Moral Norms

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Moral Norms

• Seeking Moral Wisdom
• Chapter 9 Character, Choices, Community

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Moral Norms

• Morality is more than following rules and norms.
• Norms may not fit the situation
• Norms may be wrong (in error)
• Yet morality needs norms to help with good order
  (rules-laws)

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The What of Norms (cont.)

• 2. Norms teach the moral wisdom and experience of
  the community.
• Short propositional statements
• Telling to do or not to do certain habits or
  actions
• Taught by story, moral reasoning, personal
  experience
• Bottom line short commands-
• Treat others fair
• - Dont Cheat

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The What of Norms

• 1. Norms are
• General or Specific
• Norms can be seen as
• Instructions guiding persons or communities to
  virtue and right action
• Those rules whose purpose is to guide us in the
  task of becoming fully (good) human persons
• Providing structure for building better and more
  humane communities (Moral tug 3)
• Telling us the kind of person we ought to be to
  become good. (moral tug 1)
• Telling us the kinds of actions we need to do or
  avoid if we wish to do good (moral tug 2)

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The What of moral norms (cont.)

• 3. Norms seek to preserve and protect basic human
  goods or values which help make life fully human
  (Describe what it means to be/not to be fully
  human)
• Preserve a sane hierarchy or order to these
  values (Ex choices between values list, then
  order)
• General norms point toward virtues or character
  traits people in communities develop to become
  more fully human. (Ex Be honest, be patient,
  Golden Rule embodies attitudes or dispositions
  worth acquiring.)
• Specific moral norms
• specify concrete actions to do or avoid.
• attempts to protect or promote a basic good or
  value
• The more specific, the less absolute it is
  likely to be
• Both individual and community oriented become
  commitments of individuals as well as the
  community.
• (Give examples Income tax)

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The What of moral norms (cont.)

• 4. Reflection on Norms of the Christian Community
• Central and fundamental Christian norm is a
  person Christ (Haring p.159)
• He is the concrete universal central paradigm of
  Christian Ethics. (Spohn p. 159)
• Three phases of moral experience perception,
  motivation, identity.(Spohn p. 159)
• 5. Many specific Christian norms have developed
  over the centuries to meet the ever changing
  spectrum of moral issues. Where do Christians
  turn?
• Scripture for vision
• Tradition for wisdom from past Christians and
  persons of good will
• Reflection upon human experience and reason
• Within the Christian community, the Catholic
  church has a central teaching body The
  Magisterium comprised of Bishops and the Pope who
  give voice to the norms and guidelines of the
  community as a whole.
• Other Christians communities who are not as
  centralized, have a more diverse approach and as
  such it may be more difficult to identify the
  moral teachings.
• Moral norms are to be in the service of our
  conscience, they are not its enemy.
• Paul VI p. 161 (On The Regulation of
  Birth p. 259) (Primacy of Conscience)

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Why then are Norms Important?

• 1. Help us to pass on moral wisdom of the
  community giving us guidelines in specific and
  general moral situations.
• 2. Help us to preserve, protect and prioritize
  competing values and goods in complicated
  situations.
• 3. Although each moral situation is unique, it is
  also similar to others and as such norms help us
• 4. Norms help us to live as Social beings.

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Types of Moral NormsOn Being and Doing

• 3 Types of Norms
• Formal
• Synthetic
• Material

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Formal Norms

• Simple, uncomplicated
• Non-controversial
• Express positive traits or virtue to strive for
  or acquire (be kind, be loving)
• Very general in nature
• Describe a way of being.
• Many relate to religious tradition
• Examples
• Be Christ-like
• Be Holy for I, the Lord Your God, am Holy
• The Beatitudes
• Are not-action specific can not tell us what to
  do in a particular situation
• Always apply but it isnt always clear how they
  apply in a particular situation.
• Can be conflicting
• Can be overwhelming and defeat the point of
  becoming (Perfectionism)
• Capture important wisdoms act as condensed mini
  stories
• (Name some formal norms used in your families)

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Synthetic Norms

• Synthetic norms are elusive
• Some consider them a subset of Formal Norms.
• They are expressed in language of doing and so
  can be confused with material norms (Yet speak of
  a way of being)
• Confusion stems from use of terminology already
  understood as wrong. Dont lie, Dont steal.
  There is no new information on how to act.
• Point to moral disvalues not values as Formal
  norms do.
• They too have a narrative quality that asks that
  they be looked at in the fuller understanding of
  the Formal positive norm.
• They do not have a place in moral argument.
  (Why? Interpretation, understanding of terms or
  does it say it all?)

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Material NormsA way of Doing

• Points out specific ways to act or avoid acting.
• Help us to answer the question What is the right
  thing to do?
• Help us make concrete moral judgments by getting
  in touch with the wisdom of others.
• Are directed toward premoral values and
  disvalues.
• Examples Life, health, wealth, liberty p. 170
• Moral values Truth, love, honesty
• Material norms can have exceptions since they are
  not absolute. ( Ex. Slavery p.171)