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There was a time when the discussion of morals and values was a very simple endeavor for me… went something like this…

Christians have morals because God gave them to us in the Bible, everyone else is lost without any moral direction until they realize their depravity and get a hold of a Bible and read it for moral instruction.

I still think this simplistic process has a certain amount of merit to it, but I now believe it is hardly the end (and for most, neither the beginning) of the discussion concerning the uniqueness of mankind’s moral dilemma. Reading through the thoughts of folks like Mr. Freud certainly bring the topic into a whole new world of debate and exploration.

I was recently referred to the following article by a friend of mine, whom had often engaged this discussion topic with me.

NYtimes Article, The Moral Instinct ( PDF version)

I was specifically interested in the moral dilemma questions this article posed from recent studies and surveys on the moral instinct. I will be coming back to this post over the next few days to formulate my answer with explanation to each situation.

Moral Dilemma #1
Julie is traveling in France on summer vacation from college with her brother Mark. One night they decide that it would be interesting and fun if they tried making love. Julie was already taking birth-control pills, but Mark uses a condom, too, just to be safe. They both enjoy the sex but decide not to do it again. They keep the night as a special secret, which makes them feel closer to each other. What do you think about that — was it O.K. for them to make love?

Moral Dilemma #2
A woman is cleaning out her closet and she finds her old American flag. She doesn’t want the flag anymore, so she cuts it up into pieces and uses the rags to clean her bathroom.

Moral Dilemma #3
A family’s dog is killed by a car in front of their house. They heard that dog meat was delicious, so they cut up the dog’s body and cook it and eat it for dinner.

Trolley Problem
On your morning walk, you see a trolley car hurtling down the track, the conductor slumped over the controls. In the path of the trolley are five men working on the track, oblivious to the danger. You are standing at a fork in the track and can pull a lever that will divert the trolley onto a spur, saving the five men. Unfortunately, the trolley would then run over a single worker who is laboring on the spur. Is it permissible to throw the switch, killing one man to save five?

Consider now a different scene
You are on a bridge overlooking the tracks and have spotted the runaway trolley bearing down on the five workers. Now the only way to stop the trolley is to throw a heavy object in its path. And the only heavy object within reach is a fat man standing next to you. Should you throw the man off the bridge?

In addition, I found this article in a religious journal specifically applicable to the discussion.
Nietzches Deeper Truth

Categories: First Things, Philosophy