Moral Dilemmas and the God of Christianity: Philosophical‐Theological Investigations.

My central contention is that Christian ethics should rule out the possibility of genuine moral dilemmas, where "moral dilemma" signifies a situation in which all courses of action available to an agent are morally wrong. The reason for the exclusion is that the existence of a genuine moral dilemma...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Journal of Religious Ethics Vol. 53; no. 1; pp. 10 - 45
Autor principal: Santurri, Edmund N.
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Wiley-Blackwell Mar2025
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Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:My central contention is that Christian ethics should rule out the possibility of genuine moral dilemmas, where "moral dilemma" signifies a situation in which all courses of action available to an agent are morally wrong. The reason for the exclusion is that the existence of a genuine moral dilemma would signify a conflict in the divine will that confirms, warrants, or constitutes moral requirement according to Christian ethics. A genuine moral dilemma would indicate that God commands incompatible courses of action and, therefore, commands the impossible. A reasonable, loving, providential God does not command the impossible. Along the way, I criticize standard "phenomenological" arguments employed by both secular moral philosophers and Christian ethicists in support of dilemmas and show where other arguments of dilemmas‐affirming Christian ethicists go wrong.