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Revelation in the holy bible
Revelation in the holy bible
Revelation in the holy bible
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Why do “we have cause to be uneasy” (p. 31)? When does Christianity begin to talk? Why? We have cause to be uneasy because God is our only comfort yet supreme terror. Christianity begins to talk after one has realized that there is a moral law and a being behind it.
What are your thoughts about Lewis’s idea of the “Law of Human Nature”? What are some of the laws of right and wrong that seem to be built into mankind? I agree with Lewis’s idea of Human Nature because all humans act a certain way no matter what their background is. Rooted in all humans is a desire to do what is good and Lewis offers a well developed explanation for this phenomenon. Some laws of right and wrong can be do not murder, do not steal, and treat others with respect.
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43) Explain what he means by this and give three examples from the real world that support his hypothesis. Lewis means that no one likes badness for the sake of being bad. People are bad because they are sadists or for the sake of something they are going to get out of it. People are not greedy for money or power because it is evil but because of what they will get out of it. This goes along with gluttony as well.
Describe the example of free will found on page 47. How does this relate to human freedom and sin? Does this make the problem of evil clearer to you? Lewis uses the example of a mother asking her child to clean their room. God gave us free will so that we can have the ability to love. Without this ability we would all be senseless machines.
What is the foolish thing many people say about Jesus? Why does Lewis say this is “one thing we must not say” (p. 52)? The foolish thing to say about Jesus is that they believe his teachings but reject his divinity. A man who claims the things Jesus did would be considered a madman.
What is the great paradox found on page 57? How does this help you to understand the death of Jesus? God does not command us to suffer however it is what we need in order to return to him. Jesus suffered because he was part man and so he had to suffer to return to
Lewis is now talking about forgiveness. Forgiveness sounds easy until you find yourself having to forgive someone who has done you wrong. When forgiving someone you don’t have to like them or agree with what they have done, but you do have tell yourself to stop holding a grudge when you think about what that other person has done. But when forgiving someone you have said that you no longer hold that against them. Also God says that we should forgive others like he forgave us and we have done more wrong to him that the other way around.
I believe that in Lewis’s view people reject God because of the choices that they make, for some it is by their actions, others it is self-fulfillment, but for all it is their choice of how they interact with God. People reject God when they choose to remain separate from God instead of fully embracing a life with God. Lewis introduces us to many ghosts who make decisions resisting heaven and returning to hell. They get stuck in their decisions because they are lost, for one reason or another; they are unable to completely and fully accept God in their lives. They believe it is easier, “better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.” (71 ) Lewis explains “There is always something they prefer to joy” (71). We are introduced
It is the contention of this paper that humans are born neutral, and if we are raised to be good, we will mature into good human beings. Once the element of evil is introduced into our minds, through socialization and the media, we then have the potential to do bad things. As a person grows up, they are ideally taught to be good and to do good things, but it is possible that the concept of evil can be presented to us. When this happens, we subconsciously choose whether or not to accept this evil. This is where the theories of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke become interesting as both men differed in the way they believed human nature to be.
Human nature has been debated for centuries, everyone coming up with their own theories, pulling their sources from religious texts, wars, experiments, or daily life. William Golding and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, born in very different times and countries were very opposite in their views compared to one another. William Golding believed that human nature was immoral and evil, and there has been evidence of this all the way to the beginning of human society. Without laws or moral boundaries, humans would plunder, steal, and murder to their hearts content, delighting in their new found freedom to let go of social philosophies imposed upon them. Rousseau, however, believed that human nature was naturally just and moral, and it was society’s laws that made them immoral. Social norms and laws create limitation and superfluous need, and it is within those boundaries that humans become enslaved to “moral inequality.” Without laws and social norms, humans will revert back to their natural goodness. It is the polar opposite of Golding’s belief. Golding’s philosophy, however, is more in line to my own, as in my opinion, Rousseau’s belief is a rather naïve outlook on life.
Human Nature as Viewed by Thomas Hobbes and David Hume Thomas Hobbes in Chapter 13 of Leviathan, and David Hume in Section 3 of An Enquiry Concerning the Princples of Morals, give views of human nature. Hobbes’ view captures survivalism as significant in our nature but cannot account for altruism. We cover Hobbes’ theory with a theory of Varied Levels of Survivalism, explaining a larger body of behavior with the foundation Hobbes gives. Hume gives a scenario which does not directly prove fruitful, but he does capture selfless behavior.
Sadly, I think Hobbes is correct, though clearly he was writing in the abstract. While all people do have within them elements of both good and bad, as The Osmond Brothers said so succinctly in the 1970’s, “one bad apple can spoil the whole darn bunch.” Even if 99.99% of the population was good, pure, philanthropic, and just, it only takes one “evil” individual to upset everything. As Hobbes pointed out – everyone must make a singular commitment to have freedom from the natural condition.
Human nature is the most debated topic to date. Many people think that mankind is programmed to be evil; on the other hand people argue that it is naturally good. Nathaniel Hawthorne gave his argument with the novel, The Scarlet Letter. The Scarlet Letter showed that mankind is innately good by Chillingworth’s measures, Hester’s capitulates and Dimmesdale’s noble qualities.
these terrible events happen to him and even starts to question if God is even real. “For the first
"If we debunk and abolish traditional moral values and gain control over the conscience of man as science has enabled us to control over other things in nature, it will result in the eventual Abolition of Man, the dehumanization of humanity." ("The Abolition of Man simplified" Youtube) The Tao (Dao) speaks of the way. The presumption that man has instincts, and that we are governed by those instincts, and that those instincts have a higher power. And that there is no right or wrong, just the value judgement (the way). C.S Lewis was saying that there always has to be a reason for moral value, and moral decisions. And that if we follow the Tao (Dao) way of life, then we have no way of knowing true morality.
C.S. Lewis begins his book, “Mere Christianity”, by introducing the Law of Right and Wrong or the Laws of Nature. This, however, arises a question. What is the Law of Nature? The Law of Nature is the known difference between right and wrong. That is, mans distinction between what is right and what is wrong. “This law was called the Law of Nature because people thought that everyone knew it and did not need to be taught it”(18). Lewis relates the law to how we treat others. We treat others the way we want to be treated and if they treat us poorly in return we become agitated and annoyed with them. He states that we become a society of excuses when something goes wrong. He goes on to say that we want to behave in a certain way when in reality we do the opposite of what is right or what is wrong. We are humans and humans have primal instincts. We are all capable of using our instincts to do right or wrong. Lewis uses an example of a drowning man to prove this point. When one sees a man in trouble two desires or instincts kick into play, to save the man or ignore him because the situation at hand could endanger you. However, there in another impulse that says help the man. With this comes a conflict of instincts. Do you run and forget about it or do you jump in and help. Most people will help even if the situation is going to endanger their life. This is just one way of seeing moral law. The right in a situation will mostly always prevail over the wrong. “Men ought to be unselfish, ought to be fair. Not that men are selfish, nor that they like being unselfish, but they ought to be”(30). We are creatures of habit and logic. Lewis believes that the moral law is not taught to us rather known by us instinctively. He also believes that the law is real. The law is our behaviors in life via good or bad. Lewis states, “there is something above and beyond the ordinary facts of men’s behavior”(30). This opens Lewis to believe that the natural law is both alive and active in mans life today. Lewis goes on to say that the law must be something above mans behavior. He begins to relate this to the creation of the world.
While maintaining a open look of this moral law, Lewis presents two objections one would present to the moral law: “The moral law is just herd instinct” and “Morality is just social convention. The moral law is not a herd instinct due to man’s choice to suppress stronger instincts in fa...
There are many situations I have come across in my life that remind me of Dan Lewis’ view of life as a smorgasbord. For example, as I am nearing my graduation of high school I am beginning to realize I have no idea what comes next. There are a plethora of possibilities, so many choices and all so wonderful, yet there are some not so wonderful as well. The idea of life is extraordinarily daunting, and the mere thought of the future often sends me into a wild panic. Like Lewis, I understand the reluctance to choose a certain plan. There are so many possibilities, what if I never find happiness with the plan I choose? Do I continue to choose meals from the menu of life? And what then? What if I still never find what is right for me. These are
The second law of nature is derived directly from the first. It insists that man lay down his right to all things; and be contented with so much liberty against other men, as he would allow other men liberty against himself,” (Leviathan 1, 14). Essentially, in the state of nature, a man has a right to all things. By following this second law of nature, a man gives up certain rights in hopes that other men do the same in pursuit of peace with one another.
1. Explain what Lewis means by the “Law of Nature” or the “Law of Human Nature.”
In David Hume’s A Treatise of Human Nature, he divides the virtues of human beings into two types: natural and artificial. He argues that laws are artificial and a human invention. Therefore, he makes the point that justice is an artificial virtue instead of a natural virtue. He believed that human beings are moral by nature – they were born with some sense of morality and that in order to understand our “moral conceptions,” studying human psychology is the key (Moehler). In this paper, I will argue for Hume’s distinction between the natural and artificial virtues.