Hermeneutic and Teleology in Ethics across Denominations—Thomas Aquinas and Karl Barth

Jacqueline Stewart

doi:10.3390/rel8100207

Abstract

This study arises from the context of current debates in the Catholic Church on the place of rule and law in moral reasoning. I suggest that ethics may be best served by approaches that place the human subject in a teleogical context and that recognise the need for interpretation of circumstances surrounding actions to be evaluated. This is in contrast to normative rule approaches. The insights retrieved from the account of moral reasoning in Thomas Aquinas by Joseph Selling are compared with an account of the ethical implications of Karl Barth’s theology of hope as expressed in Volume Four of the Church Dogmatics. It is concluded that, in an ecumenical convergence, neither propose a normative rule approach. Rather both use a teleological context and require a hermeneutic of evaluation.

Highlights

A contemporary ‘reframing’ may be indicated for moral theology and ethics across the whole range of denominations and even religions
Choice, and the prior moral significance he imputes to intention. Janssens develops this to the conclusion that Thomas does not offer a rule based normativity. He proposes a process of moral reasoning requiring an interpretation of tradition in which humanity is oriented to the pursuit of the good, and which sees the moral importance of intention, and takes into account the finite and partial nature of human reality. (From this account of moral reasoning in Thomas, the description of moral action as involving the ‘human person adequately considered’ evolved and found its way into the documents of Vatican II)
There is no section in the Church Dogmatics headed ‘ethics’

Summary

Introduction

A contemporary ‘reframing’ may be indicated for moral theology and ethics across the whole range of denominations and even religions. Janssens develops this to the conclusion that Thomas does not offer a rule based normativity Rather, he proposes a process of moral reasoning requiring an interpretation of tradition in which humanity is oriented to the pursuit of the good, and which sees the moral importance of intention, and takes into account the finite and partial nature of human reality. Daniel Westberg offers an approach to Thomas which converges with Selling, (Westberg 2015), in distinction to the many who would maintain a contrary view, e.g., Sevais Pinckaers (Pinckaers 2001) It seems that Selling’s recovery of insights from Thomas, via the approaches that were present in Vatican II, may alter the balance of argument between those advocating normative rules and those advocating an interpretative context in the Roman Catholic tradition. His approach to moral reasoning may yield some valuable insights in the context of the foregoing discussion

Barth and Contemporary Protestant Ethics

An Example

Conclusions