The Moral Quest: Foundations of Christian Ethics

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Christian book on ethics and virtues
Review: Stanley Grenz declares that he began as a professor of theology, but somehow has gotten "sucked into" teaching ethics. He is at Regents College currently and teaches both theology and ethics.

This book is solidly based on God's word and theology, and reflects on the development of morality, virtues, and ethics (after a brief introduction on why we should look at ethics), as it first arises from the Greek tradition. Various terminology are introduced, like an "ethic of being" rather than an "ethic of doing", and deontological vs. teleogical ethics.

Several Greek ethical traditions are evaluated, namely Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Stoics, and Plotinus (neo-Platonism), and what are the metaphysical backgrounds, nature of the human person, type of ethic, and conceptions of virtue.

Then the discussion moves to ethics in the Bible from Old Testament (specifically the apodidic laws, or the moral laws), Christ, and then Paul.

Then some model Christian proposals are evaluated, namely Augustine (Ethics as the Love of God), Aquinas (Ethics as the telos of human existence, or Ethics as the Fulfillment of our purpose), and Martin Luther and the Reformers (Ethics as Believing Obedience).

Some contemporary Christian proposals are raised looking at Social Order/Social Justice ("An Ethic for the Christianization of the Social Order"), Ethic of Transcedence (in Neo-Orthodoxy), Love as the Christian Norm, an Ethic of Liberation (Liberation Theology), Ethic of Character (an Ethic of Being), and Evangelicals and the Ethical Task. (What's good about these last two chapters is that Grenz fairly well presents a number of different models and is very good about evaluating the good and bad features in each one.)

Then Grenz spends some time discussing what ethics are being discussed at the present time and talks about what Christians need to do to discuss ethics successfully. He talks about related words like community, morals, duty, virtue, and dialogue ... especially with others who are thinking about ethics. Yet, Christian ethics must be distinctly different, and talks about why it must be (it must being and end with God, p. 218 -- and that the basis and goal of ethical living in God). Then Grenz apparently summarizes a good amount of his discussion of the biblical models of ethics, and then declares that Christian Ethics must be within a community-based ethic of being (in Christ)... also discussing Christian virtue-ethics, within a framework of theology. Very impressive. Then Grenz further discusses the foundation of a Christian ethic (discussing the famous Charles Sheldon novel "In His Steps" which inspires the ever-so-popular WWJD = What Would Jesus Do?). In this chapter, he covers even more Christian theology that affects our ethics.

Grenz reveals himself as an agape-ist ethicist in the final chapters, as he shows that he believes that love (or the ethic of love) is one that comes from God, and shows exactly how one is to demonstrate it, first to God, then to our neighbor. (Not just in marriage, but he does discuss this context.) He shows some of the four loves (interacting with C.S. Lewis' work, "The Four Loves", storge, philo, agape, and eros) and how love is to manifest (in a relational sense).

Grenz ends on a tone of love, specifically of that of love for God, in celebration, aka worship (notably corporate worship in addition to individual worship). He notes that Christian ethical life results in transformation (sanctification), and "the agent of our renewal and hence the one who authors true celebrative worship is none other than the Holy Spirit," (p.301) which transforms us to love God. (Again, emphasizing the agape-ethic.)

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Christian book on ethics and virtues
Review: Stanley Grenz declares that he began as a professor of theology, but somehow has gotten "sucked into" teaching ethics. He is at Regents College currently and teaches both theology and ethics.

This book is solidly based on God's word and theology, and reflects on the development of morality, virtues, and ethics (after a brief introduction on why we should look at ethics), as it first arises from the Greek tradition. Various terminology are introduced, like an "ethic of being" rather than an "ethic of doing", and deontological vs. teleogical ethics.

Several Greek ethical traditions are evaluated, namely Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Stoics, and Plotinus (neo-Platonism), and what are the metaphysical backgrounds, nature of the human person, type of ethic, and conceptions of virtue.

Then the discussion moves to ethics in the Bible from Old Testament (specifically the apodidic laws, or the moral laws), Christ, and then Paul.

Then some model Christian proposals are evaluated, namely Augustine (Ethics as the Love of God), Aquinas (Ethics as the telos of human existence, or Ethics as the Fulfillment of our purpose), and Martin Luther and the Reformers (Ethics as Believing Obedience).

Some contemporary Christian proposals are raised looking at Social Order/Social Justice ("An Ethic for the Christianization of the Social Order"), Ethic of Transcedence (in Neo-Orthodoxy), Love as the Christian Norm, an Ethic of Liberation (Liberation Theology), Ethic of Character (an Ethic of Being), and Evangelicals and the Ethical Task. (What's good about these last two chapters is that Grenz fairly well presents a number of different models and is very good about evaluating the good and bad features in each one.)

Then Grenz spends some time discussing what ethics are being discussed at the present time and talks about what Christians need to do to discuss ethics successfully. He talks about related words like community, morals, duty, virtue, and dialogue ... especially with others who are thinking about ethics. Yet, Christian ethics must be distinctly different, and talks about why it must be (it must being and end with God, p. 218 -- and that the basis and goal of ethical living in God). Then Grenz apparently summarizes a good amount of his discussion of the biblical models of ethics, and then declares that Christian Ethics must be within a community-based ethic of being (in Christ)... also discussing Christian virtue-ethics, within a framework of theology. Very impressive. Then Grenz further discusses the foundation of a Christian ethic (discussing the famous Charles Sheldon novel "In His Steps" which inspires the ever-so-popular WWJD = What Would Jesus Do?). In this chapter, he covers even more Christian theology that affects our ethics.

Grenz reveals himself as an agape-ist ethicist in the final chapters, as he shows that he believes that love (or the ethic of love) is one that comes from God, and shows exactly how one is to demonstrate it, first to God, then to our neighbor. (Not just in marriage, but he does discuss this context.) He shows some of the four loves (interacting with C.S. Lewis' work, "The Four Loves", storge, philo, agape, and eros) and how love is to manifest (in a relational sense).

Grenz ends on a tone of love, specifically of that of love for God, in celebration, aka worship (notably corporate worship in addition to individual worship). He notes that Christian ethical life results in transformation (sanctification), and "the agent of our renewal and hence the one who authors true celebrative worship is none other than the Holy Spirit," (p.301) which transforms us to love God. (Again, emphasizing the agape-ethic.)