Life, Moral Relativism, and Catholic Education

Gabriel Marcella

What’s the greatest threat to our nation? The typical response might be terrorism, China, Iran, a resurgent Russia, climate change and environmental damage, or possibly a pandemic. Way down on the list would be the creeping impact of relativism, and the way it is subverting the quest for truth. We pride ourselves in being the most pluralistic, and diverse society in the world. We are taught that being non-judgmental and tolerant is a virtue. Perhaps because of the uniqueness of the American experience we may also be the most relativist society in the world. Relativism is the belief that there are no objective truths. Moral relativism holds that there is no objective morality, that it’s all relative to one’s belief or culture. Accordingly, anything goes, abortion is perfectly acceptable, individuals and cultures can uphold whatever values they wish.

One of America’s foremost philosophers, Francis Beckwith, argues brilliantly that the pervasive relativism, despite its apparent openness and tolerance, is at the core of the pro-abortion fallacy.¹ In his splendidly written and accessible book he analyzes the fallacy by appealing to logic. His principal points:

1. The unborn, from the moment of conception, is a full-fledged member of the human community.

2. It is morally wrong to kill any member of that community.

3. Disagreement between pro-life and pro-abortion does not justify relativism.

4. Absurd consequences follow from moral relativism (Mother Teresa is no better than Adolf Hitler).

5. Tolerance supports objective morality, not relativism.

6. Relativism is itself closed-minded and intolerant.

7. Relativism is judgmental, exclusivist, and partisan.

8. Tolerance of moral relativism either condones barbarism or is self-refuting.

The implications for Catholic education are clear. We must study, understand and then defend our faith in order to combat the relativism and its twin, secularism. Compounding our challenge is the lamentable fact that some so-called Catholics in public life and universities are exponents of relativism, supporting “choice” and a “woman’s right,” and denying the scientific evidence that a zygote has all the attributes of a human being. Parents and schools must do a better job of imparting a thorough understanding of our faith and the philosophical and scientific principles that underlie pro-life. Let’s heed the advice of Mary Anne Glendon, professor at Harvard law School and former American Ambassador to the Holy See:“In contemporary society, if religious formation does not come up to the general level of secular education, we are going to run into trouble defending our beliefs — even to ourselves. We are going to feel helpless when we come up against the secularism and relativism that are so pervasive in our culture and in the university. We are going to be tongue-tied when our faith comes under unjust attack.” http://www.catholiceducation.org/center/CERC-2005-pamphlet.pdf

A good way to start is by tapping the writings and audios of Beckwith and Peter Kreeft on our site.

¹ Francis Beckwith, Defending Life: A Moral and Legal Case Against Abortion Choice, Cambridge University Press, 2007. Beckwith teaches at Baylor University.