Monday, March 18, 2019
Kierkegaard: Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself as a Basis for Ethics :: Morals Philosophy Philosophical Essays
Kierkegaard Love Thy dwell as Thyself as a Basis for Ethics Thou shalt do it the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. This is the first and big commandment. And the second is same(p) unto it, Thou shalt bang thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Matthew 2237-40, AV When you open the portal which you shut in order to pray to God, the first person you fancy as you go out is your neighbour whom you shall love. Wonderful Kierkegaard, p.64 1 intromission This physical composition is a philosophical exploration of some aspects and implications of the second swell commandment, to love thy neighbor as thyself, which Kierkegaard called the royal command. This is frequently thought to be the heart of Christian ethics Wattles, p.8. This agape-obligation has seemed to some to stir up difficulties. Macquarrie and Kierkegaard both recognize that there has been objection. Macquarrie several times notes his opposition to the belief,that virtuous laws are the heteronomous commands of a transcendent deity who demands obedience. p.219f and even worse, imposed on creatures from whom he is wholly other, a command, moreover, which they have no capacity to obey just by grace alone, while this grace, in turn, seems to be also extraneous and has to be infused from outside. p.221 Kierkegaard wrote that,to the pagan, this command You shall love will not only surprise him still will disturb him and be an offence to him. p.41 It may perhaps fall apart you well, you know it anyway, that Christianity is always accompanied by signs of offense. Nevertheless believe it .... Do not stop believing because the command almost offends you. p.74 The thesis of this paper is that, setting aside the question of moral offense that has disturbed commentators from doubting Thomas Paine (The Age of Reason) to William Empson (Miltons God), agape to neighbor makes sense only under monotheistic or speci fically Christian assumptions, and therefore, the old saw, Christianity may not be factually true, but it has a sublime ethical teaching, is problematical. A number of issues inevitably arise in any serious watchword of agape. Some of these issues are discussed in the sections below 2.1 How is love for God like love for neighbor?2.2 Is Gods love for me like my love for neighbor?2.3 How is love for neighbor like love of self?
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