Corporal punishment has largely been outlawed in most public institutions: police forces or schools. As the cultural momentum moves away from retributive justice (death penalty) to reformatory justice (prisons/ ‘correctional facilities’), spanking is now viewed as an act of brutality, a vengeful and abusive form of correction. Increasingly, governments are...
Ethics of Particular Bio-Medical Technologies Organ Transplants. Organ transplants have been used to prolong life successfully for some time. In many ways, these represent charity and love toward one’s neighbour. However, several ethical matters come up in the transplant. First, it should never be taken involuntarily, even in death. The...
We are entering what some have called the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Part of this revolution is the field of biomedical technology and engineering, where technological advancements are outpacing ethical reflection on their appropriateness. Among the many biomedical technologies developing are: * Robotic replacement organs/ neurologically-driven artificial body-parts * Augmented Reality...
Biblical Reasons For Leaving a Nation… (continued) 4. Fleeing Genocide, War or Lawlessness. Similar to political revolution, believers have permission to preserve life by fleeing in the face of imminent threat to life. The book of Esther shows the legitimacy of protecting oneself against a targeted genocide. Jeremiah warned Judah...
South Africa’s history makes it a strange combination of emigration and immigration. People from other countries have come to South Africa for a better life, and people have fled South Africa, seeking a better life. The Bible does not forbid or prescribe movement between nations, though it does touch on...
The Real Issue: Treatment Vs Preservation The issue is not how to best preserve the body; it is how to treat the body in death. It is common for advocates of cremation to point out that a buried person will undergo decay, and nothing will be left of that body,...
In the last century or so, cremation technology, available land for burial, and a changing view of death in secular culture has shifted the favoured form of funeral from burial to cremation. Too often, this decision is made with an ethic of pragmatism (ends justify means) or utilitarianism (what will...
Questions to Help Evaluate Artistic Expressions: What message does the author seem to want to convey? What is the feeling or atmosphere created by the work? How would you describe what the composer is trying to communicate to his audience? What is the apparent moral stance of the work in...
Judging Art What is Christian art? Is it simply art that a Christian produces? Is it art with a Christian theme? Our focus should not be “Christian” art, but simply ‘good art’. We need not insist on overtly religious themes for art to uphold a Christian worldview. The Christian’s goal...
Psalm 27:4 – “One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple.” Psalm 29:2 – “Give unto...