System of morality? (For Randy)

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In a message dated 5/29/99 8:42:59 PM Eastern Daylight Time, LPM@HiWAAY.NET 
writes:

 

>  >>  

>  >>  Mundinger

>  >>  

>  >>  Randy, your responses to all the questions regarding

>  >>  Amalakite babies and snatching insulin pumps have 

>  >>  confused me.  Could you fill us in on your system of

>  >>  morality?  

>  >>  

>  >>  This is what I would like to know:

>  >>  

>  >>  When considering a proposed action, how do you determine

>  >>  whether it is moral or not?  What is the process? What

>  >>  are the criteria that you use?

>  >

>  >RANDY

>  >

>  >  I give primary weight to the statement's of Scripture-does it command

>  >a certain action or forbid a certain action?  Are there overarching prin-

>  >ciples that apply when making a specific decision?

>  

>  Mundinger

>  

>  Thanks for the straightforward answer.

>  

>  I guess this is close to being on topic for the list because if Scripture

>  is flawed or self contradictory you could make wrong decisions.  Since 

>  there are multiple interpretations of Scripture, don't you have to make

>  a subjective decision to choose one?  


RANDY

  Yes.  Most of the schisms in the history of the church have not been over
ethics but over theological issues like justification by faith alone, church 
government, etc.

MUNDINGER

If things were crystal clear, there

>  wouldn't be 2000 Christian sects.  What happens if you are wrong?


RANDY

  If I'm wrong I usually suffer the negative consequences of my mistake
sooner of later.  This helps all the steps I've listed work more efficiently
next time. 


>  

>  RANDY

>  >  I give secondary weight to my sense of the direct leading of the Holy

>  >Spirit.

>  

>  Mundinger

>  How does this happen? Is it voices in your head or a general gut feeling?


  RANDY

  A gut feeling.  But it usually arises quickly.

MUNDINGER


>  Moral decisions often involve others.  How can they know that you are not

>  insane or lying?  What if others receive conflicting guidance?  How do

>  you sort it out?


  RANDY

  Are you asking what happens if others receive conflicting guidance about 
what I should do?  Unless they're one of the people I'm consulting for advice
this doesn't usually make a difference.


>  

>  RANDY

>  >  After that, in order, would be counsel from my wife and then counsel

>  >from older and wiser Christians.

>  >

>  

>  Mundinger

>  Why? Do they have sources other than Scripture and the Holy Spirit? 


  RANDY

  No, but God may choose to speak to them about a certain issue instead 
of me.  Or they may have experience in a certain area which helps them to
make better use of the factors I've listed.


Does

>  this mean that Scripture and the Holy Spirit do not provide the answers

>  to all moral questions?  


RANDY

  No.  But He may not provide the answers to my question to me directly.

MUNDINGER

If you can't get a satisfactory answer from

>  Scripture and the Holy Spirit they may not be able to either.  Are there

>  some moral dilemmas that have no satisfactory answer?


  RANDY

  I wouldn't think so, but there are dilemmas I haven't faced yet.

MUNDINGER

>  

>  It appears to me that you don't have a system of morality but only a

>  system of obediance.  


RANDY

  Well, you asked me how I would make decisions about certain actions.
Are you surprised that my answer sounded like a system of obedience.

MUNDINGER

You're completely amoral, simply following orders.

RANDY

  Even if this were how I would describe what I was doing I don't know 
why you would categorize it as amoral.

MUNDINGER

This scares me because people following orders have caused untold misery

>  in the past century.  


RANDY

  And some people who disobeyed orders have caused misery as well.  Others
who followed orders have brought great joy and happiness.

MUNDINGER

Jerry McDonald, a Church of Christ preacher known

>  to some on the list, once stated that if he had been an Israelite during

>  the Exodus he would have been right in there killing Caananite babies.

>  Can you understand why this revolts and frightens us?


RANDY

  Yes, I do.  That doesn't mean I consider it a correct reaction.

Randy Bronson


>  

>  Larry

>  

>  "Morality is doing what is right no matter what you are told.

>  Religion is doing what you are told no matter what is right."

>      Larry Mundinger <LPM@HIWAAY.NET>  1999

>  

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