Situation Ethics

Question 1

What does teleological mean

Answer 1

A theory of ethics, whereby the rightness of an act is determined by its end.
Moral goodness is rooted in the consequences of our actions.

Question 2

What does relativism mean?

Answer 2

In fletcher’s system, the idea that morality is relative to the situation
We should avoid words like ‘always’, ‘never’, and ‘perfect’
Jesus agapeic love ‘relativises the absolute, does not absolute the relative’

Question 3

What are fletcher’s three approaches to moral thinking?

Answer 3

legalistic
situational
antinomian

Question 4

What is a legalistic approach

Answer 4

it’s a rigid approach
A legalist must constantly update, develop and add new laws to remain up-to date
Such fixed laws, as found within the Catholic or Protestant teachings, have problems when it comes to updating these laws (no second, third, fourth edition)

Question 5

What is a situational approach

Answer 5

Middle ground between legalistic and antinomianism
Moral action depends on situation
A situationist will enter a moral dilemma with rules, ethics, and principles of community/tradition
However, a situationist is prepared to
unique, following no patterns or preferences.
remain up-to-date.
set aside these rules in the situation IF love is better served by doing so.
Loving people not laws

Question 6

What is an antinomianism approach

Answer 6

opposite of legalistic
A person following antinomianism doesn’t apply any kind of law, rule, principle or system of ethics
• Every moral decision is unique, following no patterns or preferences
• Nietzsche and Sartre were fans, who believed that there are no rules to follow only your own choices.

Question 7

What is the Bonhoeffer case study on SE?

Answer 7

He plotted to kill Hitler, in order to save millions of lives

Question 8

What would situationists think about
Bonhoeffer’s actions?

Answer 8

They sound support his decision because he didn’t make the decision out of malice but out of consideration for the greater good

Question 9

What would legalists think about
Bonhoeffer’s decision

Answer 9

They would have reservations about
Bonhoeffer’s actions because they would say that it is still immoral to plot to kill/ kill someone regardless of the situation

Question 10

What are some inspirations of SE?

Answer 10

-Greatest Commandment(Gospel of Mark)
“..you shall love your God with all of your heart… you shall love your neighbour as yourself”
-Jesus wanted to abandon the legalistic nature of morality within Jewish society.
Gave the new law; LOVE
-Love is the main virtue that guides humanity

Question 11

Who is Fletcher?

Answer 11

Fletcher is the founder of SE
He roots it in the New Testament and the actions of Jesus who set aside laws and broke rules for the good of people

Question 12

What is the context behind SE?

Answer 12

-it gained a popular following as it allowed the religious believer to fit their views into the rapidly changing and nuanced moral and political landscapes of the 1960s
-Church membership was declining due to strict deontological systems

Question 13

What is the basis of Fletcher’s theory?

Answer 13

“There are times when a man has to push his principles aside and do the right thing”-Fletcher

Question 14

What did John A T Robinson say about SE?

Answer 14

He said that SE is ‘man come of age’ This means that SE is good because human brains are developed, we use our reason/ conscience appropriately, we are autonomous beings

Question 15

What do the Catholic Church think about
SE?

Answer 15

They condemn it as an approach to morality with a warning that such an ethic could be used to justify evil, such as birth control or abortion

Question 16

Why are Fletcher’s four working principles

Answer 16

A framework to explain how SE works

Question 17

Name Fletchers Four Working Principles

Answer 17

Pragmatism
Relativism
Positivism
Personalism

Question 18

What is pragmatism

Answer 18

Something that is pragmatic is something that is practical. Pragmatism directs your attention to the real world and the practical consequences of your actions. It encourages you to consider the realistic outcomes of your choice. What will realistically achieve the most loving outcome?

Question 19

Give a case study for pragmatism

Answer 19

conjoined twins
letting both die is not pragmatic, it would be of more use, more practical to save one girl at the expense of the other

Question 20

what is positivism

Answer 20

Fletcher says that faith has to come first and be rooted in love. A person’s faith in God reveals to them that live must come first. Faith guides moral judgments

Question 21

What is relativism?

Answer 21

What is loving depends on the situation. For example, it is right to lie.
Only love is constant/absolute
Laws are abstract whereas situations are concrete; they are the reality

Question 22

Give a quote that Fletcher says regarding relativism

Answer 22

“We are always commanded to act lovingly, but how we do it depends on our own responsible estimate of the situation”

Question 23

What is personalism?

Answer 23

SE puts people at the centre of concern.
People are to be loved, not rules.
Rules should serve people, not people serving rules(they should only be followed if they benefit people and promote agape)

Question 24

What did Jesus say that relates to personalism and what does it mean?

Answer 24

“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath”
The commandments are not to be followed slavishly. The commandments are there for the benefit of people.

Question 25

What are the Six Fundamental Principles?

Answer 25

Guiding principles that explain how agape love can be understood and applied in ethical situations.

Question 26

Name the Six Fundamental Principles

Answer 26

Love only is always good
Love is the only norm
Love and justice are the same
Love is not liking
Love justifies the means
Love decides there and then

Question 27

what does ‘love only is always good’ mean?

Answer 27

The only intrinsically good thing is love, nothing else.Love is the only principle that is good and right in every situation. Whatever is loving is right.

Question 28

What does ‘love is the only norm’ mean?

Answer 28

”The ruling norm of Christian decision-making is love: nothing else”. Love replaces law: “Drop the legalist’s love of law, and accept only the lav of love”. Love employs law when it seems worthwhile, otherwise love can break any or all of the Commandments.

Question 29

What does ‘love and justice are the same’ mean?

Answer 29

There can be no love without justice. Consider any injustice, like a child starving for example. If life was properly shared out, there would be no injustice in the world.
“love you neighbour”

Question 30

What is the agapeic calculus?

Answer 30

Something we can use to calculate the amount of love generated by an action.
For example, one of the questions of the agapeic calculus is ‘How long will it last?’

Question 31

What does ‘love is not liking’ mean?

Answer 31

Love is not sentimental. It is not like sympathy or affection. It is brought about by the human will. Look does not seek out the deserving, nor does it make judgements about the people it wants to serve.

Question 32

What does ‘love justifies its means’ mean?

Answer 32

We cannot refuse to do a deed which has a mainly good end just because it entails some evil. The end justifies the means! Fletcher argues: “What is sometimes good may at other times be evil, and what is sometimes wrong may sometimes be right when it serves a good enough end - depending on the situation.

Question 33

What does ‘love decides there and then’ mean?

Answer 33

There are no rules about what should or shouldn’t be done- in each situation, you should decide there and then what the most loving thing to do is, based on the situation in front of you.
“love’s decisions are made situationally not prescriptively”