Culture & Lifestyle

Rant

Cold of Ethics

Posted 8 months ago|16 comments|602 views
Have we... the colde of ethics?
Written by
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man."
— George Bernard Shaw (Man and Superman)
http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/5...

IF someone mentions ethics, one would think they are coming down with moral code, I mean moral cold. It would seem that if someones conscience gets the better of them in this day and age, it is treated more like a sickness than a standard. With moral relativism and and situational ethics, we are experiencing the absolute end of moral absolutes. Yet the bellaring cows of tolerance, emit the braying disdain of any opposition. Who is to say this is right and that is wrong? I'll tell you... it is the one making policy!
Just don't let that be said of you or I.

ONE side shouts at the other side "Violation!" ...without so much as a standard among them, each declares foul where no line is drawn. This is the picture of our society, we have lost our moral compass on a sea of valueless systems. Yes we hear claims to the contrary like... "Democrats have morals too" ...yet without a contrast to the opposite, how are we to tell the difference? I am not saying Republicans are Saints, to the contrary, yet to claim a standard where none is established nor required is superfluity. We need rules and limits, untampered history is our proof, it is all we have.

STANDS of books and magazines bare the images of the less than credible, yet they are the ones the world looks to for moral advice? Like actors giving political opinion, it would seem those who act for money, do what they do best... (From the Greek word hypokrites a stage actor, hence one who pretends to be what he is not). Would one expect ethics from an "actor" or pretender? Then shouldn't we expect no less from those who are not? Our actions will reveal what we alone have decided-to.

FOR now we come to the crux... moral obligation. If one is standing in a room where a crime is clearly perpetrated; and the mere flip of a switch would be the catching of the criminal, but the end of the innocence of those also standing in the room... what do you do? On the other hand; not flipping the switch would be the escape of the criminal, but the preserving of the ignorance of those sharing the same space... what do you do? It is not the lack of moral obligation, but to whom it is directed. What is valued in our society more than law and order? What is valued more than the constitution? Follow?

ANYTHING we say, can be held against us... the court of "law" has nothing to do with it! If a special interest group has paid for "air-time" ...it matters little if you are right, and less if you can prove it! When faced with such opposition, the only reasonable thing to do is be unreasonable... and be true to your God and Country... and if that's not possible, pick the one you will be spending an eternity with or without! Jesus Christ.

PEOPLE have this desire to be more than they are... and that is achieved by most, right between their ears. Also the opposite is true... so, it is the changing of the mind that is most crucial. Some say all Christians are "brain-washed" ...and I have to agree. I for one went through some brainwashing myself... it was necessary though... my brain was filthy! We all could use a little cleaning between the ears! This is exactly what reading an anti-societal work like the Bible will do... it gives you perspective based on truth instead of tendency, and paradigm based on holiness instead of hormones... regardless!

WILL you make an experiment with me... by saying no to the current social god of our society? For just one day say no to your own desires. But not just say no to your own habits, such as putting the left sock on first... but replacing your will with the desires of someone else. That's right... in traffic, instead of laying on the horn at the idiot ahead of you, give peace a chance. Instead of saying no automatically to your kids desire... contemplate a generous compromise... or go for that walk in the rain your best friend always talks about. Or instead of asking God why? ...for once ask God who...
and then kindly be that volunteer of.

NOTICE most people look for patterns in capitalized words at the beginning of most paragraphs, and fail to see the patterns of those not... and are at the end? Anyway, I just was impressed with the standards that my parents had, and their parents before them...
it seemed God gave them vision beyond circumstance. I desire to be more than I am, and it could be that there are some that look to me as well; to provide that kind of role model.
I know I am not great enough for that responsibility, but it is my desire... and like a good peanut butter sandwich... Lord willing, I will have it! I may not be there yet, but with every salivating drop of anticipation I someday will. And with that kind of determination...
it could even be contagious (if only God notices)... no matter the cost.

UPDATE - 1 month ago
"Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper
http://dwynrhh6bluza.cloudfront.net/reso...
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COMMENTS
Altruist
Altruist
Eugene, OR
8 months ago: I think all cultures and societies know who good and ethical people with good morals are. All cultures know that violence against others is bad, that stealing is bad, that lying is bad, that helping those in need is good. Sure there are some variations, for example some native American tribes didn't recognize personal property so "borrowing" from others was acceptable, and stealing from other tribes was a sign of bravery and encouraged, but the general rule is true. There are good people in every society and culture and religion and no one religion has a monopoly on morality.

Moral relativity is good. We have seen what happens when lines are drawn. when sex outside of marriage is declared evil with no excuses, no sliding down that slippery slope. You have women being raped and then punished by being stoned to death. What is morally worse, when a person steals a loaf of bread to feed his starving family, or when a hedge fund manager steals 10 million from people's pension funds? One is outside the law and punished by years in prison, the other is legal and we adulate these rich bastards as heroes.

Does an inflexible code of conduct in some book determine morals or is that intrinsic knowledge of what is right and wrong that is most important?

I think that good and kind non religious people who behave morally are superior to religious people who are coerced to do what some people decide is right through intimidation and threats of eternal torture.

Besides the "Good" Book is full of moral ambiguity. In many parts god is telling people to slaughter innocent civilians and rape virgin daughters, and to stone your kids to death if they give you any lip. What is so good and moral about that?


8 months ago: Al,

You said "Moral relativity is good" ...for whom? THE MILLIONS of babies from minorities that are murdered by abortion (at your approval); or THE MILLIONS of drug addicts that are enslaved and then taxed into lives of crime (at your approval); I don't think you even know what morals are. You seem to think that eternal punishment is a bad thing for guys like Hitler and those who would keep them in power... it is your leftest agenda that has all the young girls committing suicide after abortion and "date-rape" that your sex education is responsible for. Your leftest agenda is responsible for a godless young generation, that has no purpose but to act like the animals your education system has them brainwashed to believe.

Every once and awhile you refer to the Bible... something you know little or nothing about... you seem to think because you can read the drivel that others have blogged, that makes you some kind of expert... why don't you read that book you slam... I read your textbooks! Good thing most people are more curious than that... and are willing to examine things for themselves and not just meme regurgitated pseudo-philosophy.

...just sayin.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: Is it because the unreasonable man questions and will venture outside the lines where no one ever dared go before? Then the reasonable man sits back and lets everyone else do the work for him and benefits from what the unreasonable man reaps. The unreasonable man had the ability to have more vision because he questioned.
My daughter when she was about 3 won a coloring contest that was flooded with entries, and it was because she colored outside the lines with all kinds of crazy colors that she won. She was up against all ages and perfect artwork. To me it looked cute, and I didn't think she would win, but to those judging, it looked creative and talented. The unreasonable man dares to push the envelope; therefore, he has the talent to progress. Columbus said the World was round, and they didn't believe him, but his determination and being unreasonable to others, changed the World.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: I tend to make life more simplified. I try to do the best I can. That's my World.
I can understand why people get very confused in their lives. If these people fall into some kind of trouble and become desparate, they don't know right from wrong anymore. One wrong doing can lead to another, and there is where imorality begins. Many can't turn it off and on like a switch and get out of what they themselves caused. How do you mend bad character traits? Those that are willing to learn and get that second chance, are the lucky ones.
On the other hand you have the incorrigibles, they are like the devil themselves and beyond help. These people can't be reached. They pick up passages in the Bible and make it apply to their lifestyle. Here is where the problem lies.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: Hope you don't mind me writing. I knew someone who moved into my neighborhood. This street was made up of hard working family people.
This man moves in, he turns out to be notorious. It was ironical to me how the people knowing his foul deeds, made him a demi God. I see this in the way politicians are treated. There is no difference.
Altruist
Altruist
Eugene, OR
8 months ago: Truthbrary what makes you think I approve of abortion or drug use? I oppose both.

I just happen to think when it is a question of sacrificing the life of an adult or of a bunch of cells that the adult wins every time. I oppose abortion as a means of birth control and favor education and the readily available contraceptives and birth control as an alternative to abortion. Alternatives like birth control education better adoption and better economic conditions for young mothers all reduce the incidence of abortion. That is my goal. I advocate eliminating the unbearable situations that might cause a young desperate mother to chose abortion over bringing a child into the world that was caused by rape that she would hate. The moral ambiguity comes when the fetus is determined to be brain dead or with a tragic fatal illness.

I have no idea how you think I am responsible for drug use. Everything I have written is critical of drug use. You are likewise wrong about my not knowing the bible I had 11 years of Christian schools and years of catechism before that. I know enough about the bible to know that the old testament and the new testament are remnants of totally different religions that were thrown together and meshed with Mithrism and Sol Invictus. I think your god is too small and that this cruel tribe should not be god's chosen people or the moral role models.

Every society knows the difference between right and wrong. and those societies don't need the ten commandments as a guideline. What is best for the community is what is morally right, and moral guidelines can come from any religion or none at all, not just Christianity. Every religion and every culture recognizes the golden rule. Christians have no monopoly on the truth or on what is right and good.

There are a thousand different Christian sects and each one believes that they have the corner on truth and morality and that any one that doesn't sign on to their unique and bizarre belief system is condemned to hell. They can't all be right. I would prefer the moral guidelines of Buddhism or any of the other philosophers that Jesus probably borrowed from.
8 months ago: Altruist,

IF you don't approve of abortion as a form of birth control then you don't approve of almost any abortion... but you do. Your approval of drug use is stated repeatedly in the form of taxation of those addicts... and the programs for legalizing drugs for the purposes of taxation too. No?

As to your knowledge of the Bible, I said that it is "something you know little or nothing about..." I apologize. What I should have said... and further to what I meant was that you really don't know the God of the Bible... and had you known Him, you would soon see that less of what people say they believe, is more of what they practice. Current "religion" is not the following of the words of Jesus Christ.

You say... "Every society knows the difference between right and wrong... (and) Every religion and every culture recognizes the golden rule" ...however every society and religion never attains to it, and falls far short of even their own rules. THE primary difference is not in "superior rules" but in the Salvation for those who don't measure up or just fail miserably. That difference is Jesus...
the Savior of the world... GOD incarnate.

"Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)


I can agree with you that there are "a thousand different Christian sects" ...but there is only one Christ! Regardless of my claims, doctrine or religious order... there is only one Christ and savior. It matters little if I get it all right... or all wrong, Jesus will be the judge and savior. And time will tell if someone's philosophy or theology will stand the test... and if the Words of Christ come to pass.

My life has been changed by knowing the Spirit of Christ, long before I knew His Word and could understand it... I am only now grasping what has already grasped me. It just chaps my hide to hear people say my God is too small or fake... when they refuse to give Him a moment to reveal Himself to the contrary.
8 months ago: Well said.

Moral parasites borrow from the edicts and instructions God originally gave humankind. They pick and choose what they like in order to create a relativistic society where they are their own gods.

That's why we have the mess we have. Everyone believes they are moral, when they are not. And everyone believes they don't have to repent, when they all need to.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: You were very brave to be able to change and find Christ.
Not all people are that lucky. Look at you now. Great.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: I don't know I see what you both have written. At least the two of you think about the right and wrong of morality in this society. The worse of any man would be his stony,hard hatred and cold indifference to another being. That would be the devil himself. I don't see that happening from either one of you. I don't see any time soon that this giant riddle will be solved. Perhaps none of us have reached the height of being civilized yet. No one will ever have the same beliefs or map his world the way the other wants him to. The only thing I am positive about is that Jesus was a unique man whose name is remembered and said each and every day down through the centuries and that has to mean something for how special he was. Everyone learns from someone before him, but it is what you do with it that makes you special. Not too many would lay down their life for another or have a golden heart that would touch all of us in some way or another. There aren't many Kings in this life since the beginning that have made such a great impact. I would think this alone would speak for itself. It doesn't matter who or what we believe in but that we are on the same page of doing what is best in the end.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: In the end I don't believe Jesus would turn away from any one person at all regardless of their beliefs in Him, or not. I would think he would save any person from drowning whether they knew Him or not. I always believed in Jesus my entire life, and it isn't because of any particular religion. I didn't have to come to any awakening because I had awareness. Judgment is going to be on how you live your life and more so how you treat others. I met a priest once that said no one knows if they are good or bad, I would think the morality would fall into that category. I suppose that is where our freedom to make choices becomes clear. We have the 10 Commandments that are a good guide for us. Then again people intrepret that the way they want by rationalizing. I think those rules have been bent quite a bit to suit a disparaging life style for many. In my area people are being shot to death one right after another within the last few days. I would say they believe in nothing and don't understand right from wrong. They will go to prison with that belief and nothing will change them. They get a short sentence, get out, and resume what they know best. One time I was mugged by a black fellow. He stole my money but didn't hurt me. He had a brutal way and did hurt others. He was sentenced to 15 years but got out in 5. Needless to say, he came back after my family knowing I pointed him out in a line up. How did he know, you ask? Simple when I went to pick him out of a line up, the door was conveniently left open for him, and he saw me go past. He came after my child in a parking lot, but she showed no fear of him. He left her alone. This is what is out there. I wonder if he had the fear of God drilled into him, I don't think so. My point is people will do what they want and not worry about it until it's too late. If they have any conscience at all, but they don't. The innocent people suffer for their actions.
8 months ago: "I would think he would save any person from drowning whether they knew Him or not. "

You are right Sunny. But they have to receive the help.

The person who refuses to acknowledge his/her need for help or worse yet, refuses that help when freely extended...will indeed drown. And that is no one's fault but their own.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: Yes, Huey, and there are many out there.
They won't acknowledge what they have done. They will blame the other person or say it was their imagination all the while ruining their lives and others. They dismiss anything that is their fault. They won't ask for help and die that way. Those are the incorrigibles that I have no use for because there is no helping them.
Altruist
Altruist
Eugene, OR
8 months ago: I think the main difference between my moral beliefs and yours Truth, is that I believe children are basically good and need to learn how to be bad, whereas Christians consider children bad (original sin) and need to be taught to be good.

I believe that society can determine right or wrong behavior by what is ultimately good or bad for society. Christians have a strict defined code of morality that is enforced by capital punishment and the threat of eternal damnation.

But what happens if something doesn't fit into this narrow code? What happens if someone does something that isn't explicitly wrong according to the code but is ultimately damaging to the society? Is something good even though it results in harm? Is war or stealing millions form pension plans OK just because it isn't against the law.

We don't need an external code and threats to coerce us to do the right thing. We just need common sense. I consider the non religious moral person to be superior to the Christian moral man because the non religious person acts morally because it is right not because he is being forced to act that way.

As for what happens after death. If a good person is sent to hell just because he hasn't gone through some silly ritual, than the religion that preaches that is ultimately evil. The good should be rewarded and the bad punished in any moral system that is actually moral.

As for abortion and drug use. I oppose both, but think that abortion can best be minimized by providing education and alternatives. Birth control is not the same as abortion. Even in the Catholic church there is a distinction made between fertilized and unfertilized eggs.

The war on drugs has been an abysmal failure and drug use would be best reduced by eliminating the profit motive of the drug users. I don't advocate legalization but decriminalization replaced by high taxes, free drugs to addicts if they undergo treatment, and conscription of drugs as a supply. I advocate continued prosecution of drug importers. This is simply using free market concepts.
8 months ago: Altruist,

I really don't see our Biblical faith as you described. We are born with original sin, however we are not accountable for it until we know better...

"But Jesus called them to him, saying, "Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God." (Luke 18:16)

...so you see, whether "good or bad" they own the kingdom of God. I agree with you that children need to be taught right from wrong, and so a child that has had evil modeled to him/her their entire childhood should also be off the hook if they are criminals later in life... would you agree? God judges us ONLY by what we know, not what others think we should know... or by what they know.

I like the point you make... "But what happens if something doesn't fit into this narrow code? What happens if someone does something that isn't explicitly wrong according to the code but is ultimately damaging to the society? Is something good even though it results in harm? Is war or stealing millions form pension plans OK just because it isn't against the law" ...this is where God can be the judge, regardless of how "legal" something is... it could have devastating effects! Like impoverishing millions who have to steal for a living... the Bible lets them off the hook...

"People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry" (Proverbs 6:30)

...you keep giving the Bible a bad rep, it is clear you can't see the compassion and provision for mercy and proper judgement. You seem to think a "good person" can be sent to Hell... impossible! God IS NOT GOING TO SEND ONE GOOD PERSON TO HELL... if He didn't destroy Sodom until all the good people were out, He won't send a good person to Hell.

But what is "good" ...how good can it be for people teach their children to hate God and His Word? Or to teach that believing in our Creator is stupid... that's not good, and for sake of your argument... if God existed He wouldn't be too pleased with those who force their kids and others against Him! By God's own Word, Hell was created for the Devil and his angels (angel simply means messenger)... are you a messenger for God or against Him... Hell wasn't made for you, however if you continue to hate the only one who has a better plan... that is your choice.

Altruist, I like a lot of what you have to say, but your take on the Bible needs some more understanding. I think if you could see the big picture you would have less of an issue. You make things so "one or the other" without considering the third and fourth options provided in our Christian faith.
sunny2
sunny2
8 months ago: It's a Mystery. None of us know for sure. I know I'm in the middle of this. Sorry, but I am very in tune.
Miracles happen to all people, not just the pious and the faithful,
or the non-religious or religious.
I see religion as a personal choice. Whether it makes sense or not, it still a way to a means. I think everyone wants to believe in heaven and wants something more. Our minds and souls look for it instinctively. There is a reason for that. I really believe that we have a lot more to do.
A young boy at work said that there was nothing after this life. I felt badly for him. I said where were you before you got here. He couldn't answer me. That's the way it is. We don't have answers, but we have hope.

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