Q&A: Morality
Morality
Question
Hello Rabbi, in your article on morality and Jewish law you wrote: “Third, morality depends on norms that develop in different times and places, and therefore the Torah does not want to lay down fixed rules in this area. In the past there was no moral problem with raping a captive woman, but today there is such a problem. The Torah does not lay down fixed rules in the realm of morality not only in order to be lenient but also in order to be stringent. In our time, when this is clearly perceived as a moral problem, there is no reason for the Torah to permit it. In other periods the situation was different. Therefore the Torah suffices with the general determination, ‘And you shall do what is right and good,’ which instructs us to act morally, without specifying further what exactly is the right and good required of us. Each person and each society are required to understand that for themselves from their conscience and from the values on which they were educated.”
And I ask: what does it mean that morality depends on developing norms, and that in the past there was no moral problem with raping a captive woman? After all, morality is objective, isn’t it? Just as today, I assume, captive women were also harmed by rape in the past. So why should morality change according to the norms of the period?
Answer
Morality is a function of circumstances, both factual and evaluative. A world in which the victor rapes captive women as a symbol of his victory is not the same as our world. The very meaning of rape is also different between those worlds.
Discussion on Answer
I already answered and gave examples.
I didn’t write anywhere that morality is determined by what is accepted. So what does a village in Brazil have to do with what I said here? What I said is that morality is influenced by changing reality. And this is mainly in two senses: a. Under different circumstances, the very same moral principles are applied differently. b. The moral principles themselves are a function of cultural development. You cannot demand of warriors in the ancient world the norms that are demanded of warriors in our time. And not only because their moral level and the level of the world were different, but because reciprocity also matters. To act according to exalted moral norms in a world where that is not the practice is sometimes foolish. For example, according to Meiri, the attitude toward gentiles is influenced by their spiritual level, and therefore the Talmudic and biblical attitude toward them is not relevant in a place where gentiles conduct themselves as morally decent human beings.
Hello Rabbi. Here is a discussion between Ben Shapiro and an atheist about morality. I wanted to know whether the Rabbi agrees with Ben’s attitude toward slavery in the period of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh).
If you want to ask something, formulate it here.
I didn’t understand the answer. If you can, please expand a bit more. For example, if in a village in Brazil it is customary to steal from the elderly, would theft be considered moral?