Is there REALLY a Universal Moral Code?

Seeker4

According to Romans 2:14,15, "Whenever people of the nations that do not have the law, do by nature the things of the law, these people, although not having law, are a law to themselves. They are the very ones who demonstrate the matter of the law to be written in their hearts..." According to this verse, and the Witnesses, this supposedly proves that we all have a conscience built into us by god, and we all to a greater or lesser degree, exercise that.

I've discussed this with my co-workers a few times, and I've been trying to find one absolutely universal law that essentially all peoples, tribes, groups have agreed on, and it seems there are always exceptions to this idea of a truly universal moral code proving we've all got a built in conscience courtesy of the creator.

Murder? That one seems to have been violated by EVERY culture ever known. Human sacrafice is very common in many cultures.

Adultery? There have been several cultures where the sharing of one's mate was completely acceptable, and at times necessary for survival.

Care of children? This may be the closest, yet child sacrifice is not uncommon in many cultures, and human sacrifice of one's child (by good old Yahweh) is actually the basis of Christianity.

Stealing? Native American cultures considered taking enemy tribes belongings as great sport, and had a quite a different view of personal property than we do today.

So, are our moral codes the result of nature, as the Bible and the Witnesses would have us believe, or of culture and "civilization"?

Is there truly one universal moral code, and I just can't see that?

S4

jgnat

I THINK there is. Something along the lines of "Do no harm" with specific exceptions. "Do no harm" under the law of love.

SixofNine

Nope.

The Golden Rule is the closest thing to it, but even it is limited by factors of sanity, ego, and intelligence.

Satanus

Compare humans to animals, and you find more than a few similarities as far as mates, offspring, sex, dominance, property rights, killing and food go. Over the milleniums, humans have modified these traits through civil laws, punishment, police force, religion. This has brought about an human evolution from individual survival to hunter gatherer societies to complex civilisations of today, where the whole world is interlinked. However, many drives which we have in common w animals remain, to a degree. So, my conclusion, no, there isn't. Rules and laws, which have become absorbed by humans have become relabeled as morals.

It is true that genetics plays a role , so that certain races are more responsive to the needs of others. However, empathy has been scientifically demonstrated to be present in some animals as well.

S

fullofdoubtnow

I don't think there is. I may be wrong, but I can't think of one instance of a moeal code practised by everyone. I would agree that childcare is the nearest, but there are variations to how differrent races go about that.

Twitch

What do we mean by "natural law"? In its simplest definition, natural law is that "unwritten law" that is more or less the same for everyone everywhere. To be more exact, natural law is the concept of a body of moral principles that is common to all humankind and, as generally posited, is recognizable by human reason alone. Natural law is therefore distinguished from -- and provides a standard for -- positive law, the formal legal enactments of a particular society.

http://radicalacademy.com/philnaturallaw.htm

http://www.iep.utm.edu/n/natlaw.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_law