X – CURRENT PHILIPPINE

ETHICAL ISSUES

MORALITY & RELIGION

ROLE OF RELIGION IN ETHICS
PHIL. ETHICAL CHALLENGES & ISSUES

Giselle Mae Garcia

CAS-DSSH, Political Science Instructor
 MORALITY & RELIGION
 Morality is thought to pertain to the conduct of human
affairs and relations between persons, while religion
primarily involves the relationship between human
beings and a transcendent reality.
 ROLE OF RELIGION IN ETHICS
 The ancient Greeks called it eudaimonia or happiness;
they believed happiness was brought about by living
one’s life in accordance with virtue – positive traits of
character. Virtue in the highest sense, in an adult who has
been brought up well, will not just involve good personal
habits such as courage and temperance, but also
friendship and justice and intellectual virtue.
 For Kant, he defended the idea of God as a basic
requirement of ethics - we ought to be virtuous and do
our duty. Kant believed virtue should be rewarded by
happiness, and it would be intolerable if it were not so.
 We regard religion as a good source of basic moral
guidance, making it unwise to argue that there ought to
be no connection between religion and ethics.
 PHILIPPINE ETHICAL CHALLENGES
AND ISSUES
1. Death Penalty. Philippines used to have and follow this law but abolished later
on. But President Duterte said he wanted Congress to restore the death penalty
- by hanging - for convicts involved in illegal drugs, gun-for hire syndicates,
and for those who commit “heinous crimes” like rapists and robbers who kill
their victims.
Ethically speaking only guilty people deserved to be punished; guilty people
deserved to be punished commensurate to the degree of the crime committed.
In a moral sense,this argument states that real justice requires people to suffer
for their wrongdoing in a way appropriate to the crime committed.
2. War on Illegal Drugs
The question in mind, “Is killing drug users, pushers,
and drug lords acceptedas a legitimate defense to defend
the Filipinos and the Philippines?”
Probably with the foregoing contention, a moral
evaluation should beestablished in accordance to the
degree of dependence and consequence derived from its
use and do not focus so much on the mere use of the
substance.
3. Corruption
Corruption plagues the customs administration, and
fraud routinely occurs for companies when filing import
and export documentation. The Anti-Graft and Corrupt
Practices Act criminalizes active and passive bribery,
extortion, abuse of office and conflicts of interest. Giving
gifts, except for gifts of insignificant value given in line
with local customs, is prohibited
6. Child Labor
Child labor is work that deprives children of their
childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is
harmful to physical and mental development.
Regardless of the benefits that one or group can
derive from child labor, child labor is still immoral and it
has to stop.
4. Human Trafficking
Trafficking in Persons” as the recruitment, transportation, transfer,
harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or
other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse
of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of
payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control
over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall
include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or
other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or services, slavery or
practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs. Forms of
human rafficking in the country include domestic servitude, forced labor,
debt bondage in the agricultural, fishing, and maritime industries.
5. Bribery
Bribery of public officials is penalized under Articles 210 to 212 of the
Revised Penal Code. Same as in Republic Act 6713 (The Code of
Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees) which
prohibits public officials and employees from soliciting or accepting,
directly or indirectly, any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan or
anything of monetary value from any person: (a) in the course of their
official duties; or (b) in connection with any operation being regulated by,
or any transaction which may be affected by, the functions of their office.
The act in all forms is a misconduct mutually violated by the giver and the
recipient, it is an act of dishonesty and disregard to public norms.
7. Nepotism in the Workplace
Nepotism as the practice of those with power (perhaps your boss or
manager), showing favoritism towards friends or family; usually by
way of giving them a job or benefits (Wheatley,2016)
It means that the allocation and distribution of appointments in the
government is on the basis of kinship; it is the sibling of patronage
which shows discretionary favors in exchange for political support
and to support a particular group, and the hiring or promotion of a
family member (including in-laws).
 OTHER ETHICAL QUESTIONS

Bioethics is a practical approach to protect, evaluate or

resolve possible moral problems in the application of
new and advance medical practices intended to provide
patients with appropriate medical benefits to achieving
their best interest and goals.
1. Cosmetic Surgery. Popularly, cosmetic surgery is a medical
practice that aims to improve physical appearance in order to
enhance one’s personality; to restore damaged parts of the
body such as fatal physical injuries due to car accident,
explosion or other injuries inflicted by individuals; and to
restore or upgrade parts of the body like facelift, the removing
of wrinkles, breast augmentation, among others.
2. Mutilation. It is a direct action to injure particular part
of the body that can possibly compromise the normal
functioning of the body
(Amputation, organ transplant…)
Forms of mutilation – sterilization and plastic
surgery
QUESTIONS ON HUMAN SEXUALITY?

1. Premarital Sexual Relationship.

2. Extramarital Sexual Relationship. committed only by
married people, and is considered as infidel and unjust
action against the children, faithful partner, protocol of
the state, and doctrine of the church. (Adultery and
concubinage)
3. Beastiality. It is a sexual contact with any kinds of
animals, a lewdness act even graver than any other
sexually perverted acts. It is, therefore, immoral.
4. Rape is not just a perverted act but a heinous crime
violating a public law.
5. Homosexuality is the mutual sexual attraction between the
same genders where male and male, female and female are
emotionally and physically involved with one another.
6. Masturbation. It ethically lacks the necessary
considerations that foster mutual love, respect and the
realization of self-giving and procreation called for by the
moral order.
7. Incest in essence is an act of rape because the perpetrator
abuses his power over his daughter or younger sister.
8. Violence holds no boundaries; at home, school,
community, and even in religious organizations. This can
even lead to more serious moral problems such as murder,
injury to persons, torture, discrimination, and grave threat
to human lives.