Introduction to Christian Ethics
Published: Spring 2023
Description
This course is an introduction to Christian moral norms, ideals, and practices, and to some classical and contemporary disputes over their substance and application. Drawing upon a variety of historical and contemporary sources, we will ask what difference Christian commitments make for assessing the ends that human beings pursue, the actions we permit and prohibit, and the traits of character we praise, tolerate, and admonish. We will consider the ways in which Christian moral thinking is shaped by the Hebrew Bible and New Testament before considering interlocking questions concerning the ethics of the use of force, the economy, property, prison abolition, immigration, families, disabilities, environmental justice, and food.
Course Takeaways
- Delve into the core principles of Christian ethics, exploring how they inform moral decision-making and character development.
- Examine the impact of Christian beliefs on ethical considerations, from assessing human pursuits to guiding actions and character formation.
- Explore how the Hebrew Bible and New Testament shape Christian moral thinking, providing a foundational framework for addressing contemporary ethical issues.
Meet the Instructors
Jennifer A. Herdt is Gilbert L. Stark Professor of Christian Ethics at Yale University’s Divinity School. She is the author, most recently, of Assuming Responsibility: Ecstatic Eudaimonism and the Call to Live Well(link is external). Her 2019 book, Forming Humanity: Redeeming the German Bildung Tradition(link is external), was supported by a research fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. She is also the author of Putting on Virtue: The Legacy of the Splendid Vices (link is external)(selected as a Choice Outstanding Academic Title), and of Religion and Faction in Hume’s Moral Philosophy(link is external), and has published widely on virtue ethics, early modern and modern moral thought, and political theology. She serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Christian Ethics, Studies in Christian Ethics, and the Journal of Religion, and served as the 2020 President of the Society of Christian Ethics. From 2013-2021, she served as the academic dean of Yale Divinity School. She is currently researching more-than-human creaturely agency as a senior member of a research team that has received a $3.9M, 3-year collaborative grant from the Templeton Foundation(link is external) in 2020 to pursue projects in science-informed theological anthropology.
Biography
