Comments on: The Strategic Importance of Moral Capital http://insidework.net/resources/articles/entry-0000010648 faith and the bible at work and business for leading and innovating in a global economy Sun, 25 Jul 2010 17:32:49 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Bill Heatley http://insidework.net/resources/articles/entry-0000010648/comment-page-1#comment-2481 Bill Heatley Fri, 23 Jan 2009 23:59:50 +0000 http://insidework.net/resources/articles/entry-0000010648#comment-2481 The list of morality based business failures is very lengthy but businesses aren't necessarily moral, the ethos or culture of the people who make up a business are. I think the more important questions to explore are, "what is virtue?", "how can I become virtuous?" and "does my defintion of success allow me to be virtuous?" The early Christians had a phrase, "to live a life of virtue". And they attributed this way of living to the people they called saints. Saintliness, Holiness and Virtue were interchangeable terms and the pursuit of virtue has been held as the highest human endeavor since the time of Socrates. The question, "Is the pursuit of virtue something of value" wasn't even asked until recently. We live in a time and place where it now is a legitimate question and one that deserves good answers and a large degree of thought and study. Virtue is living an excellent moral existence and every person of good character is considered virtuous ("good character" needs some definition so lets use Jesus as the standard). The confusion regarding virtue comes to us recently (the decline is noteable in the last 100 years) and is seen in the way that we think about and discuss Ethics and Morals. Ethics as practiced and discussed today is simply litigation avoidance because its principle aim is to protect an organization from public or legal scrutiny and judgement. Ethics in that regard has no relationship to Virtue and has very little to do with Morality except as it applies to those situations and their legal consequence or impact to reputation. There are seven characteristics of virtue as understood by the Greeks, the early church fathers had a list of ten, the Bible has several lists with Galatians 5:22 as a good one, CS Lewis uses an updated list in Mere Christianity and explains the Cardinal and Theological divide between what is considered a virtue by everyone (cardinal) and what is tied to a belief in God (Theological). The topic of virtue and the companion words--Ethics, Morals and now in the Obama inauguration speech, Character--comes up quite a bit and yet few can list the Virtues in any of their traditional forms and fewer could describe how they are to be applied or attained. Its difficult to discuss, let alone strive after virtue when you don't have the language to describe what you're striving for, so here are the early churchs: Prudence, justice, temperance, fortitude, understanding, charity, love of the poor, faith in Christ, meekness and hospitality. And this is the CS Lewis list: prudence, temperance, justice, fortitude, charity, hope, and faith. I leave it to you to look up Gal 5:22, Col 3:12, 2 Peter 1:5-7 What is also helpful is the relationship of virtue to righteousness. The Greek Arite (virtue) and Dikaiosune (righteousness). Virtue is the action or fruit and Righteousness its source. It was to the source of action that Jesus focuses his attention, the heart, will or spirit of the person. It is here that he understood his instruction and healing was needed and where it would do the most good. To pursue virtue is to pursue Christ. Is it a wise course for our work and labors? Do we even need to ask? The list of morality based business failures is very lengthy but businesses aren’t necessarily moral, the ethos or culture of the people who make up a business are. I think the more important questions to explore are, "what is virtue?", "how can I become virtuous?" and "does my defintion of success allow me to be virtuous?"

The early Christians had a phrase, "to live a life of virtue". And they attributed this way of living to the people they called saints. Saintliness, Holiness and Virtue were interchangeable terms and the pursuit of virtue has been held as the highest human endeavor since the time of Socrates. The question, "Is the pursuit of virtue something of value" wasn’t even asked until recently. We live in a time and place where it now is a legitimate question and one that deserves good answers and a large degree of thought and study.

Virtue is living an excellent moral existence and every person of good character is considered virtuous ("good character" needs some definition so lets use Jesus as the standard). The confusion regarding virtue comes to us recently (the decline is noteable in the last 100 years) and is seen in the way that we think about and discuss Ethics and Morals.

Ethics as practiced and discussed today is simply litigation avoidance because its principle aim is to protect an organization from public or legal scrutiny and judgement. Ethics in that regard has no relationship to Virtue and has very little to do with Morality except as it applies to those situations and their legal consequence or impact to reputation.

There are seven characteristics of virtue as understood by the Greeks, the early church fathers had a list of ten, the Bible has several lists with Galatians 5:22 as a good one, CS Lewis uses an updated list in Mere Christianity and explains the Cardinal and Theological divide between what is considered a virtue by everyone (cardinal) and what is tied to a belief in God (Theological). The topic of virtue and the companion words–Ethics, Morals and now in the Obama inauguration speech, Character–comes up quite a bit and yet few can list the Virtues in any of their traditional forms and fewer could describe how they are to be applied or attained.

Its difficult to discuss, let alone strive after virtue when you don’t have the language to describe what you’re striving for, so here are the early churchs: Prudence, justice, temperance, fortitude, understanding, charity, love of the poor, faith in Christ, meekness and hospitality. And this is the CS Lewis list: prudence, temperance, justice, fortitude, charity, hope, and faith. I leave it to you to look up Gal 5:22, Col 3:12, 2 Peter 1:5-7

What is also helpful is the relationship of virtue to righteousness. The Greek Arite (virtue) and Dikaiosune (righteousness). Virtue is the action or fruit and Righteousness its source. It was to the source of action that Jesus focuses his attention, the heart, will or spirit of the person. It is here that he understood his instruction and healing was needed and where it would do the most good.

To pursue virtue is to pursue Christ. Is it a wise course for our work and labors? Do we even need to ask?

]]>