Last night I was riding in the van with Rob while he was listening to *gag* talk radio. The host was railing on and on about ethics and morals and "situational ethics" which got me wondering a few things. (Hang with me for the dry stuff here for a sec. I have questions!)
First of all, what's the difference between ethics and morals?
Ethic - a set of moral principles : a theory or system of moral values
Moral - a) of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior b) sanctioned by or operative on one's conscience or ethical judgment
Got that? Morals rely on one's own perception of what is right and wrong and ethics are a system of moral values generally dictated by society (business ethics, medical ethics, political ethics, etc).
So, my questions are these:
Can ethics be situational? I mean, do they change from situation to situation? Or do your ethics remain the same regardless of the situation?
Morally you're against killing people but you support the death penalty. Is that situational ethics?
Can you be for the death penalty but against abortion? Aren't both acts of taking another life? (WAIT! Don't do it - because I KNOW you want to debate the point at which life begins.) If that doesn't ring for you then how about the death penalty and euthanasia? Can you be for one and against another?
Can you morally think that homosexuality is wrong but ethically be opposed to the legal discrimination of homosexuals?
Can you morally be opposed to birth control but ethically think that certain people be sterilized?
Is lying by omission to gain favor morally or ethically wrong? Can you lie in certain situations and justify it while morally being opposed to lying?
What do you think? Can ethics be situational? What about morals?
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
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12 comments:
Oh my Hell! My brain just exploded!
Yes, I can be all those things. And even more! All these are along the lines of hating the sin but loving the sinner.
This hurts my head just reading it,Heidi! lol
Hmmm. I don't know where to start. Yes. Maybe.
Now that I've written and erased a response 5 times, I must say I should chew on this for a while.
I feel like I am back in college listen to one of my professors trying his hardest to confuse the whole class! I do think that ethics can be situational, but whether that is morally correct or not is another story:)
This is definitely thought provoking! Thank you for sharing this conundrum.
I agree with Kelly. Although I have to say Kudos to you for tackling this enormous question all while brewing a bambino in the oven....when I was pregnant, I could not even get matching shoes on so apparently, I am not the right person to ask on Morals vs Ethics!
I think that people are situational all the time and that's what helps them to draw lines. "I don't believe in killing a baby but I do believe in killing a violent criminal" is one great example of pro-life with loopholes.
Ouch ... too early. I can't wrap my mind around this at 7:30am. Beginning to studddddeeee rrrrr, mmmu uu sss ttt back awaaaayyy frommmmm mmmmm yooouuurrrr poooosssstt ttttt.
Okay. I got your note. I wrote and rewrote a comment last night. I really enjoy it when people make me think enough that I have to sleep on it. I'll try to give the short version.
Are ethics situational? I say yes because they are based on more than one person. Society or organizational ethics don't always match with personal morals.
When you ask about my personal morals...can I change my mind of what's right and wrong based on a group of circumstances? I want to argue. I want to say that I don't do that. The world is just not that black and white. It's a fallen world, full of problems.
You ask me is taking a life wrong. I say indeed it is. Then you ask if I agree with capital punishment. I do. I would argue that murder is far different than a government sanctioned punishment. I could argue that all day.
As I made my way down your list of questions, I came to the realization that while God may think sin is a sin, I struggle with it. I hope my morals are based on biblical principals but the fact is, I am human. I think because of that a group of circumstances could work together to change my mind. Good or bad. It could cloud my judgment or clear the way for me to see.
Don't think I changed my mind on capital punishment or any number of things you asked about. I think our personal perspective works to set our morals.
Does this even make sense? I won't erase this one but I'm feeling a little pukey now.
Brandi - I was thinking about this last night, too, and came mostly to the same conclusion.
Ethics ARE situational otherwise you wouldn’t have a different set of them for different things – business, medical, professional, personal. They’re influenced by society and by what we’re doing.
Morals, however, are generally NOT situational. They are generally the compass by which we guide our lives and, while they can change or evolve over time, they’re not situational.
Morally, killing a person is wrong so you, personally, would not take another person’s life. Ethically, you believe in the death penalty as a proper punishment for certain crimes but you don’t believe that abortion is ethical. Totally situational.
Thank you for taking the time to think about my question and answer it!
Too confusing. I think I would say yes though, situational.
Oh my you have deep thoughts going on here today too!
As I was reading your post, honestly, I was just laughing on the inside. I don't know why. I just was. I think maybe because I was being tossed and turned in my thoughts and it made me feel like giggling, like I was on a carnival ride or something. But anyways, after I finished reading, I had to go read it again.
I love thinking deeply, you are probably already aware of that, but I do not like to debate, not even with myself. LOL It makes for too much weariness inside of my heart. So, when it comes to questions like these and even the ones on the post that I did the other day about a time and a place for everything, I usually take my questions to the Lord and lay them at His feet and say, "Lord, I do not know the answer to these questions that are going on in my heart right now and they are making me tired and weary. Would you answer them for me or take them from me right now and reveal the Truth to me as I am able to handle it. But please eliminate the heaviness that they seem to be causing me because I know your yoke is easy and your burden is light so these questions in my heart that seem to have no answer can not be for me to bear on my own." And, I leave them there.
That being said, i still allow myself to ponder and think in very deep ways, I believe that the Lord brings great revelation to me when I do because in reality, my meditation is on Him bringing me the answer to my questions. It makes me to continue to see my dependence upon Him. And as I am seeking Truth, I am seeking Him.
All of your questions on this post today made me to think of this one thought as I was giggling on the inside. "There really is a right answer. There really is black and white. We may not be able to see it clearly, but there really is only one right answer to every question. And that answer is what does Righteousness say about that? What does pure Love say about that? Not circumstances! Not situations! But Righteous Love!!" The reason we do not always see it so clearly is that we only understand Righteousness and Pure Love as much as we understand the Person Himself. If we try to figure out answers on our own, it will seem that the situations will dictate truth but if we seek to know Him and understand all Truth in Him then the black gets blacker and the white gets whiter and Righteousness begins to dictate truth despite the situations.
Ok well, that is what was in my head after reading this. :) I love deep thoughts, they really do make my soul so much more dependent on God. Thanks Heidi
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