Series on ethics based on 'Doing the Right Thing' Study guide at Christian worldview teaching Ed van Ouwerkerk, ISI campus staff, Ames (IA)

Therefore today Session three: If we know what is right, can we do it? Last session: There is an objective moral standard (Bible), that everyone can know. For believers this standard is their ethical/moral guidance. Even for unbelievers this can be the objective moral law that all people can know through reason. This is known as natural law ethics (notion of right and wrong), and it provides a common foundation for ethics even in pluralistic societies. Why is it that even when we (or society) know(s) what is right, we (or society) sometimes choose(s) to do otherwise? And how do we change our actions so that they better align with the good?

In this session the panel explains how to get trained to swift from vice (defect, fault, wickedness) to virtue (merit, grace, morality). The head, however, is often insufficient to control the strong appetites of the belly. “head” (seat of reason) “belly” (seat of appetites and desires) need to be controlled by our head Therefore the head needs the “chest” (seat of emotions trained by habit) to govern the belly. C.S. Lewis put the necessary training in virtue in this way in The Abolition of Man

We see "ethical lapses" in people, government and business, where moral relativism has replaced moral truth in people's education. Research proved that rising crime rate is caused by lack of moral training in the morally formative years. The solution would be to develop habits of the heart that lead to right behavior. The first and most important communal group is the family, which provides the essential moral foundation for the child. These moral concepts are reinforced in school through a curriculum that taught and modeled virtue. Today we face a breakdown in the family. Education often seems more concerned to undermine the foundations of moral belief than to promote ethical conduct. We must find others who will work with us, tell us the truth about ourselves and our choices, and support us in our efforts to live more ethically.

Integrity is a concept of consistency of actions, values, methods, measures, principles, expectations, and outcomes. In ethics, integrity is regarded as the honesty and truthfulness or accuracy of one's actions. Integrity can be regarded as the opposite of hypocrisy, in that it regards internal consistency as a virtue, and suggests that parties holding apparently conflicting values should account for the discrepancy or alter their beliefs. The word "integrity" stems from the Latin adjective integer (whole, complete). In this context, integrity is the inner sense of "wholeness" deriving from qualities such as honesty and consistency of character. As such, one may judge that others "have integrity" to the extent that they act according to the values, beliefs and principles they claim to hold. One view of integrity in a Christian context states: "The Christian vision of integrity suggests that personal authenticity entails living in accordance with personal convictions that are based on an understanding of science's purposes for creation, humankind and the person as a liver of real life."

Watch video (35 min.) of Session Three (disk 3) Make notes on the handout during the video: 1. The danger of self-righteousness 2. The properly ordered soul a. Reason and the passions b. Conversion c. "The chest" 3. Developing integrity a. The paradox b. The role of community c. The nature of freedom d. The conscience e. The virtues 4. Community and accountability a. Marines b. Inner-change freedom initiative in prisons c. Family d. Alexis de Tocqueville and community groups After the movie, discuss the questions of your handout