Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise
Living Ethically in the Light of the Bible
The Bible has an important role to play in Christian ethics as the foundational document of Christianity. The Bible itself claims that it is useful for teaching, correcting and training in ethics so that people are ‘thoroughly equipped for every good work’ (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
But where does someone start if interested in what the Bible says on ethics? To understand the ethics of Aristotle or Gandhi or Martin Luther King, you need to examine what they said or wrote. Those seeking to understand Christian ethics should read the Bible. For that, a plan can help. The links below will take you to a schedule for reading through the Bible in a year by reading four passages each day.
As I have been doing this myself, I’ve written up my thoughts on how some readings apply to ethics. Some passages directly address an ethical issue, while others are more indirect. As part of this on-going project, I will upload my reflections on one day’s reading roughly once a week. I plan to tackle both well-regarded statements like ‘love your enemies’ and the more challenging segments of the Old and New Testaments. I don’t claim to have the final answer on these passages, so I welcome your comments.
My reflections do not address why the Bible is viewed as Scripture or defend its authenticity. Those are important issues, but not the focus here. One place to access debates between Christians and atheists about the Bible is the UK radio show, Unbelievable. Whatever you believe about the Bible, the goal here is to explore how its passages apply to ethical issues.
The following schedule will allow you to read through the Bible in a year. Four passages are given each day to give a sense of the different types of literature found in the Bible. A number of the days each month are linked to my commentaries on the ethical issues discussed in one or more of the passages.
Bioethics Ireland 