3/27 Ethics Test

Major Monotheistic Religions

Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.

Sacred Texts of Major Religions

Bible, Torah, and Qu’ran.

Classical Theism

A conception of God that emphasizes omnipotence, omniscience, omnibenevolence, and the role of God as the creator.

Pantheism

The belief that God is synonymous with nature.

New Age Conception of God

A belief that views God as a friend or personal being.

Theism

The belief that God exists.

Atheism

The belief that God does not exist.

Agnosticism

The position of being unsure about the existence of God.

Characteristics of Classical Theism

Omnipotent (all powerful), Omniscient (all knowing), Omnibenevolent (all good), Creator of the universe.

Three A Posteriori Arguments

Religious experiences, Cosmological Argument, Design Argument.

Challenges to Religious Experience

Hallucination, unobserved experiences, deception for power, diversity of religious rules.

Problems with Cosmological Argument

Big Bang theory offers a scientific explanation for the cosmos.

Theories about Variety and Fullness of Life

Creationism, Evolution, Intelligent Design.

Theodicies

Reasons that attempt to reconcile the existence of evil with the concept of a good God.

Contrast Theodicy

The idea that good and evil exist in balance.

Free Will Theodicy

The belief that evil exists because God granted humans free will.

Devil Theodicy

The belief that evil is caused by the devil, not God.

God's Plan Theodicy

The understanding that the existence of evil serves a purpose within God's overarching plan.