1A: Rejection of Other Forms of Ethics and Acceptance of Agape as basis of morality Flashcards
What are the features of situation ethics?
teleological (aims towards a purpose) and consequentialist (pays attention to outcome)
What is legalism?
rules by which people can make every moral decision
What is antinomianism?
against law. people are not under the obligation to obey the rules of ethics
Why does situation ethics advocate some kind of system for making moral decisions?
to avoid moral anarchy (against rules. no one is in charge)
What is the middle way SE aims for?
between legalism and antinomianism
What is the name of Joseph Fletcher’s book?
Situation Ethics: The New Morality (1966)
What key teleological principle is SE based on?
agape
What did Fletcher say we had to do to make a meaningful decision?
- consider the situation first
- once considered, deciding what to do depends on the practical application of agape because what is right to do in one situation might not be for the other
- each situation should be considered independently
What principle did Fletcher insist we must still use to make an ethical decision?
reason (link back to ANL)
What was Fletcher’s conclusion?
- the use of absolute principles when applying them to real situations was not Christian
- too many problems, inconsistencies and contradictions
How is SE similar to ANL?
- has a place for reason in ethical decision making
- teleological (ANL - beatific vision. SE - serving agape love)
- both use the bible
What are the features of the middle way?
- no strict rules
- influenced by Jesus’ teachings
- compassionate
- mature and sophisticated
How is SE different from ANL?
- prioritises people over law
- rejects absolutism - context and situation are relevant to ethical decision making
- consequentialist
How did social change challenge previous moral norms in the 60s?
- women became more prominent in work force
- anti war protests were a strong movement
- JFKs assassination led to distrust of government
- sexual revolution: freely available and reliable contraception allowed them individualism
What was the British Council for Churches attitude in its response to the social changes in the 60s?
- they appointed a working party that set out to ‘prepare a statement of the christian case for the abstinence from sexual intercourse before marriage’
- wanted to convey a ‘sane and responsible’ attitude towards love and marriage
- observed that there was a general lowering of moral standards, especially among Christians
- they wanted to reassess where Christian moral truths lay
Who are some authors that influenced Fletcher?
- Reinhold Niebuhr (moral man)
- Emil Bruner (divine imperative)
What three possible approaches did Fletcher argue there were for making a moral decision?
- legalistic
- antinomian
- situational
What is a legalist approach?
applying set principles rigidly without consideration of context
What is an antinomian approach?
to champion the freedom of the individual without reference to any rules
What is a situational approach?
considering each situation on its merits before applying the Christian principle of agape
Why did Fletcher reject legalism?
- legalism requires rigidly set principles & no consideration of context - goes against Fletcher’s belief that situations needed to be considered first
- saw it as restrictive to put rules before people
- described legalism as a ‘choking web of rules’
Why did Fletcher reject antinomianism?
- antinomianism is the idea people are under no obligation to obey the laws of ethics/morality presented by religious authorities
- Fletcher believed there is one certain principle: agape
- he didn’t think people should have no principles; where would we start? you need some to help make decisions
Why can Fletcher’s approach be called a ‘middle way’ between legalism and antinomianism?
- there are no strict rules
- it’s influenced by Jesus’ teachings: compassionate and more sophisticated. the consequences are analysed
- Jesus understood when to follow the law and when to break it
- selfless love and putting people before rules were what mattered
What did Fletcher mean when he called his middle way a ‘principled relativism’?
- “love is the only true principle”
- no fixed rules: relativist (no universal moral norms; an action should be judged right or wrong)
- principle is agape love
How did Fletcher understand conscience?
as a ‘function, not as a faculty’
What is the difference between a function and a faculty?
- function: what you do
- faculty: what enables you to do it
- example: sight is a function, eyes are a faculty
What are Fletcher’s four traditional ideas of conscience that he rejects?
- it is an innate built in faculty
- guided by the holy spirit
- internalised value system of culture and society
- reason making moral judgements
In what way does Fletcher think the church has made a mistake about the role of conscience?
Fletcher thinks the church sees conscience as an internal part of yourself through which communicates fixed rules that inform decisions.
What does Fletcher believe about morality being a manual for conscience?
morality is not something set in stone
What IS conscience according to Fletcher?
- practical
- problem solving
- creative
- flexible
- forward looking
What is conscience NOT according to Fletcher?
- god’s voice/supernatural guide
- intuition or radar that instinctively knows what is right or wrong
- backward looking
- assessing things you’ve done provoking guilt
Why is agape attracted to Christians?
it gives guidance and protection, and it’s consistent with Jesus’ behaviour
What should people consider when making decisions about how to behave?
- stick to society’s laws unless it seems more loving to break them
- have agape love as the main goal of every moral action
- don’t confuse any other type of love for agape
Why did Fletcher feel that agape was the best way to make moral decisions?
- it does not discriminate between people
- shows compassion to all people equally
- it is a firm principle upon which to base behaviour, so avoids the chaos of antinomianism
- it’s flexible, shows love to people in different ways depending on the situation. avoids the rigidity of legalism
What did Fletcher argue the gospels suggest about Jesus?
he was neither legalist or an antinomian. he demonstrated agape love
What language is the OT written in?
Hebrew
What is the word for the loving relationship between God and his people?
Chesed
What does chesed mean?
love that is faithful and strong. it incorporates the idea of commitment and kindness
What does aheb mean?
spontaneous and impulsive love. outward looking and embraces all. origins of agape
- universal in application
- not exclusive to gods loving relationship with hebrews
Fletcher: “What a difference it makes when ____, understood agapeically, is _____; when love is the only ____. how free and responsible we are!”
love, boss, norm
What is the Parable of the Good Samaritan?
- story told by Jesus where a man is robbed on his journey from Jerusalem
- a priest, a Levite, and a Good Samaritan each pass by him
- the first two ignore him and pass on the other side - the third shows him mercy and takes care of him
- Jesus instructed to ‘do likewise’ to the questioner
How does the Parable of the Good Samaritan demonstrate the same approach to ethics as Fletcher advocated?
- Jesus mirrors Fletcher approach by talking about love being the most teleological principle and if followed it leads to the highest good
- Jesus also considers the conditions and situations, helping to spread the best result of agape by “showing mercy” to the “injured neighbour” - emphasises how SE is only centred around the key principle of agape, highlighting its significance and indicating the rejection of absolutism because its neither flexible or compassionate
According to 1 Corinthians 13, what is love?
patient, kind, greater than hope and faith
According to 1 Corinthians 13, what is love not?
envious, boastful, irritable, arrogant, rude, resentful
According to 1 Corinthians 13, what does love not do?
rejoice in wrong doing, insist on it’s own way
According to 1 Corinthians 13, what does love do?
bear all things, believe all things, hopes all things, endure all things, never end
Verse from Luke 6:27 supporting SE?
“love your enemies, do good to those who hate you”
- love is kind and endures all
- reinforces positivism (acting in the most loving way is the right things to do)
