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Rights and Responsibility

using the bible to make moral decisions:

it is the word of God (absolute authority)

has God's teachings on how to behave e.g. the Decalogue.

has Jesus' teachings on how to live e.g. sermon on the mount

records Jesus' actions which Christians want to follow as Jesus is a role model.

using the Church to make moral decisions:

the Church is the 'body of Christ'

God speaks to the world through the Church

by following the Church all believe the same thing

Church authority for Roman Catholic's comes from the Magisterium (the teaching authority of the Church)

using the conscience to make moral decisions:

believe it is God speaking to them

Church says they should follow their conscience

St Paul the conscience should be the last part of the decision making process.

some do not follow it because ...

could be mistaken e.g. Yorkshire ripper said it as his conscience telling him to commit murder

follow the Church or the bible means all doing the same thing

life would be chaotic if everyone did their own thing and not what the law said.

using situation ethics to make moral decisions:

Jesus acted in a similar way

should only do things that lead to good results

Jesus said 'love thy neighbour'

Christianity is a religion based on love

some do not use it because...

bible is the word of god which should be followed

Christians should all do the same thing, not make their own decisions that may go against the teachings of the church

church knows what is best

can never know all of the facts, so the decision is based on bias