A Conversation for Non-Religious Ethics
Collaborative Writing Workshop: A1005797 - Non-Religious Ethics
R. Daneel Olivaw -- (User 201118) (Member FFFF, ARS, and DOS) ( -O- ) Started conversation May 21, 2003
Entry: Non-Religious Ethics - A1005797
Author: R. Daneel Olivaw (User 201118) (Defender of Skepticism) (Member FFFF and ARS) - U201118
I think this could be a good idea, but I need some help writing it.
A1005797 - Non-Religious Ethics
Otto Fisch ("Stop analysing Strava.... and cut your hedge") Posted May 21, 2003
Hi Daneel,
I've got a lot I think I can add to this, but now's not a good time for me (60,000 word thesis to be done by the end of this month). Perhaps I could contribute in a few weeks, if this is still ongoing then?
Secular ethics is quite simple to do, and is what most proper ethicists and philosophers spend their time doing. Personally, I'm a theist (though not a Christian), but I'm secular when it comes to ethics, because I don't think that ethics can be based upon religious claims. There's also good arguments for saying that moral atheists (who do what is right because it is right) will get into heaven before the religous types who do what is right because God says so. But not all religious types say that they do what is right just because God says so. So why do they do what's right? Because they're really operating with a secular version of ethics.
Good places to start are utilitarianism (John Stuart Mill et al) and WD Ross "The Right and the Good" - a rather nifty version of non-absolutist deontology that not many people know about!
Hope this helps, and hope to help more later 
Otto
A1005797 - Non-Religious Ethics
R. Daneel Olivaw -- (User 201118) (Member FFFF, ARS, and DOS) ( -O- ) Posted May 21, 2003
OK. Actually, a month from now would be better for me, too. I'll research it.
A1005797 - Non-Religious Ethics
bable (I am delusional and I can no longer understand myself) Posted May 24, 2003
I reccon(jus a thought) but in a subject so infinately complex as proving moral absolutes in atheism. What about using as the bulk of your research some of the religious texts that the theists use and examining from the moral stories, homilies, proverbs, laws, and parables, (to name a few good subject areas!); exactly where the human finds these absolutes, and read into the life of Jesus as a model of a moral life. Tell me what you think!
bable
A1005797 - Non-Religious Ethics
R. Daneel Olivaw -- (User 201118) (Member FFFF, ARS, and DOS) ( -O- ) Posted May 24, 2003
As I say in the article outline, I'm not trying to prove moral absolutes, because I don't think they exist. I'm trying to show that a moral system can be constructed without turning to religion, not claiming that there is only one correct moral system.
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Collaborative Writing Workshop: A1005797 - Non-Religious Ethics
- 1: R. Daneel Olivaw -- (User 201118) (Member FFFF, ARS, and DOS) ( -O- ) (May 21, 2003)
- 2: Otto Fisch ("Stop analysing Strava.... and cut your hedge") (May 21, 2003)
- 3: R. Daneel Olivaw -- (User 201118) (Member FFFF, ARS, and DOS) ( -O- ) (May 21, 2003)
- 4: bable (I am delusional and I can no longer understand myself) (May 24, 2003)
- 5: R. Daneel Olivaw -- (User 201118) (Member FFFF, ARS, and DOS) ( -O- ) (May 24, 2003)
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