The divine command theory is an ethical theory that has various views about morality. The theory suggests that morality depends on God, and moral responsibility is the obedience to the commands of God. According to this theory, morality is based on the commands of God or the character of God as well. The commands that God makes or requires also define morality. It can also be said to look at something as good because God says it should be considered good and bad because God also forbids the particular thing (Harris 332).
Various arguments are connected to the divine command theory. There is the assertion that God created the universe and everything that is also included in it, and this also includes human beings. There is also the view that if people were created by God, then He also demands an absolute obedience from us. The theory continues by depicting that if God requires an absolute form of obedience from human beings, then they should always obey Him (Austin par. 3).
The act of abortion can be taken to conduct an analysis of the divine command theory. The theory supports that abortion is wrong morally. It is also evident that this theory has the basis that God is the creator of all the laws that govern morality and then He would be against abortion. The theory would, therefore, support that it is the duty of human beings to ensure that life has been upheld. This includes the life of an adult and of a baby that is still in the womb as well. It would thus be morally wrong to take away the life of an infant or even an adult according to this theory. Therefore, abortion is morally wrong. This can also be connected to the Ten Commandments where God forbids the acts of murder (Stewart 101).
Natural law theory is another ethical theory that forms a connection between law and the human morality. In this case, morality refers to what is right or wrong. The theory holds the belief that the laws of human beings are defined by virtue and not by an authority such as a government or even a king. The natural legislation in this theory is seen to be derived from nature. Any law that does not provide justice is considered not to be a law (Finnis 23).
The natural law theory is viewed as one of the oldest moral notions in civilization history. This law sees the act of abortion as undermining the natural law that was instituted by God and raised by the ancestors. The theory protects and upholds the lives of the innocent and therefore is of the view that abortion is wrong. The theory also has its basis on abortion due to the view that is given by other organizations and religious groups as well. For instance, Christians forbid the act just as much as Hinduism does as well (Sumner 83). Abortion in most of these religious contexts is seen to be an evil act and crime as well. There is also a philosophical argument that is used in natural law theory. Even if people do not belong to the same religion, they are however seen to possess similar human nature and the same aspiration for integrity as well. People are seen to be of one human race in this theory and therefore are given the gift of reason and born with a conscience as well. There is also an inherent moral law that is given by God and hence is the basis for natural law (Kalpakgian 3).
Works Cited
Austin, Michael W. Divine Command Theory. 2010. 19 April 2016 <http://www.iep.utm.edu/divine-c/>.
Finnis, John. Natural Law and Natural Rights. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. 23. Print.
Harris, James F. Analytic Philosophy of Religion. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 2013. 332. Internet resource.
Kalpakgian, Mitchell. "The Right to Life and the Natural Law." University Faculty. 19 April 2016 <http://www.uffl.org/vol%209/kalpakgian9.pdf>.
Stewart, Noel. Ethics: An Introduction to Moral Philosophy. Cambridge, UK: Polity, 2009. 101. Print.
Sumner, L W. Abortion and Moral Theory. , 2014. 83. Internet resource.
