Title of the Book:

Contemporary Moral Problems Seventh Edition by James E. White

Book Review Chapter:

John Arthur: Religion Morality and Conscience

Quote:
“Religion is often said, is necessary so that people will do right. Religion is therefore said
to be necessary in that it provides motivation to do the right thing.”

What I expect to learn:

• What is the meaning of religion? Is it really right or wrong?
• What does religion connected to morality?
• Does morality is right than the religion?

Review:
John Arthur studies how morality has been thought to depend on religion, that religion
motivates people who believe on it to do the right thing, that religion gives guidance for
people for their correct course of their action, and that religion is essential to be right and
wrong in some ways. John Arthur says that nature of morality is to ask what it would
mean for a society to exist without social moral code. This chapter tells us that people
need religion to guide people to do the right thing and support them on their action is a
mistake. John Arthur also discusses the Divine Command Theory, that tell us that God
commands us to do the right thing, but that doesn’t mean that anyone can make the right
just by commanding it. And Arthur also says that morality is influenced by religion (as is
religion by morality).

What I learned:
• Morality and Religion can complicate things
• Morality is somehow influenced by Religion
• Religion is somehow influenced by Morality

Integrative Question:
• What is the meaning of Divine Command Theory?
• Why John Arthur does reject the Divine Command Theory?
• What is the connection of Religion to Morality?
• What is the connection of Morality to Religion?
Review Question:

1. According to Arthur, how are morality and religion different?

• Morality and Religion is different because Morality is inherently social, in
a variety of ways. It depends on socially learned language, is learned from
interactions with others and governs our interactions with others in the
society. While Religion involves beliefs in supernatural powers that
created and perhaps also control nature, the tendency to worship and pray
to those supernatural forces of beings, and the presence of organizational
structures and authoritative texts.
2. Why isn't religion necessary for moral motivation?
• Religion is isn’t necessary foe moral motivation is because people want to
do the right thing and they believe that by doing the right thing God will
be pleases on what they did.
3. Why isn't religion necessary as a source of moral knowledge?
• Religion is isn’t necessary a source of moral knowledge because this
argument fails, how much people need to learn about Religion and
Revelation in order for the Religion to provide moral guidance says
Arthur.
4. What is the divine command theory? Why does Arthur reject this theory?
• The divine command theory means that God provides the foundation or
bedrock on which morality is grounded. Arthur reject this theory because
he said that is because of what implies that suppose we were to grant that
the divine theory is correct, so that the actions are right just because they
are commanded by God.
5. According to Arthur, how are morality and religion connected?
• It is not actually that connected to each other. Arthur says that Morality is
only influenced by Religion and Religion is influenced by Morality.
6. Dewey says that morality is social. What does this mean, according to Arthur?
• According to Arthur the answer is that the assembly Dewey is describing
is that Morality is therefore inherently social, in a variety of ways. It
depends on socially learned language, is learned from interactions with
others and governs our interactions with others in society.

Discussion Question:

1. Has Arthur refuted the divine command theory? If not, how can it be defended?

• Yes Arthur refuted the divine command theory; he defended it by saying that
actions cannot be right because it is said by God. For me this statement is not
a believer of God. People has already the initiative of what is the right and
wrong thing to do.
2. If morality is social, as Dewey says, then how can we have any obligations to
nonhuman animals? (Arthur mentions this problems and some possible to it in
footnote 6.)

• Dewy says that in other to be social there must be the same language. For me
we have an obligation to animals is because humans are much higher or
greater level of being, we humans are oblige to protect the animals because by
doing so we are protecting our world even if we don’t have the same
language.

3. What does Dewey mean by moral education? Does a college ethics class count as
moral education?

• For me it is a mean of education about morality. Dewey says that moral

training, moral thinking depends our ability to imagine others reactions and to
imaginatively put ourselves into their shoes.