PrepTest 24, Section 2, Question 23
Essayist: The existence of a moral order in the universe�i.e., an order in which bad is always eventually punished and good rewarded�depends upon human souls being immortal. In some cultures this moral order is regarded as the result of a karma that controls how one is reincarnated, in others it results from the actions of a supreme being who metes out justice to people after their death. But however a moral order is represented, if human souls are immortal, then it follows that the bad will be punished.
Essayist: The existence of a moral order in the universe�i.e., an order in which bad is always eventually punished and good rewarded�depends upon human souls being immortal. In some cultures this moral order is regarded as the result of a karma that controls how one is reincarnated, in others it results from the actions of a supreme being who metes out justice to people after their death. But however a moral order is represented, if human souls are immortal, then it follows that the bad will be punished.
Essayist: The existence of a moral order in the universe�i.e., an order in which bad is always eventually punished and good rewarded�depends upon human souls being immortal. In some cultures this moral order is regarded as the result of a karma that controls how one is reincarnated, in others it results from the actions of a supreme being who metes out justice to people after their death. But however a moral order is represented, if human souls are immortal, then it follows that the bad will be punished.
Essayist: The existence of a moral order in the universe�i.e., an order in which bad is always eventually punished and good rewarded�depends upon human souls being immortal. In some cultures this moral order is regarded as the result of a karma that controls how one is reincarnated, in others it results from the actions of a supreme being who metes out justice to people after their death. But however a moral order is represented, if human souls are immortal, then it follows that the bad will be punished.
Which one of the following most accurately describes a flaw in the essayist's reasoning?
From the assertion that something is necessary to a moral order, the argument concludes that that thing is sufficient for an element of the moral order to be realized.
The argument takes mere beliefs to be established facts.
From the claim that the immortality of human souls implies that there is a moral order in the universe, the argument concludes that there being a moral order in the universe implies that human souls are immortal.
The argument treats two fundamentally different conceptions of a moral order as essentially the same.
The argument's conclusion is presupposed in the definition it gives of a moral order.
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