Filial Gratitude and God's Right to Command

Defenders of theistic morality sometimes insist that God's will can impose moral obligation only if God has a right to command. The right is compared to that which parents have over their children and which is thought to derive from a filial debt of gratitude. This essay examines arguments for...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Lombardi, Joseph L. 1939- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Wiley-Blackwell 1991
In: Journal of religious ethics
Year: 1991, Volume: 19, Issue: 1, Pages: 93-118
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Parallel Edition:Non-electronic
Description
Summary:Defenders of theistic morality sometimes insist that God's will can impose moral obligation only if God has a right to command. The right is compared to that which parents have over their children and which is thought to derive from a filial debt of gratitude. This essay examines arguments for divine authority based on gratitude which employ the parental analogy. It is argued that neither parental nor divine authority is based on gratitude. An alternative derivation of parental authority is suggested but shown to be unavailable to those who would compare divine to parental rights.
ISSN:1467-9795
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of religious ethics