'Religious teachings offer the only sound basis for moral reasoning.' Critically examine arguments for and against this opinion.

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'Religious teachings offer the only sound basis for moral reasoning.' Critically examine arguments for and against this opinion.

Morality is the knowledge and practice of what is moral, which may, according to your personal view be instinctive, be associated with religion and culture, or be acquired by reasoning.

Most, if not all religions have a 'human moral code', which follows God's will. Religious people will consult their religious text, whether it is the Bible, Qur'an or Torah ect, when making a moral decision. Very often these religious texts will lay out a set of rules or guide lines. In Christianity it is the 10 Commandments, in Buddhism it is the 8 Fold Path. Although these 'rules' do provide a good moral base, if taken to their logical conclusion they are objective and absolute, leaving no room for the flexibility needed in today's society. This is taking a Deontological approach; this is when a person has a set of rules that they consider to be absolutely right. They abide by these rules, as they are more important than the effect or outcome. We can use the example of abortion and the 10 Commandments. These religious laws state that 'Thou shalt not kill'. If taken absolutely this means that abortion is wrong no matter what the circumstances are, even if the child will be born severely disabled or will be born into extreme poverty.
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For many people moral values are relative to a specific society, time and circumstances, and their moral view can change through changed circumstances, needs, beliefs and knowledge. This flexibility is known as relativism and is the opposite of absolute. This is also known as taking a Consequential approach, when a person looks to the outcome, and decides how to act to achieve that result. They have in mind the aim and believe that actions can be deemed moral if they achieve that aim - the end justifies the means. Because of this many individuals often experience conflict in ...

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