Divine command theory
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Divine command theory (also known as theological voluntarism). The theory asserts that what is moral is determined by God's commands and that for a person to be moral he is to follow God's commands. Followers of both monotheistic and polytheistic religions in ancient and modern times have often accepted the importance of God's commands in establishing morality.
Numerous variants of the theory have been presented: historically, figures including
Semantic challenges to divine command theory have been proposed; the philosopher William Wainwright argued that to be commanded by God and to be morally obligatory do not have an identical meaning, which he believed would make defining obligation difficult. He also contended that, as knowledge of God is required for morality by divine command theory, atheists and agnostics could not be moral; he saw this as a weakness of the theory. Others have challenged the theory on modal grounds by arguing that, even if God's command and morality correlate in this world, they may not do so in other possible worlds. In addition, the Euthyphro dilemma, first proposed by Plato (in the context of polytheistic Greek religion), presented a dilemma which threatened either to result in the moral arbitrariness of morality itself, or to result in the irrelevance of God to morality. Divine command theory has also been criticised for its apparent incompatibility with the omnibenevolence of God, moral autonomy and religious pluralism, although some scholars have defended the theory from these challenges.
General form
Although "divine command" is the standard term in the literature, God addresses people in all sorts of ways. The scholastics distinguished between five different forms of God's revealed will, and they can be summarized in a Latin dactylic hexameter, "Praecipit et prohibet, permittit, consultit, implet". Praecipit means "gives precepts to". Precepts tell people to do something. They can include warning, admonishment or exhortation. Prohibet means "prohibits". A prohibition is a command not to do something. Permittit means "permits". A permission is not a command because a person is permitted both to do the thing and not to do it. Consultit means "counsels". They can include advice, instruction or invitation. They are different from commands as the latter generally generate obligation, and there is normally some expectation of condemnation if the command is not carried out. Finally, implet means "fulfils", which are directly effective commands. They do not need language-using human recipients. An example is "Let there be light", and there is light. Sometimes "command" is taken to mean the whole family of speech acts, but sometimes it only includes those prescriptions which generate obligation.[3]
Philosophers including
Divine command theory features in the
Augustine
John Duns Scotus
...are highly consonant with [the natural law], though they do not follow necessarily from first practical principles that are known in virtue of their terms and are necessarily known by any intellect that understands their terms. And it is certain that all the precepts of the second table belong to the natural law in this second way, since their rectitude is highly consonant with first practical principles that are known necessarily.[12][13][14][15]
Scotus justifies this position with the example of a peaceful society, noting that the possession of private property is not necessary to have a peaceful society, but that "those of weak character" would be more easily made peaceful with private property than without. Hence, the last seven commandments do belong to the natural law, but not in the strictest sense, as they belong to the natural law by rectitude rather than by definition.
Thomas Aquinas
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Whilst Thomas Aquinas, as a natural law theorist, is generally seen as holding that morality is not willed by God,[16] Kelly James Clark and Anne Poortenga have presented a defence of divine command theory based on Aquinas' moral theory. Aquinas proposed a theory of natural law which asserted that something is moral if it works towards the purpose of human existence, and so human nature can determine what is moral. Clark and Poortenga argued that God created human nature and thus commanded a certain morality; hence he cannot arbitrarily change what is right or wrong for humans.[6]
Immanuel Kant
The
Robert Adams
American philosopher Robert Merrihew Adams proposes what he calls a "modified divine command theory".[19] Adams presents the basic form of his theory by asserting that two statements are equivalent:
- It is wrong to do X.
- It is contrary to God's commands to do X.[19]
He proposes that God's commands precede moral truths and must be explained in terms of moral truths, not the other way around. Adams writes that his theory is an attempt to define what being ethically 'wrong' consists of and accepts that it is only useful to those within a Judeo-Christian context. In dealing with the criticism that a seemingly immoral act would be obligatory if God commanded it, he proposes that God does not command cruelty for its own sake. Adams does not propose that it would be logically impossible for God to command cruelty, rather that it would be unthinkable for him to do so because of his nature. Adams emphasises the importance of faith in God, specifically faith in God's goodness, as well as his existence.[20]
Adams proposes that an action is morally wrong if and only if it defies the commands of a loving God. If cruelty was commanded, he would not be loving; Adams argued that, in this instance, God's commands would not have to be obeyed and also that his theory of ethical wrongness would break down. He proposed that divine command morality assumes that human concepts of right and wrong are met by God's commands and that the theory can only be applied if this is the case.[21] Adams' theory attempts to counter the challenge that morality might be arbitrary, as moral commands are not based solely on the commands of God, but are founded on his omnibenevolence. It attempts to challenge the claim that an external standard of morality prevents God from being sovereign by making him the source of morality and his character the moral law.[6]
Adams proposes that in many Judeo-Christian contexts, the term 'wrong' is used to mean being contrary to God's commands. In ethical contexts, he believes that 'wrong' entails an emotional attitude against an action and that these two uses of wrongness usually correlate.[22] Adams suggests that a believer's concept of morality is founded in their religious belief and that right and wrong are tied to their belief in God; this works because God always commands what believers accept to be right. If God commanded what a believer perceived as wrong, the believer would not say it is right or wrong to disobey him; rather their concept of morality would break down.[23]
Michael Austin writes that an implication of this modified divine command theory is that God cannot command cruelty for its own sake; this could be argued to be inconsistent with God's omnipotence. Aquinas argued that God's omnipotence should be understood as the ability to do all things that are possible: he attempted to refute the idea that God's inability to perform illogical actions challenges his omnipotence. Austin contends that commanding cruelty for its own sake is not illogical, so is not covered by Aquinas' defence, although Aquinas had argued that sin is the falling short of a perfect action and thus not compatible with omnipotence.[6]
Alternative theories
Paul Copan argues from a Christian viewpoint that man, made in God's image, conforms to God's sense of morality. The description of actions as right or wrong are therefore relevant to God; a person's sense of what is right or wrong corresponds to God's.[24]
We would not know goodness without God's endowing us with a moral constitution. We have rights, dignity, freedom, and responsibility because God has designed us this way. In this, we reflect God's moral goodness as His image-bearers.
— Paul Copan, Passionate Conviction: Contemporary Discourses on Christian Apologetics[24]
As an alternative to divine command theory, Linda Zagzebski has proposed divine motivation theory, which still fits into a monotheistic framework. According to this theory, goodness is determined by God's motives, rather than by what he commands. Divine motivation theory is similar to virtue ethics because it considers the character of an agent, and whether they are in accordance with God's, as the standard for moral value.[25] Zagzebski argues that things in the world have objective moral properties, such as being lovable, which are given to them through God's perception of them. God's attitude towards something is cast as a morally good attitude.[26] The theory casts God as a good example for morality, and humans should imitate his virtues as much as is possible for finite, imperfect beings.[27]
Objections
Semantic objections
Philosopher William Wainwright considered a challenge to the theory on semantic grounds, arguing that "being commanded by God" and "being obligatory" do not mean the same thing, contrary to what the theory suggests. He used the example of water not having an identical meaning to H
2O to propose that "being commanded by God" does not have an identical meaning to "being obligatory". This was not an objection to the truth of divine command theory, but Wainwright believed it demonstrated that the theory should not be used to formulate assertions about the meaning of obligation.[28] Wainwright also noted that divine command theory might imply that one can only have moral knowledge if one has knowledge of God; Edward Wierenga argued that, if this is the case, the theory seems to deny atheists and agnostics moral knowledge.[29] Hugh Storer Chandler has challenged the theory based on modal ideas of what might exist in different worlds. He suggested that, even if one accepts that being commanded by God and being morally right are the same, they may not be synonyms because they might be different in other possible worlds.[30]
Moral motivation
Michael Austin has noted that divine command theory could be criticised for prompting people to be moral with impure motivations. He writes of the objection that a moral life should be sought because morality is valued, rather than to avoid punishment or receive a reward. This punishment and reward system of motivation could be seen as inadequate.[6]
Euthyphro dilemma
The Euthyphro dilemma was proposed in Plato's dialogue between Socrates and Euthyphro. In the scene, Socrates and Euthyphro are discussing the nature of piety when Socrates presents the dilemma, which can be presented as the question "Is X good because God commands it, or does God command X because it is good?".[6]
Is the pious loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is loved by the gods?
— Plato, Euthyphro[6]
The Euthyphro dilemma can elicit the response that an action is good because God commands the action, or that God commands an action because it is good. If the first is chosen, it would imply that whatever God commands must be good: even if he commanded someone to inflict suffering, then inflicting suffering must be moral. If the latter is chosen, then morality is no longer dependent on God, defeating the divine command theory. Additionally, if God is subject to an external law, he is not sovereign or
American philosopher William Alston responded to the Euthyphro dilemma by considering what it means for God to be morally good. If divine command theory is accepted, it implies that God is good because he obeys his own commands; Alston argued that this is not the case and that God's goodness is distinct from abiding by moral obligations. He suggested that a moral obligation implies that there is some possibility that the agent may not honour their obligation; Alston argued that this possibility does not exist for God, so his morality must be distinct from simply obeying his own commands. Alston contended that God is the supreme standard of morality and acts according to his character, which is necessarily good. There is no more arbitrariness in this view than accepting another moral standard.[6]
Omnibenevolence
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, and some more recent philosophers,[who?] challenged the theory of divine command because it seems to entail that God's goodness consists of his following his own commands. It is argued that, if divine command theory is accepted, God's obligations would be what he commanded himself to do; the concept of God commanding himself is seen as incoherent. Neither could God hold any virtues, as a virtue would be the disposition to follow his own commands – if he cannot logically command himself, then he cannot logically have any virtues. Edward Wierenga counters this by claiming that whatever God chooses to do is good, but that his nature means that his actions would always be praiseworthy. William Wainwright argues that, although God does not act because of his commands, it is still logical to say that God has reasons for his actions. He proposes that God is motivated by what is morally good and, when he commands what is morally good, it becomes morally obligatory.[6]
Autonomy
Michael Austin draws attention to an objection from autonomy, which argues that morality requires an agent to freely choose which principles they live by. This challenges the view of divine command theory that God's will determines what is good because humans are no longer autonomous, but followers of an imposed moral law, making autonomy incompatible with divine command theory. Robert Adams challenges this criticism, arguing that humans must still choose to accept or reject God's commands and rely on their independent judgement about whether or not to follow them.[6]
Pluralism
Austin considers the view that, in a world of
See also
- Deontological ethics
- Divine judgment
- Divine right
- Ethical subjectivism
- Theocracy
- Fideism
- Might makes right
- Euthyphro dilemma
- Argument from authority
References
- ^ Theological Voluntarism — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- theological voluntarism as an approach to natural philosophy.
- ISBN 978-0-19-960201-8.
- ^ a b Martin 1993, p. 229
- ^ Geirsson & Holmgren 2010, p. 37
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Austin, Michael W. (21 August 2006). "Divine Command Theory". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ Rae 2009, ch. 2
- ^ Kowalski 2011, p. 98
- ^ Connolly et al. 2009, p. 24
- ISBN 978-0-19-921246-0.
- ISBN 978-0-19-967341-4.
- ISBN 978-0-19-967341-4.
- ^ Williams 2013, Ethics and Moral Psychology: The natural law.
- ^ Williams 2002, pp. 312–316.
- ^ See Cross 1999, p. 92 for the view that our duties to others "hold automatically [i.e., without God's commands] unless God commands otherwise."
- ^ "Saint Thomas Aquinas". The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. 2018.
- ^ a b Phillips & Tessin 2000, p. 263
- ^ Phillips & Tessin 2000, p. 264
- ^ a b Pojman & Rea 2008, p. 558
- ^ Pojman & Rea 2008, pp. 558–559
- ^ Harris 2003, pp. 32–33
- ^ Pojman & Rea 2008, pp. 561–562
- ^ Pojman & Rea 2008, p. 559
- ^ a b Copan, Paul, and William Lane Craig. Passionate Conviction: Contemporary Discourses on Christian Apologetics. Nashville, Tennessee: B&H Publishing Group, 2007. p. 91.
- ^ Baggett & Walls 2011, p. 258
- ^ Toner, Christopher (1 September 2010). "Zagzebski, Linda Trinkaus. Divine Motivation Theory.(Book review)". The Review of Metaphysics. Archived from the original on 18 May 2013. Retrieved 25 August 2012 – via HighBeam Research.
- ^ Langermann 2011, p. 54
- ^ Wainwright 2005, p. 106
- ^ Wainwright 2005, pp. 106–107
- ^ Chandler 2007, p. 185
- ISBN 978-1-107-00707-9.
- ISBN 978-1-4094-2852-7.
- ^ Geirsson & Holmgren 2010, pp. 37–38
Bibliography
- Adams, Robert Merrihew (2002). Finite and Infinite Goods: A Framework for Ethics. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-515371-5.
- Baggett, David; Walls, Jerry (2011). Good God:The Theistic Foundations of Morality. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199751808.
- Chandler, Hugh (2007). Platonistic And Disenchanting Theories of Ethics. Peter Lang. ISBN 978-0-8204-8858-5.
- Connolly, Peggy; Keller, David; Leever, Martin; White, Becky Cox (2009). Ethics in Action: A Case-Based Approach. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-40517-098-7.
- Cross, Richard (1999). Duns Scotus. ISBN 978-0195125535.
- Evans, C. Stephen (2004). Kierkegaard's Ethic of Love: Divine Commands and Moral Obligations. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-927217-4.
- Geirsson, Heimir; Holmgren, Maragaret (2010). Ethical Theory: A Concise Anthology. Broadview Press. ISBN 978-1-55481-015-4.
- Harris, Michael (2003). Divine Command Ethics: Jewish and Christian Perspectives. Psychology Press. ISBN 978-0-415-29769-1.
- Helm, Paul (1981). Divine Commands and Morality. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-875049-8.
- Kowalski, Dean (2011). Moral Theory at the Movies: An Introduction to Ethics. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-44221-455-2.
- Langermann, Tzvi (2011). Monotheism & Ethics: Historical and Contemporary Intersections among Judaism, Christianity and Islam. BRILL. ISBN 9789004194298.
- Martin, Michael (1993). The Case Against Christianity. Temple University Press. ISBN 978-1-56639-081-1.
- Phillips, D. Z.; Tessin, Timothy (2000). Kant and Kierkegaard on Religion. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-31223-234-4.
- Rae, Scott (2009). Moral Choices: An Introduction to Ethics. Zondervan. ISBN 978-0-31032-323-5.
- Shermer, Michael (2005). Why People Believe Weird Things. Henry Hold & Company. ISBN 0-8050-7769-3.
- Morris, Thomas (1988). Divine & Human Action. Cornell University Press. Being and goodness. ISBN 0-8014-9517-2.
- Pojman, Louis; Rea, Michael (2008). Philosophy of Religion: An Anthology. Cengage Learning. ISBN 978-0-495-09504-0.
- Quinn, Philip (2000). The Blackwell Guide to Ethical Theory. Blackwell Publishers. Divine command theory.
- Swinburne, Richard (1977). The Coherence of Theism. Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-824410-X.
- Wainwright, William J. (2005). Religion and morality. Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7546-1632-0.
- Williams, Thomas (2013). "John Duns Scotus". In Edward N. Zalta (ed.). John Duns Scotus. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2013 ed.).
- Williams, Thomas, ed. (2002). The Cambridge Companion to Duns Scotus. ISBN 978-0521635639.
External links
- Divine Command Theory — Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- God and Morality — a defence of the Divine Command theory.
- Moral Argument and Divine Command Theory — links to relevant on-line resources from Internet Infidels
- Theological Voluntarism — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy