Gourt Home::Gourt :: Secular ethics
Most atheists, agnostics and other irreligious people adhere to some form of ethical code. Despite claims that morality would be impossible without Religion, many atheists claim that religion is not necessary for moral behavior at all. http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/mark_vuletic/moral.html. The Dalai Lama has said that compassion and affection are human values independent of religion: "We need these human values. I call these secular ethics, secular beliefs. There’s no relationship with any particular religion. Even without religion, even as nonbelievers, we have the capacity to promote these things." http://www.progressive.org/mag_intv0106
Those who are unhappy with the negative orientation of traditional religious ethics believe that prohibitions can only set the absolute limits of what a society is willing to tolerate from people at their worst, not guide them towards achieving their best. In other words, someone who follows all these prohibitions has just barely avoided being a criminal, not acted as a positive influence on the world. They conclude that rational ethics can lead to a fully expressed ethical life, while religious prohibitions are insufficient.
A wide variety of secular ethics and belief systems have been developed and progressively expanded by social and philosophical movements such as Humanism, Secularism and Freethinking. The majority of secular moral concepts consist, on the grand scale to the acceptance of Social contracts, and on a smaller scale in either some form of attribution of intrinsic value to things, or Ethical intuitionismUniversity of Maryland - Matters of life and death: a course in secular ethics, or by a logical deduction that establishes a preference for one thing over another, as with the Occam's Razor. Other approaches are considered more radical, such as Utilitarianism and ethical egoism.
Holyoake
George Jacob Holyoake's 1896 publication English Secularism defines secularism thus:
- Secularism is a code of duty pertaining to this life, founded on considerations purely human, and intended mainly for those who find theology indefinite or inadequate, unreliable or unbelievable. Its essential principles are three: (1) The improvement of this life by material means. (2) That science is the available Providence of man. (3) That it is good to do good. Whether there be other good or not, the good of the present life is good, and it is good to seek that good.
Holyoake held that secularism should take no interest at all in religious questions (as they were irrelevant), and was thus to be distinguished from strong freethought and atheism. In this he disagreed with Charles Bradlaugh, and the disagreement split the secularist movement between those who argued that anti-religious movements and activism was not necessary or desirable and those who argued that it was.
Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche based his work on ethics on the rejection of Christianity and authority in general, or moral nihilism. Nietzche's many works spoke of a Master-Slave Morality, The Will to Power, or something stronger that overcomes the weaker and darwinistic adaptation and will to live.
Humanist ethics
Humanists endorse universal morality based on the commonality of human nature, and that knowledge of right and wrong is based on our best understanding of our individual and joint interests, rather than stemming from a transcendental or arbitrarily local source, therefore rejecting faith completely as a basis for action. The humanist ethics goal is a search for viable individual, social and political principles of conduct, judging them on their ability to enhance human well-being and individual responsibility, ultimately eliminating human suffering.
The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) is the world-wide umbrella organization for those adhering to the Humanist life stance.
"Humanism is a democratic and ethical life stance, which affirms that human beings have the right and responsibility to give meaning and shape to their own lives. It stands for the building of a more humane society through an ethic based on human and other natural values in the spirit of reason and free inquiry through human capabilities. It is not theistic, and it does not accept supernatural views of reality."
Humanism is known to adopt principles of the Golden Rule, as in the quote by Oscar Wilde: "Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live." This emphasizes the respect for others' identity and ideals.
Views on bioethics
There is a special interest on what the effects of secular ethics would have on abortion and bioethics, given the controversial nature of these issues. While there is not an universal school of thought for secular morals, it is possible to analyze some currents. Utilitarianism arguably takes the stance that we should treat as "means" as few people as possible, and treat as "ends" as many people as are thus then consistent with those "means", in order to achieve a positive outcome for the wellness and happiness of society as a whole. Some utilitarians also arbitrarily consider justice and equality natural rights. This stance could be interpreted to mean that if there's a greater benefit for society, practices such as abortion, stem cell research and other issues present in The Hedonistic Imperative, or even Malthusian practices of population control would be viewed as acceptable. However, these views are contracticting to other moral values attributed to secular ethics, such as the intrinsic and natural right to life.
See also
References
"Secular ethics"