The Question of Identity: God created man in His image which makes humankind the highest form of creation. The Bible even goes so far as to state that we are “a little lower than the angels (Psalm 8:5). Man also has a unique calling that can only be accomplished through Christ (Philippians 1:6).…
Peter Singer thinks we are too selfish with our money. In “The Singer Solution to World Poverty”, he proposes a solution to poverty in other countries. Singer believes that money that might otherwise be used for luxury goods should be donated to charities that help save lives in poorer countries. He believes that this decision increase overall happiness more than the purchase of a luxury good, like new shoes, would. While Singer’s argument raises an important moral point, it leads to a very dangerous moral precedent that could leave the problem worse off than before. Singer’s argument should be taken in a limited scope to help determine right action; otherwise, it becomes a radical doctrine.…
You've looked at a few things that present Peter Singer's argument against the way we use animals for food and other products. Pretend that you're talking to a friend and they ask you why Singer thinks it's wrong to eat a cheeseburger. Explain his argument (or what you take to be the core of his argument).…
In the essay titled “Religion and Animal Rights” by American Philosopher Tom Regan, Mr. Regan maintains the position that animals are the “subjects-of-a-life”, just as humans are. If we want to ascribe value to all human beings regardless of the degree of rationality they are capable of, then in order to be consistent we must similarly ascribe it to non-human animals as well. He effectively uses a pathos and logos approach when he argues to his audience that that all practices involving the mistreatment of animals should be abolished rather than reformed, animals have an inherent value just as humans do, and emphasizes that unbridled Christian theology has brought the earth to the brink of ecological disaster.…
Secular Humanism, alternatively known as humanism, “involves an affirmation of immanent, this-worldly realities, alone with a denial or exclusion of transcendent, other-worldly realities”. Secular Humanism is its own belief system of rejecting God when man chooses to no longer be a subservient to a higher, supernatural authority. It is noted as a worldview and lifestyle oriented to the ungodly rather than the spiritual. Norman Richard describes man as “piece of work” which is ultimately called humanism. “If a human being is ‘a piece of work’, this suggests a workman who fashioned us – presumably a divine creator”. The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of secular humanism, followed by an evaluation of objective criteria of…
Got a minute? Good! Because that may be all it takes to log in to OXFAM.org and virtually save someone’s life. But hold on a second, what about your life? Your own interests? All of the other beneficial things you could do with that money? According to Peter Singer, you don’t really have any choice because you’re “morally obligated” to donate far more resources to famine relief and similar causes than what you currently think is enough, but without sacrificing anything of equivalent moral importance. In this paper I will analyze this argument and try to show that Singer’s conclusions are correct, yet they are not quite as correct as he believes they are. To do so, I will try to show that Singer is wrong to think that we have a “moral obligation”…
1. In this paper I will argue that Singer is wrong to claim that human suffering and animal suffering should be given equal consideration. He claims that human animals and non-human animals with vertebrae experience pain and suffering in the same way. (41)…
A secular humanist identifies equally with all life, “Mankind is simply a more sophisticated animal” (Weider & Gutierrez, 2013). Because man has evolved from animals, we are not above them and should treat all life with the same respect.…
Warren states that the anti-abortionist must show that the fetus is a person in the full moral sense, not just in a genetic sense. The moral community, she believes, consists of all and only people, rather than merely human beings. She finds a distinction between a human being (someone genetically human) and a person (someone we have included in our moral community). She gives the example of finding life forms on another planet, and questions how humanity would decide if they should be treated as persons, or as potential sources of food. The determining factors she decides on are five traits of personhood: consciousness, reasoning, self-motivated activity, the capacity to communicate, and self-awareness.…
In Peter Singers All Animals Are Equal, he claims we should give the same respect the lives of non human animals as we give the lives of humans and that all animals human and non-human are in fact equal. I agree with him because there is no reason as to why animals should not get the same rights and respect as us. Animals have interest, when these are similar to ours, or their pain is on a similar level why give them less consideration. All human and animals have similar feelings such as loving something or feeling pain when they get hurt. I agree with Singer in what he says when animals should be given the same respect and treated equally.…
Her article focuses on where to draw the line on when a person becomes a human being, is it right when you are conceived, or when you are born, or at a certain stage in the womb. In her article, she says that once the fetus is conceived, it is a person, and starts to grow humanlike qualities in the mother. Judith says that it would be arbitrary to choose a point in the pregnancy on when the fetus becomes a human being. She says that the fetus is a human being from the moment of conception.…
Competing worldviews are breaking out everywhere especially throughout North America. Two sides with vastly differing and incompatible worldviews are being locked in a bitter conflict that permeates every level of society. On one side of the battle is the Christian worldview, and on the other is the Humanist worldview divided into three branches: Secular Humanism, Marxism/Leninism, and Cosmic Humanism. It’s in this essay that we will seek to understand all of the three Humanist worldviews while presenting a strong, honest, truthful, intelligent defense of Biblical Christianity. As believers in and followers of Jesus Christ, we need to consider how our commitment to Him affects not just our political and ethical convictions, but also the way…
During the past quarter century, abortion has joined race and war as one of the most contentious subjects of controversy in the United States. It discusses human interaction where ethics, emotions, and law collaborate. Many have contemplated upon the meaning of abortion. One argument is that every child born should be wanted. The people in lieu of this theory are often referred to as Pro-choice activists. The opposing argument is that every child conceived should be born, this theory epitomized by Pro-life activists. A public consensus exists that when human personhood starts, that the law must protect person. Many religions, organizations, and individuals have fervently held conflicting beliefs about when this transpires. This naturally leads to differing policies on whether a woman should have access to abortion or not.…
How do you determine who has a higher moral status. What properties should you base your criteria on? We will isolate and divulge on the significant properties that present guidelines on how to address the moral rights of vulnerable groups. Some examples are human embryos, fetus, research test animals, adults in mentally compromised state. There are five theories suggested by Beauchamp and Childress to help present a plausible perspective on an adequate moral status position. There is human, cognitive, moral agency, sentience, and relationship theory.…
Singer's Utilitarianism does give some sense of moral equality between humans and animals. He felt that animals have identical interests that are equally morally important as humans and that they must be treated with equal concern. Singer says: "Speciesism. . . the belief that we are entitled to treat members of other species in a way in which it would be wrong to treat members of our own…
