Ethical Analysis Paper

Theory

Of Ethics

Virtue Ethics

(VE)

(Deontological)

Natural Law

Ethics (NL)

(Deontological)

Trust-based or Troth Ethics (TE)

(Deontological)

Divine

Command

(DC)

(Deontological)

Utilitarianism

(U)

(Consequentialist)

Author of Origin

(Aristotle: selfsufficiency model): this is a pantheistic model, but the insights on moral character and justice have informed all theories of ethics, & so can be integrated into other theories. VE connects character development w/ acceptance of truth and goodness as revealed in the universe. Ethics are really about morality.

(Thomas Aquinas:

Thomism of

Roman Catholic Church: nature as redeemed/ completed by

grace - Christ) Christian view applying revealed truth through Divine Law (DL),

Natural Law (NL),

& Human Law

(HL), to see how faith completes thinking. Ethics is the acting out of faith within society.

(Christian

Reformed,

Protestant:

Dooyeweerd &

Olthuis): Faith transforms people’s vision and values. Christian view applying the Word of God (Jesus and the Bible, and 15 irreducible Creational laws) to the loving work of transforming our world. Ethics is a unique law w/in the order of God’s creation for building networks of trust in community.

(Protestant focus: emulating God’s perfect character): Be Christ to one another. Christian view that applies scripture to human action to correct sinful actions and to promote the image of God’s perfect character to one another. Ethics refers to actions of motivated by obedience to God’s Word in contrast to sinful actions.

An atheistic view forged during the empirical era by

Jeremy Bentham and

John Stuart Mill. Util.

ethics emphasizes

the common good

over the individual person’s good. The focus on measuring consequences against desired outcomes has led many people today

to try to apply ethics without making fundamental value judgments. Praise or blame is based on how the results help or hurt the majority in our society. Ethics is focused on social well-being and places human pleasure seeking in that context.

Nature of man

Rational nature of man; body/soul composite.

Man is a body/soul composite, with a rational soul and faith completes reasoning.

Man is a spiritual being in which creation is created by irreducible aspects of meaning; Faith contextualizes & directs/guides reasoning.

Man is a body/ soul composite. God offers restoration of man’s fallenness (away from God) into sin through obeying scriptural revelations of how to live.

Man is a social creature, driven by pleasure, capable

of rational speculation

Virtue Ethics

Natural law Ethics

Trust-based Ethics

Divine Command

Ethics

Utilitarianism

The essence of ethical judgment as explained by each theory of ethics

Virtue – performance towards the good; Good leads to complete wellbeing. The focus is on being a good person rather than worrying about how every action is good or bad.

The purpose guiding actions reveals right and wrong by how true and good the purpose is (for everyone.) Faith completes rational analysis of good purposes. Virtue is about adding faith in God to moral character Ethical rightness is revealed in three ways: DL, NL, and

HL.

Trust-building towards relational Integrity as guided by faith.

Faith transforms our values & we see that trust, while having rational & emotional aspects, is the defining unique essence of ethical nurturing and reliance. As all things seek integrity, so there is a God-ordained integrity to relationships, evidenced by virtues in one’s personal conduct & the analysis of situational factors that shape ethical judgments & ways we trust.

Obedience to scripture: the sincerity of faith in God is evaluated by the

call to be Christlike in character and mission. Virtue is measured by both the content & commitment to embody or reflect the perfect character of God. Anything

short of perfection implies the presence of sin in one’s life & culture.

Utility: virtue is redefined in terms of how useful one is to achieving pleasant outcomes. Pleasure reveals what is good for human beings (hedonism). We measure pleasure quantitatively and qualitatively with focus on societal good for the

majority. (In empiricism consequences give meaning of right and wrong to actions, that means that the action has cannot be judged as ethical or not until the consequences are measured.)

Tools for analyzing ethical

meaning

(The business issues will be separate from the ethical.)

Analyze the actions for the presence of virtues and vices motivating and/or shaping people’s actions. Each person bears responsibility for their part in the interaction.

Analyze actions for their guiding purpose and inherent (shaping performance and considerations) values within different law spheres of

revelation: DL, NL, HL, in order to clarify the driving motives or values of the people in the situation.

Analyze the situational factors for Spiritual (faith and/vs. cultural values), ethical (factors of the relationship type, history, purpose, level of intimacy) and moral value (virtues and vices) levels of meaning as these values impact the trust dynamics within the situation.

Analyze the actions for motivations that are either Christlike in obedience, or that are sinful. Then, discern the spiritual directives driving the situation so that you know what to address in order to bring about God’s love in people’s lives.

Analyze, both quantitatively & qualitatively, the consequences of actions taken, and evaluate the pleasures created for society. If the majority (50.1%) are pleased, then the action was mostly good or ethical; if less than this, then the action was unethical.

Interpreting consequences Note: Science tests, reason comprehends.

Rationalism: “Analysis seeks to align intention, & action with desired results. This provides evidence of how reality actually works” Practical wisdom applies theory to the unique factors of situations.

Rationalism: Anticipating consequences that contain certain values leads to practical wisdom- acting appropriately in a situation with right and biblical principles

Rationalism: Evidence of how creation actually works: Leads to practical wisdom: thinking about how best to act rightly in a situation within the cultural parameters within which we experience the ethical basis of relationships.

Rationalism: Results provide evidence of how reality actually works:

Leads to practical wisdom: thinking about how best to act rightly within specific situations in obedience to divine commands.

Empiricism or consequentialism: Consequences reveal whether an action was good or bad by how much pleasure and pain the action brings about, respectively; we have a duty to accept actions that benefit the majority (W, 99)

Theoretical emphases of each theory of ethics

Man matures

naturally in response to his environment. Reason acknowledges the normal striving after Self-love, that leads to (=>) virtue=> integrity; and => Justice. Aristotle emphasizes the

organic model of selfsufficiency focusing on wholeness; truth is revealed most accurately through the integrating power of goodness.

Man matures in a socio/-political environment, with the natural drive to be good, but truth is mired in the sin of our history and culture, and so some effects of sin seems normal to many non-

Christians.

Christian faith directs and opens reasoning to find eternal truths, and to find God. General revelation of truth is analyzed by NL and HL; special revelation of truth is revealed by DL: i.e. by the Holy Bible, Holy Spirit in the Church, and (by the Spirit) by special Papal decree.

Man matures

spiritually while having faith in something,

(because faith is natural to all men) & a person’s faith shapes how that person interprets the world. Goodness is revealed in all aspects of creation, & we interpret goodness through our faith. Ethics is revealed relationally as we

move through

self-love, to the Golden Rule, and by Christian faith

to God & God’s

acts of love. All knowledge is value-laden, because of the intricacies of order. Rational analysis abstracts levels & kinds of values from facts shaping situations.

Man matures in a sinful, fallen world. Man is fallen and incapable of reasoning correctly in the pursuit of truth, & so man needs God’s grace to overcome sin’s effects, and this is the focus of ethical meaning. A person’s faith in God and obedience to Special Revelation inspires people to work at bearing God’s image by emulating the perfect character of God. This is the means to sanctification; Truth is best revealed in the Holy Bible, and perfectly lived in Jesus.

Man matures in pursuit of pleasure. Rational analysis led by empiricism will yield true knowledge. Knowledge is scientifically acquired and so is consequentialist in its interpretations. Ethical goodness is measured as pleasures and happiness for the majority of people in society; the ends justify the means, because the ends are knowable, the means are internal to a person’s self and motives behind one’s actions. The world is not perfect, so no solution can be either.

Virtue Ethics

Natural law Ethics

Trust-based Ethics

Divine Command

Ethics

Utilitarianism

Conditioning factors of analysis

Self-control, courage, friendliness and justice are principal virtues for social engagement. Vice is evident when there is loss to any of these. Fairness in judgment comes with respect of persons in society.

Virtue ethics

gets at faith through Wisdom, which is gained by intellectual and moral virtue (IV & MV) Ethics fits into the larger context of

society and so justice. Its integration of

concerns =

TV -> DC, D, SV

MV

Society -> HL

Rational analysis of culture and our current lives brings with it need for awareness of dominant theories and practices (HL). Analysis of natural strivings helps us to be honest and humane about our lives (Evaluative NL question: are we honest about human nature in how we live?). Analysis of divine guidance leads us to interpret the intent of DL, which offers graceful correctives to all cultures and societies.

Natural Law includes the following and integrates the following EL

DL -> DC

NL

HL -> VE

Analysis focuses on how and to what degree trust is being nurtured, maintained, neglected, or betrayed by people’s actions, policies, and organizational structures. The contextual factors, the situation, the roles, levels of loyalty, and the history of the relationship constitute the dynamics important to wise

practical judgment. Sharing yourself, and trusting (relying on) another for goods in life establishes the relational connections by which we enjoy and live out our full creaturely calling. TE integrates the following. Values: Spiritual, Ethical,

Moral, & Business

SV -> DC

EV

MV -> VE

BV

First we identify the sin that is causing us distress, then we demonstrate how the sinful action falls short of action(s) guided by divine commands. We analyze divine commands for

their logical coherence and universality of application and for their depth of meaning. We defend our interpretation of the Divine

Command(s) with the consistency of scriptural passages and coherence within biblical terminology.

Identify the

common good and those who determine what the common good

is. Rational analysis of the common good defines the measures of pleasure used in judging the consequences of the actions.

Judgment of the action is based on the qualitative and quantitative measures by which people are affected by the action. Determining who is affected by the action is part of the quantitative analysis. This leads to a social measure of the ethics of the actions taken. (W,

102-3)

Apply either Rule or Act

Utilitarianism’s interpretation of how to bring about “the greatest good for the greatest number.”