Religions is part of one’s culture.

Although religion might be an important source of our values, in ethics we often leave religious considerations to the side. This is because ethics requires practices of reason that are used to justify decisions made in the public sphere. Religion usually requires appeals to faith that are not necessarily justified through reason.

But are we more likely to act ethically if we base our decisions on faith or reason? Are there any inherently flaws with using reason as a basis for making decisions?

Ethics is considered to be ‘beyond’ religious and cultural convictions because it helps us deal with conflicts that emerge in these contexts. It is an ethical decision that you make when you decide to uphold your business obligations over your cultural obligations, or vice versa. How do you make this decision? You may recall from previous weeks’ lectures that this can involve rational evaluations of principles, consequences, and virtues. Based on reasoned deliberation, priority must be given to certain principles and consequences, and this priority should inform a decision.

This source discusses how ethics informed by religion can address a social issue:

Religious Ethics and Economic Inequality. (Links to an external site.)Paul Weithman (Links to an external site.) – 2019 – Journal of Religious Ethics 47 (2):223-231.