!! WAKE UP ALERT !!
This is Not about religion.
This is about common decency, mother nature, and the future of civilized society…
From: Kenneth J. Howell
Date: Tue, May 4, 2010 at 9:45 PM
Subject: Utilitarianism and Sexuality (for those in 447 FYI)
Dear Students:
Since there is a question on the final exam about utilitarianism (see the review sheet), I thought I would help with an example. I realized after my lectures on moral theory that even though I talked about the substance of utilitarianism, I did not identify it as such and so you may not have been able to see it.
It turns out that our discussion of homosexuality brings up the issue of utilitarianism. In class, our discussion of the morality of homosexual acts was very incomplete because any moral issue about which people disagree ALWAYS raises a more fundamental issue about criteria. ????? ??? In other words, by what criteria should we judge whether a given act is right or wrong?
…..
As a final note, a perceptive reader will have noticed that none of what I have said here or in class depends upon religion. ?????? ??? ???? ????? Catholics don’t arrive at their moral conclusions based on their religion. ??? ???? ????? ?? ???????? ?????? They do so based on a thorough understanding of natural reality.
Kenneth J. Howell Ph.D.
Director, St. John’s Institute of Catholic Thought
Adjunct Associate Professor of Religion, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
