T 05 character Duty Ethics Deontological Teleological Right

T 05. 品行(character)：生態美德 責任 (Duty) 責任論的 倫理 Ethics Deontological 目的論的 Teleological 好行為 Right action 權利 (Rights) 做好 Being good 品行 (Character) 後果 Consequences 5 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011 關係 (Relationships)

T 05. 品行(character)：生態美德 1. Being good 2. Children’s stories 3. Christian stewardship 4. Virtues: integrity, gratitude, and frugality 5. Respecting and appreciating nature n Summary 6 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

1. Being good In the play Antigone (安蒂格妮) by Sophocles (495406 BC), a young woman defies (公然蔑視) the king’s edict (勒令) by burying the body of her brother, who was slain(殺死) as a rebel. Antigone justifies disobeying the law of the land by proclaiming her allegiance(忠貞) to an eternal law, which she claims has greater authority than the decisions of any human ruler. Tragically, her act of love and faith results in her death. n n n 7 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Apology In ancient Greece the death of Socrates was also tragic, as Plato (424 -348 BC) tells us in his Apology. n Socrates accepts the judgment of the Athenian senate, for corrupting young people, although he knows his sentence is unjust. n He drinks the cup of hemlock that causes his death, as a way of affirming that a good citizen should abide by the rule of law. n 8 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

The natural law tradition According to Aristotle, there is a reason for everything, and every living organism has a good of its own. The pursuit of happiness is our natural disposition. n n n Because we are social beings, happiness requires cooperating to realize the common good. Being good person involves understanding human nature through reason. n 9 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

The natural law tradition n n Virtue requires practical wisdom Moderation(溫和、穩健) was the virtue of all virtues, the “golden mean”. n n n Too much courage is foolhardy(有勇無謀) Too much pride is vanity (自負、虛榮). Maintaining good habits would strengthen the virtues necessary for human flourishing(繁榮). n 10 We learn to do what is right by becoming, through discipline, the good people that we are created to be. Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

The Tao(道) tradition Being a good person means conforming to the way of Tao(道), which is understood as the order of nature of the natural order of society. n 老子寫道德經(500 BC) n 孔子的論語 (551 -479 BC) n 11 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Moral presumptions The natural law tradition assert that we should resist human law that conflicts with higher law. n Aristotle praised the virtue of moderation and criticized humility(謙卑), as having too little self-regard. n Aquinas endorsed humility and the virtues of faith, hope, and charity(慈善) as crucial for a good and happy life. n 12 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Moral presumptions In the Tao tradition human flourishing is understood as harmony rather than as happiness, n The Tao Te Ching recommends the virtues of mercy and humility. n We should learn from the natural order. n 13 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

2. Children’s stories n n Cinderella(灰姑娘)：Does not tell us how to care for the earth, but it does offer hope in facing what appears to be a hopeless situation – and a sense of hope will be important as we confront the environmental crisis. Johnny Appleseed：was known by 1806, transported apple seeds to the frontier and planted nurseries for settlers who would come later. To live in nature with greater simplicity(簡約) and gratitude(感恩) – virtues that seem to contribute to a more ecological way of being a good person. 14 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

3. Christian stewardship n n New Testament commandment (戒律)：To be persons who love God and their neighbors – implies a more caring attitude toward the natural world. Catholic Ethics：Catholic social teaching has transformed the New Testament commandment to be loving persons into a call to reclaim “our vocation(使命) as God’s stewards of all creation”. (好管家) to eradicate actions and policies which perpetuate various forms of environmental racism, and to work for an economy which focuses more on equitable sustainability. 15 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Protestant(新教徒) teaching n n The same love for God and neighbor that compels us to preach salvation(救贖) through Jesus Christ, protect the unborn, preserve the family and sanctity (聖潔) of marriage, and take the whole Gospel to a hurting world, also compels us to recognize that human-induced climate change is a serious Christian issue requiring action now. Christian moral convictions (道德信念) that require a faithful response to climate change. 16 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Virtues: integrity, gratitude, and frugality n Johnny Appleseed exemplifies frugality (簡約) and gratitude (感恩). n n 17 The Lord is good to me, and so I thank the Lord For giving me things I need: the sun, the rain and the apple seed, The Lord is good to me And every seed that grows will grow into a tree And some day there’ll be apples there for everyone in the world to share, The Lord is good to me. Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

4. Virtues: integrity, gratitude, and frugality n n n Cinderella had integrity, she was not corrupted by the meanness(惡意行為) of her stepmother and stepsisters. Despite her suffering, Cinderella persevered (堅持) in being a good person. The moral of her story may be that living with integrity leads to happiness. 18 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

5. Respecting and appreciating nature n n “New politics” that requires a mood of gratitude(感 恩), joy(愉悅), and pride(自尊), not sadness(悲傷), fear(害怕), and regret(後悔). For a person’s attitude toward nature may be importantly connected with virtues or human excellences (卓越). n Proper humility(適當謙卑), self-acceptance, gratitude, and appreciation of the good in others. n Love of nature is connected to human virtues. 19 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Being grateful n n n Good persons cherish (愛護) things for their own sake. Bryan Norton (a moral philosopher) told a story of a young girl picking up sand dollars on a beach. When he asked her what she would do with them, she said she was going to bleach them and then sell them to tourists. The sand dollars had only economic value for her. Norton admits that he was unable to think of a way to persuade her that she might be a better person if she could appreciate the sand dollars just as they. 20 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Being grateful n n Using our human freedom wisely. n The freedom to collect sand dollars n Goal of getting the little girl to put most of the sand dollars back. Then, the young girl might have killed some sand dollars to study them, but she would still have respected sand dollars as living things with a story to tell. The virtue of being grateful for a stable environment, because such an environment is crucial for the exercise of our freedom, and the freedom is one of our most precious values. 21 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

Summary n n n The natural law and Tao traditions look to nature to learn how we should live. Good habits make good persons, happiness requires civic virtues and cooperating for the common good. Harmony, rather than happiness, is the way of life in the Tao tradition. Religious stories verify the virtues of integrity, gratitude, and frugality. We should be responsible stewards, because God has entrusted humanity with care for the earth and its creatures. Many Christians today are active in advocating for global economic justice as well as environmentally sustainable development. 22 Ayo Env. Ethics 2011

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