In order to achieve the specific aims of this course, we will tackle the following themes:
Ethics today (covering both the current philosophical and theological contexts)
An approach to ethics: the basics (drawing on examples from many different fields)
The development of moral thought: an historical overview
Introduction to key concepts for inquiry, specifically the concept of the human condition (particularly drawing on P. Ricoeur's Le Volontaire et l'Involontaire)
Morality: from obeying laws to the ambition of the greatest love
Links between philosophy and theology; the nature of theological inquiry in the contemporary landscape of ethical inquiry (including an overview of biblical moral codes and various approaches within the Catholic tradition)
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Discern the issues and concerns raised by the study of ethics
- Define and explain the key concepts within moral inquiry
- Adopt an approach to ethical inquiry, explaining both the philosophical process and the contribution of theology
- Refer to and critically appraise philosophers and theologians
- Identify the main ethical themes running through the Scriptures and Catholic tradition
The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.
Oral examination.
Although the delivery of this course will be principally through lectures, students will be provided with a course structure and portfolio of reading material at each stage, to enable active individual participation of all students.
2016-2017
After a description of the current context and the relevance of ethical inquiry to contemporary debates, the course will briefly cover an overview of ethics, before introducing a series of key concepts:
The human condition
Conscience
Law and ambition of love (including the necessary, yet instructive, tension between them)
We will then turn to P. Ricoeur's thinking, noting the way in which his human experience and intellectual career interacted in his own life, and also covering his thoughts on freedom, desire and fallibility - elements of ethics in action.
At this stage, ethics opens up the question of hermeneutics, and in particular, biblical hermeneutics. The process we adopt allows us to reflect on the characteristics of a theological approach to ethics and to establish the main themes in moral theology.
BEAUCHAMP Paul, La Loi de Dieu. D'une montagne à l'autre, Paris, Edition du Seuil, 1999.
BRUGUES Jean-Louis, Précis de théologie morale générale, t. 2, vol. 1 : Anthropologie morale, Paris, Parole et Silence, 2002.
CHRISTIE Dolores L., Adequately Considered : An American Perspective on Louis Janssens Personnalist Morals (Louvain Théological and Pastoral Monographs, 4), Louvain, Peeters, 1990.
COMMISSION BIBLIQUE PONTIFICALE, Bible et morale. Quels critères pour discerner ?, Paris, Nouvelle Cité, 2009.
DEMMER Klaus, Shaping the Moral Life. An Approach to Moral Theology, Washington, Georgetown University Press, 2000.
FUCHS Eric, L'Ethique chrétienne. Du Nouveau Testament aux défis contemporains, Genève, Labor et Fides, 2003.
GAZIAUX Eric, LEMOINE Laurent et MÜLLER Denis (sous la direction de), Dictionnaire encyclopédique d'Ethique chrétienne, Paris, Edition du Cerf, 2013.
GAZIAUX Eric, Morale de la foi et morale autonome. Confrontation entre Ph. Delhaye et J. Fuchs (BETL, n° 119), Louvain, Peeters, 1995.
JEAN-PAUL II, Veritatis splendor. Sur la question morale, 1993.
LEONARD André, Le fondement de la morale. Essai d'éthique philosophique, Paris, Editions du Cerf, 1991.
MEDEVIELLE Geneviève, Le Bien et le Mal' tout simplement, Paris, Edition de l'Atelier, 2004.
PINCKAERS Servais, Les sources de la morale chrétienne. Sa méthode, son contenu, son histoire (Coll. Etudes d'éthique chrétienne), Fribourg - Paris, Editions universitaires ' Editions du Cerf, 3e édition, 2005.
RICOEUR Paul, « Ethique et morale », dans Lecture I. Autour du politique, Paris, Edition du Seuil, 1991, p. 256-269.
RICOEUR Paul, Soi-même comme un autre, Paris, Edition du Seuil, 1990.
THEVENOT Xavier, Compter sur Dieu, Paris, Edition du Cerf, 1992.
THEVENOT Xavier, Repères éthiques pour un monde nouveau, Mulhouse, Salvator, 1982.
THOMASSET Alain, Interpréter et agir. Jalons pour une éthique chrétienne, Paris, Cerf, 2011.
THOMASSET Alain, « La théologie morale comme triple herméneutique » dans Revue d'éthique et de théologie morale, décembre 2006, p. 47-70.
THOMASSET Alain, « Théologie morale : En réponse au don de Dieu, la recherche d'une vie pleinement humaine », Jean-Louis Souletie (ed.) Les voies divines de la liberté, Précis contemporain de théologie chrétienne (Coll. Theologia), Paris, Bayard, 2011, pp. 233-262.
VALADIER Paul, Eloge de la conscience, Paris, Edition du Seuil, 1994.
VALADIER Paul, La condition chrétienne, Paris, Edition du Cerf, 2003.
