In Iris Murdoch’s ‘Morality and Religion”, she discusses the balance between the conscious morality of human nature and the connection between a supernatural being of religious beliefs. Murdoch writes on the topic of virtue, if there can only be one true concept of it, or if there are multiple ideas or beliefs that create it. Murdoch then goes to discuss the difference between virtue and duty, which ultimately comes down to three types: virtue ethics, duty ethics, and pragmatic ethics. When she speaks of morality, she questions if good behavior has any part of religious idealism or if a nonreligious being could foster just as good behavior. Then leading into the feeling of guilt and if morality relates to it. Finishing her passage in the thought of whether religion is moral in nature and if high morality is essentially religion. Murdoch states that, “the most evident bridge between morality and religion is the idea of virtue”. Which can be well argued that it is; Virtue is the sense of moral excellence, righteousness, and goodness. We all have some form of virtue imbedded in us whether it may be a conscious, a higher form of thinking, or just following the rules set before us by society on what is right and wrong. The idea of duty, or known as generalized goodness, is what it refers to. Like Murdoch says, “Why go?’ ‘I promised,’ ‘Why go,’ ‘because he is an old friend”(pg 364), relates to the duty we all have in us. Everyone’s sense of duty goes deeper than a religious
One of the reasons being that, apart from the western cultures, If considerations are made on the diversity thesis of other cultures, and their different moral requirements, could lead individuals into making moral decisions based on the intended outcome, or even experience and not by some unknown moral duty. To support this, Mangena’s PhD titled towards a hunhu/ubuntu dialogical moral theory, argues that normative theories centralise their main
pg. 733, para 1: Murdoch’s purpose is to question the relationship of morality to religion, and
Morals are set standards of right and wrong for society as a whole. One ’s self image of morals are what the individual thinks is right and wrong according to what he or she learns; however, this “Internal compass” can be influenced because society controls most of what they learn. One’s self image of morals allows an individual to provide compelling arguments, provides emotional stability and allows for an individual to have predetermined views of right and wrong; on account of the fact that said individuals choose to follow the revolutionary figures who provide a strong base for the creation of one’s self image of morals. In most cases, religion plays a major role in the creation of this aspect of identity; made evident in Martin Luther
To many individuals, morality and religion are two related but distinct ideas. To be specific, morality consists of principles set by societal norms concerning the distinction between right and wrong and good and bad behaviour among persons. Alternatively, religion involves the relationship between human beings and a transcendent reality or a superhuman controlling power, God. In many societies in the past and present, the idea of God is used to help reinforce moral codes as valuable and vital through rituals and methods of presenting the teachings of God. By many, religion is used to instil fear
Utilitarianism, deontological, and virtue theory ethics are three normative approaches to ethics. This paper will go over the similarities and differences between virtue theory, utilitarianism, and deontological principles. It will include information of the variations in how each concept details ethics, morality, and it will also discuss a personal experience to describe the correlation between virtue, values, and moral perceptions as they relate to one of the three theories.
A few months ago, I received the opportunity to listen to the fourteenth Dalai Lama speak of a considerable amount of morals encoded into one’s conscious. Such lessons corresponded with Gregory Boyle’s experience and ethics illustrated in Tattoos on the Heart, despite the difference of beliefs. The Dalai Lama spoke of a world encompassed in peace, where all cultures and religions are connected by integrity and abundant compassion. This is often referred to as secular ethics, which can be defined as people following an ethical code, regardless of religion, in order to attain human happiness. Boyle’s stories of universal empathy shared a very similar lesson, and yet Catholicism and Scripture are mentioned periodically. Regardless of religion,
At the Spring Equinox we celebrate the growth of life around us: green is reappearing in nature, birds are singing in the morning again, flowers are returning and gardens are prepared for a season of growth. The Spring Equinox celebrates rebirth, growth, balance, and warmth. There are plenty of ways to show reverence for the return of spring in the kitchen.
Think about your personal definition of morality. Is it a set of independent morals or are they applicable to the community as a whole? Virtue refers to high moral standards. In the pre-revolutionary American colonies, the idea of virtue was central to the idea of the “quintessential American”. Benjamin Franklin and John Winthrop created their own set of virtues to live by. Both of the prominent colonists drew from their past experiences, religious beliefs, and their beliefs about the foundation of human nature. Because he took an individualistic approach motivated by divine reward, Benjamin Franklin changed Boston’s idea of virtue from the Puritanical, community based morals set by John Winthrop decades previously.
These individuals are known to be experts of morality. The chapter proposes two reasons as to why these individuals are called upon so frequently. One, for those who believe and have some sort of religious back round, and second, for those who believe in what is called a “scientific view” of the world. This chapter presents the idea that there is some popular belief that religion and morality go hand in hand and that in order to understand morality, you must understand religion. It is explained that when we view morality from a religious perspective, we give meaning to morality in a way that a “good man” made this world that we currently live in and that we are his children. While the book proposes the question that people who believe in God, or a higher power, base their values on what those religions state is right or wrong, whereas for an atheist the question still remains; how do these individuals weigh their moral compass and place their values?
Ethical Framework According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, there are currently three major approaches in normative ethics – the approach based on an individual’s morals and values (or Virtue Ethics), the approach based on one’s duties and obligations (Deontology), and the approach based on consequences of one’s actions (Consequentialism) (Hursthouse and Pettigrove, 2016). In this paper I will examine all three approaches individually and then unpack how they each influence my personal professional decision making process. Virtue Ethics Virtues are attitudes, principles, or character traits that enable individuals to act in morally desirable ways. In Virtue Ethics, ethicists such as Velasquez, Andre, Shanks, and Meyer (1988), believe that “there are certain ideals, such as excellence or dedication to the common good, toward which we should strive and which will allow the full development of our humanity.”
Any beneficial conversations about morality that occur between those who practice religion and those who do not, or those with different religions, must incorporate a common set of ethical concepts and a shared procedure for resolving issues and making judgments, all of which ethics provides. It is also understood that in these conversations moral positions on the issues
· A personal experience to explain the relationship between virtue, values, and moral concepts as they relate to one of the three theories
Virtue Ethics is neither deontological nor teleological, since it is concerned with neither duty nor consequences, but rather the state of the person acting. Aristotle believed that once you are good, good actions will necessarily follow, and this belief is at the centre of Virtue Ethics. Rather than defining good actions, Virtue Ethics looks at good people and the qualities that make them good. The non-normative theory, although very effective in determining the morality of individuals, is particularly flawed when applied to whole societies. This weakness is largely due to its imprecision and abstraction; however, before these weaknesses can be considered, it is necessary to give an account of the theory itself.
An advantage of virtue ethics is that it brings in all the qualities of being human such as reason, responsibility and emotion to influence a person’s ethical consideration. This can be applied in situations where a person asks what sort of person he or she should be. However, our text book clarifies that “determining what the specific virtues are, and what the appropriate balance among those virtues should be, can be difficult” (Mosser, 2011).
Alexandria Sianna Heatherly was 4 when she was diagnosed with retinoblastoma. Retinoblastoma is a cancer that starts in the retina, the very back of the eye. She was always happy and full of energy. Her parents did as much as they could to try to save her, but had they had one more week things could’ve been different. They did intra-arterial chemotherapy with her. It was injected directly in the eye, directly onto the tumor. She lost part of her eyebrow and developed dyslexia immediately after the first treatment. When she was 8, she went into surgery a week before Christmas and they removed her right eye in hopes of stopping it from spreading, Little did they know, it had spread and become extraocular, outside the eye. If only they had known there was a better treatment option. Marijuana can treat PTSD, cancer, seizures, anxiety, glaucoma, and depression. (Marijuana Can Treat). Medical marijuana can help ease pain, nausea, and loss of appetite. It may also cut down seizures in people with epilepsy. There are a few reasons marijuana is not legal and some of those are that people believe it’s a dangerous drug that destroys families, it’s the ‘Gateway Drug,’ and more. Medical marijuana should be legalized in all states.