Moral Relativism - Political Boogeyman

Conservative commentators in America (as well as the Catholic church and other religious groups) are known for frequently referencing the dangers of "moral relativism," an ethical philosophy which they view as threatening to undermine more traditional absolutist moral systems, specifically the Christian moral system. This ethical system, which is frequently referenced as a threat alongside political correctness, multiculturalism, and other "progressive" post-modern philosophical ideas, is widely misunderstood in both its fundamental nature and its effects on our modern society.

Before we can analyze the political implications of moral relativism, we must first present the philosophy in a coherent manner, rather than relying on the confused, incomplete theorizing of largely ignorant conservative commentators. In order to understand the basis of moral relativism, it helps to first look at the concept of cultural relativism, which is in most cases synonymous with multiculturalism.

Cultural relativism posits that the actions and beliefs of individuals make sense in the context of their culture. Rather than attempting to separate the individual from numerous, important environmental influences, cultural relativism recognizes that the intended meanings of actions and beliefs can only be correctly understood within the correct cultural context. For example, a painting of a man making the "peace sign" would have completely different meanings if it was made in Medieval times or in the 1960s. In Medieval times, archers would taunt their opponents by putting up their pointer finger and middle finger, showing that they were still capable of using their bows -- archers taken prisoner would often have these fingers cut off so as to prevent their rejoining fighting.

This same principle applies not only throughout time, but also throughout the world in different cultures in the present. While the differences between cultures are often rather subtle, making contextual changes in meaning less obvious, it is still largely impossible to understand the full meaning of actions and ideas without including consideration of the cultural context in which these things arise. Viewed this way, there is nothing destructive or threatening about cultural relativism or multiculturalism -- all that this theory seeks to do is to accurately interpret events occurring in different cultures, rather than judging all events as if they had occurred in our culture.

Moral relativism can be seen as an extension of the principle of cultural relativism, wherein the moral standards of a society are viewed as a product of that society's prevailing cultural norms and ideas. Proponents of moral relativism claim that the morality of the actions of those in other cultures can only be determined in the context of that culture's prevailing moral system. Contrary to the heated accusations of many ill-informed pundits, only a small number of moral relativists denounce any application of one's own moral system to other cultures as illegitimate. Moral relativism is merely the recognition that there are a number of moral systems throughout the world, and that the people subscribing to these moral systems judge actions according to their own morals, not those of Americans or other observers. For some reason, it is usually easy for most people to accept the validity of cultural relativism as a means of better understanding the world, but it is often difficult for some to accept moral relativism in a similar manner, despite the fact that the two ideas share the same fundamental justifications and goals.

Despite the politically motivated claims of some, moral relativism does not seek to undermine the ethical standards of Christianity or any other religion. In fact, moral relativism can help those in other cultures to understand Christian morality, by helping them to view the actions of Christians in the appropriate cultural and ethical context. Likewise, moral relativism does not amount to defense of terrorism or Nazism or any other violent ideology. The ethical implications of these extreme ideologies actually make moral relativism all the more important, by enabling us to accurately analyze the cultural and ethical context in which such horrific acts became acceptable. In order to fight extremist ideologies and violent groups, it is necessary to first understand them, in order to undermine their twisted ideas and to prevent re-emergence of similar movements.

What is rarely recognized by conservatives is that the Western democratic liberalism they claim is being threatened by moral relativism actually requires moral relativism to be an important part of society. In order to establish limitations on government and respect the rights of all members of society, it is necessary to recognize a number of differing viewpoints and ethical ideals, and to respect these differences. If American Christians viewed their morality as absolutely universal rather than relative, there could be no acceptance of homosexuals in the United States, since homosexuality is seen as immoral in Christian morality. It is by analyzing the relative importance of that Christian ethic against the importance of individual liberty that our culture is capable of securing equal rights for all members of society. If morals were treated as absolute in all respects, rather than as relative, there would be no room for civil liberties or for democratic government, since the exercise of civil liberties or the outcome of democratic elections would often run counter to prevailing moral principles. The prevalence of moral relativism does not constitute a threat to the liberal traditions of America and Europe -- in fact, attacks on moral relativism have the potential to threaten the very basis of our free institutions.