‘Utilitarianism is not compatible with a religious approach to moral decision-making.’ How far do you agree? Despite there being some areas of compatibility; overall I think that utilitarianism is not compatible with a religious approach to moral decision-making. Utilitarianism as a whole is not compatible because, utilitarianism is not particularly close to religion. Utilitarian theories do not make reference to religious rules and principles, and are more driven by pragmatism by focusing on the outcome rather than the morality of the action itself. In this sense it is a consequentialist theory.
The early reformers of the Catholic Church had one common thread; they felt the word of the Lord was grossly misinterpreted by the Church. Though the Church was working to give the people what they wanted, their practices were dishonest and they took liberties with the scriptures. Martin Luther cited two major corruptions in his Ninety Five Theses. The first was that salvation could be reached only by one’s own faith; secondly Luther objected to the selling of indulgences to provide absolution for sinners. The monies from these sales financed wars and expensive lifestyles of the popes, archbishops and bishops.
McCloskey contended against the three mystical verifications, which are the cosmological argument, the argument from design and the teleological argument. He called attention to the presence of evil on the planet that God made. He likewise called attention to that it is irrational to live by trust or faith. As indicated by McCloskey, confirmations do not essentially assume a fundamental part in the conviction of God. Page 62 of the article expresses that "most theists do not come to have faith in God as a premise for religious conviction, however come to religion as a consequence of different reasons and variables."
Henry VIII vs. John Calvin in the Protestant Reformation In the sixteenth century, stood the reformation of the Catholic Church in Western Europe. While the main focus was an internal renovation of the church, the outcome was much different than expected; the reformation led to a revolt against and an abandonment of principal Christian belief. The difference in the view and act of oneself was different from individual to individual during the reformation. While Calvin left for Geneva in 1536 from France because of the fear of persecution for the publically spread beliefs of his about the Church to the people, Henry VIII had manipulated the church for a way to receive a new wife in hopes for his first son. Different motivation stands for each of these people in what they did for the reformation.
The result of this moral compass is an unstable platform for truth; as a result secular humanism supports gay marriage, abortion, and euthanasia. Socially unacceptable behaviors such as murder, rape, and robbery are not accepted by secular
The Catholics may have been angry with the church but their church got reform and that’s what they wanted. The Catholic Church had no choice but to sale indulgence that was the pope’s orders and back in that time the Catholics followed the pope. The Catholic Church spent their money on unnecessary things. The church didn’t think wisely, but all of that changed because Martin Luther reformed the church and John Calvin helped. The pope lead the church and decided a person gets into heaven, but William Tyndale believes that if you believe in Jesus Christ as your Savoir then you’ll get into heaven, and I believe the same things as Tyndale, you shouldn’t have to prove yourself to the pope that you deserve to go to heaven and the pope shouldn’t get to decide.
Assess the views that secularisation has been a feature only of Modern European societies (33 marks). Secularisation refers to the decline in religious beliefs, practices, power and commitment. Depending on the definition of religion, it can be argued that Modern European societies have undergone a secularisation process. It is difficult to examine to a certain extent how religious people were before and how religious they are in today’s society. The view that secularisation has been a feature of only Modern European societies are arguable as there are many different types and definitions of religion, and also it does not take into account secularisation on a more global scale.
This approach is a blend of spiritual and secular beliefs (Crabb, 1986). The danger in tis style is that it fails to evaluate secular psychology
During the early 1500s there were many things that brought about religious change in Eastern Europe because of Martin Luther in Germany and King Henry VIII in England. The motives and the actions of the two were different in that Martin Luther had an intention of bringing about religious change where as King Henry VIII didn’t, having defended the church’s original catholic faith with no tolerance of opposition to it, having caused a reform because of a personal matter. Martin Luther was a German Augustinian friar who questioned not only the practices of the church, but he condemned it for teaching wrongly which ultimately lead to questioning the entire sacramental system of Catholicism in relation to salvation. He wrote and published many pamphlets that elaborated his ideas and denounced what he considered to be false teachings with motives of changing the beliefs of many into what he saw to be the proper things that should be taught and preached by the church. The publication of Luther’s German translation of the New Testament in 1523 democratized religion.
He believed the selling indulgences was wrong, and even the pope, Pope Leo X, did not have the authority to abolish sins through payments. Luther recognized that at this time, the Church was more focused on accumulating money than saving its people and spreading the word of Christ. Luther believed that only God has the ability to take away the sins of humanity. Martin Luther published his opinions in a document titled Ninety-Five Theses. The monk's writing spread quickly around Europe, and he soon posed a serious threat to the Catholic Church.