Dostoevsky's Divine Command Theory Analysis

Most of the time peoples get their ethical or moral views from their religion since they were young. Most religions have explicit or implicit requirements or ideals for moral conduct although they also include other elements. In some cases, religions contain explicit rules or commandments: ‘Honor thy father and mother’ and ‘Thou shalt not kill.’ Some religions recognize and revere saints or holy people who provide models for us and exemplify virtues we should follow. (Barbara Mackinnon & Andrew Fiala, 2015)

Divine command theory is the view that morality is dependent on the God, and that moral obligation consists in obeisance to the God’s commands. This theory includes the claim that morality is eventually based on the God’s commands and character, and that the morally right action

The idea is that certain actions are right as the God wills for us. The Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky’s provides the Kernel of one of the argument that is often used in defense of divine command ethics. According to Dostoevsky’s writings, he claim that, ‘If God is dead, then everything is permissible.’ This expresses the alarm that is if there were no God then there would be no morality. (Barbara Mackinnon & Andrew Fiala, 2015). Furthermore, defenders of the divine command theory like Alston have faced the Euthyphro dilemma by says that although God’s commands make right actions right, God is morally perfect and hence would never issue unjust or immoral commandments. On their eyes, God’s nature is the standard of moral goodness, and God’s commands or words are the origin of all obligation and kindness.(Jeremy Koons, n.d.) One well-known objection to divine will/divine command moral theories is that they commit us to the view that God’s will is arbitrary, and the arbitrary will of God is not a plausible basis for morality.(Thomas,