Lovin’s defines ethics as “…how we try to become good people and shape for ourselves a life that is worth living” (7). According to Lovin, Christian faith cannot be separated from our ethics as they shape and define each other. Moral choices define an individual’s ethics and each choice must be an individual decision that none other can make (7). Lovin’s definition must be divided into two parts in order to effectively comprehend his rationale. The first, ethics as an attempt to become good, encounters people in the crossroads of their lives. Christians live with the curse and blessing of being painstakingly aware of their goodness and task of doing good in the world. Lovin states “We wonder whether we pay enough attention to people in need… …show more content…
In searching for a worth to life, ethical decisions are made. For some it can be difficult to find meaning and purpose in a life that is not made easy for Christians. And such becomes the search as humans yearn for emotions and life events that can ease the burden of faith. In seeking an ethical life, in reminding themselves of the good to be found, that burden can be eased. An ethical life as seeking a life worth living reminds individuals that there is still a purpose to be served on earth before the eternity that awaits. Such is the individuality of ethics as an individual’s definition of life worth living varies so greatly between souls. If moral decisions were to lead a person down a negative path, they can still be said to be pursuing an ethical life. Individual definitions of worth determine the slant of a person’s ethics and so following Lovin’s definition of ethics, ethics are not necessarily good or right. The pursuit of positive ethics, therefore, must come from the primary piece of Lovin’s definition, as the pursuit to be good
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich, ed. Readings in Christian Ethics: A Historical Sourcebook. Edited by J. Philip Wogaman and Douglas M. Strong. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996.
There are two basic kinds of ethical judgments. The first have to do with duty and obligation. For example: "Thou shalt not kill, lie, or steal." "You just keep your promises." These judgments often uphold minimal standards of onduct and (partly for that reason) assert or imply a moral ‘ought.’ The second kind of judgment focuses on human excellence and the nature of the good life. These judgments employ as their most general terms "happiness," "excellence," and perhaps "flourishing" (in addition to "the good life"). For example: "Happiness requires activity and not mere passive consumption." "The good life includes pleasure, friendship, intellectual development and physical health." I take these to be the two general types of ethical judgment, and all particular ethical judgments to be examples of these. The main contention of this paper is that we must carefully distinguish these two types of judgments, and not try to understand the one as a special case of the other.
xvi) On the same exact page Hill states, “Christian ethics does not involve either or analysis as if we could choose between holiness, justice and love, but rather a synthesis in which all three conditions must be met before an action can be considered moral.” The Bible recognizes this concept by saying, “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left.” (Hebrews
For ages, humanity has wrestled with the idea of life, along with one’s privileges and rights. Through old and ancient civilizations humanity has learned to create and maintain an perfect utopia. But even to the most advanced civilizations that we have encountered, how much do they think we are worth? Could they even begin to express the value behind a person and his/her life? How would it be measured? Would humans be priced by the elements they’re composed of? Would it be measured by a person’s health and life expectancy? How about traits, how would those be put into account? Would a person who is fit to work in rigorous places be worth more than a person who is tech savvy? All these questions will need to be addressed. No one is the same. The fact that some many people have strived in order to receive what one deserves. Not everyone makes the same amount of money. Some people work more, and others work less. Some make more and others make less, no one is worth the same price because no one in this world is the same as the next. I agree with how life insurance works because if one can afford it due to the fact that one has worked hard enough to get the money one need to pay for it. It is thought that everyone should be labeled the same price because everyone is human and inside everyone is the same, but that is not the case no one is exactly like the other. By someone earning more income in life than the others, that shows that on the outside they've lived all totally separate lives and therefore need the different amounts of money when a loved one passes. The fact that everyone is different gives society a reason to put a monetary value on people.
One of life’s most complicated issues within our multi-cultural world is the need to understand morality and where our moral choices come from. It is something that is woven throughout every aspect of human life, and yet cannot be truly clarified through a single definition alone. The Oxford Dictionary defines ‘morality’ as “the principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior” (“Morality”). Some definitions claim infinite interpretations of morality that are strongly influenced by religion, secular ideology, philosophy, as well as moral Universalism. Regardless of individual interpretation, without these principles societies would not survive. In her essay, Morality and Religion, Philosopher Iris
People argue about the value of a human life almost everyday whether it be divided
... and interpreting Scripture for any purpose, but maybe especially in the cases of moral and ethical questions, the end result should still be compatible with how we understand God’s love for all of creation. If instead the end result causes danger to God’s creation, or oppression, or any other harmful practice, it has not been used appropriately. Scripture should play an important role in the Christian moral formation and ethical decision-making processes, but only when done so with and through love – God’s love.
The term “ethics” discusses how one’s morality needs to take acknowledge that of the rest of the members of the group or community t...
“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26) This verse asks the question how can someone profit or take advantage of the world if they damage or lose their character along the way, what is worth more than one’s soul? This question can help one in determining their ethics by balancing what is right, meaningful, and most important to them. Knowing and understanding one’s ethical values is important on the path towards achieving one’s goals.
In order to have a life lived with moral and meaningful purpose, it is not a condition to live life with faith. To say one’s life is a life lived to faith involves three things. It involves the resignation of free choice in the sense that you believe that your god is the master of your universe. It also requires a belief and hope of an eternal life that is completely controlled by ones God. And finally, it requires the believer to accept the role of the child of God. These mandates outline a life of faith; which ultimately leads to an existential nihilism, which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value.
Ethics is the study of what is right or what ought to be, depending upon the action of individuals. The reason why the individual, plays a major part in ethics is because the principles of right and the moral quality of a course of action depends on them. As individuals, we are moved mainly to action and not by moral judgments alone. People in society today use a set of principles that have been written, modified, abused and constantly changes throughout the years. In contrary, we must acknowledge both secular and religious followings, which have codes of ethics that they themselves supposed to follow.
“Christian Ethics is fundamentally a matter of participating in the unfolding drama of God’s creative and redemptive purposes for the world. Put otherwise, it is a matter of dwelling within the biblical story and of having one’s life shaped and formed by the love, the judgement, and the mercy of God” .
Human life is full of meaning. As humans, we assign value to many things. However, what happens when we assign a specific value to a human life? This is the issue being presented in the article, “What is a Life Worth,” by Amanda Ripley. The government is determining a monetary value to a human life, and it does not appeal to the masses. There are many problems with the cold calculation, and most people cannot see the other side of the numbers. The economic value of a human life is calculated based on the income the person was receiving, but when the check is given to a loved one of a small amount, the compensation is misinterpreted as an overall value of the human life. The true value of a human life should not be combined with the monetary value that is determined by the government, or the value of life would be worth very little.
“I have made terrible mistakes that have hurt the people that I cared about the most, and I am terribly sorry. I am deeply ashamed of my terrible judgment and my actions” (Anthony Weiner). It is said by many different people online that on average we make about 35,000 decisions each day and 3,000 as a young child. In my short 19 years on this earth I have already made over 242 million decisions. Many were small and quite a few were big. The biggest mistake, or wrong decision, I have made was the night I decided that life was not worth living anymore.
When considering morality, worthy to note first is that similar to Christian ethics, morality also embodies a specifically Christian distinction. Studying a master theologian such as St. Thomas Aquinas and gathering modern perspectives from James Keenan, S. J. and David Cloutier serve to build a foundation of the high goal of Christian morality. Morality is a primary goal of the faith community, because it is the vehicle for reaching human fulfillment and happiness. Therefore, great value can be placed on foundations of Christian morality such as the breakdown of law from Aquinas, the cultivation of virtues, the role of conscience in achieving morality, and the subject of sin described by Keenan.