Moral Judgement

 

moral

 

adjective -- c

oncerned with the principles of right and wrong behavior and the goodness or badness of human character.

noun -- a person's standards of behavior or beliefs concerning what is and is not acceptable for them to do.

I was determined to let the Jian Ghomeshi mess go in terms of blogging, content with my reflections from last week. However, I have been aware of the extensive hand-wringing which has ensued about a sub-culture of sexual abuse amongst privileged and powerful men. Today I heard some musing on CBC radio as to how to better educate boys and young men about this.

We seem to place an inordinate faith in education and rights these days, with hardly a mention of "right and wrong." My immediate thought this morning is that we have been conscientiously educating young people about equality for decades now, and we have gone a long way in defining rights. It has worked to a certain degree. Canada is impressive in its laws and human rights legislation. But there is that pesky moral thing. How do we imbue the difference between right and wrong.

Those of you who read my blog last week will know I commented on Ghomeshi's Facebook rebuttal to his CBC firing in which he dismisses the action as a "moral judgment," as though morals don't count for much. But he seemed to contradict his own logic when he claimed that he had "done nothing wrong." Isn't that a moral statement?

The tide of public opinion is that Mr. Ghomeshi has transgressed morally, ethically, and possibly legally. Even if none of the accusations are addressed legally the weight of opinion is that the alleged physical violence and the abuse of power are unacceptable. To me that is the right conclusion, if we accept the credibility of the women who have made accusations.

Now that I am ensconced in the realm of "quaint 60-year-old codger" I can offer that I learned my morals within my family, reinforced and amplified with a Christian community of faith. I have failed in living up to those moral standards far more often than I want to admit, and I was taught that this was sin. I was also assured that I could change my ways, by the grace of God, and be forgiven my transgressions through the love of Christ. I have prayed for forgiveness virtually every time I have entered into worship since I was a wee lad, in something called The Lord's Prayer.

Perhaps because of the negative impression of moral absolutes, which can be its own form of abuse, we have lost confidence in the value of morals, but I feel that is our loss.

Human Rights? We must name them. Education? It's vital. Morals? Surely there is still a place for them, and we can still learn them together in our communities of faith, whatever that faith might be.

Comments?