At the end of this chapter, the learners are expected to:

1. Examine culture and its effect to people;

2. Evaluate the meaning cultural relativism and its influence to people;

3. Explain why cultural relativism is impossible tool in making moral judgment; and

4. Determine the unique Asian and Filipino culture in the context of ethics.

Your father is dying in the hospital. You learn from your teachers in a sectarian school
that euthanasia is wrong. Because it lessens the value of human life and is a direct
assault to God's law. But, it is a long practice in your clan to ask help from your family
doctor a "quick and good death." This will easily terminate the patient's suffering and the
bloating hospital bill, and it gives the patient a decent and dignified death. What will you
do?

People Have Different Ethical Opinions

Human beings do not always agree on how they should behave or act in issues,
especially controversial issue like "am I going to kill criminals, because they are menace
in society's peace and order?" Some people say yes, and support death penalty, while
others say no, because it violates human rights. How does this diversity of opinion
arise? Part of the answer is that people go about their ethical reasoning in different
ways. Some place great emphasis on religious tenets and sacred books; others consult
their conscience; others think of the consequence of their actions, others on following
one's duties or authorities like parents, and others follow their virtues or cultures. In
other words, different people give greater weight to different sources of moral authority.
So, ethics, begins by identifying some of the ways by which people arrive at their moral
positions. What they believe in doing something? What 'lens' are they using?

For example, the son's father is dying in the hospital. He learns from his teachers
in his school that euthanasia is wrong. But his family tradition is opposed to the teaching
of the school. So between these two institutions, family tradition and school, with two
different point-of-views; which point-of-view will prevail? The family employs the lens of
their tradition which is not conservative, while the school uses the lens of religion which
is very conservative. The family may say, "it is not correct to kill a dying person, but who
are we to judge that it is unethical? The patient requests for it and he has the right for
his own life." The school officials may say, "it is not correct to kill a dying person, even
though in the name of his long standing tradition. It is a sin against God" The practice is
unethical, period. These two responses reflect two different understanding of ethics.
The sectarian school sees ethics as comparable to physical sciences that focuses on
non-living things like physics, chemistry or mathematics. Since there are unchanging
laws in physical science, there also exist definite ethical codes which are similarly
unalterable or unchanging, fix or permanent. For example, even if the person denies the
existence of gravity, it does not mean that gravity does not exist, he or she may call it
anything - a magnet, a force or an energy; or even if the person denies that water boils
at 100 degree centigrade, it does not mean that water does not boil at 100 degree
centigrade even when it is on top of Mount Apo or in the lowest point of Manila, the
water boils at 100 degree centigrade. At the same time, there are ethical standards that
are fixed or unchanging. They exist, even if the person doesn't think or aware of it. They
can be applied to all situations anytime. Like in the case of murder; some people believe
that murder is always wrong. It is morally wrong to kill people in any occasion. Because
it violates the right of every human being to 'life' and the right of every individual for a
'due process.’

However, there are people who can't accept this reasoning, because their ethical
view is not analogous to physical science, but to cultural anthropology. In cultural
anthropology, the focus is on the dissimilarity of people due to their different cultures.
This may conclude that each culture has its own ethical codes which are different from
the rests. In the case of killing, it may be true that killing is morally wrong but not always,
only on some occasions. Like, it is always wrong to kill an unborn potential human being
that is direct abortion. But not in self-defense. Because every human being's duty is to
protect his or her life from an aggressor or danger. However, not all direct abortion can
be considered as morally wrong, like in the case of 'ectopic' pregnancy, where the life of
the mother is in danger because the fetus grows outside the placenta.

Effects of culture to people

In Baguio City, eating dog meat is not forbidden, it is their tradition, the natives
there will assert; whereas in Manila to eat dog meat is taboo, except for those people
who can bend the rules. In other countries like Singapore a person will be apprehended
by authorities, if they see him or her spitting in public places because it is illegal. He or
she will be fined with a maximum amount of $1000. In the Philippines, people can spit
or even vomit anywhere in public places and nobody will apprehend him or her. In
Libya, Algeria or Qatar, the local residents will not serve you pork, because it is against
their religion, which is Islam. But not in the Philippines or in Hong Kong, where the
locals can even eat a whole "roasted pig". All these rules and regulations are related to
culture.

Whether a person likes it or not, culture influences his or her way of seeing
realities; or his or her way of understanding things. Like in religion, a Catholic who prays
in front of an image of a saint is a form of thanking God, but to non-Catholic Christians,
like the Protestants, it is 'idolatry.'

Culture is learned the moment person is immersed into it. It is transmitted or

passed from one generation to the next through socialization or enculturation. Such as,
the use of 'chopsticks', before the Filipinos don't mind it, but today more and more
Filipinos use it.

The culture of 'social media.' It is like a 'gas,' that seep into the person's life and
community, like in politics. In fact, a person will only need a laptop to make a political
campaign, it happened in 2016 Philippine National Election. If the person wishes to talk
to his or her relatives abroad, he or she just use the Facebook' or Skype.' It is
undeniable true today, that the world is very much influenced by 'Internet culture'. And
the borderlines between individuals are getting closer and closer due to 'Internet.
Besides, our personal and cultural moral principles in life are being challenged or tested
by this fast global change.

We also notice that the moment 'culture' is infused in the person's lives it
becomes inseparable. Before, Filipino youth are very respectful, they say 'mano po', po
at opo' and 'salamat po'. But because of the threshold of western cultures, the
'respectful' behaviors of some Filipinos are gradually disappearing. However, Filipina
women before are 'demure', now they are very 'bold', 'aggressive' or 'extrovert'. They
join rallies against misbehaving government officials and adhere to their advocacies. In
other words, when foreign culture comes in, just get ready, because surely some will get
lost or change in us, but something will be gained.

Indeed, every human group or society has different way society has different
ways of living and expressing their lives. That is why, people with different culture have
different behaviors and that affect even its moral code. Even inside the family circle, our
family also influences our lifestyle.

Thinking about how culture influences morals raises several questions. What are
good and bad? What is proper and improper? What culture is better? And what
behavior is correct?

A popular British poet, Samuel Butler (1835-1902) on one occasion says that
morality is the way of life in one country and the present sentiment of a friend. Ethical
codes for Butler also change, but it takes a long period of time before it happens. For
example, in the 'Scripture there are clear instructions regarding slave supervision, since
it is accepted practice at that time. Now slavery is a crime. Thus, ethical values and way
of thinking also changed in time.
 Culture influences morality, and morality influences culture. But they don't always
agree. So like the "clash of the Titans," the issue never ends.

In the past, a person goes to the post office and send his or her letters. Today,
just open the computer and the letters are sent to the relatives through electronic mail or
e-mail. If sending of letters are being changed, ethical views are also changing. In the
case of the son whose father is on a deathbed, the school's perspective holds the view
of an objectivist. Whereas, the family holds the view of a subjectivist. The objectivist
believes that universal law which is permanent and independent of the mind exist.
Whereas, the subjectivist believe that universal law does not exist, laws are changing
and dependent on one's worldview.

Let's see the difference between the two views and begin with the most
controversial, which is cultural relativism.

Cultural Relativism

Truth is never an objective reality says Danish Physicist Niels Bohr (1885-1962),
but a subjective one (Popova, 2018).

The concept of cultural relativism is coined and used by a German American

anthropologist Franz Boas (1858 - 1942) in the early 20th century in his research. It is
made to counter the concept of ethnocentrism, which depicts discrimination of one
group of people to another group of people by saying that "my culture is the best among
many cultures."

Briefly, a relativist believes that an analogy from physical sciences does not
accurately reflect the situation in ethics. The wide diversity of moral codes and the fast
changes in our cultural mores show that there is no one definitively correct moral code.
Ethical judgements are always judgement from a certain moral perspective, with no one
perfective necessarily any better than another.

Cultural relativism is the notion that universal moral code or universal law does
not exist, and therefore all moral codes are equally valid and no one is better than the
other existing moral principles. Moral codes are different from culture to culture. What is
right to one society can be wrong to another society. In this regard, any view on morality
is subject to the cultural point of view of a person. For example, there are countries
where being "nude" is just normal in public, like beaches or swimming pools in Morocco
or in some parts of United States, because they don't consider it 'sexual' or 'carnal' so it
is not wrong. But there are countries who disallow this practice, because they regard it
as 'sexual' or 'carnal' like in the Middle East so for them it is wrong.
 Cultural relativism is a popular position in the world today. Concepts like
"globalization" "pluralism," "open-mindedness," and "acceptance" have attained novel
dimensions from various cultures. Sometimes the way they are used expresses various
positions that justify anything under the word 'relativism' which insinuates unsteadiness
and vagueness into areas that were formerly regarded as established. For example, the
concept of human rights, which is based on absolute and eternal law, there are many
countries today question its very nature, role and existence, like in the Philippines,
under the Duterte administration.

On the affirmative side, cultural perspective assists a person to know why certain
human behaviors are considered 'good' or 'evil' by a specific culture. For example,
body-tattoos are used in one culture as symbols of bravery and peculiarity of a certain
tribe, whereas in other culture it is linked to convicts or ex-convicts. Now, most modern
societies will find body-tattoos normal while others consider them as not normal.
However, there are places which consider tattoos taboo, because of health issue, like
the possibility of transmitting wrongly people's blood with human immunodeficiency
virus (HIV) or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).

Cultural relativism is a big 'headache' if reasoning is faulty. Anybody may say that
ethical codes of other cultures must be recognized, but it can also be understood as
judging the ethical codes of other cultures is wrong. Thus it is impossible to say that
anything a culture does is right or wrong. So, from the case of the son's dying father, we
can't say if the school's view is "wrong" or the family's tradition is "right." This makes an
ethical discussion really problematic, chaotic and sometimes, non-sense.

Some people will say that cultural relativism is impossible tool in making moral
judgement because of the following reasons:

1. A cultural relativist loses the chance to make judgements whether an action or

behavior is "right" or "wrong. Often what is right to a relativist is wrong to non-relativist,
and what is wrong to a relativist is right to a non-relativist. Thus it is difficult for a
relativist to make a general moral judgment.

2. Cultural relativist accepts conflicting beliefs or practices which insinuates unclear

stands for all types of views. But some people disagree to it, especially on issues
pertaining to "human rights" violation, like raping and killing a child. This is completely
morally wrong,

3. A cultural relativist's reasoning is illogical. If the relativist will say that, truth is relative,
and it is valid then, this statement is absolutely correct. But this statement opposes the
idea of cultural relativism and therefore, absolute truth exist
4. A cultural relativist believes that there are right and wrong actions. If these are
absolutely true, then absolute or universal law exists.

Thus as a conclusion, cultural relativists can't simultaneously go with logic

because there is no room for both of them to come together. Other philosophers will
admit, that universal moral code does exist, because the world will be very messy
without it. And since there are big differences among many cultures, we can't think of a
specific group of people that will develop such notion. Indeed, the only locus of cultural
relativism in logical perspective is to start with something universal

Unique Asian and Filipino Culture

Asians have something in common, like the Internet addiction among

adolescents. Over and above, Asians are family and duty oriented people that bring
about the virtues of obedience and loyalty in them, which is vital for their survival in this
ever changing world. Thus, for Asians, including the Filipinos respect to parents and
elders in the family circle as well as to the elders in the community or even in society, is
very much visible and practice. And sincere tangible to Asian people, then we can say
that the best starting point of good ethics in Asia is 'respect' (A Little Adrift Jr. by Ana,
2012).

Everyone, no one is exempted, especially Asian kids as well heard from their
parents and also in media, the statement. "Respect your elders!” Of course, parents
were not only referring to grandparents and elders, but also to our sometimes
authoritarian older brothers or relatives who were very autocratic or oppressive.
However, parents will say, "It doesn't matter what they do to you, just respect them."
This shows everyone a certain level of respect for someone based on age. Though it
seems strange, ridiculous and crazy at times, Asian kids follow them.

Later, they become clever, older and inquisitive, they hear from other people the
rule saying, "Respect must be earned." "If someone didn't earn it or deserve it, they
didn't get it". At this stage, their understanding of respect progresses. But their
knowledge about it develops into two kinds - people or things are to be respected and
not to be respected. However, it becomes easy for them to identify those people who
will not be respected using their intuitions or feelings.

This is where ethics and respect are linked together. Their knowledge of respect
tells everybody to be patient, loving, understanding, peaceful, merciful and just to name
a few. From this point, they learn to respect even their enemy, persons with disability,
the senior citizens in their community, the socially disadvantaged, or even the
environment.
 Regarding environment, if we learn to respect them, then there will never be
"endangered species," more trees will absorb Carbon Dioxide, the Ozone layer will not
be ruined, greenhouse effect will be prevented, as well as, global warming and climate
change will be abated.

As a whole, everybody is taught to respect all persons and non-persons because

it means 'good behavior.' And 'good behavior' is equal to 'good conduct.' A person who
has 'good conduct is considered 'Ethical'. Thus, ethics needs people who are
respectable and knows how to respect. Thus, respect and ethics are complimentary to
each other.

Every time a person acts he or she makes a choice. He or she chooses between
'right' and 'wrong' in ethical problems often. Most of the times, it can be exasperating
and baffling to constantly concentrate on the "nitty-gritty" of the ethical dilemma and the
ambiguous spot, to escape the moral mess. And the only way to do it is approaching
ethics from the vantage point of 'respect. It will give him or her a novel and lucid
perspective and with profound knowledge of what is really happening around him or her.

For example, while in the restroom, a student overhears a female teacher telling
a colleague that his classmate Anton, will fail in her subject. Anton is his good friend.
Will he tell Anton what he heard? This ethical dilemma is difficult to handle, and most of
the students will choose to tell Anton what they hear. However, if they respect their
teacher, they will not tell what they hear from the conversation, especially they just
overhear it, it is not proper. They can possibly tell Anton to talk to their teacher, period.
What the students can also possibly do is to keep quiet and let the thing be done by
their teacher. For the reason that they don't even know the whole story why Anton will
flunk. They will just speculate and aggravate the entire situation. Look at the issue with
respect. Do we respect our teacher? Do we respect our school's rules and regulations?
Do we respect our friend and classmate? No matter what seemingly valid excuse we
have, seeing it as a respect issue prevents us from making troubles or justifications.
Anyways, perhaps the teacher has her own way of doing things right and let's hope it is
also based on 'respect'.

So we may ask ourselves, is it respectful to abuse school facilities or leave our

garbage inside our classroom because it does not de our classroom because it does not
belong to us? Is it respectful for our classmates to clean our dirt? Is it respectful not to
mu using it knowing that other people will also use lean our dirt? Is it respectful not to
flush the toilet bowl after owing that other people will also use it? The question of
respect applies to almost every kind of ethical situation or dilemma.
 Be reminded that, if we respect authorities it does not mean we will not Victims
against unjust and oppressive situations. Remember there is no better tool to remove
an oppressor, pacify an angry customer or correct an unjust system than to respond
with respect and professionalism; it way to be ethical in society, however it is not the
only way.

Anatomy of 'Respect'

Respect is known as a basic human right, thus it is a necessary ingredient of the

"self" and of inter-personal rapport. If we fail to respect people, then it results to fighting,
fragmentation and violence. For example, if parents don't respect their children, their
children won't respect them either.

Respect is derived from the Latin word "respectus." It refers to a person's

attentiveness to oneself, others, environment and society. It can also m for or a sense of
the worth or excellence of a person, a personal quality or ability, or something
considered as a manifestation of a personal quality or ability.

It also refers to our ability to give value and honor to the person, in deeds and
words, in spite of our disapproval sometimes to his or her m our ability to accepting the
other person's behavior and not in ng the other person's behavior and not just trying to
change them. Respecting another person is not judging them by their attitudes or
thoughts. It is does not expect for someone to be different or to change.

Our uniqueness creates our identity. It means we are different to one another.
More than anything else, as members of a society we are equal. All people are due for
respect for the simple reason of being unique. Equality keeps us in an equilibrium. For
this reason, it is very important for parents to teach their children from an early age the
value of mutual respect. The best way for them to teach respect become a role model
for their children and to people around them. Respect for others is very important, but
respect for oneself is fundamental since it means we give value to ourselves and to the
extent we are moved to give value to others. An old saying goes, "don't do what you
don't want to be done to you".

What are some synonyms of respect? - Deference, obedience, attention,

courtesy, tolerance, compliance, or admiration.

Importance of Respect

Respect is important for several reasons:

1. Conflict and restlessness in a web of relationship. Respect is necessary when we
communicate with others and to pacify conflicts.

2. It is necessary to feel safe and to express ourselves without fear of being judged,
humiliated or discriminated against

3. To increase our self-esteem, self-efficacy, mental health, and well-being.

Teaching Respect to children

Teaching children, in deeds and in words, to respect people and things is the first
step to learn respect. Such as,

1. If you wish to say something to children say it calmly and don't shout at them.

2. Don't ridicule your children or insult them in front of friends and strangers. If children
misbehave ask the question, "What have I done wrong?"

3. Parents should not think they must always be respected by the young ones. Parents
should also respect their children, too. Children learn respect if they experience it from
their parents.

4. Don't let your children see you being disrespected by other people, and don't let your
children disrespect you. Be an exemplar for them.

5 Set limits always. When teaching respect, it is important to set boundaries on what is
right and wrong for children. When they behave disrespectfully, point out the behavior,
calmly, without shouting.

6. Teach your children say "sorry" and ask apology when they are wrong, it is humility.

7. Give rewards to your children whenever they are respectful or congratulate them
when they do good things to others, but do it from the heart.

Being respectful is a nice behavior and a cultural practice among Asians. They
still practice this beautiful character until now. For example, the Japanese, Koreans and
Chinese still bow their heads as a gesture of respect. The Malays placing a hand in the
center of their chest. The Filipinos say 'opo and po'. Maintaining these remarkable
behaviors and gestures as Asians, we can make a difference in this world.

Besides, Asians also respect their environment, by preserving their forests and
endangered species, cleaning their seas and rivers and using renewable energy to a
few, to preserve mother earth. "Respect!!!" is what we always hear from d various
movements up to our leaders. Respect is the term that will remind us that we are all
living in one planet - our only home. And it is a call for us to be conscious of our
"interconnectedness".

Indeed, we are living in a world where everyone is interconnected, like the

human body. One scientist say the human person is a microcosm in macrocosm. We
are the little world in a bigger world. And as what the Bible says (1 Corinthians 12:12-
27), we are like one body with many parts. And if one part is in pain, the whole body is
affected.

Summary

Culture influences the person's way of seeing realities. It shapes the person's
entire life, and way of interpreting realities, including what is right and wrong. Thus,
culture reflects the ethical standards that tells how people should behave and relate with
others. Since different people have different culture, therefore, people vary in their
ethical opinions. Some cultures believe in objectivism others in subjectivism.
Objectivism is a belief system that accepts the existence of an eternal and permanent
law which is obligatory for all to follow in any situation. While subjectivism is it’s
opposite, and believes that laws are not permanent and eternal. It changes from one
culture to another. The German-American anthropologist, Franz Boas, uses the terms
cultural relativism as a form of subjectivism. However, some philosophers oppose the
idea presented by Boas because the principles in cultural relativism are conflicting.
Anyways, the only way to accept cultural relativism is to begin with something objective
or universal, that is, to start with respect. Respect is the best starting point of ethics.