Divine Command Theory in Early Franciscan Thought: A Response to the Autonomy Objection
In recent years, many scholars have bemoaned the gradual demise of traditional virtue ethics, and its eventual replacement in the later Middle Ages by divine command theory. Where virtue ethics nurtures a capacity for spontaneous moral judgement, this theory turns on adherence to ordained duties and...
| Published in: | Studies in Christian ethics |
|---|---|
| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Sage
[2016]
|
| In: |
Studies in Christian ethics
|
| IxTheo Classification: | KAE Church history 900-1300; high Middle Ages KCA Monasticism; religious orders NBB Doctrine of Revelation NCA Ethics |
| Further subjects: | B
eternal law
B Franciscans B Divine Command Theory B Gospel B Natural Law B Thomas Aquinas B Divine commands (Ethics) B Faith B Mosaic Law B Virtue Ethics |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | In recent years, many scholars have bemoaned the gradual demise of traditional virtue ethics, and its eventual replacement in the later Middle Ages by divine command theory. Where virtue ethics nurtures a capacity for spontaneous moral judgement, this theory turns on adherence to ordained duties and laws. Thus, virtue ethicists among others have tended to object to the theory on the grounds that it undermines the role of the moral agent in moral adjudication. In this article, by contrast, I will argue that there is a way of construing divine command theory, which is not susceptible to this critique. To this end, I will turn to the work of first-generation Franciscan scholars, who affirmed the necessity of human understanding of divine commands and the complete freedom of the will to observe them. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 0953-9468 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Studies in Christian ethics
|
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/0953946816658722 |