The Moral Argument: -Moral laws cannot exist without a God to create them and give them to people.

1. The Moral Argument: -Moral laws cannot exist without a God to create them and give them to people. -Moral laws do exist. -Therefore, God must exist.

2. Learning aims • I am able to explain the difference between an action that is seen as a moral absolute/law and something that is seen as morally relative. • I can explain Kant’s argument for God from morality

3. Argument in a nutshell

4. Starter Task:Dilemma No.1 • You are a psychiatrist and your patient has just confided to you that he intends to kill a woman. • You think your patient is bluffing/lying but cannot be sure. • Should you report the threat to the police and the woman or should you remain silent as the principle of confidentiality between psychiatrist and patient demands?

5. Dilemma No.2 • A fat man leading a group of people out of a cave on a coast is stuck in the mouth of that cave. In a short time high tide will be upon them, and unless he is unstuck, they will all be drowned except the fat man, whose head is out of the cave. • [But, fortunately, or unfortunately, someone has with him a stick of dynamite.] • There seems no way to get the fat man loose without using [that] dynamite which will inevitably kill him; but if they do not use it everyone will drown. • What should they do? Extension- How would your view change if instead of a fat man it was a pregnant woman?

6. What has your group discussions about the statement told you about people’s sense of right and wrong?

7. Activity 2- Reflecting on our moral sense

8. List as many reasons as you can for how we get a sense of right from wrong:

9. Plenary: How well have I met today’s learning aims?? -What is the ‘conscience’? -Explain how a ‘moral absolute’ or moral law is different to relative morality. -What things may lead to people developing a sense of right from wrong? Extension:How does Kant use morality to try to prove the existence of God? Is this a good argument? Give detailed reasons for your point of view.

10. Explain the argument from morality for God’s existence. (3 marks) • Target: Knowledge and understanding of the argument from morality for God’s existence • Levels Criteria Marks • 0 Nothing relevant or worthy of credit. 0 marks • Level 1 Something relevant or worthy of credit. 1 mark • Level 2 Elementary knowledge and understanding, e.g. two simple points. 2 marks • Level 3 Sound knowledge and understanding. 3 marks • Candidates may include some of the following points: People have a powerful sense of right and wrong / an inbuilt sense of morality. This sense comes from a source outside themselves / higher authority, i.e. God. Therefore God exists. Credit explanations of ‘morality’: a system of ethics which distinguishes between right and wrong. Also credit developmental statements, e.g. moral behaviour takes priority even when people would prefer to do something else / appears to be a command from a higher / ultimate authority that must be obeyed / is not created by society, like the law, because laws are sometimes immoral (e.g. slavery).