What's Wrong With Moral Relativism? w/ Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P. & Prof. Francis Beckwith
Jan 18, 2024
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Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P. and Prof. Francis Beckwith discuss moral relativism, controversial moral questions, natural law, and the connection between relativism and religious practice. They also explore the concept of worship and religious beliefs.
Relativism does not automatically lead to tolerance and can actually result in intolerance as well.
Relativism challenges the existence and importance of the natural law, undermining its claim on human behavior and dismissing its significance.
Deep dives
The Motivation behind Embracing Relativism
Relativism is often embraced due to a fear of people believing they are right and the harmful actions that belief can lead to. Some argue that if people stop believing in their own rightness, there will be fewer atrocities in history. However, this perspective fails to acknowledge that relativism does not automatically lead to tolerance. Relativism can actually lead to intolerance as well. The argument from tolerance often used to defend relativism is flawed because tolerance and relativism are not inherently linked. The motivation behind embracing relativism is rooted in the belief that being too sure of one's own views can lead to oppression and harm.
The Natural Law and Relativism
The natural law is an awareness of moral duties that are not solely based on social institutions. It acknowledges that certain actions are inherently right or wrong and are not determined by subjective beliefs. However, relativism challenges the existence and importance of the natural law. Relativism seeks to de-hierarchize moral claims and create space for alternative values or relative values to take their place. This undermines the natural law's claim on human behavior and dismisses its significance. The connection between the natural law and relativism becomes difficult to reconcile in a culture where religious belief and commitments are doubted or dismissed.
Defending Reasonable Religious Beliefs
Religion is often a central focus of debates surrounding relativism. Many arguments related to relativism concern religious practice and belief. It is crucial for religious believers to not only master the legal arguments surrounding religious liberty but also effectively defend the reasonableness of their religious beliefs. In a society where religious belief may be seen as irrational or unreasonable, it is important to engage in discussions that highlight the rationality and significance of religious beliefs. Understanding the philosophical and historical foundations of religious liberty can aid in defending the reasonableness of religious convictions.
Selective Relativism and Replacement of Religious Commitments
Relativism often serves as a debunking strategy to displace religion from the public square. It creates space for alternative moral, political, or societal commitments to take precedence over religious beliefs. However, the relativistic approach is often selective, embracing relativism as a means to establish unassailable moral views. While dismissing religious beliefs, alternative worldviews or movements can adopt a fervor and zeal similar to religious devotion. As religious belief diminishes in society, people may seek alternative commitments to fill the void. Political polarization may arise as religious commitments are replaced by political ones.
What's wrong with moral relativism? Join Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P. of Aquinas 101, Godsplaining, and Pints with Aquinas for an off-campus conversation with Prof. Francis Beckwith about his latest Thomistic Institute lecture, "Is There Anything Wrong With Moral Relativism?"
What's Wrong With Moral Relativism? w/ Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P. & Prof. Francis Beckwith (Off-Campus Conversations)
You can listen to the original lecture here: https://on.soundcloud.com/ukfZL
About the speaker:
Francis J. Beckwith is is a philosopher who teaches, publishes, and speaks on a variety of topics and issues in ethics, law, politics, and religion. He is currently Professor of Philosophy & Church-State Studies, Affiliate Professor of Political Science, Associate Director of Graduate Studies in Philosophy, and Resident Scholar in the Institute for Studies of Religion at Baylor University, where he has served on the faculty since 2003. He earned an Ph.D. and M.A. in philosophy from Fordham University, and a Master of Juridical Studies (M.J.S.) degree from the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, where he won the CALI Award for Excellence in Reproductive Control Seminar. Among his over twenty books are Defending Life: A Moral and Legal Case Against Abortion Choice (2007) and Taking Rites Seriously: Law, Politics, and the Reasonableness of Faith (2015), both published by Cambridge University Press, and Never Doubt Thomas: The Catholic Aquinas as Evangelical and Protestant (2019), published by Baylor University Press. Taking Rites Seriously was a winner of the American Academy of Religion’s 2016 Book Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion.
He has served as President of both the American Catholic Philosophical Association (2017-18) and the Evangelical Theological Society (2006-07), from which he resigned in the middle of his term in May 2007 to return to the Catholic Church of his youth.
He and his wife, Frankie, make their home in Woodway, Texas.
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