- Clinical Professor of Neurosurgery (ret.) and Adjunct Professor of Medical History (ret.), Mercer University School of Medicine; President, www.haciendapub.com, Macon, Georgia, USA
Correspondence Address:
Miguel A. Faria
Clinical Professor of Neurosurgery (ret.) and Adjunct Professor of Medical History (ret.), Mercer University School of Medicine; President, www.haciendapub.com, Macon, Georgia, USA
DOI:10.4103/2152-7806.158894
Copyright: © 2015 Faria MA. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.How to cite this article: Faria MA. Religious morality (and secular humanism) in Western civilization as precursors to medical ethics: A historic perspective. Surg Neurol Int 16-Jun-2015;6:105
How to cite this URL: Faria MA. Religious morality (and secular humanism) in Western civilization as precursors to medical ethics: A historic perspective. Surg Neurol Int 16-Jun-2015;6:105. Available from: http://surgicalneurologyint.com/surgicalint_articles/religious-morality-secular-humanism-western-civilization/
Abstract
In discussing bioethics and the formulation of neuroethics, the question has arisen as to whether secular humanism should be the sole philosophical guiding light, to the exclusion of any discussion (or even mention) of religious morality, in professional medical ethics. In addition, the question has arisen as to whether freedom or censorship should be part of medical (and neuroscience) journalism. Should independent medical journals abstain from discussing certain issues, or should only the major medical journals — i.e., the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) or Lancet — be heard, speaking with one “consensual,” authoritative voice? This issue is particularly important in controversial topics impacting medical politics — e.g., public health policy, socio-economics, bioethics, and the so-called redistributive justice in health care. Should all sides be heard when those controversial topics are discussed or only a consensual (monolithic) side? This historical review article discusses those issues and opts for freedom in medical and surgical practice as well as freedom in medical journalism, particularly in opinion pieces such as editorials, commentaries, or letters to the editor, as long as they relate to medicine and, in our special case, to neuroscience and neurosurgery. After answering those questions, and in response to a critical letter to the editor, this review article then expounds comprehensively on the historical and philosophical origins of ethics and religious morality. Necessarily, we discuss the Graeco-Roman legacy and the Judeo-Christian inheritance in the development of ethics and religious morality in Western civilization and their impact on moral conduct in general and on medical and neuroscience ethics in particular.
Keywords: Ethics, Graeco-Roman, Judeo-Christian, morality, religion, secular humanism
Recently, an important letter to the editor[
Now in the interest of facilitating this multidisciplinary discussion,[
New York Times columnist William Safire chaired a seminal conference on neuroethics in 2002 and cited Cicero for coining the Latin term moralis derived from the Greek ethicos, but opined that there was an overlapping distinction between the terms. I agree with Safire in that there is still a fine distinction between the two terms. “Morality,” stemming from conformity with religious standards, has to do with the (moral) absolutes of right and wrong. “Ethics,” on the other hand, implies “subtle,” more complex “questions of equity” and refers to good and bad. Since what is good is usually right and what is bad is usually wrong, the terms overlap and have thus become interchangeable in modern times. Nevertheless, in the liberal zeitgeist of our time, and with our modern emphasis on egalitarianism, the word “ethics” predominates; thus, we have the terms “bioethics” and “neuroethics” in vogue and the nuances of meaning those terms entail.[
PROPOSITION OF SECULAR HUMANISM AND THE COUNTER ARGUMENT
The editors welcomed the critical letter as bringing forth a controversial subject of importance in medical ethics related to the neurosciences. The letter-writer's criticism begins with a quotation of Albert Einstein providing the gist of the disagreement:
A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.[
An opinion rendered by such an exalted figure in the history of science should certainly be taken into consideration. Nevertheless, I must reply reluctantly that although Einstein was an undisputed genius in physics, and is in fact a hero of mine in the scientific pantheon, it should be noted Einstein, not a deity but a man of flesh and blood, has been wrong more than once, even in theoretical physics. For example, Einstein posited a “cosmological factor” explaining the supposed forces holding a static universe in place. He was wrong; the universe is not static, but expanding. He made a variety of other mistakes in physics: Errors in the formulation of his never completed unified field theory; in light refraction; and in quantum mechanics. More apropos, Einstein's participation in his own family life was not a stellar performance. He was at times a cruel husband and a poor and neglectful father.[
In this regard, Socrates (469–399 B.C.) dealt exactly with this issue in Plato's Apology. During his trial by the Athenians in 399 B.C., Socrates explained why the Oracle of Delphi ruled him the wisest man of his time. And to make sure the Oracle was not in error, Socrates searched in vain for wiser men. He found all the notable politicians, poets, and the greatest men in Athens were deficient of wisdom. Searching further, Socrates went to the lower ranks of artisans and found them, as he expected, knowledgeable in their trades. But he told his judges:
However, Athenian men, it seemed to me that the workers also have the same fault as the poets; on account of performing the skill well each claimed also to be wise in other important matters, and this false note of theirs obscured that wisdom, so that I asked myself on behalf of the oracle, whether I should choose to be just as I am, neither wise in their wisdom nor ignorant in their ignorance, or to have both of what they have. Thus I replied to myself and the oracle that it is better for me to be as I was.[
Socrates was the wisest of men because, unlike other men, he was aware of his own limitations and deficiencies in the possession of knowledge. Knowledge in one field then does not make one an expert in all fields of knowledge or wise.
FREEDOM OR CENSORSHIP IN MEDICAL JOURNALISM?
In the critical letter's concluding second paragraph, Dr. Zrinzo sums up his objections in the manner of secular humanism[
The editorial in question repeatedly suggests that morals are derived from religious principles. This is a common misconception.... Personal religious bias has no role in scientific discourse, including the neurosurgical literature.[
First, as to “Personal religious bias has no role in scientific discourse, including the neurosurgical literature,” let's remind Dr. Zrinzo that the piece in question was an editorial, and what is an editorial? By definition it is an opinion piece usually written by a member of the editorial board of a newspaper, magazine, or medical journal. Second, what I stated is historically accurate and factually correct. “Misconception” implies error or opinion unsupported by factual information. In the paragraph cited above and in another paragraph I asserted moral precepts have their origin in, or are intertwined with religious morality, and that religion is beneficial, supporting the moral code of a society. As to the last of these statements, I admit, it is an opinion, but it is an informed opinion formulated from years of study.[
The giants of medical ethics did not write their treatises without “personal religious bias,” nor without the influence of both the Oath of Hippocrates and Judeo-Christian ethics. The Oath of Hippocrates itself begins by invoking the Olympian gods, which, as I have related elsewhere, reminds the physicians themselves that they are not gods, that they are subservient to a power greater than themselves, and that they should invoke that power, whatever they personally hold sacred, in the service of their profession.[
The English physician and medical ethicist Dr. Thomas Percival (1749–1804), who wrote and anticipated the modern codes of medical ethics followed in the next two centuries, not only in Great Britain but in the rest of Europe and the United States, was a devout Christian, a fact which is reflected in his emphasis on humanity and charity in his Medical Ethics (1803).[
I believe medicine (and neurosurgery) should follow the compassionate medical ethics of these illustrious predecessors rather than the new bioethics. Traditional patient-oriented, medical ethics are based on the precepts of Hippocrates, placing the interest of the patient ahead of other considerations. Bioethics is population-based ethics, guided by utilitarianism, and/or monetary or budgetary considerations. There is a place for bioethics in laboratory research and veterinary medicine, but bioethics should not be the guiding light for what should remain the sacrosanct patient–doctor relationship. Bioethics and the veterinary ethic are applicable to humane animal research and when treating sick and injured animals – in which the veterinarian acts according to the wishes of the animal's owner, the person responsible for paying the bill – but not sick human patients.[
Third, still pertaining to the statement, “personal religious bias has no role in scientific discourse, including the neurosurgical literature,” let me reply that we have no such blanket censorship in SNI, which is an independent medical publication, nor am I aware such dogmatic prohibition exists in medical journalism at large in free societies. The discussion, in fact, falls within the scope of SNI, as it regards controversial social issues and ethics in neuroscience. Lastly, let me state this type of blanket statement is frequently used to stifle the free exchange of ideas, which is anathema to academic intercourse, as well as a threat to liberty in a free society.[
I would not be fully addressing the importance of freedom in contradistinction to censorship in medical journalism if I did not mention there is a persistent double standard in the presentation of socioeconomic and political issues in the major medical journals. It seems that physicians with “progressive” political leanings, often the editors themselves, do not really want to limit religious or political discourse per se in the medical literature, but only limit those with whom they disagree (e.g., conservatives) and have the temerity to express a contrarian view to that deemed politically correct.[
In this regard, the major medical journals, such as the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), or The Lancet, can then speak unopposed with one collective voice in promoting leftist causes. We should counter: No, let both sides be heard! How many times have I seen correspondence sent by Dr. James I. Ausman, SNI editor-in-chief, asking dissenting readers to write and submit their own opinion pieces to SNI espousing their viewpoints? As the poetess Elizabeth Barrett Browning, in a different context, versified in a famous sonnet, “let me count the ways”! If politics and religion are supposedly out of the realm of medicine and neurosurgery, well then we should test that hypothesis.
The mission statement of World Neurosurgery, the official journal of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies, includes the wording, to “serve as a forum for scientific, clinical, educational, social, cultural, economic, and political ideas and issues for global neurosurgery... Topics to be addressed in World Neurosurgery include: Education, economics, research, politics, culture.”[
Now let us consider JAMA; and among its editorial objectives listed in addition to its mission statement (1993), we find:
Objective 5 – To foster responsible and balanced debate on controversial issues that affect medicine and health care Objective 7 – To inform readers about nonclinical aspects of medicine and public health, including the political, philosophic, ethical, legal, environmental, economic, historical, and cultural Objective 8 – To recognize that, in addition to these specific objectives, THE JOURNAL has a social responsibility to improve the total human condition and to promote the integrity of science.[
For several decades now JAMA, NEJM, and The Lancet have published politically charged articles fulfilling objectives such as those enunciated by JAMA. These objectives have been fulfilled largely with progressivist tendencies and with little or no opportunities for dissenting voices to express their views.[
Let us take a quick survey of the major medical journals and see if they follow the rule or fulfill their one-way missions. In the process we should wonder if irate readers were equally indignant when the JAMA, NEJM, and The Lancet published articles condemning the personal ownership of firearms, promoting socialized medicine, or discussing religion within a political context:
“Would you say you ‘had sex’ if…?” This was a “peer-reviewed,” allegedly scientific article in JAMA answering the question of whether oral sex was real sex or not; and so conveniently, a poll of students was conducted at a mid-Western university to answer the question.[ “Interpreting the Right to Bear Arms – Gun Regulation and Constitutional Law.” In this article, the NEJM provided a forum to a dissenting lawyer, Mark Tushnet, J.D., who opposed a U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming the constitutional right of individual Americans to keep and bear arms[ “An open letter for the people in Gaza.” In this article, The Lancet gave a medical forum to Paola Manduca, Iain Chalmers, Derek Summerfield, Mads Gilbert, and Swee Ang, on behalf of 24 signatories and thereby endorsed one side of a highly charged political issue, blaming the Jews in Israel and exonerating the Moslems in Palestine for the escalating violence in Gaza during 2014[ “Religion, spirituality, and medicine: Application to clinical practice.” And here is a rare article that must have escaped the detection of censors at JAMA about religion being helpful in medical practice. This article had the audacity to discuss how “seriously ill patients use religious beliefs to cope with their illnesses,” and considers whether “physicians should pray with their patients”[
I wonder if Dr. Zrinzo objected when The Lancet editorialized with the article above. I ponder whether he sent critical letters to any of the aforementioned influential medical journals when they took the progressive side of those issues? We certainly welcome him to voice his opinions in SNI and ask only that he keep an open mind about the alleged “biases” of others and to consider the implications of limiting academic debate. We published Dr. Zrinzo's letters and comments. Most of my letters to JAMA and NEJM have never been published.[
In short, it seems the moral indignation is only politically, ideologically and unidirectionally vented, expressed only when countering conservative points of view or detecting “religious bias” against Judeo-Christian medical ethics or the constitutional issues they consider unsavory, such as the individual rights of citizens to own firearms, the right to private medical care, the right of doctors to write about the influence of religion in easing the suffering of their patients, etc. No complaints are heard in meetings and publications about progressive ideas, such as utilitarian bioethics, more funding for socialized medicine, “redistributive justice,” and secular humanism. I’m aware Dr. Zrinzo claims that he is not promoting censorship and that I’m unfairly rewriting his letter,[
THE TWIN PILLARS OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION
I now propose to show that my first assertion is correct and factual – namely, that moral precepts have their origin in and are inextricably entwined with both philosophy and religion. I beg my readers in advance to excuse my indulgence in taking so much time in expatiating on these fields of history, ethics, moral philosophy, and in tracing development, at least in part, from religion. But how is one to counter such a loaded assertion as, “morals derived from religious principles is a common misconception,” with a cursory denial without delving fully into the subject at hand? It is easy and quick to throw in such a blanket statement, even a cordial and academic objection; it takes much more time, effort, and persuasive evidence to refute such affirmation – even if it is the real misconception, particularly one so accepted and now taken for granted by the prevailing secular popular culture!
Western culture and civilization stand on twin pillars that have withstood the test of time: The Judeo-Christian inheritance and the Greco-Roman legacy. Of these pillars, the Judeo-Christian tradition, we must remember, predates Socratic philosophy by at least half a millennium. Moreover, “let us remember,” wrote Aristotle (384–322 B.C.) [
The Greco-Roman pillar was erected in the West, stemming from the natural philosophers of ancient Greece in the 6th century B.C. But it was not cemented, as far as moral conduct and ethics, until the advent of Socrates (469–399 B.C.), Plato (427–347 B.C.), and Aristotle (384–322 B.C.). The ancient Greek philosophers did two things. Beginning in the 6th century B.C., the earliest ones, such as Thales of Miletus, Democritus and Empedocles, speculated on and attributed what was previously thought to be supernatural events to natural phenomena that followed physical (natural) laws. This major step laid the foundation for early science and philosophy. The successors to these natural (later denoted materialistic) philosophers in the following centuries, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, connected moral conduct, eternal truths, and goodness to God. Aristotle wrote in his Nicomachean Ethics that moral virtue develops as a result of habit (i.e., ethos that also gives us the word “ethics”; Greek, ethike) and practice, and that the moral virtues ultimately define character.[
In the course and development of Western civilization, the two legacies became inextricably entwined. This happened first, as previously mentioned, when the pagan Greco-Roman world of the Roman Empire adopted the Judeo-Christian religion and ethics in the form of Christianity in the 4th century A.D. Moreover, the two legacies were reinforced when St. Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–430) reconciled Plato's philosophy to Christian theology via Neoplatonism. They were further cemented and placed in an even more solid foundation when St. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) reconciled Aristotle, “The Philosopher,” to Christian thought in the 13th century. Those of us who were brought up in the West (and attended churches and synagogues) are familiar with the Judeo-Christian religious teachings and the accepted precepts of moral conduct. We are less familiar with the intellectual reincorporation of Greco-Roman philosophy into Christian thought by Aquinas in the 13th century.
Lest we forget, we should digress briefly to mention that as to the actual practice of the art and science of medicine, Aristotle, whose father was a court physician to King Philip II of Macedonia (father of Alexander the Great), often cites Hippocrates of Cos (460–370 B.C.) as his authority in medical knowledge. Hippocrates is the father of medicine and his celebrated Oath remains a high watermark in medical practice [
In his Ethics, Aristotle stressed that human action and ethics seek moral goodness – i.e., justice, temperance, courage, moderation, self-control, etc. – and the source of these moral virtues was God.[
RECONCILING ARISTOTELIAN ETHICS WITH JUDEO-CHRISTIAN TEACHINGS
It was because of this connection of philosophy and moral conduct to religion in part that St. Augustine was able to reconcile Plato with Christian dogma and even credit Neoplatonism with facilitating his spiritual journey toward Christianity. St. Thomas Aquinas [
It should not be left unsaid the Jewish physician, Moses Maimonides (1135–1204), and the Spanish Moslem physician, Averroës (1126–1198), attempted to reconcile Aristotelian rationalism and theology in Judaism and Islam, respectively, in a similar fashion as St. Thomas Aquinas accomplished more thoroughly in Christian theology. Maimonides went on to even compose an Oath of medical ethics (that begins with “Exalted God...”) still in use today.[
St. Thomas’ Christian moral philosophy came to a significant extent from Aristotle and remains dogma in the Catholic Church. St. Thomas Aquinas’ cardinal virtues – prudence, temperance, justice, and fortitude (courage) – are not too different from the moral virtues of Aristotle. Aristotle's Ethics also included intellectual virtues such as intelligence, prudence, and wisdom. St. Thomas Aquinas instead listed the theological virtues – faith, hope, and charity. Any virtues with charity added becomes a “complete virtue” and “an object of God,” who is the cause and end of all things (Final Cause).[
In this context, we should also mention there were further contributions from Roman scholars, contributions to morality and ethics that are frequently neglected because of the earlier Greek philosophers. The Roman statesman and philosopher Cicero (106–43 B.C.) [
The merging of Greco-Roman thought with Judeo-Christian morality began in the Roman world even before Christianization of the empire. And we find paradoxically more (Judeo-Christian) compassion, humility, charity, sense of duty, and fellowship of man in the Stoicism of the philosopher-emperor Marcus Aurelius than the imperial hubris, atheism, and secular humanism expected in a pagan Roman Emperor.[
We must also keep in mind that moral behavior is nurtured by habit (ethos), which forms character and appears in the common man, not from reading the exulted writings of Plato's Republic and Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, but from home instruction, practice and habit, ultimately derived from the religious teachings of Christian churches and Jewish synagogues. The same is true in the East, where the devotees commonly exert their devotions and learn moral principles from the priests in the Buddhist temples, and other religious institutions. All good religions and moral philosophies teach variations of the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Luke 6:31). In fact, close study of supposedly secular moral philosophies, derived from the teachings of ancient “pagan” Greek philosophers and even from their disciples in the Age of the Enlightenment, reveal them to be permeated with religious morality. Ethics and moral conduct are entwined with religious teachings in most cultures, with the notable exception of totalitarian tyrannies, particularly openly atheistic, communists dictatorships.[
ANGST, MELANCHOLY, AND MODERN MAN
The next assertion in the critical letter:
Amoral and unethical behaviour is often supported by religion; historical and contemporary examples are support for slavery and oppression of women and homosexuals.[
Historically, religion has made its share of mistakes. But by and large, the Judeo-Christian religion has been beneficial to those who have been nestled in Western civilization, and religious morality has been a partial bulwark against anarchy on the one hand, and the rise of totalitarian tyranny on the other. I have also expounded on this topic previously elsewhere.[
The length of this already quite extended historical review article precludes expounding on the possible effects of skepticism, angst, irreligion, and the stress and fast pace of modern life on the state of mind and mental health of contemporary society. Let me just remind the reader that mental illness, random violence and senseless crime have been on the rise concomitant with modern technological advances.[
Modern angst and anxiety aside, faith and religion provide an invisible support to the moral code, encourage discipline, and promote civility. Their influence on moral conduct and overt behavior is certain.[
SLAVERY AND THE TYRANNY OF FALSE RELIGIONS
Slavery was also mentioned in the critical letter, and it is true that the system was supported by most religions and many thinkers and philosophers, right up until the era of the Enlightenment. Nevertheless, slavery was commonplace since ancient times supported by conquests and wars and again needing no religious support. The Catholic Church, in fact, ended slavery of Christian and Jews in most of Europe during the Middle Ages. And it was the Christian tenets of universal brotherhood, charity and compassion that gradually abolished the institution in most of the Western world.
And it is well known that the horrific conditions of black slavery in later centuries, including in the British territories and the United States, were ameliorated at least in part by those same Christians. It was also the Christian teachings of various denominations (e.g. Anglicans, Quakers, and other Congregationalists) that fueled the abolitionist movements which in Britain was led by the evangelical Christian convert William Wilberforce (1759–1833) and in the Northern United States by the black abolitionists and Underground Railroad leaders, Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Tubman, who even attended the same African Methodist Episcopal Churches in New York and Washington, D.C.[
Horrible crimes were committed in war and peace in the name of religion, but much of this evil was committed by brutish individuals lacking self-control, acting on their own, presumably under the aegis of the Church or tyrannical governments. Aristotle admits there are wicked men who act and do evil for their own sake, although institutions or governments may be erroneously blamed.[
If we consult the history of man, we find that those religions based on false or evil principles; that bring more mischief than benefits to their followers; that bring more desperation and disquietude than solace and peace to the soul – are rejected or discarded to the dustbin of history, or eventually overthrown from within or from without. And so it happens that the dustbin of discarded religions is half-full containing such remnants of antediluvian religions as Aztec cannibalism, Celtic sacrifices, the pantheon of gods at Mount Olympus, thuggery in the Cult of Kali, as well as the even worse cults of civil religion represented by the cult of occultism and Aryan superiority of the Third Reich and the cults of personality of Lenin and Stalin in the USSR (and of Mao Tse-tung in China, moribund but still ostensibly in the books).
RELIGIOUS MORALITY AND THE AMELIORATION OF THE HUMAN CONDITION
In the West, the Christian religion also built the first colleges and universities, as well as almshouses and later hospitals. The Saint days were and remain Catholic feast days, days of rest and hearty meals for the faithful in otherwise days full of sweat, toil, sickness and death. The legacy of learning, the preservation of the classics of ancient Greece and Rome, and the retention of the rudiments of the medical and surgical professions (e.g., practicing monks and barber-surgeons) were preserved in parchments and in actual service in the monasteries of Europe in the Middle Ages, until rediscovered by scholars in the late Medieval period and the Renaissance.[
Hinduism in India and Buddhism in Nepal, China, and the Far East provided the same service and guidance in the East. Mao Tse-tung attempted to eradicate philosophic tradition and religion, (e.g., Confucianism and Buddhism) in China. Despite exterminating 40–60 million Chinese, the Chairman failed to do so, and today tradition and religion are resurgent there. The former Soviet Union attempted to eradicate Islam from Chechnya and her southern Republics, such as the Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, etc. Despite exterminations and resettlements of Chechens and Tatars, the USSR was unable to eliminate Islam from its soft underbelly. The Soviet State collapsed but the people's religious faith did not. Religion, and the moral conduct it engenders, may be suppressed but not easily uprooted from the people. The greatest benefits of religion have been in ameliorating the hard life and trying existence for millions living in poverty, in providing solace to others in difficult times, and in soothing the soul of countless others living lives of quiet desperation in primitive as well as modern society.[
But there is even a more concrete evidence of the benefit of religion: What greater proof is needed than the fact that religious morality provided throughout the world the first civilian hospitals in the history of humanity? Ameliorating the suffering in the human condition of the times, the first civilian hospitals were all consecrated in the name of compassion and religious charity. In India, the great ruler Asoka (c. 273–232 B.C.) converted to Buddhism, created the first charity hospitals there, and sent missionaries to proselytize the world. Likewise in China, a country without a religious foundation, it was nevertheless the Buddhist devotion of a prince that created the first hospitals in A.D. 491.[
And in the Western world, the first hospital experiences were most instructive. The formidable Roman legions were served by physician surgeons (medici legionis). The Roman military tradition created well-provided infirmaries and military hospitals (valetudinaria), some were even attached to gymnasia for physical exercise and to spas (thermae) for the recuperation and enjoyment of the convalescing legionaries,[
Subsequently, after the collapse of Rome in the West, Byzantine facilities were built with the impetus and treasure of Christian charity in the Eastern Roman Empire. I believe no greater and more convincing proof can be found of the benefit of religious morality in general and Christian charity in particular in ameliorating human suffering than the first hospital experience.[
In the Middle Ages, it was the Christian tradition that continued to build hospitals (e.g., Hôtel-Dieu hospital in Paris and St. Bartholomew's in London) as well as founded the first colleges and universities.[
As it regards the first medical schools, the evidence is that they were initiated by Benedictine monks – i.e., Monte Cassino, becoming a religious, and Salerno, a lay medical school. Constantine Africanus (A.D. 1010–1087), who translated ancient manuscripts from the Arabic into Latin (returning lost Greek knowledge to the West) and who made Salerno a great center of learning, had been a monk at Monte Cassino. Moreover, the order of barber-surgeons, who gave rise to the renowned Renaissance surgeon Ambroise Paré (c. 1510–1580), originated with monks and monastic medicine in the early Medieval period.[
HUMANITARIANISM OR SECULAR HUMANISM?
Finally, the letter writer, expressing another contemporary view of secular humanism pregnant with casuistry, states:
Numerous secular, non-religious individuals and organisations (such as Doctors Without Borders) display highly moral and ethical behaviour without belief in a god/gods or religion.[
This is true as far as the organizations are concerned [
Lucky few perhaps, but for the rest of common humanity, we must cultivate the moral virtues, achieve them through discipline, moderation, education, habit, contemplation, and religious morality as discussed by both the ancient Greek sages, Plato and Aristotle; the theologians, St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas; as well as the medical ethicists, Sir Thomas Browne and Dr. Thomas Percival. Happiness and “the good life” come from good conduct and from exercising the moral and intellectual virtues, and never doing evil. This is also what the Judeo-Christian ethic and all good religions espouse and fortify in the people because religious morality not only provides spiritual solace but also promotes moral guidance and ethical behavior. Not all people will act virtuously of their own initiative. Those “brutish persons lacking self-control,” the intemperate, and the wicked, posited Aristotle, must be made to behave properly and punished for their crimes by the force of law. Aristotle writes, “[The] legislators.... punish and take vengeance on those who do wicked acts.”[
Thus, like St. Thomas Aquinas, Aristotle, and other realistic and sagacious Greco-Roman statesmen and medical ethicists we have mentioned, I prefer individualism, freedom, and humanitarianism, even if stemming from religious precepts, and at last resort, the law of the State; rather than to depend on the secular humanist notions of collectivist utopias and the purportedly intrinsic goodness and capabilities of rational man.[
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Ludvic Zrinzo
Posted August 9, 2015, 8:15 pm
Dr Faria’s “historical review” waxes lyrical for 11 pages. My “critical letter” – less than half a page in length – made the central point that morality and ethics do not require a religious basis (1). Faced with a relevant quote from Albert Einstein that could not be countered (2), the review avoids the argument, preferring to first exalt and then attack the person.
After a litany of further misguided attacks the review presents the paternalistic and dogmatic statement: “Most people need the guidance of religion or moral codes”. One might wonder which particular religion “most people” should be indoctrinated into and how we should decide which divine mouthpiece should provide the “moral codes”.
Nevertheless, the review reluctantly concedes, “there might be others, who are professed atheists or avowed secular humanists and who do humanitarian work under a moral and personal ethic.” Therefore, the central point of my letter stands.
Much time has been spent on this matter. My original letter is clear to those who do not wish to distort or distract. I shall not engage in further correspondence on this matter.
1. L. Zrinzo, Morality and ethics without religion. Surg Neurol Int. 6, 28 (2015).
2. “A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.” Albert Einstein
Ted Hane
Posted August 13, 2015, 7:51 pm
Agreed. Not only is it possible for morality to exist in the absence of religion, religion is being used today as the very grounds for immorality!
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/14/world/middleeast/isis-enshrines-a-theology-of-rape.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0
Russell L Blaylock, M.D.
Posted August 14, 2015, 5:57 pm
I think what is missing from this discussion is the fact that something is either true or it isn’t. We do not have the luxury of choosing a middle way with truth. The point being either there is a God that is the source of our moral law or there isn’t. If God exist, which I believe He does, then one would be foolish to contend that we should ignore His moral imperatives. Western civilization was built on the idea that there is a God and that He is the transcended source of our moral laws. In modern times, the secular humanists has decided that they have chosen to ignore these moral laws, or at least the ones they disagree with and develop a set of their own laws. This necessarily means that these man-centered laws can be quite benevolent or they can be quite destructive of the social order–as with the communist states, National Socialism and fascism. When man is the final arbiter of the law who can denounce the latter’s set of laws except by appealing to such things as a sense of moral superiority or by being a majority voice. The barbarian can, with as much credibility, from a secular standpoint, claim that his set of laws are just a legitimate as the benevolent law maker–that is, in the absent of God. The destructive moral laws, such as with communism, can only be resisted by physical force, as they have an equal claim to the public forum based on tenants of secular humanism. One also has to appreciate that the secular humanist also has borrowed a great deal from the religious moral set of laws and ordinances–for example, the admonition not to steal, or murder or bear false witness. As far as who’s concept of God should we choose, that is for each individual to decide based on careful study of the evidence–both historical and philosophical. Dr. Faria’s paper has contributed a major argument for a moral law based on a belief in God. many opponents of this theological view have pointed out the many abuses of religion in the world, none of which are supported by Scripture, especially the New Testament. Any abuse by those speaking in the name of religion did so not based on Scripture but on a perverted interpretation or out of whole cloth–which would put them in the same category as the secular humanists. As far as the Einstein quote, it should be remembered that Einstein, using his criteria for reaching a concept of moral law, became a vocal supporter of the Soviet state at a time Stalin was murdering tens of millions of his fellow citizens and creating one of the most oppressive societies man has witnessed. The heart of man is easily deceived.
References.
1. Blaylock RL. Collectivism, secular humanism, scientific positivism (scientism) and Centralized State Power: a Most Dangerous Admixture. HaciendaPublishing.com
2. Furet F. The Passing of an Illusion: The Idea of Communism in the Twentieth Century. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1999.
3. Conquest R. The Dragons of Expectation: Reality and Delusion in the Course of History. WW. Norton & Co, NY, 2005
4. Conquest R. Reflections on a Ravaged Century. WW. Norton & Co, NY, 2000
5. Blaylock RL. When rejecting orthodoxy becomes a mental illness. http://www.haciendapub.com/articles/when-rejecting-orthodoxy-becomes-mental-illness-russell-l-blaylock-md
6. Eliot TS. Christianity and Culture: The Idea of a Christian Society and Notes Toward the Definition of Culture. Harcourt Brace & Co, NY, 1967
7. Blaylock RL. God or man as final arbiter of moral law. http://www.haciendapub.com/articles/god-or-man-final-arbiter-moral-law-russell-l-blaylock-md