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Reply 1

Moralistic Therapeutic Deism

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           Moralistic Therapeutic Deism is a worldview within today’s culture where the belief about who God is focuses on goodness, fairness, and self. The belief is that God created life and watches over it, but He is not intimately involved in our lives. Being good and living at peace with others is all God wants from people. Pleasure, finding happiness, and self-love are the ultimate goals in life under this belief system.

            I can see this worldview in many people today. I notice this daily on social media. When someone posts a view about something and there is a disagreement. People tend to want to conclude arguments with, “you have your belief’s and I have mine so let’s just all get along.” Even people who do not have an intimate relationship with God want to claim Him because it feels good. They proclaim, “We are all God’s children.” and think, “I’m a good person.” But sin doesn’t seem to cross their minds, because looking at one’s own sin doesn’t feel good.  They only interact with God when they feel they need Him to solve a problem.

            My mother-in-law is type of person. She believes she is going to heaven because she is good. She will prays when things are going bad but does not acknowledge that she is a sinner. She lives a peaceful life and does good deeds. She does not involve God in every area of her life. She also believes that people of other religions will also go to heaven if they just “believe in God.” Worship, Bible reading and Church are not part of her relationship with God. Though these things are not what save a person they are indicators of a person who has a true Christian Worldview and seeks to proclaim Christ.

Reply 2

Forum 1 Interaction 

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Do you think Moralistic Therapeutic Deism is an accurate reflection of society today?

I feel that Moralistic Therapeutic Deism can be described as an accurate reflection of the society we live within today. “This is a worldview that seeks to minimize difference between all groups in a culture and lends itself very much to relativistic notions of morality” (Rymarz & Cleary, 2016). Moralistic Therapeutic Deism seeks happiness and well-being and recognizes God but does not place Him near, rather far away (Wiebe, 2016).  “In MTD one of the key principles is to recognize the open-ended nature of moral judgements which need to be seen as being reflective of cultural and personal preference” (Rymarz & Cleary, 2016). So, although this is an accurate reflection of today’s society, is it right to follow such a view that conflicts with the Christian worldview?    

What are relevant examples you can provide that support your conclusion?

Moralistic Therapeutic Deism is a perspective that is followed among many teenagers today because they do not identify themselves with a certain religion. As we grow up, we learn from what we see. Our parents become the first example of what the right thing to do is. Parents are typically quick to teach children right from wrong and what’s good and bad, however, some children may become rebellious. Teenagers are typically said to be rebellious; towards parents, others around them, and even themselves. A rebellious teen often does not consider the consequences of their actions. Rebellious teens can be seeking joy and comfort in other ways that may not fall in line with the way they were raised. Religious beliefs of the parent and the child are tested here. This is where moralistic therapeutic deism comes in to play. Teens are increasingly not identifying themselves with the religion upon which they were raised, however, they are creating their own based on their own preferences.

References

Rymarz, R., & Cleary, A. (2016). Comparing Catholic and Non-Catholic Students in Catholic Schools: Some implications for understanding of secularization. Compass, 50(2), 9.

Wiebe, T. (2016). What is Moralistic Therapeutic Deism? And how does it stack up against biblical Christianity? Retrieved from 

https://www.thebrooksideinstitute.net/blog/what-is-moralistic-therapeutic-deism-and-how-does-it-stack-up-against-biblical-christianity

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Reply 3

DB 1: Moralistic Therapeutic Deism

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     Moralistic Therapeutic Deism is the belief that if people do good things and get along with others, then all will be well and those people will go Heaven. This belief blows me away and doesn’t surprise me all at the same time. Although the interview was done among teens I feel this belief system is more wide spread than just teenagers. I see adults in their 30’s and 40’s condoning this type of belief. Social Media plays a big part on this in today’s society, people are afraid of conflict, afraid of hurting someone’s feelings. The truth is what matters, people have strayed away from the truth or make up their own and people have also lost the ability to have healthy conflicts. In Moralistic Therapeutic Deism, people also believe God does not need to be a part of their everyday life until they’re in trouble and need help. This is wrong, It scares me that so many don’t think God is important enough to be there for the good and the bad. I can tell you from personal experience, God makes the good and allows you to handle the bad. As a parent with young children I feel they are taught in school that everyone is to be friends with everyone. Get along and move on and don’t ask questions. As a Christian, I can’t be okay with this. As a future educator, I shouldn’t be okay with this. There is a difference in being friends with everyone and being respectful of other people. God is here to guide us, lead us and be with us. Good people do go to Heaven, when they have accepted Jesus died for our sins and accept that we sin daily. If it weren’t for the cross, we would all go to Hell.

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THEO 104

Discussion Board Forum Interactions Instructions

During Modules/Weeks 3–6 of the course, you will participate in 4 Discussion Board Forum Interactions. While the forums are separated, think of them as a continued conversation spanning all 4 of the modules/weeks over which the forums are assigned. Your threads and replies will build off of the previous module/week’s discussion, as well as include content from the most recent module/week. The following 4 areas will be discussed throughout the 4 modules/weeks:

1. Moralistic Therapeutic Deism (Module/Week 3)

2. The Sacred/Secular Divide (Module/Week 4)

3. Worship and the Biblical Worldview (Module/Week 5)

4. The Impact of the Gospel (Module/Week 6)

These discussions are designed to help you think through the impact your theological understanding has on your everyday life. Your worldview will be taken into consideration as it relates to how you engage with society.

You must participate a minimum of 2 times for each forum interaction. To participate, you may either post 1 thread and 1 reply, or 2 replies (a reply to a reply or a reply to a thread) in order to keep the conversation moving.

You are expected to participate actively in the online discussions, to read the discussions several times each module/week, and to post substantive responses at least twice each module/week. Your replies must not be completed all at one time. The purpose is to have a conversation. If you were speaking with friends, you would hopefully not be the only person speaking for a long time while the others remained silent. Replies created within short time spans will be flagged and reviewed. You may not receive credit for Discussion Board Forum Interaction replies that are posted too soon after your most recent thread/reply. Your instructor reserves the right to this review and judgement. For example: A post at 11:55 p.m. one night followed by a new post at 12:25 a.m. the next morning is an example of such a violation.

Your thread and all replies must be substantial and thoughtful in nature. Again, these interactions are meant to mimic conversation. Conversations include statements as well as questions. Remember not only to engage with the provided prompts, but to engage with your classmates as well. Substantive answers will reveal signs of active listening and application of content. Limit the length of your posts to 200–300 words each.

In addition to answering all prompts, you are expected to interact with other participants and probe their thinking. Refer to course readings and videos and engage with biblical texts before responding. You are required to check the discussion board postings frequently and to participate consistently while engaging thoughtfully in the discussion.

Submit all responses by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday of the assigned modules/weeks.