... the message will try harder to transform us." (Brown, 1965, 183) This essay will explore whether or not the bible should serve as an ultimate authority for Christian ethics and discover how synonymous Biblical ethics are with the ethics of Christianity. This piece will also look at what it is about the Bible that recommends it as such a major authority of morality and ethical practice. The bible is seen as a ‘guidebook’ for a Christian, giving details on how they should live according to God’s law; however, questions negating the validity of this belief in God’s law often come to the forefront. The Bible permits the stoning to death of adulterers. Something which in contemporary society seems atrocious. A point to be aware of is the huge cultural difference between the bible and contemporary life. If we focus on the difference between the Old Testament and modern day life the cultural difference is one of the chief factors behind the difficulty of using the bible in ethics today. The bible is written in a culturally conditioned format. Language, racial attitudes and the different emphasis on aspects of life including holiness and purity, all count towards the invisible barrier when discussing how synonymous biblical ethics are with the ethics of Christianity. (Rodd, 1995, 89). An issue that arises more than often when discussing biblical and Christian ethics is sexuality. Different churches hold different values and take tradition, Scripture and experience at different...
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...The Bible: A Dogma or a Set of Guidelines? Dietrich Bonhoeffer Kayla Tremblay November 27, 2012 The Bible: A Dogma or a Set of Guidelines Dietrich Bonhoeffer November 27, 2012 I. Introduction a. Dietrich Bonhoeffer i. Biography ii. Christianity and War iii. Thesis: As demonstrated by Bonhoeffer in his war against socialism, religion cannot be looked at as a dogma and instead should be a malleable doctrine that is subjective to history. II. Body b. Christian Doctrines iv. Fundamental guidelines v. Use of the bible 1. Hitler a Christian? vi. No rules in war c. Moral Ethics vii. Ethics of Conviction vs. Ethics of Responsibility viii. Rationality d. Just War Theory ix. St. Thomas Aquinas x. Guidelines for a Just War xi. Just War is applicable e. What about Christians and Pacifists? xii. “Put your sword away” xiii. No such thing as a “Just War” III. Conclusion f. Summary xiv. Thesis: As demonstrated by Bonhoeffer in his war against socialism, religion cannot be looked at as a dogma and instead should be a malleable doctrine that is subjective to history. g. So what? xv. Accomplishments xvi. Interpretation xvii. Cost-benefit analysis Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a Lutheran pastor and theologian living in Germany during the time of Nazi...
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...as second class citizens are not whether some men may have treated some women badly, but to discover how the historical tradition has dealt with the role of women over the years. This sexual ethics proposal is to provide religious communities and society at large with the knowledge and framework needed to recognize and acknowledge past association of...
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...Integration: The Bible and Accounting ACCT 212 Liberty University February 18, 2013 Abstract The following paper will show just how the Bible not only affects our spiritual life, but also our financial lives as well. For example, liabilities and investments are simply the use of money to, hopefully gain more money. Also discussed are the practice of borrowing and accumulating debt. The Bible doesn't specifically forbid these concepts, but it does give a clear warning about them. Corporations use accounting to keep an accurate record of their business much in the same way that a Christian student uses tools to keep track of their studies. Just as Christians go by the code of ethics set forth in the Bible, businesses use a code of ethics to keep their reputation such that consumers will want to utilize their products and services. There are many similarities between the Bible and accounting. This paper showcases some of these examples. Introduction to Accounting and the Bible Accounting is an information and measurement system that identifies, records, and communicates relevant, reliable, and comparable information. Today, accounting is considered “the language of business” because it reports financial information to a business to help others make better decisions. Accounting information is communicated through financial statements such as income statements, statements of owner equity, balance sheets, and statements of cash...
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...My law and ethics understanding and beliefs In 1847 the American Medical Association revolutionized medicine in the United States. Members of this newly formed organization, met in Philadelphia as the first national professional medical organization in the world, dedicated themselves to establishing uniform standards for professional education, training, and conduct. They unanimously adopted the world's first national code of professional ethics in medicine. For more than 160 years since, the AMA's Code of Medical Ethics has been the authoritative ethics guide for practicing physicians. Ethics in Hand are pocket-sized guides to the Code of Medical Ethics for physicians and medical students. The Code articulates the enduring values of medicine as a profession. As a statement of the values to which physicians commit themselves individually and collectively, the Code is a touchstone for medicine as a professional community. It defines medicine’s integrity and the source of the profession’s authority to self-regulate. At the same time, the Code of Medical Ethics is a living document, evolving as changes in medicine and the delivery of health care raise new questions about how the profession's core values apply in physicians' day to day practice. The Code links theory and practice, ethical principles and real world dilemmas in the care of patients. The next time you hear a monotheist tell a non-believer that morals come from the Bible or that moral reasoning cannot provide an...
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...Christian language about ethics is very hard to understand for people of other religions or for people of no defined religion. Some Christians may opt for a Christological approach to ethics, whereas other Christians may opt for a biblicistic approach to ethics, but either approach makes it very difficult for Christians to address the deep moral questions arising in medicine, business and politics in a manner that is understandable to those who do not identify with the Christian message and tradition. If everything said about justice, faithfulness, honesty or mercy is based only upon a citation from the Bible or an analogy with Christ, Christian perspectives on moral questions would soon be seen as having legitimacy only within the distinct community formed by the Christian message. Bibliography Barry, J. D., & Wentz, L. (Eds.). (2012). In The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press. Elwell, W. A., & Beitzel, B. J. (1988). In Baker encyclopedia of the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House. Fahlbusch, E., & Bromiley, G. W. (2005). In The encyclopedia of Christianity. Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leiden, Netherlands: Wm. B. Eerdmans; Brill. Fitch, A. M., Jr. (1986). Revelation: Unlocking the Scriptures for You. Cincinnati, OH: Standard. Freedman, D. N., Herion, G. A., Graf, D. F., Pleins, J. D., & Beck, A. B. (Eds.). (1992). In The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary. New York: Doubleday. Pink, A. W. (2005). The doctrine of revelation. Bellingham...
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...Book Review Summary of Oswalt, John, N.“ The Bible Among the Myths.” Anglican Theological Review (Spring 2003): 341-360. OBST 590 LUO (Summer 2013) Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary Lee B Yarbrough (ID# L5943213) June 2, 2013 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 PART I. The Bible and Myth Chapter 1. The Bible in Its World 2 Chapter 2. The Bible and Myths: A problem of Definition 3 Chapter 3. Continuity: The basis of Mythical Thinking 4 Chapter 4. Transcendence: Basis of Biblical Thinking 5 Chapter 5. The Bible Versus Myth 6 PART II. The Bible and History Chapter 6. The Bible and History: A Problem of Defition 7 Chapter 7. Is the Bible Truly Historical? The Problem of History (1) 8 Chapter 8. Does It Matter Whether the Bible is Historical? The Problem of History (2) 9 Chapter 9. Origins of the Biblical Worldview: Alternatives 10 Conclusions 11 Introduction Oswalt starts with a concise and well-written introduction that is compelling reading. He shares some very revealing personal information dating back to the 1960s, when he attended Asbury Theological Seminary. Oswalt quickly points out that one of the main points the book will focus on is determining if “the religion of the Old Testament [is] essentially similar to, or essentially different from, the religions of its neighbors...
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...Professional Moral Compass Ethics, a branch of philosophy refers to the values for human conduct, considering the rightness and wrongness of actions and motives. As nursing profession is an integral part of the health care environment, the nursing ethics provides the insight to the values and ethical principles governing nursing practice, conduct, and relationships. The Code of Ethics for Nurses, adopted by the American Nurses' Association (ANA) is intended to provide definite standards of practice and conduct that are essential to the ethical discharge of the nurse's responsibility (American Nurses Association, 2012). A nurse cultivates personal ethics through personal, cultural and spiritual values which becomes a moral compass for their professional ethics. Personal ethics in combination with the code of ethics often assist the nurses in personal and social decision making during ethical dilemma. This ability prompts them to better respond to needs of the suffering patient and their own well-being. This paper will discuss the personal, cultural, and spiritual values contributing to nurses’ individual worldview and philosophy of nursing and the moral and ethical dilemma being faced in this profession. Values Contributing to Individual’s Worldview and Philosophy of Nursing Born in a Christian middle class South Indian family, the strict traditional values helped to embed the concept of service, trust, respect, integrity and responsibility through family, friends, education...
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...Keith Vaughn CPSC110 Thomas 6/13/2013 Ethics and Technology The rapid advancement of technology greatly affects how we live. Literally speaking, we are now in the age where everything moves at our fingertips. From gadgets, to internet, agriculture and almost every aspect of our lives technology is confronting us affecting our decisions, affecting even the way how we interact with one another. The days when letters are delivered through postal mail are almost over; the day when communications will take many days to be completed is vanishing; now we are bringing our plants into the laboratory in the hope to cultivate a better species. No matter how we see it, technology now dictates the pace of our lives, and we must adopt and move fast in order not to be left behind. Several questions however remains, does technology influence us so much that it even affects even the core of our humanity? Does technology also dictate our values, morals and ethics? Accompanied by these questions is the responsibility for us to make decisions within the boundary of our ethical standards to negate the negative impacts brought about by the onset of the technological race. While the word ethics has been seen and defined across the centuries, there still is no uniform definition that will describe the word perfectly. In the “Studies of Christian Ethics Syllabus”, Tardo defines ethics as a set of personal values and principles that separate what is viewed as right or wrong and that guide every...
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...Same sex marriage as defined in our text book, Doing Ethics, refers to the marriage in a full legal sense of gay and lesbian couples. (Vaughn 2013, p 451) Marriage between a man and a woman was instituted by God with Adam and Eve. According to the scripture, Matthew 19: 4-5, New Testament, Jesus reaffirms this “He answered, Have you not read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female: and said, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one?” However, the media is supportive and liberal in their views of views if same-sex marriage. Even the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines marriage as the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband and wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law. But as the second definition, it states, the state of being united to a person of the same sex or a relationship like that of a traditional marriage. Same-sex marriage is one of the most controversial issues in the world. According to our text book, Doing Ethics, William Bennett warns of the dire consequences of legalizing same sex unions. He states that “the legal union of same-sex couples would shatter the conventional definition of marriage, change the rules which govern behavior, endorse practices which are completely antithetical to the tenets (a principle or belief, especially one of the main principles of a religion or philosophy) of all the world’s major...
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...Orissa Stewart Liberty University Business 530, Faith Integration Ethics and business is a practice that most businesses follow, although ethical and moral issue is a debated issue. Ethical and moral issues extend far beyond on treating others in a certain way. It begins with a belief system and faith in God. Once a person develops a relationship with God, they usually change for the better. In addition, the words ethics and morality in religion and theology may have been the cause for academia in the field of finance and economics which stray’s away from identifying ethical and moral considerations in the practice of finance and economics (Gupta, Rakesh, & Sukumaran, 2013). Unfortunately, if you are a Christian in the business world then the possibility of compromising your faith increases from even the smallest decisions such as prayer in the workplace. Whatever the case, there are numerous opportunities to compromise faith when it comes to business ethics. Christians need to be aware of this weakness and fight becomes hard to stand firm. According to authors Gupta, Rakesh, Sukumaran, and Aswini (2013), Ethics and morality in finance, discusses the issue of ethics and morality in finance that extends to accounting in the area of marketing. Regardless if you work for yourself or someone else Christians will face the time when they have to make decisions that can affect the way their walk in Christian faith at work. Mark 7:20-22 (ESV) And he said...
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...leading to polygamy and group marriages. From group marriages, marriage moved to monogamy. These two views show the two different poles of understanding about the origin of marriage: as either monogamous or polygamous. On the other hand, Köstenberger and Jones argue that placing too much premium on the freedom of man has led to a decay in the understanding of marriage. They state that “many hail the decline of the biblical-traditional model of marriage and the family and its replacement by new competing moralities as major progress.” This paper will focus on monogamy as the ideal example of marriage from creation. Also, the paper will make a case for monogamy, which is a union of one man and woman, by citing and explaining passages from the Bible. Monogamy from Creation The fact that Adam was a single individual and a single woman, Eve was made for him (Genesis 2:22-23) to begin the first ever marriage is evidence that God intended marriage to be monogamous....
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...we wonder where we should go for guidance on ethics. Stassen and Gushee in Chapter 4 take a look back at the story of the Jewish family and the holocaust. The situation was whether or not it was ethical to hide Jews during the Holocaust. The family’s strong beliefs in Christian faith and morals make this family’s actions ethical in this situation. During this period, Christians looked to their faith to help them make decisions concerning helping the Jewish people. Christians look toward five sources of authority. They are the “Bible”, “divine guidance”, “a religiously informed moral conscience”, “moral tradition”, and “church leaders” (Stassen & Gushee, 2003, p. 82). There are other sources that some turn to for guidance; examples are relatives, a husband or wife, educators, and companions. The essential point is individuals have a tendency to search for direction when they confront moral predicaments (Stassen & Gushee, 2003). This is done instinctively. When we do not know where to turn in ethical dilemmas, the one person we can look towards is Jesus. We need to look at where Jesus turned when he looked for answers. His answers came from the Bible. “Jesus lived what he understood the scriptures to teach; he immersed himself in them and knew them well” (Stassen & Gushee, 2003, p. 84). Christians must remember it is important that we must look toward the Scriptures as the authority on our ethical decisions. The Bible can give us guidance on what Jesus would do when...
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...Summary Submitted to Dr. Erik Mitchell, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of the course OBST 510-D10 Introduction to the Old Testament by Stephen Corbett November 10, 2013 Table of Contents Introduction 1 The Bible and Myth 2 The Bible in Its World The Bible and Myth: A Problem of Definition Continuity: The Basis of Mythical Thinking Transcendence: Basis of Biblical Thinking The Bible verses Myth The Bible and History 9 The Bible and History: A Problem of Definition Is the Bible Truly Historical? The Problem of History (1) Does it Matter Whether the Bible Is Historical? The Problem of History (2) Origins of the Biblical Worldview: Alternatives Conclusion 15 Introduction “The Bible Among the Myths” begins with the author, John N. Oswalt, establishing his credibility on the topic discussed. Following his studies at Asbury Theological Seminary and Brandeis University, Oswald went on to teach courses at multiple seminaries on the subject of the Old Testament. Due to his years of teaching, he followed the current thought in the scholarly world in reference to the Bible and the subject of myth. In a sixty year gap, scholarly thought went from a popular view of the Israelite thought being completely separate and unconnected to the ancient near eastern thought to currently seeing Israelite religion as simply one more of the...
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...resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as told through the writers of the gospels and the early missionaries- those who were sent out to spread the gospel. Christianity’s Jewish heritage was fundamental and the major text for Christianity and still today is the Bible. From its very beginnings in Jerusalem, Christianity has been profoundly influenced by various events. Christianity suffered many early persecutions but by 381 CE, it had been confirmed as the central religion of the Roman Empire. However, the collapse of the Roman Empire and its eventual division into the Eastern and Western Empires brought more conflict, and by the 11th century the Christian Church has become the Church of the West- the Roman Church- and the Church of the East- the Orthodox Church, known as The Great Schism. The sixteenth century brought more division with the Reformation in Europe and in England, with dividing into Protestant Churches and the Catholic Church, due to inadequacies in the Medieval Church such as the selling of indulgences and clerical concubinage. In addition, from the Protestant Churches, the many variants, which sub-divided from that helped created the concept of Pentecostalism- Variations of all Churches. The Christian Bible is a...
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