Some Contributions to the Philosophy of Religion

Abstract

THE four books' here discussed are all of recent date, though that by Mehl a translation and that by Fromm a collection of essays published over last thirty-four years. In A Philosophy of Christian Morals for Today, Dr Corkey claims it as part of his original contribution to subject to have 'brought to light paradoxical fact that so-called naturalistic fallacy itself based on a fallacy'. His point appears to be that modern philosophers, who reject any deduction of 'ought' from 'is', do so because they base moral judgments upon decisions to act; they are thereby confounded out of their own mouths because, if it fallacious to deduce 'ought' from 'is', then 'I ought to do X' cannot be deduced from 'I decide to do X'. But would any contemporary philosopher say that 'I ought to do X' can be deduced from 'I decide to do X'? The moral use of language sui generis and aim of analytical moral philosophy to discover rules to which moral judgments, qua moral, conform. For instance, universalizability. This rule normally adhered to (pace Sartre, et al.) in moral discourse, and anyone who refused to conform to it in argument could legitimately be accused of opting out of moral language game. It does not, however, apply in same way to expressions of taste or statements of decision to act. The slogan 'ought cannot be deduced from is ' intended to call attention to fact that moral use of language cannot be reduced to any other. And this holds, even though it may also be true that such use occurs in situations where we are deciding what to do or recommending courses of action to others. The author's own view that basic intrinsic ethical values, such as happiness, knowledge and goodwill, together with supreme principle 'one ought always to prefer greater to lesser good when either of these can be chosen, but not both', are apprehended intuitively, and particular acts or states of affairs have moral worth as this rule, or these values, are instantiated in them. This view is, of course, open to all objections which can be brought against intuitionism. What disturbing that Dr Corkey should lay it down that 'Christian morality indissolubly bound up with principles of the objectivity of moral judg-