts Chapter 15, recorded the deviations of the gentiles from the Law of Moses. This caused an argument about the acceptance of uncircumcised Gentiles into the community of believers. Some scholars take the advent of Judaism to be the Biblical time of Abraham while others choose the time of Moses.30Nonetheless, two out of the many beliefs of Judaism are as follows 1) God made a covenant with his people (the Hebrews) through Moses which is the Ten Commandments. 2) Abrahams offspring are to be the ideal model for all nations to emulate in preparation for the approach path of the future Messiah who will rule the world in harmony and fairness.31In similarity to the Islamic faith, high regard is given to the value of life, precisely the safety of the pregnant woman remains paramount.Nevertheless, the law of Judaism on abortion assumes the insignificance of fertilized egg cells until the 40th day of pregnancy when it is taken as part of the womans body . Judaism allows abortion within the first 40 days of pregnancy but does not permit it thereafter, till full term. Judaism ethically upholds that the foetus is a part of the human body that must not be damaged.32The Jewish law allows sanction of persons who cause miscarriage due to a physical strife that involve pregnant women.Furthermore, intended abortion on an advance pregnancy that threatens the mother in any circumstances would have to be undoubtedly established. The baby is literally considered as trying to kill the mother, in which case severing the limbs of the baby and other similar acts is allowed to save the mother.A critical aspect of applying the abortion law by the Rabbis (who are in charge of the Judaism laws) is the equal importance given to the life of the baby and the mother at the moment the babys head is on the way out of the mother.33The issues of divorce cannot be addressed without talking about the marriage tradition of the Jews.Judaism upholds the sanctity an d integrity of marriage to such an extent that the Talmud (sacred writings) states that even the altar sheds separate during separation of couples. Although formal grounds for divorce do not exist, it is recognized that some circumstances make it inevitable. The divorce is predicated on the agreement of the couple and it involves funding called the get which is the certificate of divorce. There are no hindrances placed against divorced couples who want to get back together in marriage. However non-Christian priests are command from marrying a divorcee.The certificate of divorce (the get) specially written by a scribe (in the presence of a judge) is traditionally kept by the woman, and must be made available whenever she wants to re-marry. In modern times the rabbinic courts keep the get and issue the woman with a certificate in place of it.There is a serious ethical issue that the woman cannot re-marry if there is no evidence of the death of her husband. This situation is called Agunah, which implies that the woman is bound to the husband.It is generally expected that anyone who breaches divorce conditions are not allowed to be integrated into the Jewish community.34BUDHISM ON ABORTION AND DIVORCEThis religion has its origin from India in the 6th Century with Siddhartha Gautama (Known as Buddha, the learned person one). Buddhism is a spiritual way of life rather than a religion. Beliefs range from non-existence of a deity and that all things are being constantly transformed, hence the belief in re-incarnation, decency, understanding and reflection.35Over 300 million Buddhists worldwide have no doctrinal guidance on abortion. They however believe in re-incarnation which stands against abortion, thence consider it ethically wrong, although not too keen on its total prohibition by law. Nevertheless, another Buddhist expectation is the decision of abortion to be exclusively that of the pregnant woman. In Japan abortion is rampant and there is a post abortion ceremony called Mizuko kuyo done by Buddhist priest to assist women in recovering from the after effect of abortion.36The following paragraph will cover the Buddhist view on divorce.Buddhism does not see marriage as a core religious matter. They view non-entanglement with basic family life as a path to greater levels of monkish Buddhist practice, rather than the inferior lay position where one is free to raise a family. An example was set by the Buddha himself at 29 years of age when he left over(p) his family to remain celibate till the end of his life.37Buddhist tenets support moral chastity where marriages remain intact for the sake of the children. Separated couples are encouraged to re-unite. The man who chooses celibate life must renounce his wife so that she is free to remarry38.CONCLUSIONWorldwide moral laws made from the Ten Commandments are roughly entrenched in most religions and secular regulations39. Needless to say that ethics imparted through religion will have mos t impact on religious peoples behaviour. I discovered from my findings that most religions have some kind of diversity based on ethical principles (such as hedonism and consequentialism) considered in creating the creed of their subdivisions. Just as the Christians views vary, so is the specific application of certain tenets of the Abrahamic faiths in various countries. These variations are also present in the Buddhist faith where disparities in India, Japan and other countries are considered.All facts point to the use of ethical principles to determine religious creeds. The same fact is applicable to the current trend in interfaith dialogues such that participants unavoidably approach most themes brought forward, within the framework of ethical agendas. This has created awareness for the study of ethics by those already equipped with vast knowledge of their faiths.