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Ethics in
General
Ethics is one of the four
branches of philosophy and it is philosophical specialty that has
much more to consider than whether or not a given action is right or
wrong. Yes, ethics is concerned with right conduct, but it’s larger
concern is the good life—not it’s hedonistic version—but what makes
like worth living at all? Ethics seeks to know the greatest (or
ultimate) good. It constitutes a form of knowledge about what
specific action must or should be done and the effects moral action
has on personhood. The variety in the kinds and the numbers of
ethical theories is often a deterrent to the average person’s
attempt to grasp ethics. In general terms, ethics can be roughly
divided into deontology and teleological. Deontologists state that duty is the overriding
characteristic of ethics, e.g., a promise made must be kept
regardless of the circumstances. Then, by means of extending the
notion of duty, laws must be respected as the means by which
lawmakers impose a variety of duties upon constituents. This type of
ethical reasoning is labeled voluntarist because the willingness to
obey a given law is predicated upon knowing the will (or voluntas) of the
lawmaker. The second form of ethical reasoning is teleology. The
goal or end that an agent hopes to achieve, as well as the means
necessary to reach such a projected goal are the essential elements
of ethics. Instead of being rooted in the will, deontology places
its emphasis upon the intellect because it requires deliberation
about which among a variety of goals or purposes is the better or
best achievable goal and to conceptualize the intermediate steps (or
means) that are necessary to achieve such a goal or purpose.
Moral Theology or
Christian Ethics
There is an ongoing debate
over the differences between morality and ethics, as well as whether
or not there can be such a discipline labeled Christian Ethics.
However, moral theology goes beyond human reasoning alone or
debating the types of actions that contribute to the flourishing of
merely earthly life by placing life with God as the supreme good.
While the definitive history of moral theology has yet to be
written, there is no doubt that any discussion of the contemporary
period must analyze the encyclical Veritatis Splendor which marks a
decisive moment in terms of the lively debate over a proper
methodology for Catholic moral theology. In general, Catholic
morality is founded upon the natural law and that still remains its
foundation, which results in almost every Catholic moral theologian
claiming adherence to it or re-working it. Whether they be
classified as members of be basic human
goods school or identify themselves as prudential personalists,
Catholic morality has to either incorporate natural law thinking or
adapt it. Those who claim to adapt it can be broadly defined as proportionalists.
The papal critique of proportionalism focused on the method’s
inability to incorporate universal, unchangeable, transcultural
moral prohibitions in its analysis (Vertitatis Splendor, n. 75)
which is the result of its fundamental method of "the weighing of
the non-moral or pre-moral goods to be gained and the corresponding
non-moral or pre-moral values to be respected" (Veritatis Splendor,
n. 74). This emphasis on the consequences of an action make
proportionalism a form of consequentialism.
Catholic Medical Ethics as Special (or Applied) Moral Theology
For Roman Catholics, then, any analysis of
medical procedures must be based upon:
the natural law tradition as it is
incorporated in a moral method named prudential personalism
In addition, a proper determination of what to do
and how to do it has to identify the three fundamental sources of
morality:
the act itself,
the agent’s intention and
the circumstances:
o Objective or (specifying)
circumstances linked to the act
o Subjective circumstances (i.e.,
the circumstances of the agent)
Finally, it is incumbent upon faithful Catholics:
to incorporate
definitive statements of the Magisterium (e.g., Veritatis
Splendor, et al.)
into their deliberations whenever you decide for yourself or
for others about initiating, discontinuing or continuing a
variety of medical treatments.
Preferred Method in Medical Ethics Considered
from the Roman Catholic Perspective
PRUDENTIAL PERSONALISM according to Frs, Ashley &
O’Rourke
Human participation in
divine reason that undergirds creation is understood in terms of the
natural law. This law is manifested by the discovery of the kind of
living that will best fulfill the nature that God has given us—enfleshed
souls with intelligence and free will. In order to truly flourish,
four basic human goods are identified: life, reproduction, truth,
and common activity as social beings. These basic human goods (or
needs) are hierarchically ordered, from the highest to the lowest.
Dominican Father Benedict Ashley claims that Catholics must "Seek
bodily health, the preservation of the human species, the common
good of society, and truth as the highest element of the common
good…" (Living the Truth in Love, p. 108). Then, in a work
co-authored with Fr. Kevin O’Rourke, they propose a useful
methodology in Catholic morality that they label as prudential personalism : the ability to reason about the various means available to reach a
particular end or goal and to select from those available the option
that most effectively achieves the end or goal that the agent has in
mind to achieve. Its use of the moral virtue of prudence is to
emphasis the practical application of general rules of conduct to
particular circumstances or medical situations. For the authors,
prudence is the "facility in taking into consideration all the
factors that enter into any particular moral decision, making as
objective a judgment of conscience as one can, and then courageously
and consistently acting according to that judgment" (HCE,
p.58)
Six Essential Elements in A Catholic Medico-Moral
Method
Catholic morality is (1) based upon the
Natural Law tradition in ethics.
When using prudential judgment in moral
matters it is necessary that there be (2) no intrinsic evil
(i.e. an action or medical intervention officially declared
to be always wrong in any and all circumstances by the
Magisterium) involved in a medical decision and where there
are (3) a variety of morally good actions that are available
to achieve a good end.
Close attention most be paid to all the
morally relevant factors present in the particular
situation.
As a concrete application of theoretical
principles of morality, careful consideration must be given
to (4) the particular circumstances of an individual’s life
and situation.
This approach is
called personalism because its aim or goal is (5) the
flourishing of the human person or eudaimonia.
What contributes to human flourishing, then, becomes the
objective standard or norm by which specific decisions are
made.
According to Charles
E. Bouchard, "A goal-based approach that is theological goes one step beyond earthly human flourishing by
establishing (6) God’s own self (that is, "Happiness" with a
capital "H") as the ultimate goal or purpose of huma
n existence."
Further In-depth Reading:
Prudential Personalism
Benedict Ashley, Jean deBlois, and Kevin O’Rourke. Health Care Ethics: A Catholic Theological Analysis. 5th ed. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2007.
Charles E. Bouchard. "What is ‘Prudential Personalism’? Why Does It Matter?" Health Progress 88 (2007).
A Classic Approach to Ethics Piotr Jaroszynski and Matthew Anderson. Ethics: The Drama of the Moral Life. Alba House Publishing, 2004.
Foundational Texts in Traditional Catholic Morality
Servais Pinckaers. The Sources of Christian Ethics. Trans. by Sr. Mary Thomas Noble. Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1995.
John Berkman and Craig Steven Titus, eds. The Pinckaers Reader: Renewing Thomistic Moral Theology. Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2005.
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