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What is Situation Ethics?
Situation Ethics is the method of ethical decision making that states that
you must consider “noble love” (agape) in decision making, and that a
moral decision is correct if it is the most loving thing to do.
Historical background
‘Greater independence; more money in their pockets and
purses; the weakening of family bonds and religious
influences; the development of earlier maturity,
physically, emotionally and mentally; the impact of
modern books, television and periodicals’
Good to
quote!
(Sex and Morality, SCM, 1966)
The study above blamed many things on the fact that many
people were turning away from the Church’s rules
(legalism) and more towards antinomianism (the
abandonment of any rules). The world was becoming
more secular (non-religious) and people had stopped
listening to the Church and their teachings on what was
ethically right.
So where does Situation Ethics fit
in?
Fletcher and Robinson acknowledged these changes and sought
an ethical solution which would bring people back towards
making Christian moral decisions, but which didn’t have the
doom and gloom associated with religion.
Use this
phrase
Robinson said that Situation Ethics was for “Man come of
age”. In other words, it was for people who were moving
away from having to be told what to do by God, and yet it still
had the Christian flavour. It was slap bang in the middle of
legalism and antinomianism!
Robinson and Tillich suggested that God could be understood as
‘the ground of our being’, of ultimate significance, but not a
dues ex machine, a supernatural being who intervenes in the
world from outside it. In other words God is part of people not
this almighty being who barks instructions at us to follow.
Test time! Write down your answers
then click the mouse to check them
Q: Give 2 things that made people start becoming secular
A: Vietnam war, contraception, TV/communication, greater
independence
Q: What was the study which investigated what was going on
called and in which year was it published?
A: Sex and Morality, 1966
Q: What did Robinson mean by “man come of age”?
A: The idea that the time had come where people were moving away
from having to be told what to do by God
Q: What does deux ex machine mean?
A: God is of great significance but does not interfere with humanity
anymore
Situation Ethics is based on 1 principle only
– to the most loving thing - and so it is
relevant to everyone, everywhere and in
any set of circumstances.
It also means that nothing is always right or
always wrong – it is situational so what
may be right in one situation, may be
immoral in another situation.
But what is love??
Fletcher and Robinson didn’t mean just any kind of
love – it had to be unconditional and the sort
from one human to another. It is not based on
romance, sexual attraction or any relationship at
all. It can be from one stranger to another, as
well as between people who know each other.
It is the love that Jesus and St Paul talked
about in the Bible - AGAPE
The Result
• The fall out of such an idea was immense.
To many people this was a really popular
and interesting idea.
• To religious people it was an abomination
and flew in the face of what the Church
stood for – more about this later!
Understanding Situation Ethics
Fletcher came up with the 4 Working
Principles in order to help people
understand how situation ethics works and
why it is a good idea.
These are 4 things which are the main
ideas in Situation Ethics and you should
try to include at least 3 in your essay if
asked about the main features/principles
Situation ethics is good as
it is always what works for
the best.
No matter what the
situation, going with what
is the most loving thing can
only lead to more good
than bad
Love is the only thing that is
relevant to all situations
unlike laws which work for
some things but not others.
Situation Ethics uses 1
principle so is easy to
remember
Love is the most important
criterion of all. Situation
Ethics recognises that
love is the most important
thing when making a moral
choice and echoes the
sentiments of the Bible
Situation Ethics puts human
beings and their concerns
are at the centre of morality
unlike laws and rules which
often seem to be detrimental
to a person’s wellbeing. This
follows Jesus’ example
Test time! Write down your answers
then click the mouse to check them
Q: What does agape mean?
A: Christian love for one another
Q: Name the 4 parts of the 4 Working Principles
A: Pragmatism, relativism, personalism, positivism
Q: What is Fletcher’s main quote on what Situation Ethics is
about?
A: “The morality of an action depends on the situation”
Q: What is personalism?
A: The idea that people should come before rules, as demonstrated
and taught by Jesus in the New Testament
So where did the idea stem from?
As far as Fletcher and Robinson (at first) was
concerned Situation Ethics was a Christian ethic
based on the teachings of Jesus.
In the Bible Jesus had many discussions with the
Pharisees over old morality (the strict
application of Torah law / legalism) versus new
morality (Jesus’ idea of how the law should be
applied).
Fletcher used the following to show that a strict
application of the Bible’s rules was no longer needed
and was in line with what Jesus thought too
1.
The adulterous woman - Jesus prevents a woman
being stoned even though the law allowed her to be.
This is evidence of personalism too.
2.
Jesus and the Sabbath Day – Jesus also confronted
the Pharisees over what the day was intended for. In
order to follow strict Jewish law absolutely nothing
could be done on this day, often to the detriment of
people. Jesus wanted people to follow the spirit in
which God had given the law rather than following it to
the letter and acting immorally in some cases
3.
Jesus commented on the divorce law – He said that
the divorce law had been given as a response to
man’s “sinful nature” but now people had evolved and
should not need to be told what to do now. This is in
line with Robinson’s “man come of age” idea
Also in line with Jesus are the 6
Fundamental Principles
These are 6 things which spell out what
agape is and relate closely to Biblical
teaching on what Christian love should be.
For the exam you only really need to use 1
or 2 of these.
2. Love is the only norm
1. Love only is always good
Actions are only good if they
help humans (showing love
for one another) and they are
bad if they hurt people.
6. Love decides there
and then
Whether something is
right or wrong depends
on the situation and can’t
be pre-determined
Jesus and St Paul replaced the Torah with
the principle of love, in the past Christians
have broken the 10 Commandments in
order to do the right thing e.g. Bonhoeffer
tried to kill Hitler
The 6
Fundamental
Principles
3. Love and justice are
the same, and love is
justice distributed
Love and justice can not
be separated.
5. Love is the only means
When weighing up a situation, one must
consider what you want the outcome to be
and what you need to do to get there.
Fletcher said the end must be the most
loving thing
4. Love wills the neighbour's
good, whether we like him or
not.
Your neighbour is anybody and
agape love goes out to everyone
• Try to use Fletcher’s examples if you can in your work, rather
than your own. Don’t forget to talk about them as well, they
shouldn’t just be stuck in randomly
• Never write out the whole story, just refer to it. For example
Fletcher used the example “Sacrificial Adultery” where a
POW woman debates on whether to have commit
adultery in order to be released and sent back to her
family.
The point Fletcher was making was that surely it was the best
thing (the most loving thing) for the mother to break the
Commandment “Do not commit adultery” in order to get
home to her children. This has to be the most loving thing for
her and all even though it breaks one of God’s
commandments. Surely God would not think this immoral as
this is not why he gave that particular law in the first place?
A sum up of the characteristics/principles on
which Situation Ethics is based:
• It is an attempt to link Christianity with new
morality for ‘man come of age’
• It focus’ on Jesus’ dialogue with the Pharisees
about the application of legalistic rules
• It is the rejection of absolute rules as it solves
moral dilemmas situationally and
circumstantially
• It focus’ on positivism and personalism
Criticisms of Situation Ethics
These come from 2 main camps:
Roman Catholic Church Criticism
Roman Catholics are quite traditionally in many ways and
closely follow the instructions of the Bible (called Divine
Command).
Pope Pius XII banned Situation Ethics from being
discussed at RC seminaries.
In 1952 Pope Pius XII called situation ethics ‘an
individualistic and subjective appeal to the concrete
circumstances of actions to justify decisions in
opposition to the natural law or God’s revealed will’.
So in other words he said that it was wrong to break God’s
laws
It is individualistic because humans see things from their own
perspective.
There is a danger that the ideals of unconditional love may be polluted
by a selfish human tendency and people using it as an excuse for not
obeying the rules. How many parents can show equal love to strangers
as to their own children?
This argument made Robinson withdraw his support for Situation Ethics
Situation ethics is
subjective
because decisions
are made from
within the situation
as it is perceived
to be.
Situation ethics could
prove unworkable
because it isn’t
easy to determine
all the
consequences of
an action.
Situation ethics
seems to be
prepared to
accept any action
at all if it fits the
required criteria.
What is believed to
be a loving end by
some could justify
actions that many
people would
regard as wrong.
Pius XII
Another Christian criticism
It wasn’t just the Roman Catholic Church who was opposed to Situation
Ethics. Other Christians put forward Biblical justification of how
Fletcher had got it wrong:
St. Paul continued Jesus’ mission after his death instructing new
churches setting up as far as Greece. In Romans 13:9-10 he says:
9 The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do
not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there
may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbour as
yourself." 10Love does no harm to its neighbour. Therefore
love is the fulfilment of the law.”
So according to St Paul, people do need to follow God’s laws in
order to follow Jesus’ teaching on how agape is distributed
William Barclay’s Criticisms
1.
Barclay said the examples Fletcher used to illustrate situation ethics
are extreme cases. He asked how often people had to make life and
death decisions on which situation ethics seemed to be based? He said:
“It is much easier to agree that extraordinary situations need
extraordinary measures than to think that there are no laws for
ordinary life.” (Ethics in a Permissive Society, 1971)
2.
He said that the suggestion that laws could be abandoned if needed
was too optimistic. Humans needs laws for protection etc and how
would people know exactly when it was “the most loving thing” to abandon
them? A circumstance to one, may not be to another.
3.
He argued that it is hard for individuals to make their own moral
decisions in every situations. We can be swayed by emotion or fear
and persuade ourselves that we are doing the most loving thing when
really we are doing the thing that suits ourselves the most.
Overall strengths
Overall weaknesses
That it provides a clear alternative to
Christian ethics that is consistent to the
Jesus represented in the Gospels. SOme
would argue that it is more in line with
Jesus’ teachings than following ALL the
rules in the Bible
1. It is subjective – we don’t always have the
fact to make a sound decision
Situation ethics is flexible and practical. It
takes in to account how complex human
life is and can make tough decisions
when, from a legalistic stance, all actions
seem wrong.
3. It is prepared to accept any actions as long
as the outcome is supposed to be loving
3.
It is easy to understand: you follow a
single principle
4.
You don’t have to follow a conventional
rule, if that goes against your deepest
sense of what love requires.
5. How often do we face extreme cases where
it is obvious what the most loving thing is?
People need to be practical and Fletcher’s
illustrations aren’t relevant for most people
1.
2.
5.
It is based on love, which, rationally as
well as emotionally, is a key feature of all
moral systems.
2. It is individualistic – what is the most loving
thing to one, is not to another
4. It is inconsistent with some teachings in the
Bible
6. People need laws and rules to spell out
behaviour in order to keep us all safe and
singing from the same song sheet
7. People would mean to do the most loving
thing but our personal preferences and
wants will always get in the way
Test time!
1. Give 3 reasons why Situation Ethics
could be seen as a Christian ethic
2. Give 1 of Fletcher’s examples of
Situation Ethics and explain the point of it
3. Give 3 strengths of Situation Ethics
4. Give 3 weakness’ of Situation Ethics
5. Why did Robinson withdraw his support
of Situation Ethics in the end?
Past Questions
2007: (i) Identify the distinctive characteristics of situation ethics.
(21)
• An attempt to link Christianity with new morality
• It focus’ on Jesus’ dialogue with the Pharisees
about the application of legalistic rules
• Rejection of absolute rules
• Solves moral dilemmas situationally and
circumstantially
• Focus’ on positivism and personalism
To answers refer to Fletcher and Robinson
2009: (i) Examine the distinctive
features of Situation Ethics.
• Refers to the relative nature of the theory, to the rejection
of absolutes,
• the centrality of agape,
• personalism
• positivism,
• the example of Jesus,
• The attempt by Robinson and Fletcher to establish an
ethic for ‘man come of age’.
• Displays some knowledge and understanding of
Situation Ethics within its social context and to show
some understanding of the controversial nature of the
theory and its relationship with changing theology in the
mid 20th century.
• Case studies are likely to be used with discretion,
perhaps Fletcher’s own, rather than hypothetical
scenarios.
(ii) Comment on the view that Situation Ethics fails
to be a valuable method for moral decision
making.
It doesn’t fail because:
• It was a way to unite people moving away from the Church with Christian
moral principles – it worked as it did lead people back to Christianity
• It follows one principle so is easy to remember and apply unlike other forms
of ethical decision making
• It is valuable as it counter acts problems caused by rigidly following laws –
e.g. puts people first (personalism)
However, it fails because:
• Arguably it is not valuable as it does not fully fit with Christian teaching – St.
Paul said that “Love is the fulfilment of the law”
• It allows rules to be broken if it is the most loving thing, yet who decides when
that is? It is unworkable really as some people can’t follow laws to protect
people so allowing no absolute rules could lead to chaos
• As Pope Pius XII said it is not valuable as it is subjective. People can’t always
make an informed decision about what the most loving thing if they don’t
have the full facts which many situations don’t allow
• Barclay would say that it is not valuable as people naturally do what is best
for themselves rather than what is good for people in general.
a) What are the distinctive features of
situation ethics? (21)
b) Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses
of situation ethics (9)