situation ethics

situation ethics

1. brought by JOSEPH FLETCHER

   • rejects the idea of the conscience and what it apparently does e.g: the holy spirit
     • "there is no conscience, conscience is merely a word for our attempts to make decisions..."
     • rejects the idea of morality as a manual of the conscience
     • rejects the idea that the conscience is a channel for divine guidance
     • the conscience weighs up the moral actions that could be considered in a situation

2. LEGALISTIC ETHICS

   • an ethical system which contains rules for every situation
     • this creates difficulties as society requires additional laws/alternative options

3. ANTINOMIAN ETHICS

   • the opposite of legalistic ethics
   • deals with every situation uniquely
   • "unprincipled"
   • promotes the freedom of the individual regardless of the rules

4. THE SITUATIONAL APPROACH

   • fletcher argues that absolute morals are not practical and so cannot be used in the real world
     • situations should be considered individually whilst considering moral principles in order to make the correct ethical decision and the agape love principle must also be considered
   • AGAPE LOVE
     • "love is the only universal..."
       • "justice is love, distributed"
   • the situational approach is practical and flexible as it can take into account, human life complexities and can take a bad situation and come up with the most agapeic solution

5. THE MIDDLE WAY

   • an approach which rejected the two extremes, legalism and antinomianism
     • described as practical
   • pragmatism: the decision has to be practical
   • relativism: there are no fixed rules, all decisions must be made in relation to the christian teaching of love
   • THE FOUR PRESUMPTIONS/working principles
   • positivism: christians believe freely that God is love and act in accordance to this faith statement
   • personalism: people before principles, we are meant to love people and not laws or principles, the person is put first before the situation

6. considers context of situation before principles

7. the end justifies the means, referring to the end result