Christianity

Core Ethical Teachings

The Ten Commandments

o

The Ten Commandments (Decalogue) contained in the Old Testament is a critical

source of ethical guidance for Christians

The Ten Commandments are a succinct summary of Christian ethics, and

emphasise the importance of human life and the need to respect family and
personal integrity

Christians frequently use the Ten Commandments as a framework for the key
principles of Christian ethics.

The Beatitudes
o The fundamental source of ethical guidance for Christians is the
New Testament, which contains some of Jesus most significant
ethical statements.
o The Beatitudes which describes a life directed towards holiness is
regarded as a foundational passage for Christian ethics.
o The Beatitudes provide a model for the Christian life because it
warns against an approach which values only material strength
and power, by pointing to an inversion of values whereby things
that are often regarded as having no value according to the
dominant culture are celebrated in the reign of God.

The Golden Rule

o

Jesus commandment of love can be distilled into the primary covenantal notions of
love of God and love of neighbour.

In the ministry of Jesus, the commandment to love your neighbour is taken to a

new level because Christians are required not only to love their neighbour but also
to love their enemies.

Johns Gospel conveys this requirement to love in terms of a new commandment as

love is identified as the defining characteristic of the Christian life.

Love is seen as the fulfilment of the law because love is the essential quality that
gives meaning to all other virtues.

The Golden rule, do unto others as you would have them do unto do, is said to sum
up Christian ethics.

There are no identifiable differences between the various Christian denominations

in how they understand Jesus commandment of love.

In terms of applying these principles, differences do arise between the different

Christian denominations in relation to the emphasis that should be placed on
Church authority however these differences are not overly significant.

Importance to Adherents
o

Christians are expected to place considerable value on the ethical teachings of the
tradition in determining their response to a wide range of issues

General ethical guidance is provided by the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes

and the Golden Rule

The life and ministry of Jesus provides a model for life action of Christians. This is
reflected in the Christian ethos of caring for the needy and the vulnerable

Specific guidance is also provided in relation to contemporary ethical issues such as

sexual morality, bioethics, international economics, ecological concerns and the use
of force in international conflicts

Generally speaking, Christian ethical teaching in areas such as sexual morality and
bioethics have been in line with conservative forces in society

Ethical teaching on issues of economic, ecological and military significance are more
in line with progressive elements in society

This diversity makes it difficult to gauge the effect of Christian ethical teaching in
an overall sense

Past Preliminary Question

Outline and explain the principal ethical teachings contained in

the Ten Commandments and the New Testament

The chief source of ethical guidance for Christians is the New Testament and the Gospels. The
Old Testament, which contains the Ten Commandments, forms the background upon which
Christians come to understand the ethical requirements of the New Testament. While the Ten
Commandments underpin the principal beliefs in Christian ethics, the New Testament offers a
further distillation of the ethical laws contained in the Old Testament into love of God and
love of neighbour.
Furthermore, the New Testament takes the underlying covenantal requirement of love to a
new level where firstly, Christians are required to love one's enemy and secondly, because of
this, love becomes the identifying characteristic of Christian life. The Beatitudes are a widely
used source of ethical guidance for Christians and the Golden Rule is said to sum up Christian
ethics.
There is little recognisable difference amongst the Christian denominations regarding the
importance of the main ethical principles. However, there are some differences of application
when broad principles are employed to specific issues due to the differing opinion between
the Protestant and Catholic Churches regarding the emphasis that should be given to the
teaching authority of the Church.