(#1)

Introduction

Why Ethics Matters?

Ethics can be defined as a set of moral principles or rules of conduct that provide guidance for
our behavior when it affects others. Widely acknowledged fundamental ethical principles include
honesty, fairness, diligence, and care and respect for others. Ethical conduct follows those
principles and balances self-interest with both the direct and the indirect consequences of that
behavior for other people. Not only does unethical behavior by individuals have serious personal
consequences ranging from job loss and reputational damage to fines and even jai.

Governments and regulators have historically tried to combat misconduct through regulatory
reform, with various levels of success. However, compliance with regulation alone is insufficient
to fully earn trust. Individuals and organization must develop a "culture of integrity" that
permeates all levels of operations and promotes the ethical principles, above and beyond strict
compliance with the law. A strong ethical culture that helps honest, ethical people engage in
ethical behavior will foster the trust of everybody, and ultimately benefit society. That is why
ethics matters.

An Overview on the History of Ethics

The English word "ethics" is derived from an Ancient Greek word, êthikos, which means
"relating to one's character". The Ancient Greek adjective êthikos is itself derived from another
Greek word, the noun êthos meaning "character, disposition.

It comes from the Latin word "ethos" means customary, behavior, moral. The two words Latin
ethicus and Greek ethikos have the same meaning which is customary.

Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that involves systematizing, defending, and
recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct. The field of ethics, along with aesthetics
concern matters of value, and thus comprise the branch of philosophy called axiology (study of
value).

Ethics seeks to resolve questions of human morality by defining concepts such as good and
evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime. As a field of intellectual enquiry, moral
philosophy also is related to the fields of moral psychology, descriptive ethics, and value theory.

Three major areas of study within ethics recognized today are:

1. Meta-ethics, concerning the theoretical meaning and reference of mora! propositions, and
how their truth values (if any) can be determined

2. Normative ethics, concerning the practical means of determining a moral course of action
3. Applied ethics, concerning what a person is obligated (or permitted) to do in a specific
situation or a particular domain of action

Definition of Ethics

As a field of study, ethics is a branch of philosophy which studies the principles of right or wrong
in human conduct. Right or wrong are qualities assigned to actions, conduct, and behavior. As
such, ethicists inquire into the correctness of such acts as promise keeping, truth telling,
integrity, deception, and compassion. Good and bad, on the other hand, are qualities that
characterize ends, goals, and purposes. As such, ethicists inquire into the reasons for living and
working; the goals that should be pursued in order to lead a successful life; and the purposes
that should motivate people in their life choices (Porter, 1980)

Other definitions:

➤ Science of the morality of man.

➤ Study of human motivation, and ultimately of human rational behavior.
➤ Morality
➤ "The principles of conduct governing an individual or profession" (Webster)
➤ It answers the question, "What do I do?"
➤ It is the study of right and wrong in human endeavors.

At a more fundamental level, it is the method by which we categorize our values and pursue
them

Ethics outlines theories of right or wrong, morality translate these theories into action.
Therefore, morality is nothing else but it is a doing of ethics.

Ethics is, in essence, doing the right thing, whatever that may be. The "right thing" is based on
those values society holds dear.

Ethical principles are premised on the notion that right is always right and wrong is always
wrong.

When officers fail to do what is right, and especially when they do what is clearly and blatantly
wrong, they erode the public trust just a little more and further degrade law enforcement's ability
to work within the community and carry out its mission. Adherence to high ethical standards,
then, is as vital to achieving the overall goal of modern policing as any other tactic, technique or
practice.

Rushworth Kidder states that "standard definitions of ethics have typically included such
phrases as 'the science of the ideal human character' or 'the science of moral duty". Richard
William Paul and Linda Elder define ethics as "a set of concepts and principles that guide us in
determining what behavior helps or harms sentient creatures". The Cambridge Dictionary of
Philosophy states that the word "ethics" is "commonly used interchangeably with 'morality' and
sometimes it is used more narrowly to mean the moral principles of a particular tradition, group
or individual." Paul and Elder state that most people confuse ethics with behaving in accordance
with social conventions, religious beliefs and the law and don't treat ethics as a stand-alone
concept.

The word ethics in English refers to several things. It can refer to philosophical ethics or moral
philosophy a project that attempts to use reason to answer various kinds of ethical questions.
As the English philosopher Bernard Williams writes, attempting to explain moral philosophy:
"What makes an inquiry a philosophical one is reflective generality and a style of argument that
claims to be rationally persuasive." Williams describes the content of this area of inquiry as
addressing the very broad question, "how one should live".

Ethics can also refer to a common human ability to think about ethical problems that is not
particular to philosophy. As bioethicist Larry Churchill has written: "Ethics, understood as the
capacity to think critically about moral values and direct our actions in terms of such values, is a
generic human capacity." Ethics can also be used to describe a particular person's own
idiosyncratic principles or habits. For example: "Joe has strange ethics."

Ethical Foundations
"Ethics is concerned with questions that have no ultimate answers, yet are important to planning
one's life, justifying one's activities and deciding what one ought to do."

Ethical Principles

1. Beneficence
✓ Doing good for others
✓ Helping others
✓ Obligation to act in the interest of others
✓ Beneficence is the professional duty to do or produce good. By "good" is meant
the performance of acts of kindness and charity. "Doing good" is considered
virtuous conduct.

General Duty to Beneficence

✓ How significant is the need to be met?
✓ Am I particularly qualified to meet the need?
✓ How likely is it that my action will achieve success, i.e., a desired outcome?
✓ How much of a risk is it to me? Does the potential benefit outweigh the risk to
me?

2. Nonmaleficence
✓ Prevent harm or risk of harm to clients (s)
✓ Includes misguidance, negligence, and impact of stress/burnout
3. Autonomy
✓ Self-rule or self-governance
✓ Free from the control of others
✓ Three conditions necessary
✓ Voluntary participation / no coercion
✓ Competence / can weigh risks and benefits
✓ Full disclosure of relevant information

4. Justice
✓ Fairness in relation to distribution or allocation of time, resources and services
✓ Equal Shares
✓ Need
✓ Motivation / Effort / Contribution
✓ Free-Market Exchange (supply and demand)
✓ Fair Opportunity

5. Fidelity
✓ Keeping promises or commitments
✓ Confidentiality
✓ Conflicts of Interest

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Importance of Ethics
➤ Indispensable knowledge.
➤ Without moral perception, man is only an animal.
➤ Without morality, man as rational being is a failure.

Ethics is a requirement for human life

✓ It is our means of deciding a course of action.
✓ Without it, our actions would be random and aimless.
✓ There would be no way to work towards a goal because there would be no
way to pick between a limitless number of goals.
✓ To the degree which a rational ethical standard is taken, we are able to
correctly organize our goals and actions to accomplish our most important
values.

Moral integrity is the only true measure of what man ought to be. The most
successful professional, is nothing unless he too is morally upright. Thus, the
philosophers speak of Ethics as the "only necessary knowledge". Morality is the
foundation of every human society. Without civic morality, communities perish;
without personal morality their survival has no value. Every culture admits the
importance of morality as a standard of behavior. When the moral foundations
of a nation are threatened, society itself is threatened.

Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that involves

systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong
conduct. The term ethics derives from Ancient Greek ethikos, from ethos,
meaning 'habit, custom'. The field of ethics, along with aesthetics concern
matters of value, and thus comprise the branch of philosophy called axiology.
The word philosophy is derived from two Greek words. The first word, philo, means "love." The
second, sophy, means "wisdom." Literally, then, philosophy means "love of wisdom". Each
individual has an attitude toward life, children, politics, learning, and previous personal
experiences that informs and shapes their set of beliefs. Although you may not be conscious of
it, this set of beliefs, or personal philosophy, informs how you live, work, and interact with
others.

What you believe is directly reflected in both your teaching and learning processes. This chapter
explores the various philosophical views that influence the teaching profession.

To understand the foundations of educational philosophies, it's necessary to first examine

philosophy's four main branches. Understanding educational philosophy will contribute to the
understanding of how these foundations have given rise to what is commonly practiced and
believed in the classroom today.

The four main branches of philosophy are metaphysics, epistemology, axiology, and logic.

1. Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that considers the physical universe and the nature
of ultimate reality. It asks questions like, What is real? What is the origin of the world? What is
beyond the stars? Your consideration of reality as an external creation or an internal construct
can influence your metaphysical beliefs and perspectives and your teaching. Regardless of your
definition of reality, the exploration and categorization of the physical universe form the
foundation of several school subjects.

2. Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that considers how people come to learn what
they know. Derived from the Greek word episteme, meaning knowledge or understanding,
epistemology refers to the nature and origin of knowledge and truth. Epistemology proposes
that there are four main bases of knowledge: divine revelation, experience, logic and reason,
and intuition. These influence how teaching, learning, and understanding come about in the
classroom.

3. Axiology is the branch of philosophy that considers the study of principles and values. These
values are divided into two main kinds: ethics and aesthetics. Ethics is the questioning of morals
and personal values. Aesthetics is the examination of what is beautiful, enjoyable, or tasteful. In
axiology education is more than just about knowledge but also quality of life.
4. Logic is the branch of philosophy that seeks to organize reasoning. Students of logic learn
how to think in a structurally sound manner. Logic has two types: deductive and inductive
reasoning. Deductive reasoning involves examining a general case, deducing a general set of
rules or principles, and then applying these rules to specific cases. Inductive reasoning involves
taking specific examples and considering the general principles, rules, or cases that caused
them.

Ethics seeks to resolve questions of human morality by defining concepts such as good and
evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime. As a field of intellectual enquiry, moral
philosophy also is related to the fields of moral psychology, descriptive ethics, and value theory.

Three major areas of study within ethics recognized today are:

1. Meta-ethics, concerning the theoretical meaning and

reference of moral propositions, and how their truth

values (if any) can be determined

2. Normative ethics, concerning the practical means of determining a moral course of action

3. Applied ethics, concerning what a person is obligated (or permitted) to do in a specific

situation or a particular domain of action
Ethics and Law

Legal history confirms that customary ethics, rather than laws, have been the prime source of
social conformity. For instance:

1. The Code of Hammurabi (1726-1686 BC) did not in essence introduce new rules but merely
reaffirmed prevailing customs,

2. Plato in his Republic put little emphasis on laws per se and more on the development of a
polis- a perfect city- where laws would be unnecessary. Leaders of the polis were expected to
be "men of gold," endowed with collective rationality and wisdom.

3. The Common Law that emerged under the Norman rule essentially to control "ruffians"

4. The practice of chivalry, common among the English noble men at the time, needed no legal
support, because it was "law unto itself"

5. The high level of social order among traditional Islamic societies in which relatively very few
positive laws exist

It is necessary to clarify the relationship between the areas of ethics and law.
The purpose of ethics is not to undermine the law or to replace it, but to complement it by
deferring to the spirit of the law and to rules of equity.

 Ethics

Study of human motivation

Study of external actions. It explores thoughts and feelings.
Requires that man desires that of which is good and act in accordance with that desire
Addresses all human activities
Seeks to change people from the inside outward
Ethical principles are constant, universal and everlasting
Solidly based on the reasoning process essential to appropri- ate discretion
Prescriptive in nature
Dependent upon knowledge, rationality and goodwill

 Law

Concerned with what we do, not what we feel

Concerned with the externality of the act.
Requires that we perform the required action regardless of our feelings towards such action.
Applies to behaviors that lawmakers choose to regulate
Attempt to change people from outside inward
Laws are frequently changing
"Logical instrument" of social control that, for the most part, are not necessarily products of
wisdom
Basically reactive instrument
Dependent for their effectiveness upon legal procedures and complex rules of evidence

Morality therefore, has a wider implication than law, because law can either be moral or
immoral. Thus, what is legal is not necessarily moral; but what is moral is worth legalizing.

Ethics is not simply a body of do's and don't's in the manner laws are.

Ethics is a personal commitment to uphold what is true and good. Ethics aims to develop
"right disposition and inner spirit" for accepting what is lawful.

 Human Acts

Actions performed by man, knowingly and freely

Deliberate or intentional actions, or, voluntary
Actions are the result of conscious knowledge and are subject to the control of the will.
  Acts of man

Actions which happen in man

Instinctive and are not within the control of the will
Biological and physiological movements in man such as, metabolism, respiration, fear, anger,
love, and jealousy.

Morality is the quality of human acts by which they are constituted as good, bad, or, indifferent.

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Moral Distinctions

"Dictates of Reasons" stands for the norm of morality which is the standard by which actions are
judged as to their merits or demerits.

Classification of Actions According to the Norms of Morality

1. Moral (Good) actions

2. Immoral (Bad) actions

3. Amoral (Indifferent) actions

Moral (Good) actions are those actions which are in conformity with the norm of morality.

Immoral (Bad) actions are those actions which are not in conformity with the norm of morality.

Amoral (Indifferent) actions are those actions which stand neutral in relation to the norm of
morality. They are neither good nor bad in themselves. But certain amoral actions may become
good or bad because of the circumstances attendant to them.

Voluntariness comes from the Latin word "voluntas", referring to the Will. Voluntariness is
essential to an act. Without it, an act is a mere act of man.

The Modifiers of Human Acts

1. Ignorance- absence of knowledge which a person ought to possess

Classification of Ignorance
a. vincible ignorance can easily be reminded through ordinary diligence and reasonable efforts
b. invincible ignorance is the type which a person possesses without being aware of it, or,
having awareness of it, lacks the means to rectify it.
"Ignorance of the law excuses no one" implies that no one should not act in the state of
ignorance and that no one who has done wrong may not claim ignorance as a defense.

2. Passions- either tendencies towards desirable objects, or tendencies away from undesirable
or harmful things

Classification of Passions
a) positive emotions - love, desire, delight, hope, and bravery
b) negative emotions despair, fear, and anger hatred, horror, sadness,

Passions are psychic responses. As such, they are neither moral or immoral, however, man
is bound to regulate his emotions and submit them to the control of reason.

3. Fear-disturbance of the mind of a person who is confronted by an impending danger or harm

to himself or loved ones

Fear is an instinct for self-preservation. We even fear new experiences or situations such as,
embarking on a long journey, being left alone in a strange place, or being asked to speak before
a group of people.

4. Violence- refers to any physical force exerted on a person by another free agent for the
purpose of compelling said person to act against his will.

Bodily torture, maltreatment, isolation, and mutilation are examples of violence against person.

5. Habits-is a lasting readiness and facility, born of frequently repeated acts, for acting in a
certain manner. They are acquired inclinations towards something to be done. They assume the
role of a second nature, moving one who has them to perform certain acts with relative ease.

The word "habit-forming" that we use to refer to certain experience shows how easy it is for
one to acquire a habit. It also implies that a habit is not easy to overcome or alter. It requires a
strong-willed person to correct a habit successfully within a limited period of time.

Rights and Duties

Man is born with rights and duties and having rights is an attribute of a person. That is why we
have Commission on Human Rights that addresses violations of such rights.
We insist on our rights but ignore our duties. Duties however are more fundamental than rights.

The duty to do good and to avoid evil is above all rights.

Definition of right

Objectively - it is anything which is owed or due.

Subjectively -that is, as residing in a person, right is a moral power, bound to be respected by
others, of doing, possessing, or requiring something.

Kinds of Rights

1. Natural rights
2. Human rights
3. Civil rights
4. Ecclesiastical or religious rights
5. Alienable and inalienable Rights
6. Right of jurisdiction
7. Right of property
8. Juridical right
9. Non-Juridical rights

Natural rights are those based on the natural law, that is, on human nature.

Human rights are those based on human positive laws, either those enacted by the State or a
religious sect.

Civil rights are those dependent upon the laws of the state.

Ecclesiastical or religious rights are those dependent upon the laws of a church or a religious
sect.

Alienable and Inalienable Rights

Alienable rights are those, civil or religious rights, which can be surrendered, renounced, or
removed, such as the right to decent livelihood.

Right of jurisdiction is the power of lawful authority to govern his subjects and to make laws
for them.

Right of property is the power to own, to sell, to barter, to lend, to change, or give away one's
personal possessions.

Juridical right refers to all rights insofar as they are based on laws. These rights must be
respected, allowed, fulfilled, as a matter of strict justice.

Non-Juridical rights are those which are founded on laws, either natural or human, but on virtue.
Thus, these are also called moral rights.

Definition of Duty
Objectively - it is anything we are obliged to do or to omit.

Subjectively -It is a moral obligation incumbent upon a person of doing, omitting, or avoiding
something.

Duty is a moral obligation because it depends upon freewill. As such it resides on a person.
Duty is defined by law, any willful neglect of duty makes the person accountable for such act.

Kinds of Duties

1. Natural duties
2. Positive duties
3. Affirmative duties
4. Negative duties

Natural duties are those imposed by natural law such as, the duty to care for our health.

Positive duties are those imposed by a human positive law such as the duty to pay taxes and
to observe traffic rules.

Affirmative duties are those which require the performance of a certain act, such as casting a
ballot during election; applying for a business license.

Negative duties are those which require the omission of a certain act such as not carrying
illegal firearms, or not destroying the property of other.

(#4)
Ethics as Value Education

Ethics relies solely on human reason to investigate truths. Ethics takes the form of Value
Education. A value is something a person prizes, cherishes and esteems as important to him.
The aim of Value Education is to guide the individual in choosing wisely his values and in acting
upon them.

Man is a person who possesses an intellect (insight) and will (volition). Person is considered as
self or ego which implies self sufficiency of the person and implies worth or value.

The first and most fundamental of the values is self.

For example - Actions are values because they are the result of intellect and will, motivated
towards something desirable (another value).
Value is intimately related to the search for meaning in human life. Life is meaningful when a
man has found something capable of arousing his commitment to it, something deserving for his
best efforts, something worth living for and worth dying for.

Values enable man to change, to establish self control and self direction.

What Are Values?

"Values" is the term given to those ideas, behaviors, and actions that are important to us.
Values are those things worth fighting for and those things worth sacrificing for. They're what we
hold most dear. Our values strongly influence our decision making and help determine where
we place our emphasis on our personal and professional lives. Values form the basis for our
understanding of ethics.

Within society, we have personal values and societal values. Our personal values are ours
alone and are informed by our upbringing, cultural and ethnic background, religious beliefs and
personal experiences. Because personal values are unique to each individual, they are not a
proper platform on which to base professional ethics, though they may inform how we view,
appreciate and approach ethical behavior.

It comes from the Latin word "valere" which means "to be strong or to be worth".

Values can be defined as broad preferences concerning appropriate courses of actions or

outcomes. As such, values reflect a person's sense of right and wrong or what "ought" to be.
"Equal rights for all", "Excellence deserves admiration", and "People should be treated with
respect and dignity" are representatives of values.

In ethics, value denotes the degree of importance of some thing or action, with the aim of
determining what actions are best to do or what way is best to live (normative ethics), or to
describe the significance of different actions. Value systems are proscriptive and prescriptive
beliefs; they affect ethical behavior of a person or are the basis of their intentional activities.
Often primary values are strong and secondary values are suitable for changes. What makes an
action valuable may in turn depend on the ethical values of the objects it increases, decreases
or alters. An object with "ethic value" may be termed an "ethic or philosophic good" (noun
sense)

There are some values, though, that are essentially universally held by society. These societal
values are those ideals that are held most dear by culture or group, and these are the values
from which we derive our understanding and expectation of ethics and ethical behavior. Such
ideals include:

✓ Integrity
✓ Honesty
✓ Hard work
✓ Kindness
✓ Compassion
✓ Empathy
✓ Sympathy
✓ Justice
✓ Bravery

Integrity - the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness.

"he is known to be a man of integrity", "I never doubted his integrity"

Honesty- Honesty is when you speak the truth and act truthfully. Many children think honesty
means you "don't tell a lie"-- and that is definitely part of being honest. But honesty means more
than not lying. A more complete definition of honesty shows that an honest person doesn't do
things that are morally wrong.

Hard work -a great deal of effort or endurance. Working intelligently and vigorously at a given
task to complete it with maximum efficiency.

"it takes hard work to be successful in business"

Kindness-Kindness is defined as the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate.

Affection, gentleness, warmth, concern, and care are words that are associated with kindness.
While kindness has a connotation of meaning someone is naive or weak, that is not the case.
Being kind often requires courage and strength.

Compassion - sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others.
Compassion motivates people to go out of their way to help the physical, mental, or emotional
pains of another and themselves.

"the victims should be treated with compassion"

Empathy - the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.

"what is really important about learning a language is learning empathy for another culture"

Sympathy-is a shared feeling, usually of sorrow, pity or compassion for another person. You
show concern for another person when you feel sympathy for them.... With empathy, you put
yourself in another's shoes, often feeling things more deeply than if you just felt sympathy.

The differences between the most commonly used meanings of these two terms is:

sympathy is feeling compassion, sorrow, or pity for the hardships that another person
encounters
empathy is putting yourself in the shoes of another, which is why actors often talk about it.

Justice -is the morally fair and right state of everything. To have justice as a person's character
trait means that they are just and treat everyone the same, or how they would like to be treated.

Formal justice- is the impartial, consistent and strict application of established rules or laws;
material justice concerns the justice or injustice of the content of rules or laws.

Now formal justice can be defined as treating persons in accordance with their rights, where
the question of what a person's rights are.

Bravery - the quality or state of having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger,
fear, or difficulty: courageous behavior or character.

"perhaps I'll get a medal for bravery"

These ideals, these so-called universal values, help guide us toward ethical behavior and
ethical decision making. They help inform us of what is expected of us and what actions we
should take.

(#5)
Personal Values

Personal values evolve from circumstances with the external world and can change over time.
Integrity in the application of values refers to its continuity; persons have integrity if they apply
their values appropriately regardless of arguments or negative reinforcement from others.
Values are applied appropriately when they are applied in the right area.

For example, it would be appropriate to apply religious values in times of happiness as well as
in times of despair.

Personal values are implicitly related to choice; they guide decisions by allowing for an
individual's choices to be compared to each choice's associated values.

Personal values developed early in life may be resistant to change. They may be derived from
those of particular groups or systems, such as culture, religion, and political party. However,
personal values are not universal; one's genes, family, nation and historical environment help
determine one's personal values. This is not to say that the value concepts themselves are not
universal, merely that each individual possess a unique conception of them.

Example: A personal knowledge of the appropriate values for their own genes, feelings and
experience.
Personal value of other persons is the dignity of that other person.

Your values are the things that you believe are important in the way you live and work. They
(should) determine your priorities, and, deep down, they are probably the measures you use to
tell if your life is turning out the way you want it to.

Types of values

Values tend to influence attitudes and behavior and these types include

1. ethical/moral values
2. doctrinal/ideological (political, religious) values
3. social values
4. aesthetic values

Ethical/moral values-A person who knows the difference between right and wrong and
chooses right is moral. A person whose morality is reflected in his willingness to do the right
thing even if it is hard or dangerous is ethical. Ethics are moral values in action.

Moral values are relative values that protect life and are respectful of the dual life value of self
and others. The great moral values, such as truth, freedom, charity, etc., have one thing in
common

Doctrinal/ideological values

Doctrine (from Latin: doctrina, meaning "teaching", "instruction" or "doctrine") is a codification of

beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of
teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a belief system.

Ideological- is an adjective that describes political, cultural, or religious beliefs. An ideology is a

body of ideas, and those who agree with the main idea of something take an ideological stand
to support it.

Social values- are a set of moral principles defined by society dynamics, institutions, traditions
and cultural beliefs. These values are implicit guidelines that provide orientation to individuals
and corporations to conduct themselves properly within a social system.

Aesthetic values - Aesthetic value is the value that an object, event or state of affairs (most
paradigmatically an art work or the natural environment) possesses in virtue of its capacity to
elicit pleasure (positive value) or displeasure (negative value) when appreciated or experienced
aesthetically.
The Nature of Aesthetic Value proposes that aesthetic goodness, the property in virtue of which
works of art are valuable, is a matter of their capacity in appropriate circumstances to give
satisfaction.

Kinds of Values – According to the level of human life to which they correspond.
1. Biological Values
2. Social Values
3. Rational Values
Biological Values – necessary to the physical survival of man as an organism
1. Life and health
2. Food and shelter
3. Work
Social Values – necessary to the sensual needs and fulfillment
1. Leisure and Sex
2. Marriage
3. Family and Home
4. Parental Authority
5. Education
Rational Values – necessary to the functions and fulfillment of intellect and will
1. Understanding and control of nature
2. Guide and control of oneself
3. Solidarity
4. Parental authority and fellowmen
5. Religion

Moral Values – are those that directly pertain to the function of intellect and will: those choices,
decisions, and actions, by which man’s national faculties are involved and perfected.

Characteristics of Moral Values

1. Moral Values are goods having intrinsic qualities of desirability
2. Moral Values are universal – they appeal to man as man and to man as a specific
individual
3. Moral Values are obligatory – they come as natural duty, because possession of them is
expected as an integral quality to man as rational creature directed by natural powers
towards truth, beauty and goodness.

What is Virtue?
The ancient Romans used the Latin word virtus (derived from vir, their word for man) to refer to
all of the “excellent qualities of men, including physical strength, valorous conduct, and morsl
rectitude.” The French words vertu and virtu come from the Latin root. In the 13th century, the
word virtue was <<borrowed into English>>.
Virtue is moral excellence. A virtue is a trait or quality that is deemed to be morally good and
thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. Personal virtues are
characteristics valued as promoting collective and individual greatness.
Aristotle's Four Cardinal virtues according to scholastic philosophy
1. Prudence – treats how you handle yourself
2. Justice –treats your interactions with other people
3. Fortitude/courage – treats your aversion
4. Temperance/moderation – treats your desire

Aristotle's ethics is an inquiry into how humans should live in order to achieve the highest good,
eudiamonia in Greek. This term is often translated as 'happiness' but can also mean
'flourishing'. Humans seek this highest good, this flourishing, in accordance with human nature,
which, for Aristotle, is set apart by rationality

Aristotle describes virtue as a habit, a tendency of character to act in accordance with practical
reason toward worthy ends.

Furthermore, Aristotle regarded virtue as occupying a state between extremes, a state between
two vices, one of excess and the other of deficiency. The cardinal virtues are those habits of
character which are primary in guiding the individual toward that 'golden mean' in particular
situations.

Other variables Aristotle recognized as influencing our ability to develop virtues include the
culture in general, sufficient income, enough power to resist being overwhelmed by the less
virtuous, a positive body image, parents who live long enough to raise you, and peer support.

I - Prudence

It is characterized by "being careful about one's choices, not taking undue risks, and not saying
or doing things that might later be regretted." Prudence's roots date back to Aristotle's writings
on practical wisdom, in which he hails it as a crucial, linking virtue.

Prudence is described as an intellectual habit (virtue) enabling the person to deliberate properly
in order to choose the virtuous course, the right means of action in any here and now situation.
As such, it is primary over the other cardinal virtues. Its integral parts all relate to cognitive
activities related to making good choices.

Currently, prudence is usually used in reference to financial or political situations, but to

psychologists prudence's meaning extends much further. According to Peterson and Seligman
(2004), "Individuals with this strength have the following attributes:

1. They take a foresighted stance toward their personal future, thinking and caring about it,
planning for it, and holding long-term goals and aspirations.

2. They are skilled at resisting self-defeating impulses and at persisting in beneficial activities
that lack immediate appeal.
3. They show a style of thinking about everyday life choices that is reflective, deliberate, and
practical.

4. They harmonize the multiple goals and interests that motivate them, forming these into a
stable, coherent, and un-conflicted form of life."

II - Justice

It is the concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, religion,
fairness, or equity, along with the punishment of the breach of said ethics

According to most theories of justice, it is overwhelmingly important: [John Rawls] claims that
"Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought." Justice can be
thought of as distinct from and more fundamental than benevolence, charity, mercy, generosity
or compassion.

Justice has traditionally been associated with concepts of fate, reincarnation or Divine
Providence, The association of justice with fairness has thus been historically and culturally rare
and is perhaps chiefly a modern innovation [in western societies.

It is a familiar virtue to most of us and can be defined as rendering to others his/her rights.

Variations of justice

1. Utilitarianism

It is a form of consequentialism, where punishment is forward-looking. Justified by the ability to

achieve future social benefits resulting in crime reduction, the moral worth of an action is
determined by its outcome.

2. Retributive Justice

It regulates proportionate response to crime proven by lawful evidence, so that punishment is

justly imposed and considered as morally correct and fully deserved. The law of retaliation (lex
talionis) is a military theory of retributive justice, which says that reciprocity should be equal to
the wrong suffered; "life for life, wound for wound, stripe for stripe."

3. Restorative Justice

It is concerned not so much with retribution and punishment as with (a) making the victim whole
and (b) reintegrating the offender into society. This approach frequently brings an offender and
a victim together, so that the offender can better understand the effect his/ her offense had on
the victim.
4. Distributive Justice

It is directed at the proper allocation of things - wealth, power, reward, respect-among different
people.

5. Oppressive Law

Exercises an authoritarian approach to legislation that is "totally unrelated to justice", a

tyrannical interpretation of law is one in which the population lives under restriction from
unlawful legislation.

Some theorists, such as the classical Greeks and Romans, conceive of justice as a virtue-a
property of people, and only derivatively of their actions and the institutions they create. Others
emphasize actions or institutions, and only derivatively the people who bring them about. The
source of justice has variously been attributed to harmony, divine command, natural law, or
human creation.

III - Fortitude

Enables a person to stand firm against and endure the hardships of life, to restrain fear, or to
moderate fear in the face of danger, all done in accordance with reason.

Fortitude is one of the four cardinal virtues. As such, it can be practiced by anyone, since, unlike
the theological virtues, the cardinal virtues are not, in themselves, the gifts of God through grace
but the outgrowth of habit.

Fortitude is commonly called courage, but it is different from what much of what we think of as
courage today. Fortitude is always reasoned and reasonable; the person exercising fortitude is
willing to put himself in danger if necessary, but he does not seek danger for danger's sake.

St. Thomas Aquinas ranked fortitude as the third of the cardinal virtues, because it serves
prudence and justice, the higher virtues. Fortitude is the virtue that allows us to overcome fear
and to remain steady in our will in the face of obstacles. Prudence and justice are the virtues
through which we decide what needs to be done; fortitude gives us the strength to do it.

IV - Temperance

(Sophrosyne) in Greek is defined as "moderation in action, thought, or feeling; restraint." It is the

habit of moderation in the use of pleasurable things.

It has been studied by religious thinkers, philosophers, and more recently, psychologists,
particularly in the positive psychology movement.
It is considered a virtue, a core value that can be seen consistently across time and cultures. It
is considered one of the four cardinal virtues, for it is believed that no virtue could be sustained
in the face of inability to control oneself, if the virtue was opposed to some desire.

Temperance is generally defined by control over excess, so that it has many classes, such as
abstinence, chastity, modesty, humility, prudence, self-regulation, and forgiveness and mercy;
each of these involves restraining some impulse, such as sexual desire, vanity, or anger.

(#6)
Other Values

1. Religious Values
2. Cultural Values
3. Social Values

Religious Values- pertain to man's relationship with God, guiding and regulating his
communion with Him

Cultural Values-pertain to man's relationship sharing with others in a given community of

persons, shaping their spiritual kinship, and directing their attention to definite ideals of behavior

Social Values-pertain to the relationship necessary in the promotion of human society as a

whole, integrating the motivation and interests of members towards the common objective or
goal

Hierarchy of Values

It refers to the order of values from the lowest to the highest in importance.

The goods pertaining to the soul, the intellect and will occupy the highest level of importance
while the biological values occupy the lowest rank.

Choosing our Values

Man must be wise enough to choose his values in accordance to their intrinsic worth.

Guides in our preference to choose values

1. Permanent or lasting values must be preferred over temporary values

Example: education over courtship
2. Values favored by greater number of people must be preferred over those that appeal only to
the few
Example: Discipline over personal freedom
3. Values that are essential must be preferred over those
4. that are accidental
Example: health over beauty
5. Values that give greater satisfaction must be preferred over those that provide short-lived
pleasures
Example: Pursuing your artistic hobby over fanatical devotion to a movie star

The Highest Value - GOD

Summum bonum is a Latin expression meaning «the highest good», which was introduced by
the Roman philosopher Cicero, to correspond to the Idea of the Good in ancient Greek
philosophy. The summum bonum is generally thought of as being an end in itself, and at the
same time containing all other goods.

The term was used in medieval philosophy. In the Thomist synthesis of Aristotelianism and
Christianity, the highest good is usually defined as the life of the righteous and/or the life led in
communion with God and according to God's precepts. In Kantianism, it was used to describe
the ultimate importance, the singular and overriding end which human beings ought to pursue.

He is the Summum Bonum, the ultimate and absolute good that will fulfill all human desires.
God is the ultimate end of human life, God is not only the Alpha and the Omega of the created
universe, he is the preserver of values.

This principle obligates the ethical reasoner to examine all possible goods that bear on an issue,
to rank them in an ascending, and to choose the highest among them as the "master good."
Such ranking can be based on the truths of purpose, goodness, morality, and utility, among
others. As such, the concept of summum bunum characterizes "the morals of all morals" and
the ethics of all ethics.

Benefits of Knowing God

What makes knowing God the highest good? As we said the summum bonum is the highest
good out of which all good flows. If we are going to fully give ourselves to the endeavor of
studying and knowing God, we must be fully convinced of the benefits of this endeavor.

I - Eternal Life/Quality of Life

The first benefit is eternal life. Eternal life is not primarily about length of life, for everybody will
live eternally in one of two places. It is also about quality of life. This means the more we know
God and the more we understand and build a relationship with him, the more our quality of life
increases. We start to live life the way it was meant to be lived.

We study God to have a relationship with him that enriches our quality of life and will continue
throughout eternity as we know God. We study God to know what life is, and therefore, what life
is not.
II - Proper Evaluation of Humanity

There is something else that happens when we encounter God. We begin to rightly evaluate
ourselves and others. Studying God is like looking at a mirror. We see our faults, our problems,
and maybe even our virtues. This happens in order that we may be changed.

III- Knowing God Reveals Our Sin

Many people have a tendency to wrongly evaluate themselves because they judge themselves
by looking at other people. I am really smart in comparison with him. I in comparison with her. I
am really beautiful am really holy in comparison with those people. Pride exists because people
are looking at the wrong person. They are looking at themselves or one another, instead of God.
Pride would be eliminated if people had a proper relationship with God. Knowing God not only
helps us evaluate ourselves but also others. As our society turns farther away from God, the
more it will be common for man to praise evil and hate good.

IV- Knowing God Helps Us Give Value to Humanity

When we look at our society and see the killing of innocent babies, sex trafficking, the growing
murder rates and suicide rates around the world, we should realize this is happening because
people don't know God and can't properly value human life. Man is made in the image of God,
and therefore, has value. I have value because in some way or another, even though I sin, I
bear the image of God. Having God as my maker and having been created in his likeness, gives
me innate value. Humanity has value.

V - Proper Evaluation of Morality

The next benefit of knowing God is a proper evaluation of morality. We have hinted at this
already in looking at humanity, but a proper understanding of God also affects how we evaluate
morality-what is right and wrong. We see varying lifestyles in society based on our
understanding of God.

When society starts to deny God, they will become an unwise, incompetent, and loveless
society. Without proper thinking, proper decision making, and proper love, the whole value
system of society will be fractured.

VI - Not Knowing God Leads to Approval of Sin

When you look at society and see the movies, the media, and the people that are elevated or
put on pedestals, it is a picture of the result of not knowing God.
Society says sex before marriage is right, homosexuality is right, pornography is right, the
murder of the innocent is right, drug and alcohol abuse is right, and the worship of the biblical
God and the practice of biblical values is wrong, and often met with persecution.

The knowledge of God is necessary to help us properly evaluate morality-what is right and
wrong. We must study God to properly calibrate our hearts and minds.

VII - Peace and Security

Therefore, the proverb means that those who "know God and his characteristics" will find safety,
security, and peace. When others are afraid and fearful at events in life, God keeps those who
know him at peace and protects them.

VIII- Increased Wisdom

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Next, when Solomon says, the knowledge of
the Holy One is understanding, he probably is just using Hebrew parallelism to say the same
thing. To fear the Lord means to know the Holy One, and to receive wisdom is the same as
understanding. Solomon is using a parallel statement for emphasis.

IX - Multiplication of Blessings

Peter says the knowledge of God leads to "multiplied" blessings. It is through the knowledge of
God that grace, peace, and power are multiplied to believers.

X - Multiplied Grace

The first multiplied blessing he names is "grace," which means unmerited favor.

XI - Multiplied Peace

"May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord"
(emphasis mine). In the Bible there are two kinds of peace. There is peace with God that we
receive by accepting Christ as Lord and Savior

XII - Multiplied Power

Finally, we also receive power. Being in God's presence and knowing him brings a certain
amount of power in the life of the seeker. Peter says the person who knows God receives power
to be godly.

XIII - A Worthy and Pleasing Life

The next benefit of knowing God is a worthy and pleasing life.

Christians who offer God "everything plus" are people who are "pleasing" to God. He enjoys
them and rejoices over them with songs. That is what happens when a person really knows
God; they start to demonstrate God's worth in varying ways.

XIV - Fruitfulness

The next benefit of knowing God is a fruitful life. And we pray this in order that you may live a
life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way:

"bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God".

XV - Endurance, Patience, Joy, and Thanksgiving

✓ Endurance

Endurance means "to bear up under a heavy weight" Through knowing God, we receive power
to endure a hard life situation. God gives us grace to persevere through trials.

✓ Patience

What is the difference between endurance and patience? It seems that the difference between
patience and endurance is the fact that patience primarily has to do with people. God gives us
power to endure difficult people without retaliation.

✓ Joy

Joy is an inward attitude that has nothing to do with circumstances, but is based on one's
relationship with God. A person that is growing in the knowledge of God can go through difficult
situations with joy

✓ Thanksgiving

Finally, we see that thanksgiving is also a result of knowing God. Thanksgiving is the outward
expression of this internal joy in all circumstances. We saw this perfectly modeled by Job as he
thanked God even in the midst of his trials. This was a man "filled with the knowledge of God's
will

The Benefits of Wisdom

Wisdom is a byproduct of knowing God. When you know God, you have a less problematic life,
and you are victorious when problems come.
Wisdom provides the tools to face disappointment in light of the wisdom of God's Word, which
tells us He is sovereign and has a plan and destiny for each of us.