On Moral Philosophy

What is moral philosophy?

Moral philosophy concerns itself with human actions, both in a universal and particular sense. The goal of moral philosophy is to define the good and evil in actions.

Why study moral philosophy?

Because moral philosophy is concerned with actions, it is perhaps the most useful philosophy. It is expected that individuals versed in moral philosophy would be able to define the moral good or evil in their own actions.

What role does moral philosophy play in the Roman Catholic Church?

The Church is based upon faith in a truth. The first truth of the Church is the belief in a God, which is defined as that which is goodness itself.

The Church also teaches that God created man in his own image and bestowed upon him a free will. With this free will, men and women have the freedom to choose good or evil in their actions.

All human actions, according to Aristotle and Aquinas, aim at some end, which is thought to be good. The end of all ends, the ultimate goodness, is God. This point was discussed in previous articles written regarding the existence of God.

It follows that since man has free will, he can choose to do good or evil, but because of the nature of human action, man hopes to attain the ultimate goodness. Although acts aim at a good, it is possible for men to act in ways which are not good because of a weakness of will or, as Aquinas says, "lack of right reason within the will."

Moral philosophy, as the study of good and evil actions, strives to instruct individuals as to the right way to act in order to achieve the ultimate goodness.

Does moral philosophy concern itself with universals or with particulars?

The short answer is both.

By universals, we mean general moral laws. The first of these, according to Aquinas is that "good ought to be done and evil avoided."

Particulars refers to specific actions, which can be judged according to universal moral laws. Abortion is a particular action. Lying is a particular action. Giving to the poor is a particular action.

Moral philosophy concerns itself with all aspects of action: universals and particulars. By establishing universals, the moral philosopher can then judge the morality of particular actions.

For example, we can determine that abortion is wrong by following universal laws and applying them to a particular action:

1. Good ought to be done; Evil ought to be avoided.

2. Life is good.

3. Abortion entails the elimination of a life.

4. Therefore, abortion is an act against that which is good.

5. Abortion is evil and ought to be avoided.

 

The following articles serve as an introduction into moral philosophy:

Whether moral philosophy is a product of reason. (Under Construction)

Whether moral philosophy can be defined by passions. (Under Construction)

The limits of moral philosophy (Under Construction)