In what cases the sense of duty ought to be the sole principle of our conduct; and in what cases it ought to concur with other motives

Vernon L. Smith ()
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Vernon L. Smith: Chapman University

Chapter Chapter 29 in Adam Smith’s Theory of Society, 2025, pp 299-310 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract According to Smith, the claim that Christianity’s first precept is to love God, the second to love our neighbor as ourselves, fails to make plain that we need to love ourselves for our own sakes and not because we are commanded to do so. The sense of dutyDutysense of is nowhere a precept of Christianity but is a governing precondition in the universe, philosophy, and common sense. Can we really suppose that we need only follow one precept—the Love of God? Smith program is erected on the idea that we need experienced-based guidance to meet new and unfamiliar applications of morality, and God has given us a measure of free will to get it right, or to ere, and to enjoy the gains, or suffer the sorrows that result. Religious belief promisesPromises a sense of purpose and zest for life, but to fulfill that promise the Author ofNatureAuthor of NatureAuthor of Nature creates a practical learning-teaching process of rule formation that underlies community, society, and nation. That is how we find God and His Love. He made us curiosity-driven command-violators and in need of a new covenant emerging from everywhere not just from the top. This message is in the narrative of the apple in Genesis, and everything follows from that. Human curiosity led to sin and demise and will continue to do so but also to prosperity and happiness. We must chart our way through this maze following the rules we fashionFashion.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-68494-4_29

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