You said earlier you would lie, steal, or maybe kill for the greater good. It sounds like you believe the end justifies the means. how can you be a Christian and think that? Don't you know your god has rules he insists you follow or else?I became mindful that I seemed to be advocating an ends justifies the means philosophy after a commenter on the post seemed surprised I would say such a thing. I clarified my thoughts on the issue when reviewing “In the Pale Moonlight,” but it never hurts to elaborate.
I do not advocate an ends justifies the mans philosophy. There are moral guidelines that have to be followed and boundaries that cannot be crossed. The problem is twofold. One, I am flawed morally. I do not know what the right choice to make is al the time. Sometimes, I have to make the best choice and be grateful I am under God’s grace. Two, it is easy to claim I would take the moral high road in any given circumstance when given as a hypothetical. It is whole new ballgame when I am set to suffer for the consequences.
What I wrote yesterday is that I would lie, steal and maybe kill to save someone’s life. These are all immoral acts, but failure to do them might be an even bigger immoral act. Would I lie to the Gestapo about hiding Anne Frank in my attic? Yes. They would kill her if they found her. Would I steal a loaf of bread to find my starving child? Of course. I am obligated to take care of him. Would I shoot an armed intruder breaking into my house? I had to, probably. I these scenarios, I am weighing higher principle or personal survival against the immoral act of dishonesty, theft, ad taking a life.
My failure was in addressing that I do not necessarily believe I am excused from the consequences of these actions just because I have decided they are the right thing to do even if they are not moral. Lying t the Gestapo could get me killed. Stealing a loaf of bread might get me thrown in jail. Shooting a intruder might not be justified uner the law.
I am not crowing about my moral superiority in making these choices. While I am certain I would hide Anne Frank under the penalty of death if caught doing so, I do not believe I could refuse to help. But I would never steal bread to feed someone else’s child under just about any circumstance I can dream up. That is not a contradiction. What I am saying is that I would bend over backwards to keep from committing an immoral act in the latter to the point I would probably never commit it.
The difference is confronting evil feels like an obligation even by shady means, although I am uncomfortable with the question of whether I have the backbone, versus taking the immoral route in a situational ethics scenario in which there are bound to be moral options.
So, no, I do not believe it is all right to commit an immoral act in the name of a higher principle. Even if I were to take an immoral action, in a no win scenario, I do no expect to not face negative consequences for it. What I do believe is that I am an imperfect person among many other imperfect people living in an imperfect world. Moral guidelines are necessary and most often not difficult to follow. But every now and then, one is forced to make choices and hope for the best.
Being a Christian does not make that any easier. I am as prone to sin an hypocrisy as anyone else. Thus, I reiterate thankfulness my imperfect self is under grace.
