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The Divine Command Theory (DCT)
Alexandro Burciaga
Instructor:
Aleksandar Pjevalica
University of Texas at El Paso
Ethics 2306
MW 1:30
4/15/20
THE DIVINE COMMAND THEORY 2
The Divine Command Theory (DCT)
The Divine Command Theory (DCT) holds the view that God defines morality and moral
obligation involves total obedience to God’s commandments. DCT stresses that morality is based
on God’s will and morally right actions are the actions defined, required, and commanded by
God (W. Austin, 2020). The theory has been supported by several contemporary and classical
philosophers such as Phillip Quinn and Thomas Aquinas. They argue that DCT gives substantial
reaswons for the importance of morality such as selflessness to promote the wellbeing of
everyone. They echo that God’s system of punishment and reward is based on following God’s
moral judgment. For instance, the morally righteous are rewarded with happiness while the
immoral are punished through pain (W. Austin, 2020). However, suffering and cruelty could be
considered morally right if in line with God‘s demands. For these reasons, philosophers such as
