The Philosophical Component of the Divine Command Theory
The philosophical component of the divine command theory, which includes the question of voluntarism, is well-known. This is a philosophy that holds that an action is only considered good if it is carried out in accordance with a divine order. According to the theory, in order for an action to be deemed morally good, it must have been ordered by God, and therefore people who are considered moral are those who obey what God has commanded. The philosophy in this aspect is based on the issue of the monotheistic and the polytheistic religions during the ancient times as well as the modern times which they have been able to accept the concept of morality that is based on the teachings of God (Harrison, 2015).
Contributions to the Divine Command Theory
There are various individuals who have been able to continue with the discussion of the issue of the divine command theory. One of such individuals is Saint Augustine who offered various opinions regarding the issue, and this is regarding ethics as being considered as among the issues that have been found to push for the achievement of supreme good among people. This is a concept that ensures that there is the realization of happiness by people. Augustine further indicates that that happiness is only achieved when people are in love with the objects that have been linked to happiness, and this is regarding human love that is deemed to be correct (Schumacher, 2016).
Another individual who has been able to get involved in this theory is John Duns Scotus who is considered as being a scholastic philosopher. He argued that some of the commandments that are used by the people are only moral because God is commanding them and that some are moral even if God does not command them (Schumacher, 2016).
References
Harrison, G. K. (2015). The Euthyphro, divine command theory and moral realism. Philosophy, 90(01), 107-123
Schumacher, L. (2016). Divine Command Theory in Early Franciscan Thought: A Response to the Autonomy Objection. Studies in Christian Ethics, 29(4), 461-476.
