I would like to hear your personal convictions concerning Voluntarism and Essentialism, for if we are to have any Christian discussions on Ethics, we must have an understanding of the relation between God and morality.
I will quickly define these terms and give my own beliefs on them.
Voluntarism: That which is good is good because God willed it to be so. This is also known as divine command theory/morality. Moral obligation to execute or abstain from an action derive their authority directly from the Command of God.
Essentialism: The nature of God defines the good. That is to say, that which is good is good because it resembles the moral impeccability of God in some way. God did not will the quality called 'goodness' to exist; it is part of his Eternal Being.
I suppose one could say that I hold to a combination of these views, but that would be deceptive. I believe that our concept of morality (the definitions of good, evil, and obligation) emanates from the Ultimate Goodness of God. God could not "un-command" these moral laws or change them in any ultimate sense. Yes, indeed, God does command that we follow these laws, but his command is not an act of creation or institution, rather it is communication.
Please disagree if you feel the need; I realize there are critiques of my view. Though it is imperfect, I believe it is a better explanation of Goodness and morality than Voluntarism.
