In the last 25 years, Roman Catholic moral theology has debated issues ranging from the sources of moral theology to the role of ecclesiastical authority in moral theology. In 1993, Pope John Paul II issued his encyclical letter Veritatis Splendor, which addresses issues in fundamental moral theology. The encyclical must ...

The work of H. Tristram Engelhardt provides an important set of reflections for bioethics in a secular context. Taking Engelhardt's work as its point of departure this article explores the challenges that Jewish ethicists face in contributing to bioethics in a secular context. The article explores how the Jewish tradition ...

Several recent attempts to develop models of moral reasoning have attempted to use some form of casuistry as a way to resolve the moral controversies of clinical ethics. One of the best known models of casuistry is that of Jonsen and Toulmin who attempt to transpose a particular model of ...

The debate on the ethical permissibility of euthanasia in medicine has a corollary in the ethical application of drugs. The overall moral limits of medical treatment apply evenly to the moral acceptability of the pharmacological aspect of the act of euthanasia. The pharmacological aspect of the act is of ethical ...

This paper is an analysis of the relationship of social ethics and bioethics in Roman Catholic theology. The argument of the paper is that the character of both Catholic moral theology and ecclesiology shape the broadly defined interest of the church in bioethics. The paper examines the common elements of ...

Academic boycott has been justified as an appropriate political strategy in the struggle against the oppression of apartheid. Moral outrage against racist policies has led to the claim that academic boycott is a morally imperative component of a broader sanctions policy. This claim has neither been substantiated by a reasoned ...

And if everything is so nebulous about a matter so elementary as the morals of sex, what is there to guide us in the more subtle morality of all other personal contacts, associations and activities? Or are we meant to act on impulse alone? It is all the 'darkness': Ford-Madox-Ford.

The stream of ethics questions that arise in science seems endless. These questions concern how one determines responsibilities, rights, obligations, policies, and the like. But neither a "code of ethics" nor customary practice-standards may adequately justify a moral belief. An ethical theory is sometimes necessary to make progress on our ...

Erich H. Loewy proposes to elevate the moral obligation to prevent and relieve suffering to the level of a prima facie moral duty by delineating which beings are of primary moral worth and which are of secondary moral worth. Sentient beings have a capacity to suffer and are therefore of ...

In his recent book The Foundation of Bioethics, H. Tristam Engelhardt Jr. advances the idea of a peaceable pluralist moral society based on principles of autonomy, beneficience, and ownership. This paper tries to show that unless there is one and only one rationally sustainable definition of "a person", then the ...

In this article the developments in euthanasia in The Netherlands are discussed. To a large extent unanimity has been reached about the definition of euthanasia. Since 1973 the courts have become involved in euthanasia cases. The lower courts and the Supreme Court allowed for euthanasia on request under certain conditions. ...

Medical ethics is commonly assumed to be a form of 'applied moral philosophy' in which practical moral judgments are deduced from moral theories. This account of the relationship between moral theory and moral judgment is inadequate in several reports. The deductivist approach often results in inadequate attention being given to ...

In considering the patient's right to a certain quality of dying, this essay outlines how the legal and ethical justifications for passive euthanasia depend on the doctrine of acts and omissions. It is suggested that this doctrine is untenable and that alternative justifications are needed. The development of the modern ...

Euthanasia is a highly emotive and contentious subject, giving rise to a great deal of debate. However, despite its frequent exposure in public and professional media, there appears to be a lack of clarity about the concepts and definitions used in the euthanasia debate. This suggests that discussions on this ...