Ethics and JWs

by taoInitiate 3 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  taoInitiate

  I was sitting in a lecture on Ethics today, pretty much an "Ethics 101" class as
  it is very secondary to what I'm studying. Anyway it made me think about the
  results of Watchtower teachings on members' ethical standards.

  The ethical theory that struck me was "Deontological ethics". Roughly, for those
  who don't know (like me), this type of ethics is based on duties and rights that
  are set down in rules (or laws), which must be followed regardless of consequences (good or bad).

  Rules-based-ethics is, in my opinion, the type of ethics
  that JW's are "born and raised" on, when they are "babes in the truth" so to
  speak. While this type of ethics is OK within itself, I see that there are
  problems when it becomes the sole type of ethics practiced and/or recognized by
  an individual.

  Two of the other major types (or theories) of ethics are Virtue and Teleological
  ethics.

  Virtue ethics emphasizes what a morally good person should be and represent,
  without drawing any conclusions on what should be done in a particular ethical
  conflict.

  While Teleological ethics is based on the consequences of our actions.

  The problem with the Witness system of ethics is that it seems to emphasize
  Rules-ethics, to the detriment (or even total neglect) of the other types of
  ethics.

  The problem with this is, that when called on to make a decision where there is
  no explicit "rule" for the pertinent situation, someone who is brought up on
  rules-ethics will not have a clue what to do. They are unused to using
  consequence-based ethics and so cannot see, or may judge wrongly, the
  consequences of their actions. Neither have they developed virtue-based ethics
  (their own moral personality) enough to make an intuitively ethical decision
  based on their own virtue.

  I know I've seen this in myself. I'm wondering if anyone else has, or if you've
  all progressed past this stage (or perhaps never went through it in the first
  place). I know that some are more susceptible to this than others.

  I was always pretty "rulesy" when I was a witness, but some of my friends always
  based their decisions on their own values (or the consequences of their actions)
  rather than a particular "society rule".

  Maybe it's just me who's the ethically crippled one; growing up in the "truth" will do that to you I hear. [8>]

  taoInit

  "To start from nowhere and follow no road is the first step toward attaining Tao." - Chuang Tzu
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  Abaddon

  Thanks taoInitiate...

  ... I think you've made a good point. If you go over correspondence with Branch Offices online, or in books like CoC, you cannot help but be struck by the obsession with the rules, for the rules sake.
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  Sam Beli

  As a kid I recall my dad, an elder for years, being pleased when sister “weak” called to find out what to do in a certain personal situation. He and my mother thought such ones were humble and had a good attitude. They wanted the "Society’s thinking" on every issue.

  Sam Beli

  I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. Solomon
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  taoInitiate

  Sam,

  I remember the same thing. It always seemed to be the "weak" ones who came for this type of "rules advice".

  I know that when I was a pioneer/MS people used to ask me questions on what to do in certain situations. Often it was fairly obvious, they just seemed to be asking for confirmation, they didn't care where it came from, just as long as someone could back them up.

  But interestingly, if a definite answer was not really possible they seemed to freeze-up into a state of indecision. Without a rule they couldn't take an action.

  Of course, this sort of thing seemed to only happen in "small issues", when it was something really big, such as smoking or sex, the disfellowshipping numbers seem to indicate that they just go ahead and do it, no questions asked...it doesn't make sense.

  taoInit

  "To start from nowhere and follow no road is the first step toward attaining Tao." - Chuang Tzu