Morality and Moral Codes

Definition of Morality

Morality is a set of rules and beliefs that distinguish good and bad behaviour. It deals with the way people should behave towards each other, animals and the environment.

A system of morality guides acceptable behaviour, e.g. in marriage, while rising and disciplining children and in business transactions.

A moral, an immoral and amoral person

A moral person has a sense of what is right and wrong.

An immoral person is one who behaves in a way that is not morally acceptable.

An amoral person is unconcerned with behaving in a morally acceptable way.

The best known example of a moral principle is a “golden rule” or ethic of reciprocity.

• Its negative form is “do not do to others as you would not have them do unto you”.
• Its positive form is “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
• The golden rule can be found in Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and Confucianism texts.

The purpose of spiritual and moral education

• Being aware of moral choices
• Give them skills to make better choices.
• It encourages respect for other people’s faiths
• It helps to nature tolerance.

A moral code is dependent upon situation and context in which it is upheld.

Many morals originate from:

Sources of moral codes

• religious source of Morality
• Secular (non-religious) sources.

Example of Sources of Religious and Non- Religious codes

• families
• friends
• school
• community,
• constitution
• religion

Laws are rules of conduct that guide behaviour in society.

• The constitution of Zambia is the supreme law of the country of Zambia.
• The code of Hammurabi is one of the oldest legal codes. It was written about 2250 BC by Hammurabi who was the king of Babylon. It consists of 282 sections that give rules regarding business, family, society and politics.

RELIGIOUS SOURCES OF MORAL CODES

The Bible

• Christians believe that morals come from God or Jesus his messenger on earth. The Ten Commandments are a moral code found in the Old Testament according to Exodus 20:2-16.
• These were revealed to Moses by God, while the New Testament contains moral teachings given by Jesus and his followers to the early Christians.

The Bhagavad Gita, The Vedas an and The Upanishads.

Each of these contributes to the Hindu understanding of morality.

• The Bhagavad Gita (the song of the Bhagavan) often commonly called the Gita is a seven hundred verse poem that is part of an epic known as the Mahabharata. It was written between 400BC and 400EC.
• The poem tells the story of the Pandava prince, Arguna, who is in a battle against his father. He turns to his Lord Krishna, who drives his chariot for help and wisdom.
• This is a very important poem in Hindu moral life. It shows how our choices have consequences for ourselves and others.
• The Bhagavad Gita influenced the thinking of many visionaries in the 20^th century including Dr Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi called the Gita his “his spiritual dictionary”.
• The Veda (meaning knowledge) is a collection of many texts which come from ancient Ind; a.They are thought to be created by the Hindu God who created the world Brahma.
• Upanishads are a collection of writings that teach people how to live a moral life.
• Hindu morality focuses on the concept of Dharma and Karma.

Dharma can mean religion, law, duty, order, proper conduct morality, righteousness or justice.

• A Caste is a social group that you are born into and it determines your position in life.
• Karma on the other hand has to with cause and effect. Positive actions cause positive effects while negative action produce negative effects.
• Hinduism believes in reincarnation so Karma teaches that you act in a way that is as positive as possible.

The Quran and the Hadith

• The Quran is a sacred text of Islam which Muslims believe to be a revelation from God.
• It was written by Prophet Muhammad God’s messenger on earth who said, “I have been sent to perfect the morals”.
• The Quran guides Muslims in all issues of morality.

Hadith

• The Hadith is the record of deeds and sayings of Muhammad.
• They were collected, evaluated and written down during the 8^th and 9^th centuries.
• They are given in the famous Hadith of Gabriel.

The five pillars of Islam

Guide Muslim’sbehaviour. These are:

• Creed -Declare there is no god except God and Muhammad.
• Pray five times a day.
• Fasting- during the month of Ramadan.
• Alms giving- Give money to the poor (charity)
• Pilgrimage —Travel to Mecca at least once in a lifetime.

Moral dilemmas

• A moral dilemma is a situation that requires a choice between two equal alternatives.
• It is a situation where you have to choose between two conflicting morals of behaviour.
• The universal moral code is the set of moral principles that was developed to be applicable throughout the world.
• It was developed by Dr Kent M. Keith in 2003 and four of the Ten Commandments are included in this code. These are:
• You shall not murder
• You shall not commit adultery
• You shall not steal

• You shall not give false testimony against your neighbour.
• The universal moral code also includes the golden rule.