Download Western Religious Ethics

Western Religious Ethics
Judaism
Christianity
Islam
Judaism: Covenant
• Jewish ethics stems from the idea of a
covenant between God and the Jewish culture
as His Chosen People.
• The idea was that God would continually
deliver them into increasing levels of freedom
and liberty as long as they remained true to
His commandments, eventually becoming a
“light unto the nations,” exemplifying His
Grace to all of humanity.
Judaism: Orthopraxy
• Instead of an orthodoxy (correct belief),
Judaism can be considered an orthopraxy
(correct acts, or practice).
• Because of the Covenant, Jewish faith revolves
around actions, and the way in which these
substantiate and glorify the divine will.
• 20th Century Jewish Philosopher Martin Buber
posited that correct and harmonious
interactions allowed God to pour into the
world, extending covenant to all relationships.
Christianity: The Beatitudes
• Christian ethics can be considered to be
ultimately based on ideas attributed to Jesus
in his Sermon On The Mount, found in The
Gospel of Matthew.
• Elements of ideas expressed therein are
known as the Beatitudes, which focus on the
sanctity of, among other things, the poor, the
meek, the merciful, the pure of heart, and the
peacemakers.
Christianity: Liberation Theology
• In the 20th century, Christian Ethics turned
significantly towards addressing the plight of
the poor, largely because of the work of
Peruvian Dominican priest Gustavo Gutierrez.
• His Liberation Theology places a primary focus
on the relevance of Jesus’ teachings to ideas
of social justice and human rights, and calls for
the Church to allow a deeper partnership with
its flock in order to more clearly address their
needs.
Islam: Submission
• Worshipping the same monotheistic God of
Judaism, Islam refers to both Jewish and
Christian believers as “People of the Book,”
regarding these traditions as related to their
own.
• Accordingly, Muslim ethics is largely based on
the idea of submission to God’s Will (the
translation of the word “Islam”), echoing the
idea of Jewish Covenant.
Islam: Ethics In Community
• Of paramount importance in Islam is the idea
that their ethical focus on submission takes
place as a community.
• All humans should "command the good and
forbid the evil" in all spheres of life, since the
very nature of existence presupposes a
relationship with God.
• This relationship requires a disavowal of
materialism, in favor of a more spiritual focus
on humility and piety.