Saturday, June 26, 2010

Ethics through Christianity

Ethics is the branch of philosophy which examines the question of what actions are morally right or wrong and why. The Bible contains numerous prescriptions or laws and many narrative accounts of ethical relevance.

Christianity (from the Greek word Khristos, "Christ", literally "anointed one") is a monotheistic religion. Christians believe Jesus is the son of God, God having become man and the savior of humanity. Christians believe that there is only one God, but that there are three elements to this one God:

· God the Father

· God the Son

· The Holy Spirit

Christian holy days such as Easter and Christmas are important milestones in the Western secular calendarThe gem of Jewish Bible ethics is the Biblical command to "love thy neighbor as thyself".

Christian Ethics by Georgia Harkness

Christian ethics may mean (1) the best in the moral philosophy of all ages and places, (2) the moral standards of Christendom, (3) the ethics of the Christian Church and its many churches, (4) the ethics of the Bible, (5) the ethics of the New Testament, and (6) the ethical insights of Jesus.

Christian ethics means a systematic study of the way of life exemplified and taught by Jesus, applied to the manifold problems and decisions of human existence.

Christian ethics and moral philosophy

Teaching of Jesus with regard to man’s moral duty is found in "obedient love."To seek to do the will of God by loving God supremely and one’s neighbor as one’s self. Agape love (the love of God or Christ for mankind in Christian theology ) means, rather, an uncalculating, outgoing spirit of loving concern which finds expression in deeds of service without limit. Its supremacy over any ordinary love comes to clear expression in the words: You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Formation of Christian ethics has been the process of incorporation and amalgamation. It therefore involves mutuality in love. Its modern correlate is the quest for "the good life" through self-realization. Aristotle’s eudemonism, with its emphasis on a life of moderation with every man fulfilling the function for which he is fitted by nature, and thereby ensuring happiness. Duty ethics of Kant with its categorical imperative, or unconditional demand, to treat all persons as ends, never as means, and to act only in such a way that one’s conduct could be universalized. "Social adjustment" philosophy of John Dewey which measures right conduct by the ability to take one’s place as a good citizen in an ordered, democratic society.

Christian ethics and the churches The Church exists to be the carrier of the gospel in a fellowship of Christians. But the Church exists also as a human institution, a social group with a common center of professed loyalty to Christ, yet a social group made up of fallible(likely to make mistakes) human beings.

Christian ethics and the Bible

The Bible is the fountainhead of Christian theology. The Old Testament, we must remember, was Jesus’ Bible. He did not repudiate it; he loved it and learned from it and often quoted it. Yet in matters of complexity and doubt as to the right thing to do, he tends to follow his own course of action and find a proof text in the Bible to support it. He usually defends a traditional point of view in which an attempt is made to preserve the status quo, not infrequently with harsh words and attitudes toward those who differ.

It is the systematic study of the way of life set forth by Jesus Christ, applied to the daily demands and decisions of our personal and social existence.

The economic ethics

Jesus had very little to say about specific social institutions of any kind. His concern was chiefly with individuals in their person-to-person, face-to-face relationships.

New Testament there are scattered economic references, such as the obligation to work in self-support and not become a burden to others (II Thess. 3:6-12) and the injunction to slaves to obey their masters with due docility (Col. 3:22; Eph. 6:5; Tit. 2:9). Yet there is no clear focusing on any social system as good or evil, a fact which made it possible for slavery to go unchallenged by Christians for many centuries.

Christian message centers so largely in faith and love that justice in social relations tends to be overshadowed. In the gospel of redemption there is no overlooking of divine justice. But in the call to love one’s neighbor and even one’s enemy, to pray for one’s persecutor and to accept injury with nonresistance, to give freely and beyond necessity to those in need, the emphasis is on uncalculating love and not on the correction of unjust systems or the punishment of evildoers.

New Testament records for us the historical revelation of God in Christ.

What is economic justice?

Principles

First, the welfare of persons should be paramount over all other interests.

Second, due consideration must be given to the realities of economic life.

Third, a proper balance must be maintained between individual freedom and social control.

Fourth, economic justice must be viewed in a world setting.

MEDIA AND ETHICS

Christian tradition and the reflection of Christians today bear directly on the social role of communication. They include:

  • Creation and stewardship; Media are powerful forces. The importance of exercising stewardship in their use means educating others about their power and their limitations. It also involves making wise use of media.
  • Sin and redemption; People are not thrust into sin by events; rather, they sin as they do not live up to God's expectations and their God-given potential. We humans constantly misuse the power that God has given us over creation. The communication media are major sources of power with great potential for good as well as evil. Because we depend upon them for information, media hold key elements for many other forms of power: economic, social, and political. The primary manifestation of sin within mass media is based on their ability to manipulate persons, treating them as objects and turning them into passive recipients rather than helping them become active participants in society. Taking something that is a gift of God and treating it as if it were God, is the sin of idolatry.
  • The newness of life; Christians take seriously the concept that God makes all things new and that novelty and creativity are essential elements of God's world. Therefore, we resist attempts to constrict communication, which might limit the choices that an individual can make. New relationships, new ideas, new values, new understandings can be essential to growth and to development of human potential. Censorship must be avoided, since it allows one person or group to determine the information available to all others.
  • Good news and proclamation; In the Bible, God's promise of a new future for the people is central and must be communicated effectively. Communication — a genuine, open give-and-take of ideas and feelings — is what connects and binds people together in community.
  • Christian witness; Christians challenge falsehood. It has a bias toward truth and liberation through the Gospel and a bias away from untruth and bondage. Christians must witness to the truth as we perceive it and still be open to hear the truth as it is perceived by others. The church acknowledges that women, racial/ethnic minorities, lesbian and gay persons, and people with disabilities historically have been excluded from or negatively stereotyped in the media.

Work Cited

· Harkness, Georgia. Christian Ethics by Georgia Harkness. Abingdon Press. 1957

· Ramsey, Paul. Paul Ramsey’s Basic Christian Ethics. New York: Chas. Scribner’s Sons, 1950.

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