CHRISTIAN MORAL PRINCIPLES
1. The Bible
The most common Protestant edition is the King James Bible, which
was originally translated into Old English. Therefore, there were
mistranslations that added anti-Semitic references and removed
passages on Mary and Thecla (representations of strong and devout
women)
The Catholic Bible is the most complete and written in modern
English.
Two forms of Revelation:
i) Propositional: God’s word is a set of truth statements
ii) Non-propositional: God is understood through experiencing him.
The Bible as Sole Authority (theonomous Christian ethics)
Its self-evident that humans are inherently sinful, so we need God’s moral
commands to live a good life.
There are three ways of interpreting:
-Literally true as the word of God/Holy Spirit:
The Bible is the “sola scriptura”, and it reveals God’s will through
literal words and direction.
The Scripture is self-authenticating and infallible (the inerrancy of
Scripture)
The writers are scribes of God’s words amanuensis.
CRIT: Karl Barth warned of literalism as it gives the Bible divine
status that can only be given to God. He opts for a Conservative
approach, where the Bible is witness to the Word of God.
CRIT: The Old and New Testament give different commands. Jesus’
Sermon on the Mount seems to revise old laws from the Old
Testament, placing forgiveness and love in place of war and death.
CR: Jesus stresses the future ideal state of the Kingdom of God, but
they live in an imperfect world where violence is necessary.
Contradictions are needed so we can work out how to properly
enact biblical principles.
Ten Commandments and Sermon at the Mount
-Fully authoritative but considers the role of the human writers
(Conservative)
Divine inspiration by the authors of the Bible, enacting divine
revelation.
Witness to the Word of God
Galatians 1:11 “I want you to know brothers and sisters, that the
gospel I preached is not of human origin”.
, It is a covenant with God; a special relationship that involves
agreements.
-An inspirational book, but does not hold same authority as of
today (Liberal)
The Bible is based off reflection, and heteronomous views for
complete Christian understanding is needed.
Understanding what God has done for us, not what we can do for
God.
Jesus showed in his life that rules were not all that there is to know
about God, but our inner disposition and desire to be the best we
can spiritually.
Heteronomous Christian ethics
Roman Catholic heteronomous belief
Ethics is seen to be accessible through the natural world, reason,
conscience, and Church authority = NATURAL LAW
Referenced biblically with St Paul’s Letter to Romans, where even
gentiles can be moral as they have “the law written on their hearts”.
Natural law (Aquinas)
God has a purpose for us all, which we can act morally by acting
with reason and recognising God’s eternal law. This makes us
different from other beings.
Eternal Law: Underlying laws of Universe only God knows.
Divine Law: God’s laws from the Bible (Sermon on Mount and Old
Testament)
Natural Law: The goals all human beings have.
Human Laws: Laws and codes we put on ourselves in society.
Role of the Church traditions
Morality is informed by the Church; it is seen as the “deposit of
faith”.
Underpinned by Scripture.
It is the Church’s task to pass on the teachings from Jesus’ disciples
and interpret the Bible for new ethical dilemmas (climate change,
euthanasia). These are published in the Papal encyclical.
The encyclical express the Magisterium, or the official teachings of
the Church.
The Catechism: “The Church, the pillar and bulwark of truth”
Christians are meant to live the life Jesus did.
