In all the coverage of the corporate balance-sheet scandals of late, how many articles or columns have you read asking the fundamental question, "How did we get here?" Moreover, if Machiavelli was right and we should only utilize ethics for the good of the state or if each person is left to "shuck and jive" around reality by his own choices, a la Jean-Paul Sartre, then why all the fuss? Why are we Americans (most of whom, not coincidentally, stand to lose out in the stock market) scandalized by these developments? Why all the microscopically intense coverage from a media establishment that often seeks to swerve around the appeal to transcendent ethical standards?
Could it be that, when the day is done and our own welfare is impinged, we really know that an ethical base built on solid ground is desirable? Recent events in the corporate sphere force us to ask why such a widespread ethical breakdown has occurred. This collection of writers holds forth the notion that, not only are stable ethics desirable, but that they are unattainable aside from the bedrock of transcendent truth. (These authors also challenge those who posit the impossibility of such transcendence. So does public reaction to the scandals.) An examination of the biblical worldview provides just such an immovable moral base. These writings declare that, without the intervention of the God who provides this firm setting, people left to their own devices will corrupt the very morals they long for when "it hurts." Take some time to examine the featured online book, Loving Monday, as well as the other thoughtul resources in our Special Focus.
—Leadership University Editor/Webmaster, Byron Barlowe
"Business" and "Ethics":
Can These Terms Be Used in the Same Title?
Ray Cotton
This essay grapples with some of the problems Christians face trying to
operate ethically in today's business world. It examines the question,
"Who makes the rules? It discusses ethical guidelines for the real world
and the cost of living ethically while offering ten global principles
for success.
Professional
Ethics without Religion
Dr. Otto J. Helweg
It seems that writers on professional ethics attempt to dissociate ethics
from religion. There are philosophical reasons why this is not only bad
strategy but fundamentally flawed logically. If each individual does not
have an existential reason for being ethical, all the codes in the world
cannot produce ethical behavior. This paper argues that a theistic presupposition
is a sufficient, if not necessary, condition to supply the existential
motivation. Moreover, professional societies should encourage rather than
discourage their members to integrate their theological inclinations with
the appropriate ethical codes. Though the principles are generally applicable,
the paper is written from the perspective of an engineer.
You Can Love Monday
The Real Issue
John Beckett, president of the world's largest manufacturer of heating
oil burners, explains how Christians need to follow God's calling in any
profession.
Measuring Morality: A Comparison
of Ethical Systems
Erwin Lutzer
What makes an action right or wrong? The answer to this question, when
asked of various ethical systems, helps sort through the maze of beliefs
that muddy the ethical waters. A condensation of Erwin Lutzer's book "Measuring
Morality: A Comparison of Ethical Systems."
The Morality of the West
From Bad to Worse
Ray Cotton
The ethics now taught in our schools have changed from biblically based
values to the morality of political rationalism, which is destroying our
society and corrupting the minds of our youth. Traces the route we took
to get where we are ethically.
Ethics: Pick or Choose?
Ray Cotton
A look at the ethics flowing out of humanistic existentialism which states
that morality is rooted in human choice. This perspective seeks to show
how rejection of biblical truth in the realm of ethics and morals ultimately
leads to despair--not to mention Enronesque improprieties.
Morality Apart From God:
Is It Possible?
Ray Cotton
Is God necessary for ethical systems? Some modern philosophers argue He
isn't, but Ray Cotton insists that there is no point to morality without
God. As we have seen with Enron, Worldcom and a host of other [ital] creative
accounters, "Basing ethical decisions on personal values is problematic."
Does Character Matter?
Frederica Mathewes-Green
Does character matter? Is character an important component of leadership?
Can you be a leader without attention to personal integrity, or private
morality? A lot of Americans seem to think it doesn't matter. Competence
is everything. Personal integrity is expendable. This article does not
dwell on particular examples, but rather looks at much larger, more serious
historical examples of exercising leadership without exercising character.
Go here to see our past Special Focus features.