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Exploring Dualism and Ethics: A Christian Moral Defense of Nonreductive Physicalism

In "A Moral Case for Nonreductive Physicalism," Stephen G. Post argues that Christian morality can harmoniously coexist with nonreductive physicalism. He highlights the ethical implications of dualism, including its moral advantages and disadvantages. Notably, he posits that recognizing the inherent worth of all individuals, including those with mental disabilities, stems from a belief in the soul. Post critiques the historical links between dualism and unethical practices, such as slavery and patriarchy, while advocating for a monistic view that promotes inclusivity and love for all humanity.

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Exploring Dualism and Ethics: A Christian Moral Defense of Nonreductive Physicalism

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  1. Post on dualism & ethics • Stephen G. Post. “A Moral Case for Nonreductive Physicalism.” In Warren Brown, Nancey Murphy, & H. Newton Maloney, ed. Whatever Happened to the Soul? Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1998. • Thesis: Christian morality is compatible with nonreductive physicalism. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 1

  2. Post on dualism & ethics • Dualism appears to have some distinctive moral advantages • Notion of soul bestows “equal moral worth on all humans” (196). • Persons who are severely mentally handicapped and those with Alzheimer’s are still fully human because they have a soul. Accordingly they are worthy of full human dignity (197). Post on dualism & ethics - slide 2

  3. Post on dualism & ethics • Wolf Wolfensberger, uses this type of argument. He blames the mistreatment of the mentally retarded on “materialism” & “reductionistic” views of human nature. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 3

  4. Post on dualism & ethics • But historically the connecton between soul and moral worth is not always present. • Plato was a strong dualist; yet in the Republic he sanctioned infanticide for the sake of his eugenics program. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 4

  5. Post on dualism & ethics • Dualism also has moral disadvantages • Slavery • Plato likened the body to a slave; the soul is the master. • He argued that just as the soul ought to have total dominion over the body, so should the master have dominion over the slave. • This is the natural “order of being.” Post on dualism & ethics - slide 5

  6. Post on dualism & ethics • Denial of pleasure • Lisa Sowle Cahill argues that dualism is linked to the denial of pleasure and intimacy as values in married love. • She traces this back to Augustine’s Neoplatonism--the body is a hindrance to the spiritual contemplation of God. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 6

  7. Post on dualism & ethics • Patriarchy • Cahil also argues that soul-body dualism became intertwined with the patriarchal dualism of man over woman. • Men were identified with the rational while women were identified with body, earthiness, and irrationality (206). Post on dualism & ethics - slide 7

  8. Post on dualism & ethics • The alternative: a monistic view of human nature • Do monistic views of human nature threaten moral inclusivity (including all humans--women, children, the handicapped--as deserving respect & dignity) and traditional Christian ethics? • Post answers no. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 8

  9. Post on dualism & ethics • Christianity contains within itself other resources for defending moral inclusivity • These other resources • The common Christian narrative that bids us to love even the most devastated and imperiled neighbor (210). Post on dualism & ethics - slide 9

  10. Post on dualism & ethics • The Christian notion that each human person is a child of God & the recipient of God’s love and grace. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 10

  11. Post on dualism & ethics • The notion of agape. • A “love of bestowal”-- a person is loved simply because she or he is loved by God. Cf. a”appraisive love” — a person is loved because of certain attractive qualities (212). Post on dualism & ethics - slide 11

  12. Post on dualism & ethics • A comment on Post’s essay • The difference between traditional notion of soul and the appeal to agape & the imitation of Christ is that the traditional position provides a metaphysical basis for morality; the appeal to agape & imitation does not. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 12

  13. Post on dualism & ethics • And the traditional position provides a basis for moral inclusivity which can appeal to persons of different religions; the ethic of agape and imitation will not have any force to those who are not Christian. Post on dualism & ethics - slide 13

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